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HON. WILLIAM LAWvENCE, 
REPRESENTATtXE. FROM OHiO 






' /; 

i' ^ ' 

40Tn Congress, ) HOUSE OF EEPEESEUTATIYES. / Eeport 
Zd Session . j ) Xo. 31. 



NEW YOEK ELECTION FEAUDS. 



Fjsrruary 23, 1869.—Ordered to be jDrinted, with the views of the minority. 


. Ccrx-'^ .A 

Mr. Wm. Lawrence, of Oliio,%om the Select Committee on Alleged 
New York Election Frauds, submitted the following 

R E F O R T. 


[The numbers in the foot-notes refer to the numbers of questions and answers in the volume of evidence 

accompauying this report. ] 


PART 1. 


THE EVILS DEMANDING A EEMEDY. ... 



CHAPTEE I. 



The committee was charged with the duty of iiiYestigating ^‘the 
irregularities and frauds alleged to have occurred in the city and State 
of New York, alfecting the recent election for reiiresentatives to Con¬ 
gress and electors of President and Vice-President.^^^ 

This duty is one of the highest political imiiortance. Irregularities 
and fraud in the election of representatives to Congress and electors of 
President and Vice-President cannot fail to excite just alarm in the 
minds of the people. Unless their will can be fully and fairly exxiressed 
in the election of the officers who are to make and execute laws, the 
Antal princii)les ufion which the government rests are set at defiance, 
and soon we may follow the fate of France, Avhere imperial poAver 
was welcomed as the oidy means of peace, or the anarchy of contending 
factions, so fatal to Mexico, may close the career of our great republic. 
With us it is a political axiom that governments derive ^Hheir just pow- 


^ This investigation was set on foot in pursuance of “ a memorial of a committee of the 
Union League club of the City of New York,” presented in the Senate and House of Rep¬ 
resentatives December 14, 1868, (Senate Mis. Doc. No. 4, 3d session 40th Congress.) This 
club numbers about 1,300 members, composed of gentlemen many of whom are distinguished 
for their learning, ability, and devotion to the interests of the republic. No stain of dishonor 
rests upon this organization or any of its members connected with the recent election. It is 
an organization which has rendered valuable service in various ways, including its prompt 
and energetic measures to detect and prevent fraud and secure the purity of the ballot. Its 
history is, and will doubtless continue to be, a part of that of the republic. It is proper to 
say this association has no connection with the organization known as “The Union League.” 
The prominent historical democratic political organizations in New York city are “ Tam¬ 
many Hall,” “Mozart Hall,” and the “ Democratic Union.” 












2 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ers from the consent of the governed.’’ It has been forcibly said that 

the fabric of American empire ought to rest on the solid basis of 
tlie consent of the people. The streams of national power ought to 
flow" immediately from that pure original fountain of all legitimate 
authority.”^ 

Ijj the Constitution the House of Eepresentatives is composed of 
members “ chosen every second year by the i^eople of the several States.” 
(Art. 1, sec. 2.) 

Congress may at any time bylaw make or alter regulations prescribed 
in the States by the iegislatures thereof, as to the times, places, and 
manner of holding elections for representatives. (Art. 1, sec. 4.) 

As Congress is thus clothed with the high prerogative of supervising 
the election of representatives, it is not only eminently proper, but it is 
an imperative duty that this body should by all proper means ascertain 
when irregularities or fraud exist in the' election of its members, so 
that the people, apprised of evils, may avert them in the future, by per¬ 
sonal vigilance, by making and enforcing proper legislative provisions 
in the States, and above all so that Congress shall apply remedies by 
adequate law s efficiently enforced. A republican government that can¬ 
not preserve the purity of the ballot is a failure j one which will not is a 
fraud, and is already resolved into anarchy. 

If as is alleged^ the ‘^precipitate communication of the privileges of citi¬ 
zenship to the inhabitants of Italy at large” contributed to the dowuifall 
of Home, or if the same causes scourged Syracuse by “ perpetual sedition,” 
how^ much greater will be the dangers that may environ our own republic if 
elections are to be controlled by fraudulent votes cast in the interest of 
anarchy and misrule ? 

The nation must speedily perish if law-makers, under pretence of deriv¬ 
ing their powder from legal voters, are suffered to become the representa¬ 
tives of conspiracy and fraud at elections. Successful election frauds in 
one great city may decide the political majority of a Congress, of a State, 
or of the nation in a i^residential election. If tliey may succeed in one 
locality the evil will become contagious, until it pervades the whole body 
politic; elections will cease to reflect the public judgment, and soon, if 
the evil is permitted to go on unchecked, they will become rival contests 
of fraud, commanding neither confidence nor respect at home or abroad. 
Powder obtained by fraud will not scruple to periietuate itself by like 
means, nor will it hesitate to rob the people by corruj)tion and schemes 
of plunder to accomiilish its aims. 

If evils like these may come, or if a republic in name cannot or will 
not be so in fact; if the popular voice is to be hushed and x)owerless 
before the mockery of elections conducted in the name of the people, 
but reflecting only the purposes of terrorism and fraud, then revolution 
will be speedily invited, and the great republic may crumble to atoms. 

If Congress or the people could be insensible of, or indifferent to, the 
evils of fraudulent elections, it Avould not argue well for their patriotism, 
nor would it augur Avell for the permanency of our natiouality. Fortu¬ 
nately our past and present history proves that the great body of the 
people are alive to the necessity of preserving the purity of the ballot; 
but it is to be deiflored that the evidences are abundant that elections 
have too frequently been carried by fraudulent means in defiance of the 
popular will, and that existing laws are wholly inadequate to prevent a 
repetition of similar results. 

2 Number 22, Federalist; 7 Hamilton’s History of the Republic, 379; 2 Contested Elec¬ 
tion Cases. 262. 

3 7 Hamilton’s works, 774. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3 


If tlie iiiYestigatioiis of tliis committee sliall arouse public attention 
to some of the dangers wliich tlireaten onr institutions, the cause of good 
government will be promoted thereby. If these investigations show 
that State laws in their structure and mode of enforcement are wholly 
inadequate and cannot be relied on, then the duty of prescribing con¬ 
gressional safegnards, to preserve the purity of the ballot for national 
officers, is manifest. With a view to ascertain what is demanded by pub¬ 
lic interests, we may appropriately consult the lessons afforded by his¬ 
tory, and especially those taught by experience in our own complex 
systems of government. 

In every country where popular suffrage has existed it has been found 
necessary to legislate against election frauds.^ 

The State of ilew York has been prolific in election frauds® at various 


■*In “Rogers’s Law and Practice of Elections,” (7th edition, 1847,) is a collection of the 
English election laws, commencing with the statute of A. D. 1382, 5 Richard II, stat. 2, 
cap. 4, and ending with the elaborate statute of May 31, 1843, 6 Victoria, cap, 18. 

In 3 Edward I, cap. 5, it is enacted: “Because elections ought to be free the King com- 
mandeth, upon great forfeiture, that no man, by force of arms, nor by malice, nor menacing, 
shall disturb any to make free election.”—2 Inst., 168. 

By statute 13 Henry IV, c 7, it is required that, “ sheriffs and justices of the peace 
shall repress riots with the power of the county.” 

The statute 1 W. &■ M., sess. 2, c. 2, s. 1, after reciting as one of the grounds of the 
abdication of James “the violating of the freedom of elections of members to serve in 
Parliament,” declares “that elections of members of Parliament ought to be free.” 

The statute of 7 William III recites “grievous complaints of undue election of members of 
Parliament by excessive and exorbitant expenses,” and affixes penalties for bribing voters. 

By sec. 83 of the statute of 6 Victoria, cap. 18, it is made penal for any person to “know- 
ingly personate and falsely assume to vote in the name of any other person, whether such 
other person be living or dead, or if the name of said other person be the namsof a fictitious 
person.” 

^ In the assembly of the State of New York, on the 6th of April, 1838, the judiciary com¬ 
mittee reported in relation to elections in that State that— 

Men vote who do not reside in the ward, often not in tlie State; aliens are frequently brought to the polls 
and their votes imposed upon the inspectors although many of them have not been a week in the country, and 
voters are not unfrequeutly taken from poll to poll, voting in three or four different wards at the same elec¬ 
tion. These are the frauds constantly practiced at our elections, to the disgrace of the State and to the mani¬ 
fest wrong of the whole country. (Assembly Documents, New York, 61 sess., 1838, vol. 6, Rep. No. 324.) 

The reports of the Judiciary Committee of the Senate of the United States, submitted Jan¬ 
uary 27 and March 3, 1845, abundantly prove the existence of great frauds in the presiden¬ 
tial election of 1844. It is here shotvn that “ repeating” was then practiced. (See Berrien’s 
report, pp. 82, 84, 91, 95, 138.) Senate Docs., second session twenty-eighth Congress, vol. 
9, 1844-’45; Report No. 173. 

On the 1st of April, 1857, a committee reported to the assembly of New York that the 
ballot— 

Still fails to be a true reflection of the will of the people. It is said to be true that its guardian, so far from 
protecting it, became the medium of its corruption, and made its results such as they might desire instead of 
the honestly expressed sentiment if the ballot had been left undisturbed, or the inspector, either himself or by 
others, putting in unauthorized ballots enough of an opposite character to outweigh and .smother those hon¬ 
estly deposited. So skilfully and adroitly are these frauds perpetrated that the offenders are rarely detected, 
and if detected, political sympathy or prejudice loses the guilty one from the punishment he merits. (Doc. 
No. 197, 80th session, 1857, vol. 3, assembly of New York.) 

Governor King, of New York, in bis first annual message, in referring to the “elective 
franchise,” said: 

All know that in the city of New York, and measurably in other large cities, it is not pure and often is not 
free. (Report No. 109, vol. 4, Docs, of assembly of New York, 81st sess,, 1858.) 

And on the 20th of March, 1858, a select committee reported to the assembly that— 

Of late years fraud and simulation at the ballot-box have become extensive and enormous. No sane man 
will deny this; no man can controvert this fact; the evidence of its existence is as manifest and notorious as 
any well-known truth. It is true this evil is still in its infancy, but it is none the less important that a remedy 
should be speedily devised. (Ib.) 

The legislature of New York finally enacted the registry laws of May 13, 1865, and April 
25, 1866, which have failed to secure the purity of the ballot-box. 



4 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


f 


times; while Louisiana,® Maryland/and other States have presented 
many phases of the same evils. 

But appalling and startling as these have been in oiw past history, 
they are all surpassed in some respects by those per])etrated in the 
general election in the State, and especially in the city of isew York, 
on the 3d of November, 18(18. 

These frauds were the result of a systematic plan of gigantic propor¬ 
tions, stealthily prearranged and boldly executed, not merely by bands 
of degraded desperadoes, but with the direct sanction, approval, or aid 
of many prominent officials and citizens of Yew York, with the shrewdly- 
concealed connivance of others, and almost without an effort to discour¬ 
age or prevent them by any of those in whose interest and political 
party associations they were snccessfnlly executed, who could not fail to 
have cognizance of them, and whose duty it was to expose, defeat, and 
punish them. 

They Avere aided by an immeiise, corrupt, and corrupting official i)atron- 
age and i^ower, AAdiich not only encouraged, but shielded and protected, 
the guilty principals and their aiders and abetters. 

These frauds are so Anried in character that they comprehend CA^ery 
knoAAUi crime against the electlAX^ franchise. They corrupted the admin¬ 
istration of justice, degTaded the judiciary, defeated the execution of 
tlie laAvs^ snbA^erted for the time being in YeAv York State the essential 
principles of popular government; robbed the people of that great State 

•’A special committee of the iiouse of representatives of Louisiana appointed to examine 
into frauds perpetrated in the presidential election of 1844, reported that the testimony estab¬ 
lished— 

Beyond doubt that the election in Plaquemines for electors of President of the Uuited States in November 
last (18-14) was conducted in a lawless and irregiilar manner; that it was accompanied with turbulence, dis¬ 
order, threats, and violence on the part of the j)ublic officers and others, with intent to intimidate and influence 
voters ; and that it was fraught with illegal votes, with fraud and corrujjtion, and wdth a fatal disregard of the 
laws of the laud, of morality and religion. 

About (iOO illegal votes were polled in the parish. (Senate Docs., 2d session, 28tli Con¬ 
gress, vol. 9, 1844-’45; Berrien’s Reports.) 

A jx)int committee of the general assembly of Louisiana-made a report to that body, Jan¬ 
uary 5, 1869, in relation to the elections in 1868 in that State, in which they say: 

In most parts of the State a systematic series of outrages, robberies, and murders were committed on the 
loyal people with the avowed intention of intimidating, and thus forcing them to abstain from voting, aud of 
driving out of the country the republican leaders. Organized efforts were set on foot to compel the laborers 
of the State to vote the democratic ticket under penalty of not obtaining employment and even of being dis¬ 
charged from work in violation of exi^^tiDg contracts. Colored men were threatened with death unless they 
would accept of ■what were termed “ protection papers,” setting forth that they •were members of some demo¬ 
cratic club and would ■wear Seymour and Blair badges. Boards of registration and supervisors of election 
were threatened repeatedly, in a large number of parishes, with death, shot at, and by various hrsvless pro¬ 
ceedings either driven from their jiarishes or prevented from making a complete and fair registration. * * 

The civil authorities in niiiny parishes seem to have been used only as additional machinery for the commission 
of further and worse outrages upon those whotn it was their duty to protect. The committee are informed 
that in some parishes a man could not live 24 hours who would attempt to prosecute parties guilty of these 
murders; that in others, an affidavit ■would no sooner be made out against the guilty parties than the officer 
himself before whom it was made ■would send information of the facts to the accused parties, that they might 
escape. These outrages were not the work of rowdies and roughs; their influential movers aud backers were 
men called respectable and influential. (Pp. 5, G.) 

And see evidence before the Committee on Reconstruction relative to affairs in Georgia 
aud Mississippi, December, 1868, A:c. Speech of Hon. J. P. Newsham, of Louisiana, in 
Congress, February 2, 1869. 

’ In the case of Whyte rs. Harris, 2 Contested Election Cases, 257, the Committee on 
Elections of the House of Representatives reported that at the congressional election in Bal¬ 
timore, in November, 1857— 

A'iolence, tumult, riot, and general lawlessness prevailed. That as a consequence the reception of illegal 
votes and the rejection of legal votes, the acts of disturbance and assault committed on peaceable citizens, and 
the intimidation of voters so predominated as to destroy all confidence in the election as being the expression 
of the free voice of the people, of that congressional district. Bands of desperadoes have there been organized 
and used to aid political objects and parties dangerous, if not wholly destructive of personal safety and public 
order. It seems mainly to have been directed against citizens of foreign birth. Native-born American citi¬ 
zens as well as those of foreign birth were abused, maltreated, aud their lives put in jeopardy upon approach¬ 
ing the polls. 

This was then the only case of the kind ever presented in Congress. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5 


of tlieir rig’lltfiil choice of electors of President and Yice-Presidentj of 
a governor, and other officers; disgraced the most populous city of the 
Union; encouraged the enemies of republican government here and 
everywhere to deride our institutions as a foilure, and endangered the 
peace of the republic by an attempt to defeat the will of the people in 
the choice of their rulers. 

The events of the past year in i^ew York and the evidence taken by 
the committee furnish the proof of all these allegations. 

Among the most prominent of the frauds committed in the interest of 
the democratic party in the city and State of New York in connection 
with the election in November, 1808, are these: 

1. Many thousands of aliens fraudulently procured or were furnished 
with certificates of naturalization illegally or fraudulently issued, by 
means of which they were enabled to register as voters and voted in 
violation of law. 

2. Many hundreds of certificates of naturalization were granted in the 
names of fictitious persons, to be used by native-born and naturalized 
citizens and aliens in falsely registering as voters, and to enable them to 
vote many times at the election. 

3. Many hundreds of persons voted in New York city from two to forty 
times or more, eacli under assumed or fictitious names, fraudulently reg¬ 
istered for the purpose. 

4. Extensive frauds were committed in canvassing tickets, and names 
of voters were entered on the poll-lists, and democratic tickets counted 
as if voters representing them voted, when no such persons voted at all. 

5. To accomi)lish these frauds gross neglect of duty and disregard of 
law so great as to evince a criminal purpose prevailed in some of the 
courts, while officers and democratic partisans of almost every grade, 
either by official influence or otherwise, aided, sanctioned, or knew of 
and failed to prevent them. The same influences shielded the perpe¬ 
trators in nearly all cases from detection or arrest, and when arrested 
they have, through the agency of judicial officers and others charged 
with the duty of prosecution, escaped all punishment. 

6. Through these agencies the democratic electors of President and 
Vice-President and the democratic candidate for governor of the State 
of New York were fraudulently elected. 

7. And the investigations of the committee show that existing State 
laws and the mode of enforcing them are wholly inadequate to prevent 
these, frauds, but that Congress has the power to enact laws Avhich, if 
faithfully executed, will to some extent furnish remedies hereafter. 

There is no law of Congress professing to prevent or i)unish frauds in 
voting or conducting elections, and the penalties relating to certificates 
of naturalization are by no means adequate. 

CHAPTEK II. 

I.— Naturalization frauds—General evidence of fraud and 

ILLEGALITY IN NATURALIZATIONS. 

1 .—The unusual number naturalized. 

Prior to the year 18G8 naturalizations were effected in State courts in 
New York city only in the court of common pleas and the superior court. 
The average number naturalized each year in the common pleas, from 


6 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK 


1856 to 1867, inclusive, was 5,252,^ and in the superior court 3,955,® or a 
total annual average of 9,207. 

The highest number in any one of these years, in hotli these courts, 
prior to 1865, Avas 16,493, in 1856. 

On the 6th of October, 1868, the supreme court commenced the work 
of naturalization.^® In the year 1868 these courts, as reported by some 
of their officers, naturalized as follows: 


In the common pleas. 3,145 

Superior court. 27, 897 

Suiweme^^ court in October. 19, 070 


Total. 41,112 


® Evidence, 6310: 

Number naturalized in 1856 


Do. 1857. 

Do.1858. 

Do. 1859 . 

Do.1860. 

Do.1861. 

Do.1862. 

Do.1863. 

Do.1864. 

Do.1865. 

Do.1866. 

Do.1867.. 

Do.1868.. 

Number naturalized October 1. 

Do.2. 

Do.5. 


9Evidence, 7202, Gillespie: 

Y ear. 

1856 . 

1857 . 

1858 .. 

1859 . 

1860 .. 

1861. 

1862. 


... 10,479 
... 6, 857 

... 4, 882 
... 5, 546 

... 8, 142 

... 2,935 
... 1,511 
... 1,762 

... 5,631 
... 4,154 

... 6,465 
... 4, 662 

... 3,145 
104 
95 
139 


Number naturalized October 6 . 


Do. 


Do. 

.8 

Do. 

.9 

Do. 

. 10 

Do. 

. 12 

Do. 

.13 

Do. 

.14 

Do. 

.15 

Do. 

.16 

Do. 

.17 

Do. 

.19 

Do. 

. 20 

Do. 

. 21 

Do. 

. 22 

Do. 

.23 


78 

57 

81 

91 

42 

157 

231 

149 

116 

85 

21 

105 

18 

16 

29 

31 


Number. Year. 


Number. 


. 6,014 

1863... 

. 2, 1.34 

1864... 

. li887 

1865... 

. 2,090 

1866... 

. 5,414 

1867... 

968 

1868... 

. 903 



871 
6 , 540 
3, 274 
6 , 558 
10, 814 
27, 897 


Westlake, a deputy clerk, says, (Evidence, 2022, 2429:) 

A. I present a statement giving the aggregate number of naturalization in that court for the months of 
January, February. March, April, May, June, July, August, and September, and the number naturalized 
each day from the 1st to the 23d of October, and the aggregate for the month of November and up to the 
24th of December, the total being 27,89?. The statement is as follows: 


1868. 

January. 

February . 

March. 

April. 

May. 

June. 

July. 

August.. 

September. 

October 1. 

October 2. 

October 3. 

October 5. 

Octol)er 6 . 

< tetober 7. 

October 8 . 

October 9. 


Number. 

1868. 

Number. 

84 

October 10.. 

. 1 653 

100 

October 12. 

. 1 ’ 856 

105 

October 13. 

. 1 ' 868 

140 

October 14. 

. 2 h 69 

108 

October 15. 

. 1 ] 420 

102 

October 16. 

. ij 112 

140 

October 17. 

. ' 840 

195 

October 19. 

. 1,026 

632 

October 20. 

. ij 004 

580 

October 21. 

.. '860 

745 

October 22. 

. 911 

840 

October 2.3. 

. 1,024 

. 1,425 

November. 

. ' 41 

. l'721 

December. 

. 24 

1 6.30 



. 1 ’842 

Total_ 

_ 27 8Q7 

. l! 760 

-^- 


Evidence, 1947, 5104. 


Evidence, 5104 : 


Number of persons naturalized in the supreme court of New York city, on the days hereinafter named. 


1868. 


October 6 . 6 

October 7. 8 

October 8 . 379 

October 9. 668 

October 10. 717 

October 12. 723 

October 13. 901 

October 14. 523 

October 15. 857 


1868. 


October 16. 721 

October 17. 633 

October 19. 955 

October 20. 944 

October 21. 773 

October 22. 675 

October 23. 587 


Total.10,070 

































































































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7 


This is more than four times the average of previous years, and about 
two and a lialf times greater than the largest number in any preceding 
year, and it is not possible that there conid have been any such number 
of legal applications.^^ 


An attempt is made to account for the great number of naturalizations by saying that the 
presidential election induced this, and that aliens did not become naturalized during the war, 
because they would be liable to be drafted into the military service. (Evidence, 3350,2820, 
3578,3519,2002,7533.) 

The naturalizations in the State courts of the city in I860 were 13,556, in 1859 only 7,636. 
But in the year ot the presidential election of 1864 the naturalizations were 12,171, so that 
the liability to military service did not materially diminish naturalization. The war practi¬ 
cally closed in April, 1865, so that three years intervened up to 1868, with an exciting guber¬ 
natorial election in 1866, in which year there were 13,023 naturalizations, and in 1867 there 
were 15,476, showing that any omissions during the war were now made up. It is abund¬ 
antly shown that the tear reduced the alien -population of the city, -many of whom enlisted in 
the military service, died of disease or casualties, and after the war located elsewhere. 

Evidence, 6311, 3741, 6952. 

See this report. Chapter VI, note to page —. 

Judge McCunn testi6e.s that “the men who went into the army from the city were princi¬ 
pally foreigners.” Evidence, 6953. 

The naturalizations of 1868 should have been reduced in consequence of this. 

The war, as shown by immigration statistics, diminished emigration from April, 1861, to 
April, 1865, and aliens arriving since it closed were not entitled to naturalization in 1868. 

The alien emigrants arriving at New York in 1830 were 105,162; in 1861, only 65,539; 
in 1862, only 76,306. For the four years of 1857 to 1860 inclusive, the yearly average was 
111,711, while the yearly average for three years, 1861 to 1863 inclusive, was only 99,569, 
and of those who did arrive and remain in New York many were withdrawn by the war. 
Of these emigrants only a small proportion remained in the State of New York, and still 
less in the city, and of those in the city many were women and children. The statistics of 
emigration for several years are as follows: 

Table shoicing the numbers and nativities of alien emigrants who arrived at the port of New 

York from May 5, 1847, to January 1, 1867. 


Nationality. 

1847. 

1848. 

1849. 

1850. 

1851. 

1852. 

1853. 

Ireland... 

52, 946 
53.180 
8 . 864 

2, 354 

3, 330 
1,947 
3, 611 

98, 061 

112, 591 
55, 705 

117, 038 
45, 535 
28,163 

163, 306 
69,919 
28, 553 
7, 302 
5, 964 

118,131 
118, 611 
31,551 

7, 694 

8 , 868 
6,471 

1, 223 

2, 531 
1,889 

113,164 
119, 644 
27,126 
6,456 
7, 470 
4, 604 
1,085 

Germany. 

56 973 
23, 062 
6,415 
2, 734 
1 , 622 
1,560 
1,054 
1, 207 

Nngland ... .. 

28! 321 

Scotland.. 

8 , 840 
2, 683 
1,405 
2,447 
1,782 
.3, 300 

6 , 772 
3, 462 

France. 

Switzerland. 

2, 380 
1, 174 
1, 520 
3,150 
1,110 
476 

4,499 
1,798 
2, 189 

Holland .... 

Wales. . 

'472 

l! 182 
377 

Norway ..... 

882 

2,112 

Sweden... 

1.39 

165 

6 007 
602 

872 

2 , 008 
3.59 

1,630 

553 

Italy . .... 

197 

321 

618 

Tlolgiiim __ ___ 

551 

118 

230 

475 

82 

34 

Spain. 

101 

253 

014 

257 

278 

471 

659 

"West Tndifts . ___ 

299 

.392 

449 

554 

575 

265 


Denmark... 

95 

52 

1.59 

90 

99Q 

1.57 

94 

Poland. 

26 

79 

1.33 

188 

422 

188 

186 

. 


172 

165 

98 

69 

72 

Smith Amerien..... 

i 

31 

33 

104 

121 

120 

175 

Portugal..... 

34 

57 

287 

65 

26 

37 

237 



151 

164 

81 

73 

6 

Pussia __.................. 

10 

28 

38 

18 

23 

33 

■39 




50 

61 

50 

48 


Afpivipo . . 


12 

23 

41 

42 

23 

51 

. 


21 

28 

12 

42 

37 

t’hina_....__ 


2 

9 

11 

22 

14 

53 


23 


34 

32 

10 

18 


rirp.orp . . . . 

1 

6 

4 

1 

11 

1 

Turkey..... 

1 


6 

4 

4 

5 

10 




8 






































95 













Anuiinl totals..._ 

129, 062 

189,176 

220, 603 

212, 796 

289, 601 

300,992 

284, 945 
































































8 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


In tKe supreme court only one judge, George G. Barnard, heard appli- 
catious for naturalization 5 in each of the other courts more than one 


Table showing the number and nativities of alien emigrants, Sfc. —Continued. 


Nationality. 

1854. 

1855. 

1856. 

1857. 

1858. 

1859. 

1860. 

Ireland. 

82, 302 

43, 043 

44, 276 

57,119 

25, 075 

32, 652 

47, 330 

Germany. 

176, 986 

52, 892 

56,113 

80, 974 

31, 874 

28, 270 

37, 899 

England. 

30, 578 

22, 938 

23, 787 

28, 622 

12, 324 

10, 375 

11, 361 

Scotland. 

4, 909 

4,240 

4, 723 

5,170 

2,718 

2, 325 

1,617 

France. 

7, 986 

4, 174 

2, 984 

3, 069 

1,786 

1,532 

1,549 

Switzerland. 

8, 883 

3, 273 

2,559 

2, 454 

1,315 

791 

1,422 

Holland. 

1,466 

822 

1, 666 

1,734 

348 

261 

440 

Wales. 

1, 288 

1,118 

1,376 

887 

566 

500 

811 

Norway. 

81 

203 

438 

62 

3 

36 

53 

Sweden. 

1,859 

304 

918 

619 

237 

318 

361 

Italy. 

785 

667 

690 

596 

669 

399 

542 

Belgium. 

398 

1,201 

850 

444 

253 

57 

76 

Spain. 

646 

457 

330 

263 

146 

234 

228 

West Indies. 

11 

19 

225 

330 

344 

416 

523 

Denmark. 

102 

174 

469 

453 

284 

493 

495 

Poland. 

169 

346 

142 

245 

88 

114 

80 

Sardinia. 

148 

67 

426 

405 

324 

164 

89 

South America. 

111 

112 

163 

66 

92 

138 

no 

Portugal . 

205 

24 

30 

93 

27 

45 

19 

Nova Scotia. 

128 

9 

30 

40 

18 

81 

23 

Russia. 

55 

20 

56 

42 

19 

69 

61 

Canada . 

2 

64 

» 57 

30 

17 

25 

25 

Mexico. 

34 

20 

19 

11 

13 

13 

22 

Sicily. 

58 

18 

10 

26 

19 

1 

4 

China. 

20 

18 

8 

11 

15 

4 

13 

East Indies... 


5 





4 

Greece. 

7 

3 

3 

. 8 

2 

6 

2 

Turkey .. 

6 

2 

4 


6 

3 

3 









Annual totals. 

319, 223 

136, 233 

142, 342 

183, 773 

78, 589 

79,322 

105, 162 


Table shoicing the numbers and nativities of alien emigrants, &jc. —Continued. 


Nationality. 

1861. 

1862. 

1863. 

1864. 

1865. 

1866. 

Total. 

Ireland. 

25, 784 

.32, 217 

92,157 

89, 399 

70, 462 

68, 047 

1, 485,100 

Germany. 

27, 139 

27, 740 

35, 002 

57, 446 

83, 451 

106,716 

1, 317, 069 

England. 

5, 632 

7, 975 

18, 757 

23,710 

27, 286 

36, 186 

435. 171 

Scotland... 

659 

692 

1,937 

3,126 

3, 962 

4, 979 

86, 890 

France. 

1,200 

1,187 

1,303 

1,804 

2, 059 

3, 246 

68, 390 

Switzerland. 

1,398 

1,254 

1,194 

1, 652 

2,513 

3, 685 

55, 321 

Holland. 

331 

456 

407 

615 

729 

1, 506 

23,679 

Wales. 

697 

1, 062 

1,143 

659 

505 

540 

21,882 

Norway. 

93 

22 

238 

88 

158 

583 

14,975 

Sweden. 

382 

663 

1,370 

1,516 

2, 337 

3, 907 

21, 722 

Italy. 

750 

487 

444 

475 

591 

918 

11,139 

Belgium. 

165 

195 

456 

186 

97 

157 

6, 025 

Spain.. 

190 

124 

202 

196 

224 

315 

5,788 

West Indies. 

165 

156 

256 

236 

283 

246 

5, 744 

Denmark. 

612 

1,689 

1,580 

565 

727 

1,526 

10,045 

Poland.:. 

43 

50 

137 

198 

423 

231 

3, 488 

Sardinia. 

67 

39 





2 305 

South America. 

88 

92 

60 

124 

109 

155 

2, 004 

Portugal. 

14 

13 

3 

34 

42 

96 

1,378 

Nova Scotia. 

11 

67 

77 

40 

77 

40 

1,116 

Russia. 

36 

46 

47 

37 

93 

1.54 

924 

Canada . 

19 

33 

17 

35 

43 

28 

613 

Mexico . 

45 

13 

38 

92 

70 

56 

638 

Sicily. 

1 

9 

1 

3 

3 

1 

294 

China. 

10 

15 

5 

41 

36 

26 

333 

East Indies. 

2 

1 

3 

1 

7 

15 

162 

Greece. 

1 

6 

2 

13 

5 

5 

87 

Turkey. 

5 

3 

2 

5 

5 

8 

82 

Arabia. 







g 

Africa. 



6 


37 

15 


Australia . 




30 

Japan. 





18 

10 

7 

Central America. 





7 

12 

Unknown. 






12 

95 







Annual totals. 

65, 539 

76, 306 

156, 844 

182, 296 

196, 352 

233,418 

3, 582, 574 













































































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9 


judge exercised tlie jurisdiction, tliougli iu 18G8 in tlie superior court it 
was iiiaiiily done by Judge John H. McCuim.i^ The highest number 
naturalized in one day iu the superior court was, October 14, 2,109; and 
in the supreme court, by a single judge in one day, October 19, was 955. 
From October 8 to 23, inclusive, this judge ordered a daily average of 
over 718 certificates of citizenship. 

How far these figures give the full number of certificates granted will 
be considered hereafter. 

2 .— J^imher naturalized each day, , 

If there were no other evidence to stamp with infamy, fraud, and ille¬ 
gality a portion of these naturalizations, the great number issued by 
a single judge in one day would be quite sufficient. In 1844 a judge in 
Louisiana was im])eached and removed from office for malfeasance in 
granting certificates of naturalization. The select committee of the 
House of Eepresentatives investigating the charges in a report say: 
“ It further appears that nearly 400 of these certificates were issued in 
one day. It seems to your committee imx^ossible that this could have 
been legally done.”^^ 

But this impossibility is greatly increased when the number reaches 
955—a number inconsistent with either honesty of purpose or legality 
in practice.^® 


Evidence, 3420. Meeks, a clerk, says: 

Judge McCuun did the greatest part of it; Judge Garvin the next. These two judges were naturalizing ; 
Judge Jones and Judge Barbour assisted. They were holding term, and when they got out of court they 
came over to assist; but the bulk of it was done by Judges Garvin and McCuni , Judge Barbour did some, 
but not much. Judge Morrell did none. He was in Europe from June until the 3d of November. 

See Evidence, 3573. 

Evidence, 7643, 7673, 2429, showing 840 papers missing for one day. See Evidence, 2168, 
4138. 

i^U. S. Senate documents, 2d sess. 28th Cong., vol. 9, ]844-’45; doc. No. 173, p. 148. 
i^In Kings county, Brooklyn, the number of naturalizations were only procured from one 
court. But with the extensive practice there they did not reach so large a daily number as 
in New York city. The statement for one court is as follow's : 

V 

Statement of the whole number of persons naturalized in the county clerk's office from the 2‘3d day of September, 
1856, to the 31st day of December, 1868, in Kings county. 


1856 

1857 
1858. 
1859 
1860. 
1861. 
1862 
1863. 


1,667 

1864 

293 

1865 

984 

1866 

144 

1867 

1,159 

1868 

47 


151 


181 



Total 


722 

483 

2,328 

2, 436 

3, 246 

13, 841 


Whole number naturalized from the 1st day of October to the 31st day of October, 1868. 


October 1. 130 

October 2. 28 

October 3. 24 

October 5. ’ll 

October 19. 143 

October 20. 157 

October 21. 145 

October 22. 130 

October 23. 183 

October 7. 217 

October 8. 117 

October 24. 39 

October 26. 5 

October 27. 12 

October 10. 12 

October 12. 187 

October 13. 207 

October 14. 165 

October 15. 207 

October 16. 107 

October 17. 55 

October 28. 4 

October 29. 9 

October 30. 6 

October 31. 5 

Total.2,613 


Evidence, 5102. 


















































10 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3 .—Minor app Ucations. 

By law any alien liaving resided in the United States five years, in¬ 
cluding three years next i)receding arriving at the age of 21 years, may 
he naturalized without having made a declaration, in some court, two 
years before admission to citizenship, of his intention to become a citi¬ 
zen, such declaration being recpiired in most other cases. 

It must be manifest that many thousands of certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion were frandnlently issued as upon “minor applications,’^ to avoid 
the necessity of the previous declaration. Out of 10,093 naturalizations 
in the supreme court in October, 9,711 profess to be “ minor applica¬ 
tions,” leaving only 382 for “soldier” applicationsj and of those having 
made previous declaration— 


Evidence, 7594. 

Days on which witnesses appear and the number of times each witness appears on the naturali¬ 
zation papers filed in the supreme court, county and State of New York, during the month of 
October, ISGS, from the Sth to the 2'Sd of said month, inclusive. 


[About 200 soldiers’ papers in all.] 


Names of witnesses. 

October 8 
and 9. 

October 10. 

October 12. 

October 13. 

October 14. 

October 15. 

October 16. 

October 17. 

October 19. 

October 20. 

October 21. 

October 22. 

October 23. 

Total. 

Patrick McCaffrey. 

14 

60 

7 

1 

1 

84 

o 



4 

23 

38 

17 

251 

John Ward. 

31 

9 

*26 

40 

22 

44 

15 

14 

16 

21 

22 

24 

40 

324 

John Moran. 

18 

24 

*24 

43 

57 

13 

112 

.... 

20 

21 

54 

44 


455 

James Goff. 

*11 








4 

8 

19 

12 

14 

68 

Patrick Goff. 

*75 

*55 

11 

83 

52 

63 

20 

8 

44 

24 

10 

9 


454 

Thomas Selkald. 

9 

27 

13 

9 

.... 

31 

15 

12 

25 

20 

12 

25 

5 

203 

Bernard Lachman. 

2 

10 

5 

3 


7 

6 

2 

3 

2 

1 

2 

1 

44 

James McCabe. 


9 

7 

30 

38 

16 

18 

22 

4 

27 

3 

18 


TOO 

Michael jMarrow. 

o 

*12 

*25 

ii 

8 

6 


10 

7 

23 

8 

7 

i 

120 

John McGinnis. 

3 


3 

13 

27 

26 

24 

42 

11 

9 

14 



172 

Joseph Moore. 

31 

2 

10 

24 

28 

b 


27 


20 

17 

o 


205 

James O’Donnell. 


13 

13 


1 

6 




1 




34 

David Sanford. 

11 





5 








16 

John McCarthy. 

12 













12 

John G-allegher. 


*37 


9 

7 


1 



1 




55 

Philip Wiley. 

11 



10 


8 

4 

1 

. 


7 

o 



James Gallegher. 




1 




1 

3 

1 

1 

2 

Q 

Philip Cooney. 






3 


1 




2 

Q 

on 

Jeremiah Coffer. 







13 

19 






John W. White. 









12 





12 

on 

Thomas Fox. 










25 


1 














Total. 

230 

258 

144 

277 

241 

356 

230 

139 

181 

184 

216 

186 

107 

2, 749 

Number of papers examined.... 

11,089 

700 

915 

766 

557 

841 

788 

617 

933 

909 

755 

659 

564 

10 , 093 

Number of minor papers. 

1,053 

670 

851 

742 

541 

813 

757 

595 

899 

874 

726 

642 

548 

9,711 


* Numbers marked thus (*) show a difference from the paper heretofore sworn to, for the reason that said 
paper was made a part of the evidence before all the naturalization papers of the dates therein were examined 
except as to .rames Goff and Patrick Goff, when the one was taken for the other. ’ 

1590 of October 8th and 9th were examined by Mr. Glassey. 
























































































Names of persons who appeared ns icitnesses on application for naturalization in the superior court, in the city and county of Neio York, from the 30th 

of September, 1868, to the 23d of October, 1868, inclusive. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


11 


Ill tlie superior court an examination of 17,572 applications^'^ sliows 


Evidence, 7671 : 



Total number of times on which the several persons as witnesses for naturalization herein appeared as such iu the superior court, in the city and county of New York, 
2,379, from the 30th of September, 1868, to the 23d of October, 1868, inclusive. [And see Evidence, 6851.] 



























































































































































12 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


tliat 13,541 were minor,” leaving only 4,031 on ^^declarations of inten¬ 
tion ” and for soldiers.” It is not possible tliat there could have been 
any such number of minor applications. 

There was a republican naturalization committee, with an office at 25 
Chambers street, organized “for the purpose of aiding’ applicants for 
naturalization in getting their papers, to which tlie various ward clubs 
and associations” sent parties, and for whom applications were made.”^^ 
“ The whole business of naturalization of the republican party” was 
transacted through that office. This committee refused to employ any 
“professional witness,”and they kept a careful record of all persons 


naturalized. 

The total number was. 2, 085 

Of these there were “minor applications”. 

On previous declaration of intention. 549 

Soldier applications. 290 


Less than GO per cent, of these were “minor applications.” 

Mr. tJarffis, the clerk of the common pleas, testifies that of the nat¬ 
uralizations in that court in 18G8, “ about one-half were minors”—he 
“made that estimate.”^® But assuming that GO per cent, is a legitimate 
proportion, then, of the 10,093 applications admitted to be in the su- 
X)reme court, only G,05G would be “ minors,” showing 3,G55 fraudulent; 
and of the 17,572 applications examined in the superior court only 10,543 
would be “minors,” showing 3,000 fraudulent 5 making an aggregate of 
G,G55 fraudulent, on this ground alone^ in the naturalizations of 24 days 

4.— Extensive lyrejoarations. 

Although in every county of New York there is a county court in per¬ 
manent session^^ authorized to naturalize aliens, yet for some reason many 
naturalizations for various counties were effected in the courts of New 
York city. The supreme court for the first time in its history engaged 
in the work.^^ Notwithstanding the fiict that the annual average 
number of naturalizations in the city in all the State courts was 
only 9,207, yet there wms printed by the New York Printing Gom- 
pany, on the order of the clerks of these two courts, or their deputies, 
between September IG and October 23, 105,000 blank applications 

Evidence, 4880. 

Evidence, 4824-4880. For democratic professional witnesses see tables in preceding 
notes, and 93, 7606, 7648, 4664, 1369, 142.5. 

20 Evidence, 2012. He accounts for many minor applications of prior years by reason of 
the registry law of 1865, requiring the production of a certificate of naturalization even ot 
persons who were citizens by the naturalization of their parents during their minority. But 
this cannot well be deemed the true construction of the law. Evidence, page 326. As 
three years elapsed since this law was passed, it could not materially increase the “minor 
applications” of 1868. 

And see Evidence, 4172, 7504, 7523, 7557, 7550. Judge Garvin swears : 

4484. Q. How did the number of minors who applied for naturalization this year compare with the number 
who applied the previous year? A. I do not know that there was any larger proportion of minors this year 
than other years. 

21 Henry Lyle testifies: 

4769. Q. State, if you can, what proportion of persons for whom you procured certificates of naturalization 
was on blanks for applicants who came to the United States under 18 years of age.—A. They were all, except 
two or three. 

4770. Q. State whether any persons for whom you made out applications did really come to the United 
States under 18 years of age.—A. Perhaps a few of them did. 

4773. Q. Among the applicants for whom you procured certificates of naturalization on the ground that 
they came to this country under 18 years of age, were there any very old men?—A. Yes, sir ; a great many. 

22 Evidence, 75.55. 

23 Evidence, 1952. 








ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


13 


for and 00,000 cortificates of naturalization; of wliicli there were 
for the supreme conrt from September 10 to October 22, 75,000 blank 
applications and 30,000 certilicates of naturalization, and for the 
su]>erior court 30,000 applications and 30,000 certilicates; showing a 
piu’pose to issue, if required, 00,000 certilicates. These were not all pro¬ 
cured at once, but on different days, ordered from time to time—in the 
supreme court 10,000 certilicates being procured as late as October 20, 
and in the superior court 10,000 as late as October 15. 

But this does not seem to liave supplied the demand. Yarious natur¬ 
alization committees and offices established under the control of Tam¬ 
many Hall weresupjdied with ‘‘several thousand” naturalization blanks 
to be used in the courts, which were printed for these offices.^^ 

The fees of the clerks of courts on the applications which passed 
through these offices were arranged by “red tickets,” to be subsequently 
paid by Tammany Hall, of which over 40,000 Avere furnished to the com¬ 
mittee.^® 

These preparations for extensiAm naturalization are inconsistent with 
any legitimate purpose. ' 

For the supreme court, which neAmr naturalized before October 6, up 
to that day 45,000 blank applicatious and 14,000 certiticates Avere pro¬ 
cured, and although this is nearly 4,000 more than the records shoAV to 
liaAm l)een issued, yet 30,000 additional blank applications and 25,000 
additional blaidv certiticates AAere procured, 10,000 of v/hich were 
AA’ithin three days of the time the AAmrk of naturalizing closed. 


2“^ Charles E. Wilbur testifies : 

2168. I am presMeut of tbe New York Printing Company, and have been since its commencement, two or 
three years ogo. AVe printed naturalization blanks for the various courts this year as follows : For the supe¬ 
rior court: October 2, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; October 8, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; 
October 15, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; Octobers, 10,000 applications; October 16,20,000 applica¬ 
tions of four or five different kinds. 1 believe they were delivered to the officers of the court; that is our 
custom. AA’e printed for the supreme court: October 6, 5,000 certificates of iiiituralizatiou ; October 12,5,000 
certificates of naturalization ; October 15, 10,000 certificates of naturalization ; October 20, 10,000 certificates 
of naturalization ; October 6, 25,000 applications—5,000 each of five different kinds; October 12, 5,000 appli¬ 
cations; October 13, 10,000 applications; October 16, 5,000 applications; October 19, 5.000 applications; Octo¬ 
ber 22, 5,060 applications. They were delivered, I believe, to the officers of the court. The aggregates are : 
for the superior court, 30,000 certificates of naturalization and 30,000 applications; for the suijreme court, 
30,000 certificates of naturalization and 60,000 applications. 1 know no reason why there should be more 
applica'ions in the supreme court than in the superior. I should suppose there would be two or three times as 
many applications needed as certilicate.s. I do not recollect our having printed naturalization certificates for 
the supreme court prior to this time. There may be many blanks on hand in the offices of the clerks of the 
courts ; there are none in our office. The company is a stock company. 

4138. I wish to state that in addition to ihe number of certificates of naturalization and applications printed 
by the New York Printing Company, of which I gave evidence before, I have found that on the 16th of Sep¬ 
tember we furnished to the supreme court 10,900 applications and 9,000 certificates, and on the 19th of Sep¬ 
tember 10.000 applications. 

We did not furnish blank applications to any other parties than the clerks of the court. AA^'e did not furnish 
any to the Tammany committee. , 

25 Evidence, 3331, 33r)5, 3362. Moses D. Gale, chairman of’ the Tammany Hall natural¬ 
ization committee, testifies : 

AVe had an office at the corner of Centre street and Tryon Row, in the basement. It was in a lager-beer 
saloon kept by a man named Pfeft’e, at No. 1 Centre street. * * * * There was a branch office 
at Tammany. 

.3336. Q. How many persons were employed at this particular office. No. 1 Centre street?—A. I think in the 
neighborhood of 20. 

3362. Q. How many sets of naturalization blanks did you procure and furnish?— A. That I cannot say; I 
certified to Mr. Pickford’s bill and referred it to the finance committee. Blanks were ordered as they were 
wanted. 1 should think there were several thousand of them. 

25 Gale says: 

A. My impression is that there were over 40,030 tickets furnished to the committee. How many were 
left I do not know.”—Evidence, 3361-3377. 



14 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


All this must have had some imrpose.^"' And this purpose was so well 
understood that certificates of naturalization in large nninbers were issued 
for aliens residing in other counties who never appeared in court. 


II.—Specific evidence of various frauds. 


1 .—Naturalization eertifieates fraudulently proeured or issued in Oetoher^ 
18G8, to persons never appeariny in court. 

That certificates of naturalization were issued in great numbers from 
the su])reme and superior courts^^ especially the formerj and were deliv¬ 
ered to persons who never appeared in court or took any oath of alle¬ 
giance, and all of which were therefore frandulei)t and void, is proved 
by evidence so abundant that it would be impracticable here to refer to 
it. In the language of one of the witnesses they were ‘‘ sent broadcast 
all over the city.’’^^ 

The fact was notorious,^® and could not be otherwise. 

INDIVIDUAL INSTANCES. 

Individual instances in great numbers were xiroved,^^ but it wasimjirac- 
ticable to inirsue the inquiry further in a field so extensive. 


27 The dates of furnishing blanks to these two courts were— 


Date. 

Applications. 

Certificates. 

SUPERIOR COURT. 

October 2...... 


10 . 000 

October 3... 

10 , 000 

October 8.-.-. 

10 , 000 
10 , 000 

October 15.__..........._..._.........._......_...... 


October 16............. 

20 , 000 

Total........... 


30, 000 

30, 000 

SUPREME COURT. 

September 16.. 

September 19... 

10 , 000 
10 , 000 
25, 000 

5, 000 

10 , 000 

9, 000 

October 6... 

5,000 

5,000 

October 12. 

October 13... 

October 15. 

10 , 000 

October 16. 

5, 000 

5, 000 

October 19.*... 


October 20. 

10 , 000 

October 22. 

5, 000 

Total. 


75, 000 

39, 000 



Evidence, 413, 425, 1085, 2103, 1364. 

23 Evidence, 1783, 368. 

30 Evidence, 276,296, pages 26-28; Evidence, 2847, 3088, 3768. 

31 Evidence, 263, 305, (2,) 334, 180, (5,) 413, 425, (14,) 442, (several;) 468, (12,) 488, 493, 
509, (4,) 516, (2,) 630, (9,) 637, (2,) 740, 767, 775, 784, 925, (4,) 1032, 1068, 1080, 1086, 
1107, 1122, (5,) 1133, 1252, (3,) 1469, 1783, 1806, 1966, 1978, (20,) 2061, (30,) 2099, 2103, 
2264, 2416, 2779, 2805, (14,) 2932, (several;) 3299, 4132, 4163, 4599, (15,) 5543, (5.) 2779*, 
(25,) 2930, 3299. Marshal Murray proves 150 to 175 surrendered and destroyed. Evidence, 
12, 604, 607, 614, 617, 624. See Evidence, pages 31, 32, 34, 35, 40, 41, 43, 44, 46, 47, 85; 
Evidence, 1846. 

Theodore Allen, 9171, says : 

James Goif and his brother were en.araged in procuring naturalization certificates. I saw a number of 
papers that were sent to Connecticut. I saw the two Goffs have 500 naturalization papers that they had sold 
for 50 cents apiece to send to Connectiut. I suppose 1,000 were sent to Brooklyn that I saw them have. 
They contracted for these papers, they said, at 50 cents a head. They were to send them to Brooklvn and 
Hartford, I believe. 










































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


15 


BY THE QUANTITY. 

The existence or distrihrtioii of thousands in bundles”^^ and quan¬ 
tities” was proved in like manner, until it was found impracticable to go 
further. 

A naturalization office at Ko. G Centre street procured from the 
supreme court and sold certificates on an extensive scale—the red ticlc- 
to pay clerk’s fees, being supplied by Tammany Hall. This office 
was superintended by Benjamin B. Boseidierg, afterwards indicted in 
the United States circuit court for some of his naturalization frauds. 

Win. T. Simms called on Bosenberg on Monday, October 19, and he 
describes what occurred thus: 

Rosenberg asked me wliat I wanted of him. I told him that I was from Yonkers ; that I 
had 2U or 30 friends at Yonkers who wanted naturalization papers, and that I had no wit¬ 
nesses or principals. Said I, “Can you or can you not get me papers for those men? If 
you cannot, say it, because I do not wish to begin it and then tail. If you cannot, I will 
seek elsewhere.” He asked me what party I was from, and I told him the democratic party. 
He said, “ I can get them, without fail. I have sold 7,000 of them.” I told him I would 
return later in the afternoon with the names, as they were then incomplete. I did return in 
the afternoon, but without the memorandum of names, telling him that I was still unable to 
complete the names, but that I would return in the morning. On Tuesday morning I went 
back with a list of these tive names: Patrick O’Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, 
Alex. N. McCann, and Adolph Slechelseine. I handed him the memorandum, and asked 
him to let me have the papers that afternoon, if he could. He said that was impossible, but 
that I could have them by G o’clock. I left the office and went about my business, and at 6 
o’clock I returned. As I went into the saloon he immediately arose. I walked directly 
back to the rear part of the saloon, where there was a dark room, which I entered. Rosen¬ 
berg followed me in. He handed me the five papers which I now hold in my hand, and I 
handed him a ten-chdlar bill. Either then or at a prior interview he said to me, “I do not 
make this money, but you present me with $10, and I give you five papers.” That is, in 
substance, all I know about these five papers. 

04. Q. Were the names which you furnished to him, and which are filled into these papers, 
real or fictitious names ? 

A. They are fictitious nalnes. 

95. Q. What did } ou do with the papers after you got them ? 

A I brought them to Marshal Murray and gave them to him. I identified them at the 
time Avith my initials. These are the same papers. Rosenberg showed me a list of OA^er 
5,000 names for which he said he had got certificates., I saw the last number, Avhich I think 
was 5,900 odd.^'* 

The records of this office cannot now be fonnd.^^ 

TO OTHER COUNTIES.* 

Certificates of naturalization issued from the supreme court in New 
York city were distributed to other counties, to persons who never 
appeared in court. 

Bernard Skelly, president of a democratic club at Yerplanck’s Point, 
AVestchester county, was supplied with from 50 to 100 in one lot, ‘‘hnore 

Evidence, ‘263, a “bundle;” 382, a “hundred;” 358,516, as to Florence Scaunel; 629, 
637, 740, 767, 775, 1115, and 629 implicates Charles Edward Norton, president democratic 
club, 22d ward, as engaged in the business. 

Evidence, 1099, 1114, 1253, 1479, 1783, “many;” 1806, 1879, 1978, 2061, as to Hon. 
Henry Waltman ; 2103, Fred. Winters engaged in the business; ‘2779^, 2^05, 3299, 4132, 
“a great many;” 4163, 5543, 368, (50 fraudulent in one^district, and estimated one-fifth 
of all.) 

^Evidence, 4174. 3338, 3360, 802, 860, 

The German democratic naturalization committee in charge of this office Avas supplied also 
in part with blanks by the Tammany Hall naturalization committee, (Evidence, 3356,) and 
its chairman, G. W. Herman, was a member of the Tammany naturalization committee and one 
of the city supervisors, (3364, 4168, 4174.) The four clerks in this office who aided Rosen¬ 
berg Avere paid by the committee of Avhich Herman Avas chairman, (830, 832,) or by Herman 
himself, (862.) 

See Evidence, 683, 796, 165. 

3'* Evidence, 95, 877. 

* To other States, 9174. 


Evidence, 875, 948. 



16 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


/ 

or 7m,’’for residents of liis locality, and Calvin Frost was supplied 
with 150 in one lot, which were distributed from the democratic club- 
room at Peekskill in the same county. He testifies: 

I acted with the committee in this town. I took about 60 or 70 men to New York city to 
get their naturalization papers. I took them down in the steamboat in the morning’, and 
took them to the City Hall. I had their papers properly made out. Another gentleman, 
whom I did not know, took charge of them. That gentleman told me it was unnecessary to 
bring the men down in the present state of things; that they could procure the papers with¬ 
out. On that a list of names was furnished, and I delivered them to a person whom I did 
not know. This gentleman, who spoke to me about it, told me to send the names ; which 
I did of about—well, I think, somewhere near 150 names Then, as I was passing in the 
street one evening, another person—different from tlie one I handed the names to, one I had 
never seen before, a stranger to me—came up to me and handed me a roll of papers done up 
in brown paper, addressed to me. I took it to my office and opened it, and it was these 
naturalization papers. On these men calling for them I took them to the club-room, and 
there they were distributed by several parties. * * * No witnesses sent down as vouch¬ 

ers ; only the names of the persons to be naturalized. 

With this evidence it may be reasonably inferred that similar and 
more extensive frauds were perpetrated in this and other counties. 

TO PERSONS WITHOUT REQUEST. 

In addition to this there is a large class of fraudulent certificates issued 
to aliens who not only never appeared in court, but who never asked 
that application should be made for them. They were left at houses, 
stores, and other xilaces, or sold or given away. Individual instances 
are numerous.^^ 

2 .—Certificates on fictitious names, to he used hy ‘‘‘‘repeaters.^'’ 

The evidence discloses the fact that certificates of naturalization were 
procured from the sufireme court to fictitious names, and delivered to 
aliens and citizens to enable them to register and vote as repeaters.” 

John JMcClusky, who had been a clerk for John II. McCunn when he was 
city judge, and afterwards, up to January last, a clerk for City Judge 
Eussell, procured some 40 certificates, all on fictitious names, which he 
delivered to foreigners and citizens. The applications were i^repared by 
him, Edward Fitter, and Theodore Taylor,^^ clerks of Judge Eussell, 
with signatures of fictitious apifiicants and witnesses; and without pro¬ 
ducing applicants or witnesses in court the certificates were issued.^^ 

On the day of the election AIcClusky was engaged in aiding ‘‘repeat¬ 
ers,” and the purpose of these fraudulent certificates may be readily under¬ 
stood. The practicability of procuring certificates on fictitious names is 
proved by other instances.^” These are some of the detected frauds— 

hose concealed can well be inferred. 

Evidence, 7419. 

See Evidence beretofore referred to. 

=58 Taylor confirms the evidence. Charles E. Loew, the clerk of the supreme court, was 

ummoned to appear before the committee m New York on the 6th February, and bring these 
) apers, but he disobeyed the process. He has since been requested to appear in Washington 
with the papers, but refused. A subpoena was issued for him, but he rcas out of the city. He 
i ubsequeutly appeared before th%committee, but refused to produce the papers. [See also 
Evidence, 1694-1894.] 

Evidence, 7749. 

‘‘0 Evidence, 2,61,35,70,95,151,200,61.3,2697. 

Evidence, 222. Logan McDonald gives the result of his interview with Rosenberg on 21st 
October, thus: 

I gave him a list of names, and asked him if he could not furnish me naturalization papers for these parties. 
He wanted to know who sent me, and I gave him the name of a president of a campaign club up town—the 
Twentieth ward Empire Club. He said that he could get them for me, and wanted to know if I was going to 
S3 11 them. I told him of course not. He then said that the papers would be ready for me about half-past 5 
o’clock in the afternoon, and that I could get them by paying him two dollars for each certificate ; and that if 
I needed 500 I could have them at the same rate by simply telling the names of the men for whom I wanted 
them. 

223. Q. Did he require any witness to make proof as to the right of the applicants to be naturalized?— 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


17 


3.— NaUiralization frauds in various counties. 

It lias been impracticable for tlie committee to investigate fully tlie 
naturalization frands jiracticed in the interest of the democratic party in 
any of the counties of the State. Bnt for the purpose of ascertaining tlieir 
prevalence and character, sufficient evidence has been taken to show 
that certificates of naturalization were extensively issued in modes not 
authorized by Iuav, or to persons not entitled to naturalization, or other¬ 
wise fraudulently in the counties of Orange,Ulster,Monroe,^^-Westches- 

A. No, sir ; he stated that the two dollars was to pay the persons who personated the principals and the wit¬ 
nesses ; that he did not want to make anything, and he did not want me to make anything by the operation. 

224. Q. Then he had persons to personate the applicants and the witnesses ?—A. So he stated to me 

225. Q. Were the names yon gave him real or fictitious ?—A. I believe they were fictitious. 

Judge J. H. McCuun gives this evidence: 

3643. Q. Did you not often find that persons attempted to be naturalized under the minor form who were 
not entitled to be 1 —A. Plenty of them. I found men attempting to be naturalized who had been born here ; 
for what purpose I cannot tell you. I could detect them from their conversation, and I arrested many such 
men. 

3644. Q. Were they trying to be naturalized under other names than their own?—A. Undoubtedly. 

And see Evidence, 2. 

In Orange county hundreds of naturalization certificates were issued by the county clerk, 
and some three deputies appointed by him without authority of law, who, while the court 
was in session, went into different rooms outside of the court-room, and there took affida¬ 
vits and issued papers. It is further shown that on one occasion the judge, when about to 
leave court, informed the clerk, “ If you do not see me in court, the court is open all the 
same,” and then left the court-room, remaining absent nearly three hours, during the most 
of which time parties were naturalized and certificates issued by the clerk and his illegal 
appointei'.s to the extent of at least iOO for this single day.—Evidence, 8876, 8877, 8878, 
8879, 8880, 8884, 8887 and 8888. 

A large number of naturalization certificates were also received from the counts in New 
York city by parties who never applied therefor.—Evidence, 8595, 8598, and 8599; 8675, 
8677, and 8678 ; 8688, 8692, 8815, 8816, 8822, 8833, and 8826. 

Richard Tracy, a resident of Port Jervis, testified: 

A w'eek or ten days before the election I received a letter, whether there was a signature to it or not I can¬ 
not tell, notifying mo that I would receive a box with some 50 or 60 odd naturalization papers for parties in 
our town. I was not to know any of these men, but they were to call there. I was to leave the box in some 
conspicuous place w'here they could get the papers. Other parties were to instruct them where and how to 
get them. All the papers were culled for and taken except 14 or 17. 

8896. Q. What did you do with the box when it came ?—A. I stuck it behind the counter in a case. 

8897. Q. Was it left open there ?—A. Yes, sir. There was a cover on it—on the back. It was a cream tar¬ 
tar box. Whenever I saw a person coming whom I had reason to suspect was coming to get one of these 
papers, I would get out of the way, so as not to get too closely implicated in the matter. 

8898. Q. Were the names already inserted in these papers?—'A. I believe they were. I did not examine the 
whole of them, but they were of such as I looked at. 

8899. Q. I understand you to say that they were all taken from the box that stood there except 14 or 17?— 
A. Yes, sir. 

8900. Q. What became of those ?—A. I burned them. 

8901. Q. Would it be possible for you to produce one of that batch of papers?—A. I do not know but that 
I have one around the house. 

89C2. Q. Will you endeavor to find it, and let the committee have it before we go away?—A. I have not 
the slightest objection to giving you the paper if I can find it. 

8903. Q. Do you remember whether this letter which came to you was dated in a particular place ?—A. 1 
could not say. I did not take particular notice. If I remember correctly it was in the same handwriting as 
that of the signature to the paper. That is my impression. 

8904. Q. Do you remember where those papers purported to be issued—whetherin New York city or not?— 
A. I could not say. 

8905. Q. Did you preserve the letter ?—A. I believe I put it in with the naturalization papers, and bvymt 
them all together. 

8906. Q. Do you know of any particular persons who received those papers ?—A. I do not know as I do ; I 
have seen some parties going in and out of the house, but I could not say whether they took the papers or not. 
I always walked out of the back door when I saw parties coming whom I suspected of coming to get any of 
these papers. 

8907. Q. Do you know who it was that gave them information, or was to give them information, as to where 
they were to get the papers and how ?—A. No, sir. 

8908. Q. How did the box come ?—A. I think it was left at the house by some parties ; I think some four 
or five young men came in one night and left it there. I did not find it until early in the morning. I 
get up between 5 and 6 o clock in the morning, as a general thing. 

8909. Q. Do you know what the politics of these persons were, or supposed to be, who received these 
papers?—A. I supposed them to be democrats. 

‘‘■2 In Ulster county about 600 aliens received certificates of naturalization, probably two- 
thirds of them furnished by the county clerk or his deputy, on application at his office, with¬ 
out any action or order of a court or judge; one man appearing before the clerk as a witness 
for between one and two hundred applicants ; and in probably more than a hundred cases 
certificates were granted without production of a copy of the previous declaration of inten¬ 
tion, but on affidavit that applicants previously had them.—Evidence, 7434 to 7481. 

^In Monroe county, during 1868, and mostly in October, 1,256 aliens received certifi- 

H. Rep. Com. 31-2 





18 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ter/'* Itensselaer/*^ Putnam/® and Green '*'*'—every county wliere any 
investigation lias been made. 

cates of citizenship, and the county clerk, his deputy or assistant deputy, was in the habit 
of granting these certificates with no judge there and no court. Joseph L. Lackey, a law¬ 
yer, in Rochester, testifies in relation to the court records: 

From Palmyra, in Wayne county, we found two papers issued to Timothy Cosgrove on the same day. One 
of them we found was issued on a declaration that he came to this country under the age of 18 years, and the 
other on the lirst paper of a man by the name of Ryan, I think. So Mr. Cosgrove had two papers. 

7553, Q. Were these aliens witnesses for each other ?—A. Yes. There are numerous instances of that kind. 

There were 45 of this class from Livingston county who came to Monroe to be naturalized.— 
Evidence, 7560. 

Certificates were issued to persons having made no previous declaration of intention, and 
not otherwise entitled.—Evidence, 7562. 

Anthony Riser testifies that he had his first paper “just a yearthat he gave it to the clerk 
at Rochester, who gave it back and gave him a certificate of naturalization. (Evidence, 
7567.) This was on a “minor application,” (Evidence, 7589,) though Riser was 42 years 
old when he came to this country, (Evidence, 7583.) 

These facts will explain why aliens went from Livingston county to Monroe to be natural¬ 
ized. 

In Westchester county 502 aliens were naturalized in 1868, of whom 138 were in October. 
J. Malcomb Smith, the county clerk, says: “ The practice in the county court was to go 
before the clerk and get [naturalizatior certificates] from the clerk, when the court was not in 
session.” (Evidence, 5736.) This practice was continued to September. (Evidence, 6857.) 
Mo.st of these certificates were illegal and void. 

The business was so conducted that on the 3d of October, undoubtedly after public atten¬ 
tion had been drawn to fraudulent naturalizations, 13 oiders of naturalization, made August 
29, and 2 of August 21, are cancelled on the record. (Evidence, 6867.) When one day 
requires so extensive correction confidence in all must be seriously impaired. 

Thomas Smith, a coroner and justice of the peace, at Hastin^s-ou the-Hudson, says he 
” introduced as many as thirty people” in the clerk’s otfice, a considerable portion of whom 
were not entitled to naturalization or were furnished wMth certificates illegally issued. The 
clerk and the coroner were democrats.—See Evidence, 2292,2753,4080 to 4107. 

In Rensselaer county, at Troy, during 1868, a justice’s court issued 2,358 certificates of 
citizenship, two-thirds of them in September and October, and of these 2,002 profess to be 
on “ minor applications !” Irving Hayner, a lawyer of Troy, testifies that applicants “ were 
brought in there in squads of 10, 15, and 20 at a time.” The clerk would administer an 
oath, but— 

Would pay no attention whether they observed the formula or not. He would then make out a list of 
names from the book and hand it to some democrat in attendance, who seemed to be overseer of the natural¬ 
izations. He would bring the squads there, coming from different portions of the country or adjoining coun¬ 
ties, make out a list of names, and the leader would take it to the justice of the court. The justice would 
sometimes be in his office, south of the court-house, in a separate building from the court-room, and sometimes 
in some of the saloons adjoinitig the court-h^mse, in there with his friends drinking. The party would take 
the list of the names and march the candidates out. The justice would tell them to hold up their right hands, 
and administer the oath without examining the parties, or questioning them in his office or in the saloon, as 
the case might be. I have no doubt that one-half or iwo-thirds of all the naturalizations were done in that 
way ; that is, in the manner of sweaiing by the justice. 

The records consist of printed blank applications bound up in a book ; and the witness says : 

The clerk would not fill up the blanks at the time, or before the oath was administered. All the writing 
in the blanks would be the name of the alien, and sometimes the country from which they came ; and proba¬ 
bly a couple of hundred pages of that book w-ere not filled up until a week or two after election day. I saw 
men, who had the appearance of bi ing 50 or 60 3'ears old, swear that thej’ came here as minors. Perhaps 
along about the 20th or 23d of October they w’onld come from Washington county and Columbia county, in 
squads of 30 or 40. and perhaps more, all swearing that they came here under the age of 18 j-ears. The num¬ 
ber from Washington countv' naturalized under 18 was 257 ; over 18, 10, who were soldiers. From Columbia 
countj', under 18, 108 ; over 18, 3. From Cohoes, under 18, 160; over 18, 21. 1 examined the records to find 
how many of the aliens who were naturalized were witnesses for each other. I find there were 595 and 
upwards. 1 never saw the judge there more than two or three times while I was in the court from time to 
time. It was seldom that he remained there while the naturalizations were going on. I saw the clerk engaged 
in having aliens sign the books, administering oaths, and making out the papers, and that was done frequently 
when there was no justice present in the court.—Evidence, 7497. 

James P. Rutler, a lawyer of Saratoga Springs, testifies: 

On the 23d of October Pat. Brannegan was arrested for obtaining fraudulent naturalization papers at Troy. 
A list appeared of about 25 who had put in their first declaration, and, then, within two j-ears, the large body 
of them had all been naturalized here. This Pat. Brannegan was among those, and he, among others, was 
arrested. He had his name registered, and voted, and swore in his vote. 

Thomas Neany, one of the justices who naturalized, testified that— 

The rea.son why large numbers came here from Washington, and Columbia, and Saratoga counties to be 
naturalized, their court.s being in session at the same time, was that they could get naturalized more readily, 
and it was more convenient for them to come. It has been our practice for ten years to naturalize large num¬ 
bers from those counties at every fall election. 

It will be seen, the records being left blank, except the name and sometimes the residence, 
at the time of naturalization, the evidence of this witness is thus recorded: 

[Book No. 10, containing the naturalizations last fall, produced by witness, and, after examining the book 






ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


19 


It is sliown that in most of these counties, during the year 18G8, the 
clerks of the county courts have been issuing certificates extensively 
without any ])roof made in court or before a judge, and without any 
order of such court or judge. Those certificates are, of course, utterly 
void. 


DEMOCRATIC NATURALIZATION OFFICES IN THE CITY. 

m 

The Tammany Hall organization appointed a standing committee on 
naturalization about the 25th of September, who established an office in 
a lager-beer saloon at Ko. 1 Centre street, which employed about 20 
clerks.'*® Moses D. Gale, chairman of this committee, says: 

The duty of the clerks was, when a party came and stated that he wanted to get out his 
papers, to fill out the blanks, all ready for the party to appear before the court with his wit¬ 
ness. He would give the name of his witness, state what description of paper he wanted to 
get, whether as a minor or his second paper. The clerk would fill out the application with 
the name of the applicant and the witness, and then send a messenger over with a man to 
the court to facilitate them in getting through. 

The practice always has been to furnish an order in the shape of a [red] ticket upon the 
clerk of the court, who usually charged it against the naturalization committee of Tammany 
Hall. The usual practice has been for the clerks to make up their statements and send 
them to me, and I would then make a draft upon the chairman of the finance committee for 
so much money iu payment.'*^ 

There was a branch office at Tammany Hall,^® another in the 10th 
ward 

Over 40,000 of these red tickets were procured. There were various 

outside offices” of the same sort; and Mr. Gale testifies that: 

The general committee of Tammany Hall has been always liberal enough to furnish any 
outside democratic organizations with facilities to get their naturalizations. 

Blanks and ‘‘red tickets” were furnished accordingly. 

The sale of fraudulent certificates, including those to fictitious names 
by lioseuberg’s office, has been shown. 

Blank applications in large numbers were filled up and the names of 
applicants and witnesses signed thereto in these offiees ready for use in 
the courts.®^ 

The mode in which this was done may be inferred from the character 
of the certificates shown to have been issued. 

The facilities afibrded for false personations will be seen from the evi¬ 
dence of Mr. Meeks, a clerk in the supreme court, as follows : 

3453. Q. Were there any means taken to identify the party who brought the applicatiou, 
as being the party who appeared in court? Was he brought over iu charge of an officer, or 
did he bring his own paper ?—A. He brought his own paper. 

3454. Q. Tlien you do not know that the party who presented the paper to you was the 
same that appeared in court?—A. No, sir; we had no means of knowing that. 

And this was at a time when 718 were being naturalized each day by 
one judge. 

And as a general rule, when the applications were brought into court, , 
the deputy clerks who attested the oath of the professed applicants and 


and consulting with the clerk, the witness stated that he did not know how the minors were designated by 
the clerk. 

The explanation of the clerk is that in filling the blanks wherever the name of the country of the applicant' 
appeared iu The concluding part of his application he was not a minor. In all other cases he filled them up 
minors.]—Evidence, 7514. 

Certificates of naturalization were sent to persons who never appeared in court to procure 
them, in Putnam county.—Evidence, 2439, 

■‘’'In Green county the clerk, or his deputy, naturalized without the presence of a judge — 
Evidence, 7482—7496. 

48 Evidence, 3329, 699, 640, 685, 2062, 2453. “9 Evidence, 3338, 3947. 

50 Evidence, 3335. 5i Evidence, 3352, 3378. 

Evidence, 3477 , 3409, 3406,3422,3639,3004,3947. 





20 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


witnesses on these i)ai)erSj did so, not in the presence of the court, but 
ill another room.®^ 

There was an office in the basement of the old City Hall, with three 
clerks, whose mode of filling’ in blanks on one occasion is thus described: 

The three clerks would fill in each the name furnished to him as that of the applicant. It 
would be filled in as that of the applicant in three places, and the clerk would then sign the 
name of the applicant in each instance. In every case which I saw, each of the clerks filled 
in the name of Patrick Goff as that of the attesting witness. The clerks did not sign the 
name of “ Patrick Goff” but put it “ Patrick Goff—his mark.” Whether Patrick Goff exists 
or not I do not know ; at any rate he was not there, nor any one of the applicants whose 
names Avere signed. This was common to nearly every case.^ 

Tlie witness also says: 

One batch of clerks could not get through the whole lot, and the foreman handed a list of 
names on some sheets of brief paper to some one else, and told him to fill them up. The 
man said, “Shall I make these in the supreme or superior?” to Avhich the reply was: 
“Make them in the supreme; they go through easier.” On the 15th of October one of the 
clerks told me that up to that date they had put 20,000 through the mill, (that was the 
expression used by him ; I employed it first to him and he adopted it,) and that they expected 
to get through another 20,000 before election.^'’’ 

Henry Waltman, member of the assembly,^® had a naturalization office 
at No. 80 Avenue C, and he says: each ward had a general committee 
and acted for itself.”®'^ 

WHAT THE FRAUDS AVERE. 

Among the frauds practiced under the naturalization laws were: The 
false i)ersonation of appUeants for naturalization ; perjury of witnesses 


Evidence, 3425, 3438. 

®’‘Evi<ience, 1330. And these are used in court. EAudence, 7671. 

Maximilian Boeck testifies that he had not resided in the United States five years : Avas 24 
years of age when he came ; never took out his first papers, but he got a certificate of natu¬ 
ralization. He says : 

I got it here in the City Hall room—No. 12, in the basement. I did not go up into tho court-room to get 
it. * * * 

1473. Q. Did they have papers scattered about?—A. Yes; there were about 200 or 300 men in there. I 
said, ‘ ‘ I want my tirst papers.” He says, ‘ ‘ What is the reason yon don't take the whole ?” I said, ‘ ‘ I ha\'e not 
got my tirst.” He said, “ That don’t make any difference—have you got $2 ?” I said yes. I gave him $2, and 
then he said, “Now you go home.” I got the paper. 

1482. Q. Do you know what sign was up over this room in the basement?—A. Yes; ‘‘SherifFs Office, 
No. 12.” 

»^Evideuce, 1344, 1776. 

^Evidence, 2239, 2‘253,2062,2104,2257,2812,2846. His ofBce prepared about 500. 

Henry Lyle’s evidence in part is as follows : 

2625. Q. .State what you know of certificates of naturalization being issued by Judge McCunn of the superior 
court, and in the supreme court by Judge Barnard.—A. I was in that business during the months of .Septem¬ 
ber and October, 1868, at 33 Chatham street. I would fill up the .applications, go before the judges and put 
the men througli. During the month of October I would come down in the cA’eniug and put the men through 
before Judge Barnard of the srrpreme court, who held the night session. I would sign the names of the appli¬ 
cants to these blanks; sometimes I would sign the applicant’s name and sometimes he would himself, or if 
iiuybody else happened to be around he would sign it. 

4628. Q. How did you procure certificates of naturalization before Judge McCunn?—A. I would take the 
papers down to the court and give them in to the clerk. He would call my name, and I would then go around 
and swear to the truth of the affidavits before the judge. After that I would go around to the clerk’s 
desk; if the man was not there I would take the oath of allegiance, or if the man was too old to go through 
©therwise, the man himself would go round. 

4629. Q. How many certificates of naturalization did you procure during these two months?—A. I cannot 
tell, but I should judge from 600 to 1,000; that I would swear to. Sometimes I would swear to twenty or 
thirty and sometimes fifty a day. 

4630. Q. State if you would sign your name to the affidavits as witness in all cases, or what name was 
signed?—A. I signed different names just as it happened to come into my head. I got a good many papers out 
for men who were not there at all, by being both witness and applicant myself, from both the superior court 
and the supreme court. 

4638. (,». With what did you pay for those naturalization papers?—A. AVith red tickets. 

4639. Q. Where did you get them?—A. I got some from Judge Gale, in Centre street, some from Mr. Pettit 
and some from different parties around the City Hall that I knew. 

4640. Q. Stale if you are acquainted Avith Judge McCunn?—A. lam. 

4641. Q. .State if he is acquainted with you?—A. He is. 

4642. Q. Did you have any conversation with Judge McCunn about this naturalization business ?_A. I Avas 

up before him one night and was a Avitness for a man by the name of Spirit; I told him my name, and he 
said it ought to bo Spirit too. After that I would sometimes sign my name as Spirit, as a witness. ' 

4643. (^). AYhat else was said by Judge McCunn ?—A. That Avas all, though he told me at one time that if 
they did not register any of the men that I got papers out for, they Avould compel them to register them. 

See Evidence, 4664, 4741. 

58Evidence, 1369,2223, 711, 1989, 2116, &c., 1349, 1425, 1450,1348,1451. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


21 


under real and assumed namesthe fahrication of appUcatio7is for natural¬ 
ization and oaths in siipport of them, with names of apjdicants and witnesses 
forged the granting of certificates of naturalization in fictitious 7 iames ; 
and on applications regular in form, hut without the presence of any appli¬ 
cants,^^ and to persons not entitled to them.^’^ 

now TO ACCOMPLISH THESE. 

To accomplish these it was necessary to secure the active co-operation 
of some of the courts or their passive acquiescence, or negligence so gross 
as to raise an irresistible presumption of fraudulent participation. 

HOW TO PREVENT THEM. 

These frauds could not escape the knowledge of the courts, and might 
have been prevented by the honest exercise of adequate care, scrutmy, 
and deliberation. 

HOW THIS COULD NOT BE DISCOVERED; REPORTERS AND SPECTATORS DRIVEN FROM 

THE SUPREME COURT. 

E. W. McAlpine, esq., reporter of the ]N^ew York Tribune,®^ testihes: 

I made but one visit to a naturalization court in this city, near the time of the November 
election. I sat for perhaps half an hour before I saw anything particular being done except 
simply calling out names. At a given time a certain number of persons whose names had 
been called were gathered in the middle of the court-room, and then the process of swearing 
these men in as citizens was gone into. What I noticed was that there could not. by any 
possibility, have been more than two or three men who could have touched the Bible at the 
same time, and I noticed that when the judge directed that those who could not reach 
the Bible should raise their right hands, there were very few in that crowd who raised 
any hand. The judge, while either waiting for a new batch of men to swear in, or for some 
other reason, made some remarks from the bench in reference to certain strictures that had 
appeared in the papers of the city, and spoke of the writers as a set of scoundrels who had 
charged him falsely. He said he intended to see that those worthy citizens in front of him 
should be protected in their rights. Then he ordered the court-room to be cleared. He said: 
“Those who have not come here for the purpose of being naturalized, or who are not here 
by order of the court, will immediately leave. If they do not immediately leave they will 
be ejected by the officers of the court.” At the beginning of the address I had risen from 
my seat, and, before the judge had fairly concluded his remarks, an officer of the court took 
me by the arm. “Say,” said he, “did you come here to be naturalized?” “No,” said I, 
“I did not.” “ Then the sooner you get out of here the better.” So, without letting go my 
arm at all, he marched me off towards the public entrance of the court-room. That had been 
locked and bolted after my entrance into the room. Then we were obliged to pass through 
that crowd of as yet unnaturalized citizens, past the judge’s bench, and through the private 
door. This was the supreme court, before Judge Barnard. 

And it seems to liave been no unusual occuiTence®'^ to exclude all but 


59 Evidence, 1369, 1425, 1450,4664. 

59 Evidence, see previous notes and 4650,7606,7648,2039. 

51 Evidence, 2137, 1362,4646,4661,4664,4668,4709, and see evidence of Theodore Allen. 

5*Evidence, 988, 1702, 1893, 2137. 

53 Evidence, 2121, 1410. 

^ M. R. Leverson testifies, on the 22d October— 

I was refused admittance to Judge Barnard’s court; there was no admittance for anybody except appli¬ 
cants and witnesses. The court was held with closed doors. 

1410. Q. Who refused you admittance ?—A. The usher at the door asked me if I was an applicant or a wit¬ 
ness, and I told him no, and he said : “Then you can’t come in ; none but applicants or witnesses are admitted.”, 
I got in by the other door. An usher then came to me and said that there was no admittance, except for 
applicants or witnesses, and I then went out, having been in there only a few minutes. I think it was before 
the court had organized for the night, as there was nothing doing. 

1411. Q. So that you saw nothing there on the 22d?—A. Nothing except the fact of the court being closed 
to the public. I passed there again at 10 o’clock, and by the lights and the crowd outside and shadows within 
I presumed the court was still sitting. 

Confirmed by Loew, 1561, 3771,3799. 

Mr. Jarvis says: 

1980. Q. Have you ever been present in the supreme court during the naturalization of citizens?—A. No, 
sir; I tried to get in one day to see what they were doing, but I could not get in. 



22 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


applicants for naturalization and witnesses, or even to drive out of this 
court spectators observing its proceedings.®^ 

Colonel George Bliss, jr., says that on one occasion it*was with some 
little difficulty he succeeded in persuading the officer (of Judge McCimifs 
court) to let him in.”®® 

What purpose there was in this may be inferred from the character 
of the proceedings. 


4 .—The Neic Yoric courts. 

THE COMMON PLEAS—AN HONEST COURT. 

It is in evidence by a distinguished and upright judge®’’^ of the N'ew 
York common pleas, that the practice in that court was never to natu¬ 
ralize men in “ gangs,” and the oi>inion was decidedly expressed that 

more than one person cannot be naturalized at the same time to com¬ 
ply with the requirements of the law.” He testifies, too, that— 

The length of time required fairly and properly to naturalize an applicant depends much 
on the intelligence of the witness; sometimes it has been done in from three to live minutes, 
sometimes it will take more, because it involves the examination of the applicant and the 
witness, and perhaps a re-examination of them, to see if the two stories are harmonious, but 
this does not include the time occupied by administering the final oath of allegiance.®** 

Judge McCunn, however, says he can examine two witnesses in a 
minute! and the evidence shows that his practice was often in excess 
of even that!! 

When dt is remembered that time is consumed in calling applicants 
and witnesses, and in their withdrawal to make room for others, and in 
exiJaining to witnesses the facts to be x)roved not generally Avell under¬ 
stood, a judge could not actually tind properly naturalize perhaps over 
12 in an hour, and especially when fraud and imposition may be reason¬ 
ably suspected, and should therefore be strictly guarded against. 


Mr. Leverson gives his experience in the supreme court, on one occasion, thus: 

On one occasion that I was taking notes I was within the bar, and the judge ordered the space within the 
bar to be cleared. The usher came to me and told me that the judge had ordered the space within the bar to 
be cleared. I told him I was a member of the bar, and had a right to be there. He went to the judge and 
came back to me, and said that the judge required the space within the bar to be cleared. I therefore went 
without the bar and stood on a form at the extreme end of the court. It was while I was standing there that 
I heard Lusk say that he did not know who his witness was. I was observed to be continuing taking notes, 
and just as another batch had been sworn in the way I have named. After they were sworn, when they were 
being called over to receive their certificates, a further order was given by the judge to clear the court. There 
had been no disturbance whatever in the court, and no more noise than was absolutely unavoidable from the 
shuffling of so many feet going up and crowding around the Bibles. The other people without the bar went 
out; I did not; the usher, not the same one who had first spoken to me, came up and told me that the judge had 
ordered the court to be cleared. I told him that it was a public court and that I was a member of the bar, and 
that on both accounts I had a right to be there. He began to forcibly eject me. I then called out to the judge 
that I was a member of the bar, and called upon him to protect my rights. I did not hear of anything done in 
consequence of that; 1 only know that I was ejected. I cannot say positively that Judge Barnard heard my 
appeal to him for pr. tection, but 1 express my belief that he must have done so, because I spoke loudly, 
intending that he should hear me. Still, being at the extreme end of the court-room, wdth a man hustling me 
out, of course I cannot say positively that the judge heard me. 

®® Evidence, 19:^7. Colonel Bliss says of the superior court: 

Learning that Judge McCunn was in the common council chamber, holding another branch of the same 
court, I went there and found a very large crowd in the entry, gathered about the two doors leading into the 
room. They were apparently letting them in by one door and out by the other. I went to the door by which 
they were coming out, and with some little difficulty I succeeded in persuading the officer to let me in, I took 
a seat there and found a string of people coming up. 

®" Hou. Jolm R. Brady, for 13 years a judge, elected as a democrat. Evidence, 7208. 

The proceedings in this court were honestly conducted. Nathaniel Jarvis, jr, the clerk 
of this court, says : 

The action of the court alone would take probably about five minutes. There were many cases where I 
knew the court to be 21) minutes in the examination of a witness, and then to reject the applicant; but the 
ordinary time, with an intelligent man, answering truly the questions put to him, would not be over five 
minutes. Evidence, 1986, 1952, 1937, 1966. 

® Evidence, 3051, 3382.—Ryan, 4399, 3449—Nolan, 4382, 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


23 


THE SUPREME AND SUPERIOR COURTS—JUDGES BARNARD AND M’CUNN—FRAUDULENT 

NATURALIZATIONS AIDED BY THE GREAT NUMBER OF APPLICATIONS ENTERTAINED 

EACH DAY. 

The supreme courts for the first time in its history, commenced natural- 
iziiig in New York city October 6, 1868.™ That a single .judge could 
hoiiestl.y naturalize a daily average of 718 persons for 16 days in sue- 
cession cannot be possible.’’^^ 

As to the superior court, Judge John H. McCunn testifies: 

Judge Garvin and myself were the principal judges engaged in naturalization. I always 
took my seat at 12 o clock, and sometimes before 12, and we pursued the ordinary course 
pursued in the court from the time that I first knew it. Judge Garvin sat from the time the 
court wys opened in the morning, about 10 o’clock, until 12 o’clock, and I would then relieve 
him. I sat one night until 11 or 12 o’clock.’^^ 

Mr. Callan, who examined the ^‘greater part of 17,572 applications” for 
naturalization on file in this court, states that about eight-ninths of them 
were allowed by Judge McCunn.’^ 

The number ordered in this court for several days each was, respect- 
ively, 2,109, 1,868, 1,856, 1,842, 1,760, &c., and the daily average from 
October 5 to 23, inclusive, was 1,415. 

As Judge Garvin generally sat in the morning and Judge McCunn 
after noon, and with the evidence presented, it is manifest the business 
was conducted by Judge McCunn with an indecent haste which indicated 
no honest purpose to comply with the law or prevent the frauds which 
he had such abundant reason to know”^^ were being perpetrated. 


As to the reason why this court commenced, Mr. Jarvis, the clerk of the court of com¬ 
mon pleas, says: 

I cannot state any reason; I may have an impression; I don’t think we naturalized them rapidly enough 
[that is in the common pleas. 1 

Evidence, 1953, and see 1937. 

Evidence, 1335. M. R. Leverson, a lawyer in New York, says : 

Judge Barnard held his court nominally from 7 to 9 o’clock in the evening, bift I have seen the session riin- 
ning up till half-past 10 or II o’clock. 

’’2 Owen E. Westlake, general-term clerk, says : 

2029. Q. State what time the superior court met and adjourned during October.—A. The hours of meeting 
in special term were from 10 to 3, and in trial term from 11 to 4. 

2030. Q. State if the court sat at night.—A. I think it did on two or three occasions. 

2044. Not frequently—two or three nights.—See 3449. 

(See evidence somewhat different, 1528, 3797.) 

Evidence as follows : 

7679. Q. State what proportion of these applications for naturalization had on them the initials of Judge 
McCunn.—A. I should think about eight-ninths ; the others were between Judge Robinson and Garvin. 

The notoriety of the frauds, the number of the applications, the manner in which they 
came to the court, all would admonish judges of ordinary prudence to scrutinize carefully 
the applications. Judge McCunn’s own evidence showed the necessity for this, as follows ; 

36.39. Q. You have said that you have arrested some parties ; for what did you arrest them?—A. Some for 
testifying or attempting to testify to the identity of men they had not known long enough. I did it for the 
purpose of deterring those in my presence from attempting to perpetrate frauds. 

3640. Q. How many did you arrest?—A. Over 50. 

it it itifivitit'fcitieit 

3579. Q. In the course of your administration of this duty, did you confer the right of citizenship upon nearly 
all who applied for it?—A. No, sir; a large proportion of these I rejected. 

itit'kititifii'k'kificititif 

3581. Q. Did you dispose in that way of any considerable number?—A. I may have rejected, (and I am 
quite sure that Judge Garvin did, for I was on the bench with him when he was naturalizing, before his hour 
was up.) at the lowest calculation, from five to ten per cent. 

icititi:ififiti^ ie ic i( "k it it 

A. They were made by persons who supposed themselves entitled to naturalization and were not. 

************** 

3643. Q. Did you not often find that persons attempted to be naturalized under the minor form who were 
not entitled to be?—A. Plenty of thenA I found men attempting to be naturalized who had been born here; 
for what purpose I cannot tell you. I could detect them from their conversation, and I arrested many such men. 

3644. Q. Were they trying to be naturalized under other name's than their own?—A. Undoubtedly. Some 
of them would say, “They will not allow me to vote,” and I would answer, “I cannot help that; you cannot 
be naturalized, for you were born here.” 

3645. Q. Then you may have naturalized “natives to the manor born,” under assumed names?—A. Very 

ew. 

See 3852, 3932^, 1757, 4483, 43^7, 4888. 




24 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


NATURALIZATION FRAUDS AIDED BY NATURALIZING “IN GANGS.” 

That apiilicaiits for naturalization, or those professing to represent 
them with their witnesses, were sworn in groups, sometimes larger and 
sometimes smaller, and without any separate examination of each wit¬ 
ness in the suiireme court, not merely occasionally but habitually, is 
proved beyond controversy.'^^ 

As an example, some specimens of tlie proof are given. 

M. E. Leverson, a member of the bar, testifies, in relation to Judge 
Barnard’s court, as follows: 

1448. Question. You were in his (Judge Barnard’s) court about three hours and a half on 
two separate days ?—Answer. Yes, somewhere thereabouts. 

1449. Q. During those hours, about how many persons do you think were put through 
there—making the estimate as well as you are able from your recollection of what you saw?— 
A. I should think, sir, about 1,800 to 2,000. 

1450. Q. In the space of three hours and a half?—A. Yes; I reckon four batches an 
hour, averaging 150 each; that would make about 1,800 or 2,000—about 600 an hour. I 
reckon that they averaged four batches of 150 each, although it might be a little less ; I once 
saw five hatches in the hour. 

The mode of proceeding in Judge McCunn’s court is thus described 
by Colonel Bliss d® 

1 went there and found a very large crowd in the entry, gathered about the two doors 
leading into the room. They were apparently letting them in by one door and out by the 

Patrick Mack testifies : 

4163, I was chairman of the board of registrars and inspectors of the 5th election district of the 4th ward in 
the last presidential election. I was told that great frauds would be perpetrated by fraudulent naturalization 
papers, and on the day of election I swore every man who came before me of whom I had any doubts as to 
his being a legal voter. I had been a resident of the district for nearly 20 years, and know almost every legal 
voter in the district. It is a small one, con,sisting only of two blocks, and every person presenting a naturali¬ 
zation paper about which I had doubts I would swear if they went to a court and got their papers there, and 
in nineteen cases out of twenty the parties said they got their papers from other individuals and not from the 
court at all. I took the papers and made a private mark on them. The president of the board of aldermen 
came to me during election day and said that I was doing wrong, I told him that the police commissioners put 
me there as a republican, and I intended to do my duty. About 4 o’clock in the afternoon there came to me a 
writ of mandamus, issued by Judge Cardozo, requiring me to appear forthwith. I told my republican colleague 
that I would adjourn the board. The democrats said “ No;” they wanted the board in session to receive names 
for registry. One of them went up to Judge Cardozo, and came back and told me I need not appear before 
morning. They wanted to get me away, so they could put as many names as they wished on the registry 
book; but when they found that I intended to adjourn the board and close up the registry, they didn’t like it, 
and so they got it arranged that I need not appear until the next morning. I adjourned the board at 6 o’clock, 
but the democratic inspector staid there taking names until 9 o’clock. They did this without any legal war¬ 
rant or authority whatever. I went up to Judge Cardozo in the morning. On my way I met several parties 
who threatened me with Ludlow street jail, and I was told to save myself by pleading ignorance of the 
law, which I did. Judge Cardozo compelled me to give the papers back and register the men. Many of 
them 1 knew were not legal voters. One of them, a relative of mine, told me on the day of election that he 
had voted that day in the 10th ward, and then came down to vote in my district. ♦ 

Tbe examination of Peter Cook shows in part as follow^s : 

Parties would frequently come to me to have applications for naturalization made out without any witnesses 
at all. I would question them and ask them where their witness was, and they said they had none, and would 
want me to furnish them with one. I would send them away and tell them that I didn’t do that business. 
They would often go to other places to get witnesses and go before the court and get their applications through. 

4888. Q. How did you come to know that fact ? —A. It was the common report. I remember two or three 
cases in particular—parties who came to me—of parties I had sent away, whom I met afterwards up in the 
City Hall with their certificates of naturalization. They told me they had picked up some man on the corner 
to act as witness for them. 

4889. Q. Did you not inform the court that these frauds were being perpetrated—that these men were being 
naturalized improperly ?—A. I told Judge McCunn of it at one time, and he told me if I ever knew of such a 
case to let him know and he would put a stop to it. But I could not watch the court to detect these parties. 

See Evidence, 1602. 

'•'■’Evidence, 1016, 1335, 1349, 1450, 1544, 1680, 3762, 1937, 2123, 3812. As to supreme 
court see Evidence, 91.5, 918, 920 921, 1407, 1527, 3796, 3852. As to superior court see Evi¬ 
dence 915, 921, 1335, 1344, 3537, 3599, 3600, 4117, 1967, 1013, 1131, 2123, 3762, 3813, 3931 
4657, 3137. » » . 

Charles E. Loew, the clerk of the supreme court, who was in court some evenings and 
some not, admits this substantially. He says: 

The applications were handed in by the officer. The court then called off the name of the applicant. 

* The party answered to the name, and came inside the railing. Then the witness was called, and 
he came inside. The judge would call probably eight or ten in that way, and then the oath was put to them 

1544. Q. And in that way you would go through with a certain number?—A. Yes; with eight or ten at a 
time. 

1546. Q. How did you swear the witness’—A. “You, John Doe, (or whatever the name was,1 and you_ 

being witnesses for the several parties who have just been sworn, do severally solemnly swear that you havQ 
been acquainted with the parties,” &c. 

See to the same effect evidence of McAlpiue, Leverson, and McClusky. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


25 


other. I went to the door by which they were coming out, and with some little difficulty 
I succeeded in persuading the officer to let me in. I took a seat there and found a string of 
people coming up. They came in at the other door, and when they came within eight or 
ten teet of tiie judge the Bible was put in their hands, and perhaps a dozen or fifteen sworn 
at a time to make true answers. They then passed up in front of the judge. The judge had 
before him a large pile of these applications. He would take them up and ask questions 
about them, and the witness would answer. He took them up one at a time, and at first I 
noticed that the question he asked was, “Do you know this man?” The witness had no 
means of knowing who the man was that was named in the paper before the judge. I 
looked about to see where the men to be naturalized were, and it struck me that the mm to 
he naturalized were not in the room. I then went to one of the officers to ascertain the fact. 
Just as I was going to him I noticed a little noise at the door at which they were coming in, 
and heard one of the officers say torfi man, “ Go out.” The man said, “I want to be natu¬ 
ralized.” “ Well,” said the officer, “where is your witness?” “Here he is,” said the 
man. “Well, we do not want you here,” said the officer; “go out;” and he kept the 
man out and let the witness in. I then found that in no case was the person to bo natural¬ 
ized allowed to come into the room. After a time the judge adopted the plan of asking the 
witness how long he had known the man—giving his name. I may be mistaken, but I 
thought he did not give the name until he saw me sitting there. It seemed so to me. It 
went on for fifteen or twenty minutes in that way. The witnesses were asked the questions 
less rapidly than before Judge Garvin, but a peculiarity in Judge McCunn’s court was that 
the persons naturalized were not present, and there were no means, of course, of identifying 
who the man was. The witnesses would then ask for their papers, and the officers would 
tell them, “ No, you can’t have the papers.” The papers were handed to a clerk in the 
court, then to an officer, and then were taken out to a room across the entry. There were 
some of them who went and took the oath of allegiance before the clerk. I cannot specify 
any man who got his paper without taking the oath of allegiance, but while I was standing 
there in the entry there were certainly many more people coming out with their papers than 
had taken the oath of allegiance. I ought to say that Judge McCunn, after he recognized 
me, called me up, and I did my business with him. In the course of the conversation he 
said, “You see how we do this with all the legal forms, and there ought to be a stop of this 
abuse of us in the papers.” I timed him. The first five minutes I was there he naturalized 
13 men, and the second five minutes 15.men. 

Mr. Leverson also says in relation to Judge McCimn’s court: 

In the first place the witnesses, who appeared very frequently, appeared for different per¬ 
sons; the same witnesses appeared sometimes under different names, and sometimes person¬ 
ated applicants. With every desire to speak as charitably as possible of a gentleman who 
behaved so courteously to myself as Judge McCunn did, it would certainly be a large 
charity which should suppose that he could have failed to notice that. One single man 
appeared five-and-twenty times, at least, in a single evening under many different names. 

1429. Q. How many cases deserving that sort of criticism did you see in Judge McCunn’s 
court?—A. The bulk of them. 

1439. I should mention that I have since had a number of cases before me of persons who 
have obtained certificates in the superior court, without ever having been there at all. 

Mr. Jarvis, tlie clerk of the common pleas, says: 

I have been in the superior court. 

1973. Q. Did you observe the process of naturalization? —A. It was slightly different from 
our own. It was not done as it was done in our court. * # * j heard the witness 

called ; I do not think I saw an applicant; I don’t know that he was called. 

if. -X-if**^***^* 

1977. Q. You say there was no applicant present?—A. I only heard the witness called. 
In that respect it was different from the practice in our court, where both parties are called. 

Henry Lyle testifies: 

4628. Q. How did you procure certificates of naturalization before Judge McCunn?— 
A. I would take the papers down to the court and give them in to the clerk. He would 
call my name, and I would then go around and swear to the truth of the affidavits before 
the judge. After that I would go around to the clerk’s desk; if the man was not there, I 
would take the oath of allegiance, or if the man was too old to go through, otherwise, the 
man himself would go round. 

4629. Q. How many certificates of naturalization did you procure during these two 

’’’ Judge McCunn swears : 

I can retain faces in my memory as long as any other person of my age.—Evidence, 3582. 

Again he says : 

I have a wonderful recollection of faces.—Evidence, 3628. 





26 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


months?—A. I cannot tell, but I should judge from 600 to 1,000; that I n'ould swear to. 
Sometimes I would swear to 20 or 30 and sometimes 50 a day. 

4707. Q. How many times did you go there to get out applications without the applicants 
being present?—A. A good many times ; perhaps between 50 and 100 times. 

OTHER FRAUDS AIDED. 

The effect of this mode of procedure in these courts was to encourage 
and aid the operations of those engaged in falsely personating applicants 
and witnesses; in making perjury successful by the ‘‘professional” wit¬ 
nesses who swarmed in these courts ; in procuring certiticates to persons 
who never appeared in court; and otherwise rendering the whole busi¬ 
ness the most disgraceful mockery and fraud ever perpetrated in relation 
to naturalization in the courts of the United States. 

THE JUDGES IX THEIR OWN DEFENCE. 

Judge McCunn appeared before the committee, and his evidence is on 
record. 

It is believed that no one connected with this investigation has deemed 
it advisable to call Judge Barnard as a Avitness, nor did he, or any one 
for him, venture to recpiest any such privilege. 

As he has not A^entured to ask the privilege of making anj^ denial, nor 
any one for him, this fact may be significant, especially in connection 
Avith his refusal to make an order to permit the committee to examine 
the files of his court and the record of his proceedings. 

OBSTRUCTIONS THROWN IN THE WAY OF THIS INVESTIGATION BY JUDGES OF THE 
SUPREME COURT AND THE CLERK, CHARLES E. LOEW. 

On the 2Gth December the committee, then sitting in N'ew York city, 
asked of the clerk of the supreme court permission to cause tlie papers 
relating to naturalization in his office to be examined by suitable per¬ 
sons, and lists to be made of the names of applicants and Avitnesses. 
This was deemed essential to ascertain their number, to detect forgeries, 
and other frauds. The clerk required time to consider Avhether he Avould 
permit it thus to be done."^^ 

On the 28th December he notified the committee that he did not think 
he had a “ right to alloAv other parties to come in and take temporary 
custody of the papers without the order of the court,” and that he had 
“ prepared a communication to the justices of the supreme'^® court request¬ 
ing its proper order in the matter.” A communication Avas submitted 
to him from the committee to be also presented to the court. The 
court never made any reply to these communications, or any order author¬ 
izing the examination.^® 

The evidence is thus: 

By the CHAIRMAN : 

1694. Q. The commitfee'has adopted this resolution : 

Resolved, That the chairman of the committee be and he is hereby authorized to cause the records and 
papers in the possession of the county clerk of New York, referring to naturalization in the supreme court, 
to be examined, and a list to be made of the name of each person so naturalized, his age and residence, and 
the name aud place of residence of the witness, and the day of the month on w’hich such person was natural¬ 
ized, during the mouth of October, 1868. 

Under that resolution I propose to designate some suitable persons to make the examination and lists 
referred to in the resolution. State if you are willing to submit the papers at such time and place as may suit 
your convenience, and in the presence of yourself or such person as you may designate for that purpose, to 
be examined so that the list may be made in compliance with the resolution ?-^A, I shall want to consider that 
question. 

1695. Q. How soon will you notify the committee of your determination?—A, On Monday next. I want 
time to consider whether I have the facilities for the committee to make the examination without taking the 
records away, for that I cannot allow. 

^Evidence, 1894. 

^Evidence, 2718, and evidence of Loew,February 27, 1869, at Washington. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 27 

On the 30tli December the clerk, however, gave permission to make 
the examination under protestP 

Subsequently the evidence of McClusky showed that application for 
naturalization had been made, and certificates of naturalization granted 
on fictitious names on the 21st and 23d of October, and, of course, on 
forged signatures of applicants and witnesses. On the 6th of February 
the clerk was subpoenaed to appear before a sub-committee of this com* 
mittee at New York, and produce these papers. Under pretext that it 
was not practicable to assort and produce the papers, they were not pro¬ 
duced, although it is admitted that some of them were ready and could 
have been produced.^^ 

After a correspondence evincing a purpose to delay or defeat the pur¬ 
pose of the committee, Mr. Loew appeared before the committee in Wash¬ 
ington, February 17, with an opinion of the judges that it was not law¬ 
ful to remove the papers from the jurisdiction, and so their production 
was refused. 

The purpose of delay at New York can be understood. Their produc¬ 
tion there would have furnished the means of confirming the evidence 
of McClusky and Taylor as to their spurious character.^^ The investi¬ 
gations of the committee were otherwise obstructed.*^^ 

The power of the House of Representatives is undoubted to compel 
the production of papers, but this is more especially so when, as in this 
case, the judges and clerks derive their powers and exercise their juris¬ 
diction under acts of Congress, and as to subjects over which the States 
have no control. 

THE NUMBER OF CERTIFICATES OF NATURALIZATION GRANTED IN THE SUPREME COURT 
IN NEW YORK CITY, IN OCTOBER, 1868. 

Edmund M. Plumb, clerk of records in the office of the clerk of the 
supreme court, testified that he “examined the records * * * on file* * * and’^ 
presented a statement showing 10,070 naturalized in October. How many 
records are not on file he does not say. But it is susceptible of demon¬ 
stration that very many more certificates of naturalization were granted 
than the applications on file show. 

BY THE BLANK CERTIFICATES. 

This court procured blank applications and certificates, as follows: 



Blank 

application. 

Blank 

certificates. 


Blank 

application. 

Blank 

certificates. 

Ifi ..... 

10, 000 
10, 000 
25, 000 
5,000 
10, 000 

9, 000 

October 15. 


10, 000 

fiipptpmViAr IQ 

October 16.. 

5,000 
5, 000 


5, 000 
5, 000 

October 19. 



October 20. 

10, 000 

1 

October 22. 

5,000 

Total... 






75, 000 

39, 000 






Evidence of Loew at Washington, February 17. 

^^Evidence of Loew at Washington, February 17. 

83 See evidence showing that Sheriff O’Brien stationed some of his deputies at the door of 
the coniniiitee room, who arrested some of the witnesses. (Evidence, 5918, 5985, 5994, 6000, 
5483, 5485, 5498, .5499, 5512.) And see journal of the committee, with Le Barnes commu¬ 
nication to the committee. 































28 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The records or files show persons naturalized as follows : 


1868. 

1868. 

October 6. 6 

October 7. 8 

October 8. 379 

October 9. 668 

October 10. 717 

October 12. 723 

October 13. 901 

Optnhpr 14. .. ..521^ 

October 16. 7^1 

October 17. 633 

October 19. 955 

October 20 . 944 

October 21. 773 

October 22. 675 

October 22. 587 

October 15. 857 

Total.10,070 


Now, if as shown, nearlj^ 4,000 more blank certificates were procured 
on 16th September and 6th October, before naturalization in this court 
commenced, than the whole number issued, why were there procured 
25,000 more, 10,000 of Avhich were only two days before naturalization 
ceased ? 

EVIDENCE DIRECT. 

Mr. Loew, the clerk, testifies that the blank certificates are “never 
given out,” and that certificates of naturalization were “to be given out 
only by the clerk on the order of the court.” 

On the 12th February, the committee directed the county clerk “to 
have counted at once, and certify to them, the number of blanks and 
certificates of naturalization now on hand for the supreme court.” On 
the 17th February, an assistant deputy clerk certified that he found 
“ after counting the same, 1,862 blank certificates of naturalization in 
this office.” 

It will be seen, therefore, the whole number of blank certificates 


received was. 39, 000 

Issued as the records show. 10, 070 

Blanks on hand... 1, 862 

- 11,932 


Unaccounted for. 27, 068 


What was done with these remains to be seen. Mr. Leverson testifies 
that in October he was in the room formerly used as a sheriff’s office, 
in the basement of the City Hall building, in which the court was held, 
and clerks were engaged in filling up blank applications. 

He says: 

A. On the occasion when I saw these papers filled up with the name of Patrick Goff as 
the witness for so many persons, I saw a pile of the same kind of papers all filled up appa¬ 
rently in the same writing. When I say all it is a presumption on my part, for I had an 
opportunity of seeing only three or four in the batch, but they were all in the same hand- 

^ His evidence is— 

1580. Q. Could any person calling at the office and wanting a blank naturalization paper like that sub¬ 
mitted to you here, get it?—A. They could get blank applications ; nothing else. 

1581. Q. Did you ever give out any of those other papers, so as to have them go outside of the court-room 

to any person?—A. I never gave out any of them. ’ 

1582. Q. Who does that; who gives out the final papers t—A. If I understand you, the “final paper” is the 

C0T tlIlC&X6* 

1583. Q. Yes.—A. Well, that paper was to be given out only by the clerk, on the order of the court 

1584. Q. The blank, then, is never given out ?—A. The blank is never given out; there never was one 
given out to my knowledge. 

1572. Q. State to the committee how it is that those blanks of the final papers, such as you saw here to¬ 

day, are procured to be printed, or by whom it is done.—A. It is done in my office; they were ordered to he 
printed by my office—by me. ^ < j 

1573. Q. And they are kept in your office?—A. They are. 

1574. Q. Are they printed on separate sheets or in books ?—A. Always in separate sheets 

1575. Q. And they are sent to you in bundles ?—A. Yes. 

1576. Q. Where is it your custom to keep those blanks?- A. In the general office of the county clerk. 

(And see 1613, 1634, 3758, 3832, 3413.) 

(See Evidence, 3758, 3833.) 




































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


29 


writing. I lifted np a number and saw several in different parts of the pile; all had Patrick 
Goft as witness, and all wore in one or other of the same three handwritings. Of course I 
had no opportunity of examining the whole pile, but those seen in different parts of the pile 
seemed to be in the same handwriting, both the filling up and the applicant’s name and the 
signature of the applicant; and to all three, besides those which I counted during the time 
that I was watching the operations—to the whole batch already prepared—the name of 
“ Patrick Goff, his mark,” was placed as witness. I say this with the explanation that I 
did not see the whole lot. One batch of clerks could not get through the whole lot, and the 
foreman handed a list of names on some sheets of brief paper to some one else, and told him 
to fill them up. The man said, “ Shall I make these in the supreme or superior? ” to which 
the reply was: “Make them in the supreme; they go through easier.” On the 15th of 
October one of the clerks told me that up to that date they had put 20,000 through the mill, 
(that was the expression used by him ; I employed it first to him and he adopted it,) and that 
they expected to get through another 20,000 before election. Another gentleman came in 
about that time, and his statement reduced the number about one-half; he said they had 
done 10,000 and would do 20,000. My belief is that the former number was correct, and I 
will give you my reasons for so thinking. There would be four or five batches varying from 
110 to 200 in number, averaging about 140 or 150 got through by Judge Barnard in each 
hour. It seems impossible at first, until you remember that the only thing the judge had to 
do was simply, as fast as the clerk turned over the papers to him, to sign his name, or, I 
think, simply his initials to tlfe fiat. That is the way it was done—no question of any kind 
being asked. I can also speak of two occasions when I saw the court at work up to 10 and 
half past 10 o’clock at night. I cannot myself speak of more than two such occasions, but 
I can direct you to further evidence about the hours that Judge Barnard’s court was kept 
open. I sent down some persons to make certain inquiries, and I could also bring them 
before you if you desire. 

Wliat the practice in this court was may be seen from the evidence of 
Robert E. Adams, as follows: 

A. I was in the circuit room, supreme court, on the morning of October 10th last, about 
10 o’clock. I went in at the usual entrance to the court-room. There was no judge in court. 
Mr. McKean, the clerk, was there, and several young men officiating in some clerical 
capacity behind an extra table at the clerk’s desk. My business there was to look at the day 
calendar of the day before. I asked Mr. McKean, the clerk, to let me see it. He said he 
would, and told me to wait a few moments. While waiting, I was startled by somebody 
behind the counter wanting to know why that door was open by which I had come in. It 
was ordered to be shut and it was shut. While I was waiting, some men at the table along¬ 
side the clerk’s desk were very busy filling out naturalization papers. During this time, a 
party came by the door that is usually used by the judges and some officers of the court, and 
with red tickets in his hand, called out to the court as he approached the table, “ I w'ant ten 
citizens’ papers.” “ Very well,” said McKean, “ I will hand them to you directly.” The 
man said, “ I am in a hurry.” McKean turned his back to his desk and opened some 
drawers that w'ere behind him and took several of these papers. The man said, “he was in 
a hurry, and wanted to know whether Charley, or Bill, or somebody else, w’ould not give 
him the papers.” McKean said, “Wait a minute,” or something of that kind. After a 
little interval he got up and handed him ten citizens’ papers, and the man threw down ten 
naturalization tickets. I am not sure wdiether it was McKean or one of the men at the desk 
who handed him the papers. In the mean time I got the calendar from Mr. McKean, found 
W’hat I wanted, and then left. 

1703. Q. Did you examine the papers delivered to the man who came with the red tickets ? 

A. No, sir; I judged the character of the papers from their general style. They were 

printed forms, partly printed and partly written. I cannot say whether they corresponded 
W'ith those now shown me because I did not see them opened. But the man did not ask for 
any particular kind of papers, only he wanted ten citizens’ papers. 

1704. Q. Was any writing done upon the papers that were delivered to him after became 

in 7 

A. There was nothing done to them after he came in.®* 

®*And see evidence of Theodore Allen, February 0; and witnesses showing certificates 
sent to Connecticut. And see 4645, 4661, 4664. It is quite clear certificates were issued 
without any application in court. Henry Lyle says: 

4645. Q. State if you know of any certificates of naturalization being obtained there in that court without 
any witness being present at all.—A. Yes, sir ; I had papers from that court without either applicant or wit¬ 
ness being present, . , 1 - ,• 

4754. Q. How did you come on the 21st of October to sign the papers of these two men for naturalization as 
a witness ? Did you sign their names to the papers?—A. No, sir; I made out their papers. 

4755. Q. Were you the witness in each case ?—A. I was not. 

4756. Q. Who was their witness ?—A. Th^ did not have any witnesses. I made out their papers and gave 
them to the men ; in the afternoon the men returned and gave me the certificates. 

4757. Q. Who was their witness ? —A. Henry Lyons is the name I put down on the paper. 

4758. Q. You have said, in reference to these applications, that nobody was sworn at all; how do you 

know that?_A. I know it from this fact, that the supreme court was not in session on that day between those 




30 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


This evidence, taken in connection with the fact that certilicates from 
the court ‘Ai'id found in various counties, sent to parties ivlio never appeared 
in court to procure them, and with the evidence of nniiieroiis other 
frauds, can leave hut little doubt as to what has been done with the 
27,068 blank certilicates unaccounted for. 

SUPERIOR COURT. 

> _ 

Owen E. Westlake, the general term clerk in the superior court, swore 
on the 28th December, that the ‘‘aggregate number of naturalizations in 
that coiu t,” from October 1 to October 23 inclusive, was 26,226, and for 
the year, 27,897. Joseph Meeks, deputy clerk of the court, officially cer¬ 
tified to this number, and swore it “ was an actual count.’’ Adam Gilles¬ 
pie, the assistant naturalization clerk, swore to the same facts, and gave 
the same number. The numbers thus sworn to by three officers, and offi¬ 
cially certified to by one of the number, would seem to be sufficiently 
proved. Their evidence is quite as worthy of belief as any given afterwards 
to reduce the number, when a motive might exist to suppress those fraudu¬ 
lent on their face. The examination of the applications on file, made by 
direction of the committee, began to develope fraudulent applications, 
with forged names of applicants and witnesses.^® Those making the 
investigations could only find in the court, and were only furnished by 
its officers with 17,915 applications.*^ 

Adam Gillespie, a clerk in this court, again appeared before the com¬ 
mittee on the l,st of February, more than a month after Westlake testi¬ 
fied, and contradicts his own former testimony by swearing that “within 
the last few days” he “ made a count of the entire number of applications^^ 
in the superior court,” and the result Avas “that the whole number of 
applications from 1st to 231 October, inclusive, was 18,432.” 

Although he says he “can safely swear that none have been destroyed 
or abstracted,” yet, as various clerks and others had access to the office 
the evidence shows that there were abundant opportunities to destroy or 
abstract the papers. And Westlake who swore to the number in Decem¬ 
ber, though yet a clerk in the office, is not produced as a witness to 
explain the alleged error in his eAddence, nor is any reason assigned why 

hours uatur tlizing parties. I handed the papers to Pettit about 12 o’clock, and about 6 or 7 iu the evening I 
received the certificates. Tlie supreme court did not commence to naturalize until 7 o’clock iu the evening. 

I was in the supreme court all that day hearing a trial. 

4661. Q. Do you know of any others that were engaged in the same businesss ?—A. Yes, sir; one was 
Patrick McCaffrey; another was John Gallagher; he is in the street department, I believe; a man at 189 
King street; and also John Verway. conductor on a Ninth avenue railroad car; he resides at 439 West Thirty- 
sixth street. I know William Thurbin, who is also engaged iu that business; he is a conductor on tlie Bleeker 
street line, and resides somewhere in the 19th ward. There is also John Moran, who resides in the 2Ist ward. 
Also Chauncey Gray, who resides at the Putnam County House, corner of Twenty-sixth street and Fourth 
avenue. 

4662. Q. Do you know John or Patrick Goff?—A. I do not. I know a great many by sight but do not 
know their names. 

Q. Do you know where Patrick McCaffrey is ?—A. I saw him last Monday. 

4663. Q. Do you know Henry Illume?—A. I know a great many by sight who are engaged in this business, 

but do not know them by name. ,a 

4664. A. Do you know anything of the mode in which these men conducted their business ?—,\. They did 
it just the same as I did. Some of them were at Rosenberg’s place ; Rosenberg had three Jews who s\vore 
in papers for him. At the office of the Tammany committee. No, 1 Centre street, there was a clerk there 
from each ward. Applicants would come to these men to get their papers put through, and if they had no 
witnesses the clerks would go witness for them. In the sheriffs office the different wards had parties there 
who would go. Patrick McCaffrey was most of the time in the old sheriff’s office. John Gallagher also 
had a desk there. 

4767. Q. To what extent did McCaffrey carry on this busine.ss ?—A. lie carried it on to a very heavy extent 

4768. Q. To what extent did John Gallagher?—A. Very largely. Gallagher told me that ho was in the 
street department. That is the only way that I know it. 

86 Evidence, 2023. 

6’'Evidence, 7207—and swore “it is an actual count”—3457. 

«8 Evidence, 7207, 8451. 

8“ Evidence, (5851, pag:e 700, 7704, 7712-20, 7733, 7740, 774.3-44, 

Evidence, 7670 ; see table in note to this report, part 1, chapter 1, under head of “ minor 
applications.'' 7732, 7741, 7643. 

Evidence, 8223. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


31 


lie does not appear before the committee. These contradictory state¬ 
ments are not calculated to inspire confidence in the accuracy of these 
witnesses, and if any have been reckless or careless in their evidence 
they might be equally so in the mode of preserving the papers. 

Some of the same clerks aided in making the count on both occasions.^ 
To account for the discrepancy, it is said that in the first estimate they 
counted one bundle of 100 and estimated the residue in bundles of the 
same size as nearly as possible.®^ But this cannot satisfactorily account 
for the discrepancy. 

A comparison of the number reported for certain days by Westlake and 
the number last certified to as found in the oflice shows this, as may be 
seen from the following: 

Gillespie’s Westlake’s evidence, Discrepancy in 

Report, Feb. 1. December 2S. each day. 


October 6. 1,272 1,721 449 

Octobers. 1,133 1,842 709 

October 9. 877 1,760 883 

October 13. 1,384 1,868 484 

October 15. 934 1,420 486 

October 16. 581 1,112 531 


And the applications now conceded to be on file were in part withheld 
from these investigations; for October 9, only 601 of the 877 admitted, 
and of the 1760 originally sworn to, have been presented for inspection. 

THE NUMBER OF FRAUDULENT CERTIFICATES.*^ 

In view of all the evidence it is not too much to say no reliance can be 
placed on the records and files of these courts to declare the actual 
number of certificates of naturalization granted. The actual number of 
illegal^ fraudulent and fictitious naturalizations never can be known, but 
including those sent from ^7ew York city over the State to persons 
never appearing in court, and it is probably safe to say that fraudulent 
certificates were issued from these two courts alone as follows: 


Fraudulent minor applications as shown above. 6, 656 

Highest number of prior naturalizations since 1855. 16, 493 

Number as reported in 1868. 41,112 


Difference estimated fraudulent. 24, 619 

Of the 27,068 missing blank certificates in the supreme 
court it would doubtless be safe to assume on the evi¬ 
dence that there have been usedt. 27, 068 

In the counties of Ulster, Monroe, Westchester, Kens- 
selaer, Putnam, Green, and Orange, estimating what 

is probable from what is proved . 5,000 

As the evidence shows a wide-spread conspiracy it is safe 

to estimate for other portions of the State. 5, 000 


Or a total of 7 iot lessj and probably more^ than. 68,343 


Of the 60 counties in the State of New York 14 are democratic.^^ 


92 Evidence, 8417, 8456. Evidence, 8416. Evidence, page 700. 

95 Some estimate might be made by ascertaining the proportion of those proved fraudulent 
The 21st district, 17th ward, may serve as a specimen. There about one-filth of the certificates 
presented proved to be fraudulent. Of course, there were really many more which escaped 
challenge, or otherwise avoided detection. The whole number of certificates reported is 
41,112. One-fifth of this is 8,222. And the undetected and otherwise illegal would vastly 
exceed this.—Evidence, 369. 

96 Evidence, p. 354. 






















32 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


There is no evidence of the issuing of a fraiidnlent naturalization cer¬ 
tificate hy any republican court or officer, but New York city had made 
auiple preparations to supply the democratic i)arty abundantly even 
in the republican counties. 


CHAPTER III. 


ILLEGALITY OF NATURALIZATION PROCEEDINGS IN NEW YORK CITY. 

The acts of Congress authorize the naturalization, among others, of 
three classes of aliens : 

1. Those residing five years in the United States, having declared in 
court, at least two years prior to naturalization, the intention to become 
citizens. 

2. Those haAing resided in the United States three years next pre¬ 
ceding the age of tAventy-one years, and five years in all, in which cases 
no preA ious declaration is required. These are called ‘‘ minor applica¬ 
tions.’’ 

3. Those of the age of twenty-one years, honorably discharged fpm 
the army, on proof of one year’s residence, and without any previous 
declaration of intention. 

In all cases the court must be satisfied’’’’ of the facts and that the 
applicant has during his residence behaved as a man of good moral 
character, attached to the i)rinciples of the Constitution, and Avell-dis- 
posed to the good order and happiness of the same, but ^Hlie oath of the 
aiypUcant shall in no case be alloAved to prove his residence.” (Act of 
Congress of April 14, 1802. 2 Stat., 153.) 

In NeAV York city, during 1868, naturalizations were effected in the 
supreme court, the superior court, and the common pleas. 

The supreme court of New York professed to adopt the folloAving 
practice : 

For the naturalization of those having x^reAnously declared in court 
the intention to become citizens, a blank form^'’ j)rinted sheet is used, 
containing— 


It is as follows : 


Supreme Court, City and County of New York: 

In the matter of the application of-, to be admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

State of New York, City and County of New York, ss: 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at -, and that he is well acquainted with the 

above-named applicant, and that the said applicant has resided within the United States for the continued 
term of five years, at least, next preceding the present time, and within the State of New York one year, at 
least, immediately preceding this application, and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the 
good order and happiness of the same. 


Sworn in open court this-day of-, 186-. 


State of New York, City and County of New York, as: 

_ I.-) residing at-, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United 

States, and that 1 do absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign 

prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and particularly to the --, of whom I was before a 

subject. 


Sworn in open court this-day of-, 186-. 


At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the city of New York, on the 

-, 186-. ’ 

Present. Hon.-, justice. 


Clerk. 
-day of 


In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be admitted a citizen of the United States 

. of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evidence required by the acts of Congress 
remiivLV’if- and reminciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said acts 

of ^Ainerlca court that the said applicant be admitted to be a citizen of the United States 

Enter : 


























ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 33 

1. An affidavit of a witness to prove the residence and character of 
the ap])licant. 

2. An affidavit of the applicant to support the Constitution and 
renounce all foreign allegiance, commonly called the ‘‘oath of allegiance.” 

3. The order of the court of admission to citizenship, or, as it is called 
in New York, the fiat. 

On production of evidence of the previous declaration in some court 
of intention to become a citizen, and proof under these forms, the judge 
signs his mitials to the order of admission, the oath of allegiance is 
administered, and the clerk fimiishes a tiiial certificate of naturalization 
to the applicant. 

For “minor applications” there is used^'^ an affidavit of the apifiicant, 
as to his residence, arrival in the United States, under 18 years of age, 
&c.; another of his intention for three years to become a citizen j another 
of a witness as to the residence of the applicant; then the oath of allegi¬ 
ance and the order of admission of the court. 

In the supreme court there were, in 18G8, 10,093 naturalizations, of 
which 9,711 purport to be minor applications, leaving only 382 of all 
other classes! Minor applications require no evidence of a previous 
declaration of intention. 

For discharged soldiers there is used a petition^^ and affidavit of the 
soldier, affidavit of witness, oath of allegiance, and order of the court. 


^ The forms are as follows : 

Supreme Court, City and County of New York : 

In the matter of the application of-, to be admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

STjiTE OF New York, City and County of New York, ss: ' 

-, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says that he resides at -; that he has 

arrived at the age of 18 years ; that he has resided in the United States thi’ee years next preceding his arrival 
at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided five years within the 
United States, including the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately preceding this 
application, within the State of New York, and that for three years preceding this application it has been, 
hona fide, his intention to become a citizen of the United States. 


Sworn in open court this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerk. 

State of New York, City and County of New York, es: 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and that he is well acquainted with the 

above-named applicant, and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for three years next pre¬ 
ceding his arrival at the age of 21 years ; that he has contiuned to reside therein to the present time ; that he 
has resided five years within the United States, including the three years of his minority, and in the State of 
New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this application, and that during that time he has 
behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, 
and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same ; and deponent verily believes that for three 
years next preceding this application it has been, bona fide, the intention of the said applicant to become a 
citizen of the United States. 


Sworn to in open court this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clark. 

State of New York, City and County of New York, ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do declare on oath that it is, bona fide, my intention, and has 

been for three years next preceding this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, 
particularly to the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I am now a subject. 

Sworn to in open court this-day of -, 186-. 

-, Clerk. 

[Then follow the form of oath of allegiance, order of the judge, as in preceding form.] 

98They are as follows: 

Supreme Court, City and County of New York : 

In the matter of-, on his petition to become a citizen of the United States. 

To the Supreme Court of the State of New York : 

The petition of-, residing at-, respectfully shows: That ho is of the age of 21 years and 

upwards, and has resided within the United States for the continued term of one year next preceding the 

present time ; that your petitioner enlisted in the army of the United States, in the- regiment of New 

York volunteers, on the-day of-, 186-, at -, in the State of New York, and was honorablv 

discharged therefrom on the - day of-, 186-. Your petitioner, therefore, ask.s to bo admitted to 

H. Rep. Com. 31-3 

































34 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


III the supreine court all the naturalizations were before Judge George 
Gr. Ihirnard,^''^ wliose general x>i‘^ictice professed to be to administer an 
oatld^" to tlie applicants and' witnesses in the words of the printed 
blank forms of affidavits, generally Avithout any further examination, 
Avithout any oath to “testify the truth, the AAdiole truth, and nothing but 
tlie truth,” or “to true ansAver make to such questions as may be put.’^ 

become a citizen of the United States, pursuant to sectittn 21 of tbe act of Congress passed July 17, 18fi2, 
entitled “ An act to define the pay and emoluments of certain officers of the army, and tor other jmrposes. 

State of New York, City and County of New York, ss: 

--, the within-named petitioner, being duly sworn, says that the matters contained in the fore¬ 
going petition are true. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 


•, Clerk. 


State of New York, City and County of New York, ss: 

--, being duly sworn, says that he resides at -, and that he is well acquainted with the 

above-named petitioner, and that the said petitioner has resided within the United States tor the continued 
term of one year, next preceding the present time, and wfithin the State of New York one year, at 
least, immediately preceding this application; and that during that time he has behaved as a man of 
good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed 
to the good order and happiness of the same ; and that he knows the said applicant to be the identical person 
mentioned and described in the foregoing petition, and in the certificate of discharge Irom the service of the 
United States army, now produced to the court. 


Sworn in open court this-day of 




-, Clerk. 


[Then follows a form of oath of allegiance, as in the foregoing, and order of the judge, as 
follows: ] 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the. City Hall of the city of New York, on the-day 

of-, 186-. 

Present, Hon.-, justice.] 

lu the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be admitted a citizen of the United States 

of America. 


The said? applicant appearing personally in court, and producing his certificate of discharge from the service 
of the United States army, and the evidence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said acts required, it is ordered by the said 
court that the said applicant be admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter: 

Yox forms in naturalization cases, see Evan’s edition of Harris’s Entries, Story’s Pleadings. 
^ See Evidence, 1696. 

’'’Q Isaac Heyinan, a clerk in that court, testifies that the judge “ swore them in by read¬ 
ing to each of them the oath that is appended to the application. After the principal and 
witness were both sworn he would sign orders for the application so granted.” (2852.) See 
Evidence, 1678. 

Charles E. Loew, the clerk of the court, testifies : 

A. AA^ell, the way it was done was this: First, the applications of the various parties were handed in by the 
ofiicer of the court. The parties were sitting outside, just as if they were outside that railing, and the judge 
was sitting on the bench, and the applications were handed in by the officer. The court then called off the 
name of the applicant; sometimes Judge Barnard called it oflF, and sometimes I called it when I was there. 
The party answered to the name, and came inside the railing. Then the witness was called, and he came 
inside. 'I'he judge would call probably eight or ten in that way, and then the oath was put to them. 

1542. Q. The judge, or you, would call the applicant, and then the witness?—A. Yes, sir. 

1543. Q. AA^as that the uniform mode of doing in each particular case?—A. That was the uniform mode of 
doing. 

1544. Q. And in that way you would go through with a certain number?—A. Yes; with eight or ten at a 
time. That is the way it was done. When they came inside the railing, the judge Avould either swear them 
or direct me to swear them. 

1545. Q. How did you administer the oath to so many?—A. I administer it—that “you and each of you 
(whose names have been called) do severally and solemnly swear.” That is when the applicants were all 
alike—of one class. The papers were separated and each class put by itself, and then the usual oath pre¬ 
scribed by the law was administered. 

1546. Q. How did you swear the witness?—A. “A"ou, John Doe, (or whatever the name was) and you 

-, being witne.sses for the several parties who have just been sworn, do severally solemnly swear that 

yott have been acquainted with the parties,” (fee., complying with the requirements of the law. 

1547. Q. Do you mean to say that you administered the oath to the witnesses separately?—A. No, sir; I 
do not. 

1551. Q. How were the applicants sworn?—A. As I have described—eight or ten at a time. 

1552. Q. Either by the court or by you, iu open court ?—A. Yes, sir ; I don’t say that was always the case, 
but when I was there I would, by his direction, administer the oath occasionally. 

1.553. Q. You would repeat the oath but once for the eight or ten ?—A. Yes, sir; calling the names as they 
came up and putting the oath to them, “ You do severally and solemnly swear,” <fec. 

M. R. Leverson, a member of the bar, testifies: 

The judge then administered the oath in words which I took down at the time: “ You, the several appli- 
caat.s, swear that you are 21 years of age; that you arrived in this country three years before attaining that 
age, and have resided five years in the United States, aud for the last year in the State of New A^ork.” He 
swore them in a batch to that form. He would then say : ‘‘And you, the several witnesses, swear that the 
contents of your severa affidavits are true.” 

Aud seo Evideuce. 382k 3852, 3859, 3696. 



















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


35 


In tlie superior court of New York city substantially the same blank 
forms were used, except that there was no printed or other fiat or order 
of the judge. Instead of this tlie judge indicated his order simply by 
writing his intials, J. H. McC.” across the face or along the margin of 
the application.^®^ 

In this court most of the naturalizations were before Judge John 
H. McCunn, from whose testimony it appears he did not swear any 
witness or applicant ^^to testify the truth, the whole truth, and nothing 
but the truth,’’nor even to ^^make true answers to such questions as 
should be put,” but he professed to. swear the applicants and witnesses 
in these words, “that these affidavits you have subscribed are true.”^®^ 
After this, sometimes, though rarely, questions were asked as to age, 
residence, and moral character, l)iit never under oathj unless, indeed, the 
swearing to the truth of their affidavits could be so considered. 

In the court of common pleas each applicant was naturalized separately, 
an oath was administered to each witness to testify the truth touching 
the questions put to him in the matter of the application, a proper oral 
examination of witnesses was had and, the judges and clerk seem to have 
discharged their duties with an integrity of purpose and regard for the 
law,^®^ which unfortunately did not prevail in the other courts. 

This may account for the fact that the common pleas, which in pre¬ 
vious years had done most of the naturalization business,^®'^ did but very 
little in 1808, while the naturalizations in the superior and supreme 
courts were numerous, though the latter court natiualized none in pre- 
Auous years. 

The distinction between an oath and an affidavit is well understood.^®^ 
An oath means an oath in the common law form.^®® 

The law does not authorize the court to receive affidavits.^^^ In order- 

’0'See Evidence, 3614; Meek’s evidence, No. 3787. 

^°"^IIere is Judge McCunn’s own testimony: 

3632. Q. lu what form did you swear the parties?—A. To my invariable question, “Have you read the 
affidavit?” the answer would be “Yes, sir.” “Do you understand the contents thereof?” “Yes, sir.” Then, 
if the witness swore with uplifted hands, I would administer this oath: “ You do solemnly swear, in the pres¬ 
ence of the ever-living God, that these affidavits you have subscribed are trueor, if the witness swore on 
the book, “You solemnly swear that the affidavits you have subscribed are true?” That was the end of 
the formula, and then the cross-examination would begin: “How long have you known this man in this 
country?” “ So many years." “Do you know that he came here under the age of 18?” Well, if a man 
hesitated for a moment, I would tear up the papers and tell him to pass along; but if theanswbr was, “ I have 
known him from his boyhood,” or “from when he was 16 years old in this country,” I would then ask, “Do 
you know him to be a man of good moral character, and attached to the Constitution of the United States of 
America?” If he said “ Yes,” I wmuld then turn to the applicant himself and ask him, “How long have you 
been in this country?” and if I doubted the man from his answer, I would ask him what ship Le came over 
in, and from which port, for I have knowledge of almost all the steamships and packets, and if I found that 
the man prevaricated, then I would destroy the application. 

3633. Q. Suppose it was not the application of a minor, but of an adult, what would be the process of nat¬ 
uralization?—A. He has his first certificate then, and it is only a question whether he has been in this country 
all the time since ; or if he has been abroad, whether it was with the intention of residing abroad. The appli¬ 
cant and his witness, in such a case, would be sworn inthe same way that I have already stated. I would ask, 
then: “Have you read the affidavits?” and if they said they had not, I would go on and read the affidavits, 
if they said “ Yes,” I would swear them to the truth of the affidavits. After that I would ask the witness, 
“ How long have you known this man in this country ?” and “ Is he a man of good moral character ?” &c. 
That was ail. 

Edwin R. Kent, clerk in equity to the supreme court, testifies: 

3957. Q. Were one-tenth of the witnesses,examined before they were sworn?—A. O, yes, sir. There may 
have been one half of them examined, or there may have been more, or there may have been less. 

3958. Q. After the examination without being sworn, the oath was administered to them in the form in the 
printed blanks?—A. Yes, sir. 

3973. Q. Were they sworn as soon as they came inside the railing?—A. No, sir; as a general thing the judge 
asked them some questions before the oath was administered.—Evidence, 963, 1366, 1756, 3957, 3973. 

103 1966,7227. * io-il952. See tables. 

105 7 Hill, N. Y. Rep. 137. The act of March 3, 1857, (11 Stat. 250,) declares it perjury to 
swear falsely “in all cases where any oath, affirmation, or affidavit shall be made or taken 
before any registrar or receiver of any local land office.” 

10(5Evidence of Judge Emmet, 5090. 2 Bouvier Die., title “ Oath.” 

107 In 7 Hill, N. Y. Rep. 137, it was said, in the matter of an application for naturalization, 
by Judge Dean, a prominent democrat, that “-the act of April 14, 1802,” declares that the 
court ‘ shall be satisfied ” of the residence of the applicant for the proper period ; and that 



36 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


iiig certificates of uaturalization on sucli proof alone the courts pro¬ 
ceeded illegally. 

When any evidence at all was taken in the superior and supreme courts 
the former only professed to use affidavits as evidence, and the latter 
did substantially or really the same thing. 

Oidy one witness was required by these courts. 

The act of April 14, 1802, x>rovides that any alien may be admitted 
to become a citizen” on making the proper declaration in court and 
taking the proper oath of allegiance, “ which x:)roceedings shall be recorded 
by the clerk of the court.” The act of the court admitting to citizenshix) 
is a ‘^proceedings’ to be recorded. 

In the courts of N^ew York no record was made other than the files of 
the apxdications, affidavits, and order “ of naturalization,” signed by the 
initials of the judge. If tliis should be deemed a record still as to the 
sui)erior court, the forms used do not contain any such order.^®^ 

“ it shall further appear to their satisfaction that during’ that time he has behaved as a man 
of g:ood moral character,” &c. Then follows a provision “that the oath of the applicant 
shall in no case be allowed to prove his residence.” * * From this it is to be inferred that 

the residence is to be ■proved * by the oath of some one other than the applicant. * * 

Undoubtedly the legislature may make ex parte affidavits competent evidence in any case, 
as they have done in various instances, by express enactment. But this only proves tliat 
without such enactments affidavits are inadmissible and can never he received. I 

entertain no doubt, therefore, that affidavits cannot be legally received in these cases.” 

See Brown vs. Hinchman, 9 John’s, R. 75. Lenox vs. the United Ins. Co., 3 John’s Cases, 
224. Ex parte Tucker, 1 Cranch, 89. (See evidence of Judge Emmet, 5090.) 

In People vs. Sweetman, 3 Parker’s (Criminal Cases, (New York,) as late as 1857, Pratt, 
J., decided in relation to naturalizations that, “the laws of Congress require the application 
to be made to the court, and the proof of live years’ previous residence must be taken in 
open court. It must also he common law evidence taken by the oral examination of tl^e wit¬ 
nesses. Previously prepared affidavits are not competent.^' 7 Hill, 137; 18 Barbour, 444. * 

“ Affidavits found on file were clearly not competent to prove the pendency of such proceed¬ 
ings, and, especially, as there is no law requiring the examination to be taken in writing and 
filed.” This was an indictment for peijury, in which it was held, that there could be no 
conviction, because the alleged perjury was in an affidavit used on an application for natur¬ 
alization. And see Evidence, 2,0U6. 

[The New York courts, in 1868, could scarcely fail to know of this decision.] 

’f^^See Evidence, 1700. By the ‘ ‘act relative to evidence in cases of naturalization, ” approved 
March 22, 1816, and May 24, 1824, it is provided: “And the residence of the applicant 
■vVithin the limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States for at least five years imme¬ 
diately preceding the time of such application shall be proved by the oath or affirmation of 
citizens of the United States, which citizens shall be named in the record as witnesses. And 
such continued residence within the limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States, 
when satisfactorily proved, and the place or places where the applicant has resided for at 
least five years, as aforesaid, shall be stated and set forth, together with the names of such 
citizens in the record of the court admitting the applicant; otherwise the same shall not 
entitle him to be considered and deemed a citizen of the United States.” (3 Stat., 259; 4 
Stat., 310.) 

This is inserted as in force in Brightly’s Digest, 35, (edition of 1858,) and in Paschal’s 
Annotated Digest. This and the act of the 26th of May, 1828, (4 Stat., 310, ) are referred to 
as in force, and as of general application in the case in 7 Hill’s Rep. 140, decided in 1845; 
and the court say: 

By these acts there must be witnesses ; one alone is not enough; and they must be citizens, not aliens as 
they might have been under the act of 1802. ’ 

The act of 1816 having a title “relative to evidence in cases of naturalization,” is there 
regarded as amendatory of the act of 1802, which left the mode of proof doubtful. The rules 
of construction do not permit courts to limit the application of statutes apparently general in 
their character, (Brightly’s Digest, 35, United States vs. Randolph, Pittsburg Legal Journal 
4th June, 1853.) ’ 

'The act of Congress of March 13, 1813, proceeded upon the idea that the act of the court 
admitting aliens to citizenship should be recorded. It requires each of a certain class of per¬ 
sons to procure “a certified copy of the act by which he shall have been naturalized.” (Sec. 
2, vol. 2, Stat. at Large.) Though this section is repealed, it was a legislative construction 
of the act of 1802. 

See Evidence, 3475, 924, page 79 and evidence of Meeks. A list or index of names and 

residences of applicants and witnesses is made up in a book with the date of naturalization_ 

Evidence, 1668, 1672, 1734. 



I 


t 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 37 

As affidavits areiinaiitliorized, no person guilty of false swearing could 
be convicted ofperjury/^^ and thus iiiimunity from all penalties has been 
given to all who made them. 

If certificates of naturalization granted on illegal affida\dts shall be 
deemed valid/^^ it only adds to the gross character of the violations of law 
by the judges who participated in them. 

And if the power to revoke or annul certificates of naturalization does 
not exist,there can be no adequate remedy for these violations of judi¬ 
cial duty and of law; or if a legal remedy in the courts could exist, it 
would be extremely difficult, if not impracticable, to apply it, and 
es])ecially in these courts. 

But as to the naturalizations in the superior court it may well be 
doubted whether they are not all void, because there is no paper on file 
nor other record showing any order of the court directing any applicant 
to admitted to become a citizen^^'^ for which, and a ‘‘record” thereof, 
the act of 1802 provides, and as to which there can be no proof by parol, 
when no record ever existed.^^'^ 

And this doubt may well exist even independently of the acts ot 
March 22, 1810, and May 24,1828, which declare, as to the cases therein 
provided for, that if a record is not made containing the names of citi¬ 
zens as witnesses, &c., the record shall not entitle the applicant “ to be 
considered and deemed a citizen.” 


act of March 3, 1857, makes it perjury to swear falsely before any register or receiver 
of a local land office in all cases where any oath, affirmation or affidavit shall be mad'e” which 
the law requires, &c. ; 11 Stat.,251. The general perjury statute only applies when “an oath 
or affirmation shall be required under any law of the United States.” (Act March 3, 1825, 
sec. 12, 4 Stat., 118.) 

The judgment of thecourt is conclusive that all legal prerequisites were complied with ; 
I Brightly’s Dig. 34, citing Stark Chesapeake Ins. Co., 7 Cranch, 420. Sprattcs. Spratt, 4 
Peters, 406. Ritchie vs. Putnam, 13 Wendell, 524. McCarthy vs. Marsh, 1 Selden, 263, 278. 
Campbell vs. Gordon, 6 Cranch, 176. (See evidence of Judge Emmet, 5090.) 

The Attorney General of the United States, on the 9th February, 1844, gave an opinion 
as to the Louisiana certificates of naturalization, in which he said that a certificate of naturali¬ 
zation “is the judgment of a court purporting absolute verity, and fully operative, unless 
impeached for fraud. (Vol. 9 Senate Docs., 2d session 28th Congress, Doc. 173, p. 156.) 

Judge McCunn testified as follows: 

3664. Q. Has not the court power to set aside certificates of naturalization procured by fraud?—A. Yes, 
I have done it. 

3665. Q. Cannot you make an order annulling a certificate of naturalization without having possession of 
the certificate?—A. I suppose we can ; wm can grant an order declaring that the persons naturalized shall not 
vote ; but they go to the registry and are registered and vote, and that is an end of the story. 

A certificate of naturalization irregularly obtained may be set aside. (Richards vs. 
McDaniel, 2 Nott &. McCord, 351, note to 1 Brightly’s Dig. 34; 11 St. Tr. 230,262: 1 Yes. 
159 ; Atidr. 393.) 

See Evidence, 6867. 

ii-'^Under the act of January 29, 1795, (1 Stat. 414,) similar in its provisions to the act of 1802, 
it was held that “the oath (of allegiance, Ac.,) when taken confers upon him (the applicant 
for naturalization) the rights of a citizen, and amounts to a judgment of the court for his 
admis.sion to those rights. It is not necessary that there should be an order of the court 
admitting him to become a citizen.” (Campbell vs. Gordon, 6 Cranch, 176.) 

But in Spratt vs. Spratt, 4 Peters, 406, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States 
in 1830, it is said : “The various acts upon the subject submit the decision on the right or 
aliens to admission as citizens to courts of record. They are to receive testimony, to com¬ 
pare it with the law, and to judge on both law and fact. This judgment is f.NTkred on 
RECORD as the judgment of the court. It seems to us, if it be in legal form, to clo.se all inquiry; 
and like every other judgment, to be complete evidence of its own validity.” 

Naturalization cannot be proved by parol. 1 Brightly’s Digest, 34, note (a) citing Slade 
vs. Minor, 2 Cranch, C. C. R. 139. Price- vs. Barber, 13 Leg. Int. 140. (See Campbell vs. 
Gordon, 6 Cranch, 176.) 



38 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The determination of the court on an application for naturalization 
“ is the judgment of a court. ’ 

The act of 1802 requires that tlie court admitting' such alien ” “ to 
become a citizen” shall be satisfied” of certain facts. In 1854 Judge 
Dean, of the supreme court of New ATork, said ‘‘that, as the court belore 
admitting him (the applicant for naturalization) is to be satisfied ot cer¬ 
tain facts, it follows that the powers conferred upon the court are judi¬ 
cial and not ministerial or clerical.” (18 Barbour, Sip). Ct. B., 440.) 

It cannot properly be said that the certificate of naturalization turnished 
to the applicant is the record and all the record required by the law. 

No act of Congress requires any certificate to be issued, though the 
13th section of the act of March 3,1813, makes it penal to forge or alter 
them. AA^here a record exists, the fact of what the court did, may, on gen¬ 
eral principles, be certified. 

This is Avhat a certificate of naturalization doesA^® It is not a record 
of the court, because it is not preserved on its files or record. 

The 4th section of the registry law of New York, of Alay 13, 18G5, 
requires the production of a certificate of naturalization, in certain cases, 
to enable natiu'alized citizens to register and vote. 

Uidess the order of the court exercising judicial powers can rest in parol, 
and the act of Congress requiring the “proceedings to be recorded”— 
that is, the evidence of them to be vTitten in a book, or preserved among 
the rolls or files of the court—can be disregarded, there is no valid evi¬ 
dence of any order in the superior court, in 1868, “ admitting any alien 
to be a citizen f and if no evidence exists there of an order, no certificate 
can be given of a fact not so appearing of record. 

CHAPTER lA^ 

REPEATING AND FRAUDULENT CANVASSING. 


I.— Repeating, 

In New York city there are 22 wards, divided into 340 election districts. 
The registry law of the State of Alay 13, 1865, as amended April 25, 
186(), provides for four inspectors of registry and election in each dis¬ 
trict, who, aided by two poll-clerks, sit one day three weeks before the 
election, or two days if the number of voters exceed 400 in the district, 
and again on Friday and Saturday before the election, to register the 
names and residences of voters appearing for that puri)ose, and none 
can lawfully vote unless so registered. These inspectors at the election 
receive the ballots from voters and deposit them in proper ballot-boxes. 

“5 Opinion of Attorney General United States, February 9, 1844, Senate Doc. 173, p. J5C, 
vol. 9, sess. ‘iSth Cong.; Stark vs. Chesapeake, Ins. Co., 7 Crancb, 4‘20 ; Spratt vs. Spratt, 
4 Peters, 406; Ritchie Putnam, 13 Wend., 524; McCarthy tjs. Marsh, 1 Seld. 263,278; 
Campbell vs. Gordon, 6 Crancb, 176; it is so far a judgment that, if irregularly obtained, 
it may be set aside. Richard vs. McDaniel, 2 Nott & McCord, 361. 

*‘t*The form used in the supreme court is as follows: 

UviTEO States of America, State of New York, 

City and County of New York, ss.* 

Be it remembered, that on the 19th day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and 
sixty-eight, Andrew B. Seiguer appeared in the superior court of the city of New York, (the said court being 
a court of record, having common law jurisdiction, and a clerk and seal,) and applied to the said court to be 
admitted to become a citizen of the United Stales of America, pursuant to the provisions of the several acts of 
the Congress of the United States of America for that purpose made and provided. And the said applicant 
having thereupon produced to the court such evidence, made such declaration and renunciation, and taken 
such oaths as are by the said acts required, thereupon it was ordered by the said court that the said applicant 
be admitted, and he was accordingly admitted by the said court, to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

In testimony tvhereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed, this 19th day of October, one thousand 
[seal.] eight hundred and sixty-eight, and in the 93d year of our independence. 

By the court: 

JAMES M. SWEENY, Clerk. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


39 


The names and residence of voters are recorded by the poll-clerks on 
poll-lists, and when the polls are closed the ballot-boxes are delivered 
over to two canvassers, who canvass or count the ballots, which should 
by law tally in number Avith the names recorded on the poll-lists. The 
result of the canvass is announced and certified by the canvassers and 
their returns finally passed upon by the board of supervisors sitting as 
a county board of canvassers. Persons claiming the right to be regis¬ 
tered and to vote may be challenged, and their right so to do is decided 
by a majority of the imspectors. 

If the committee had devoted the Avhole time from their appointment 
to the close of this Congress it would not have been possible to ascertain 
or to take testimony to prove the number of persom who voted more than 
once in each of these 340 districts, in all of AYhich there were cast at the 
presidential election in Iiloveniber, 18G8, 15G, OGO Azotes, a number nearly 
as great as all the votes cast in six of the States of the Union, and larger 
tlian the A’ote of any one ,of tAA cnty-one of the States cast at the same 
election. All that could be done Avas to piwe, as the e\ddence does, that 
an organized system was perfected and carried into effect, by members 
of the democratic party, to register many thousands of names, fictitious 
or assumed, and then to Amte on them by hundreds of persons voting 
from two to forty times each for the democratic candidates. 

HeadquartersAA^ere established in different localities of the city, 
books made^^*^ AAutli duplicate lists of names, opposite to each of Avhich 
were placed a number and street as a residence. 


See evidence to foot-note (^^9) this chapter, and table showing prominent places from which 
illegal registration and voting was carried on. 

Robert Murray, (United States marshal:) 

A. Some five days before the election a man called at my ofiice and stated to me that with a little help he 
could get books of these repeaters. 

This thing is regularly systematized here. 

They have got a book made the form of a check-book, a line is drawn through each page, leaving what is 
supposed to be a margin. There is a place for the date, for the Jia.ue and residence that the repeater takes, 
and the election district in which he is going to register. The same thing is put down on the margin. The 
captain of the division (for they have got the city divided into sections) cuts oft the memorandum and gives it 
to one of these repeaters registered, and when the election day comes he cuts oil the corresponding memo¬ 
randum in the margin, and the fellow goes and votes upon it. It became fully developed and we arrested the 
parties and got the books. 

56. Q. How many times do these repeaters vote, each?— A, Twenty,l,or 30, or 40 times each. 

George W. Walling, inspector metropolitan police. 

A. On the Friday night previous to the election, the night of the 30th of October, Superintendent Kennedy 
sent for me to meet him at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. I met him there, and he introduced me to a young man, 
whose name I do not know, and told me that this young man knew something about parties who were regis¬ 
tering for the purpose of “ repeating.” I talked with him and directed him to meet me the next morning at 
8 o’clock—Saturday, the 31st of October. I left him then, and went to the station-house to get six men from 
Captain Campbell, captain of the 18th precinct, in citizens’ dress. I met the young man the next morning, and 
he then stated to me that a man by the name of William Varley, alias Reddy, the blacksmith, had charge of a 
company of “repeaters,” who had been registering from Catharine street, and he believed they were going 
the next day to 29 East Broadway to register. I went near that vicinity, and from time to time I sent these 
officers that were now with me to watch No. 29 East Broadway. They came back and reported several 
times that they saw no one, until about dinner time, between 12 and 1 o'clock, when we separated, and I 
directed them to meet me again after dinner. AVe got back-probably near 2 o'clock. I sent them around 
again, and they came back ami reported that they had seen several men come out from 29 East Broadway, 
and go to a place of registry, and go into a place of registry. Of course, the officers did not follow them in, for 
they might have suspected something. They followed the men ; I saw them, after coming out of the registry, 
go back to 29 East Broadway again, and then leave 29 East Broadway and go to another district, and go in 
there, and then com - back again. 

3676. Q. What was the first district they went to ?—A. I think it was the 1st district of the 7th ward. The 
officers came back and reported to me, “ It is all right ; they are now registering.” A\"e then separated. Some 
went up East Broadway, and some down. One of the officers told me that he had seen a man .standing on the 
stoop of the house, who appeared to be on the look-out. Well, wo rushed into the house. No. 29 Last Broad¬ 
way, and as we rushed in the man who was standing at the step rushed in also. There were seven persons 
there beside him; he made the eighth. I directed the officers to seize all the books. AA’'e seized a book that 
was on a table, at which a young man was sitting, and we took the eight persons whom we found there, with 
the book, to the police headquarters. The book is here, and I now produce it. I think it is marked “1st, 3d, 
and 6th districts of the 7th ward.” , n n ^ 

We took the men to police headquarters. I wished to find Reddy, the blacksmith, whom I knew well, and 
wanted to go to his place to arrest him, or to look for anj- books that 1 might find the.re. As I was going out 
I met Counsellor Howe, and he reejnested me to take the prisoners before the police court. It was near 4 
o’clock and the court had not closed. I said there was another party I wished to get, and I immediately left 



40 


ELECTION FKAUDS 


IN NEW YORK 


On tlie 30tli and 31st of 
until the day of the election, 


October, when only two days intervened 
gangs^^^ or bodies of men hired for the pur- 


tho building and went down to lleddy the blacksmith’s place. I did not find him, but I searched his place 
and at his place I got the book and the papers which I now produce. . , . 

The book which I have produced, and which I got at Reddy the blacksmith’s, is similar in size and binding 
to the first book which I produced, and has also a number of leaves torn out of it from the front part of the 
book. The paper is different from that of the other book, in this, that the other book is white paper, ledger 
form, with top ruling and ruling at the sides, while this is blue jiaper with only cross-ruling. The first two 
leaves which are left in this book not torn out have names written on them and numbers of streets, and slips 
have been cut out so that the first leaf is nearly all cut away. Out of the second leaf two slips have been cut. 
The next page has fifteen names with numbers of streets on it, headed “ Sixth Ward, Ninth District.” Then 
after a few pages there is another page with names and numbers of streets on it, with part of the top and bottom 
of the leaf cut off. Then follows a page nearly all cut out. In the book are seventeen slips of white paper 
with marginal endings, similar to the first book. Some of the slips have names only on them, while others 
have names and numbers of streets; most of them names only. I present a specimen of each sort of slip. 
These slips have evidently been cut out of the book first produced, or one like it. The slips presented are as 
follows: 

“George Nolan, “Edward Reardin.” 

“ 44 Market street.” 

AVitness. In this latter book there are also upon separate slips of paper other names and numbers. 

Upon this subject some specimens of the evidence are presented as follows: 

New York, Deccwftcr 29,1868. 

WiLtiAM H. Hendrick sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

I was engaged by Peter Norton to join a gang of repeaters, and it was understood that I was to be registered 
as often as possible on the two last registry days previous to the presidential election on the dd of November. 
Those two days of registry were October 30 and 31. On the night of the 30th of October I repaired to Peter 
MiteheH’s liquor store, corner of Bleecker and Greene streets, and I saw there a congregation of repeaters, 
I should say at least 40 men. There I met Peter Norton, who had engaged me. He took me to task for not 
being with them during the day. I made some plausible excuse, when I was told to be with them without 
fail the next-day ; that is, I had missed the first day of the last two registry days, and was found fault with 
for not being on hand. I was told to be with them without fail the next day, the last registry day, at 7 o’clock 
in the morning. The next day I consulted with Colonel Bliss, who said that Superintendent Kenned}' sug¬ 
gested that I should go on with these men and register with them, keeping a memorandum of my proceedings. 
After I was engaged with this party, I went to Colonel Bliss and reported the affair to him. I told him that I 
would not go with them unless I had some sanction from him, because I felt that I might compromise myself, 
and I was not willing to get into any such company, and go through with this ousiuess that they proposed to 
me, without I had some authority and some pledge that I would be protected in it. On the morning of the 
31st of October, 1868, I reported to Peter Mitchell, according to promise, and the only one of the gang I 
found there at that hour was David Somers, who claimed to be Peter Norton’s right hand man. He asked me 
to take a drink, and said that Pete Norton had been up with the boys all night, and that he had gone home 
for a nap. Dave said, “You and I will go about and do a little work registering, and then go and wake up 
Pete. AYe then went to a, drinking saloon and saw Peter Burns, corner of Elizabeth and Houston streets, 
(No. 69 East Houston.) Mr. Peter Burns furnished us with names and a residence. David Somers took his 
own name as a resident of 69 Houston street, while he gave me a slip with the name of “ Charles AA’’alters, 
69 Houston street.” From Burns’s place we went around the corner to the place of registry of this dis¬ 
trict, when David Somers registered himself as a resident of 69 East Houston street. He was ques¬ 
tioned sharply by one of the registry officers, and was challenged. He swore in his registry. I was then 
registered at the same place as a room-mate of David Somers, under the name of “ Charles AA’'alter8,” 
of 69 East Houston street. AVe then returned to Peter Burns’s place, who inquired if it was 
all right, remarking that they had everything all snug in that district. Peter Burns then 
put the two names, as registered, on file, to be voted on election day, and we (David Somers and myself) 
then w'ent to the place of registry of the 1st district of the 14th ward, where I registered my correct name 
and residence, 604 Broadway. David Somers would not register here, because he said he was too well 
known; besides, he said that he had registered his own name, the day before, in a dozen places in differ¬ 
ent parts of the city. AVe then went ove. to the 8th ward and joined more of the gang; I do not know their 
names. About three joined Dave Somers and myself, and the party, five in number, were all registered at 
the two registries on Greene street, one near Prince and the other near Broome street. Of the names there 
registered I only remember AV. H. Travis, of 595 Broadway, and AV. H. Travis, of 117 Spring street. AA'hen a 
second proposed to give his residence 117 Spring street, another member of the five remarked: “ It won’t do 
for any more to give 117 Spring street, as there is only room there for one man, and four of us have already 
given in that residence.” Besides the above, others of the gang arrived, and. asking if all was right, registered 
at the above place as residents of 84 Greene street, the residence of Peter Mitchell, who was the candidate of 
that district for the assembly ; I think it was the 5th assembly district. Dave Somers and myself then went 
to the house of Peter Norton, 142 Sullivan street, who roused up from his nap. Peter Norton and the three of 
us joined the main body at Peter Mitchell’s liquor store. There 1 saw slips served out for different districts by 
Alderman Norton and his brother, Peter Norton, and also by Peter Mitchell. Some 25 or 30 names were here 
given out, with residences attached. I was told that it was understood by the women at the different houses 
how to answer all the questions that might be propounded to them by the police or by detectives who might 
call to know who lived there, <fcc. The gang was then divided into parties of four, six, eight, and twelve, 
and went in different directions. The party I -was with consisted of five, each one of whom made an extra 
registry at a polling place on A’^arick street. I have forgotten the names registered here. This was Aider- 
man Norton’s district. AA’'e then returned to Peter Mitchell’s liquor store, which seemed to be a general ren¬ 
dezvous for at least 50 repeaters. Here I was told by Peter Norton to join a party of 12 bound for the 6th 
ward. The parties were strangers, of whom I did not even know their names. I hesitated, but Dave Norton 
said it was all right. Dave Norton said, “It is all right; go along and do as the rest do, and I will make it 
all right.” I joined them, and we walked rapidly together to Alderman Cuddy’s place, 44 Bowery, and in 
five minutes time Alderman Cuddy in person produced a book that must have contained several hundred 
names and residences. Each of the 12 was furnished with a name and residence. One was James AVelch, of 
60 or 70 Mott street; ancther of George or AA'illiam Bennett. I took James Darling, of 63 Mott street. Alder- 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


41 


pose, assembled at these headquarters where they were fLiruished with 
names and numbers, and under a leader or captain, they went out in ones 

man Cuddy passed these cards over his counter. Each one got a card. I now present to the committee the 
card containing my name and address which I received: 


JAMES DARLING, 


60 Mott. 


24.')4. Q. State how he gave you that card.—A. He was looking over his book, and I was looking over hi9 
left shoulder. He looked over the list and said: “ Who will take John this, or John that?” He would call 
them off in that way. I felt that I must call for one name, and I waited until I heard a name that sounded 
like an American name. Most all the names were Irish—such as Sullivan or McCarthy. I felt that I could 
not present a name like that. Finally, when he called the name of James Darling, I said: “I will take this 
tuid that is the one he gave me. 

2455. Q. State if he looked at you when he presented it to you, or whether he handed it in such a way that 
he could not see you when he gave it to you.—A. I do not think he saw me. I do not think he caught my 
eye during the whole time I was in there. 

2456. Q. He handed it to you over his shoulder? A. Yes. We then went around to the registry on Bay¬ 
ard street, near the Bowery, and the whole twelve were registered there. One or two were challenged, but 
tliey swore themselves on the registry. Numbers 62, 66, 68, and 70 Mott street occurred very often on Cuddy’s 
book, which I saw by looking over his shoulder while he served our party with their names; also Nos. 62, 
64, and 68, on Bayard street. The gang I accompanied then returned to Peter Mitchell’s, and after a few 
hours’ conversation, we agreed to be on hand election day and vote; and with the directions of Peter Norton 
tJiat I should call on him for my reward, I left the party for the day. I was told by one of the party that 
tliey hud done more work the day before (the 30th) than the day on which I was with them, (the 31st.) In 
conversation with the chief men of this gang since the election, I have heard several of them boast that they 
had been registered and voted over 20 or 25 times, and some of them 30 times. It was invariably the rule, 
when challenged, to swear the vote or registry in. On receiving my instructions for the work on election day, 
and in reply to my remark, “But if I am challenged,” the reply was, “You must swear it in ; if you once 
weaken you are gone up; we will get you out, of course, but it will hinder the work.” 

24.57. Q. I present to you four cards on which certain names appear. State what you know of them.— 
A. These are cards that I wrote myself. I stepped into a cigar store before I w-ent to Peter IMitchell’s, and 
got these four cards and put them into my pocket with the intention of putting on them a memorandum of 
what I did while with the party during the day. I had a lead pencil in my pocket, and after we had regis¬ 
tered in Bayard street, I went back to Alderman Cuddy’s and took a drink, and while the rest were talking 
and drinking, I went down into the water-closet and wrote these cards. 

2458. Q. What did you write upon them?—A. Here is the name of James Goodwin, No. 70 Mott street; 
James Welsh, residence 142 Sullivan street. Here is another card with the name of Charles Walters, 69 Hous¬ 
ton street, and David Simmers. Both received slips of paper from Pete Burns’s porter-house, corner of Hous¬ 
ton and Elizabeth streets. David Dummers is said to have registered in real name a dozen times. This is 
the first time I have seen these cards since I gave them. Here is another which has upon it “ Gordon McKay, 
.595 Broadway.” W. H. Travis registered twice—first from 117 Spring street, and 84 Green street. “George 
Bennett. 62 Bayard street, (it should have been William Bennett,) registered Bayard street, near Bowery.” 
Numerous registered from 142 Sullivan street. 

2459. Q. Who is Peter Norton?—A. He is a brother of Alderman Michael Norton. 

2460. Q. What is he politically ?—A. He is a democrat—at least I don’t know whether he has any politics 
personally, but he seemed to be interested in the success of the democratic ticket in that ward. 

2461. Q. State if you know the politics of these repeaters with whom you are associated.—A. Well, the 
repeaters—most of them that I was with that day—I do not think have much politics one way or the other, 
but they seem to have been keeping on good terms with certain parties in the locality. 

2462. Q. Did you learn of which political party ?—A. The democratic. 

2463. Q. Norton was in the interest of that party ?—A. Yes, sir. 

2464. Q. And Burns?—A. He was a democrat. 

2465. Q. For whose benefit were you making these registries; for the benefit of the democrats or the 
republicans?—A. The democrats. 

2466. Q. Who employed you to engage in this business?—A. Peter Norton. Peter Mitchell was a candi- 
didate for the assembly, and kept a saloon ; I think it is called the fifth assembly district. 

2595. Q. On what ticket was he running ?—A. I suppose the democratic. 

2596. Q. Was he elected?—A. I believe so. 

Hugh F. Dolan recalled. 

Witness. On the poll-books of the 2d di.strict, 14th ward, I find on the registry-book the name of James 
Welsh, 142 Sullivan street; I also find his name on the poll-books of the same district in the ward. I find the 
name of William H. Travis, 84 Green street, on the poll-list, and I find on the registry-book of the 8th ward, 
Sd district, the name of Gordon McKay, 595 Broadway; I do not find his name on the poll-list. 

(Hugh F. Dolan came before the committee and presented the registry-list of the 2d district of the 14th 
ward, stating that he found upon it the name of Charles Walters, registered from 68 Hudson street.) 

3053. Q. State what names are registered in the 9th district of the 6th ward, as residing at 162 Bayard .street.— 
A. In the 9th district of the 6th ward at that number, 162 Bayard street, I find the name of George Bennett; 
I also find his name upon the poll-list of the district, I find on the registry-list the name of James Darling, 60 
Mott street: I do not find his name on the poll-list of the district. I find on the registry-books of the 2d 
district of the 14th ward, the name David Summers, 69 East Houston street; his name is on the poll-list. 

YTLLiAiti H. Greene: 

3386. I am patrolman in the 7th precinct; I am a member of the metropolitan police, and have resided in 
this city since 1852; shortly before the State election I was transferred to the fith precinct, and svas again sent 

back to the 7th. . .u i i *• + 

3386i. Question. State what you know of persons registering as voters prior to the last election at the 
house of William M. Tweed, Police Justice Shandley, and Coroner Keenan.—Answer. On the first or second 
day of the meeting ol the board of registration in the 6th district of the 7th ward, I wa.s stationed at the place 





42 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


and twos and tlirees and tens and dozens, in nearly every part of tlie 
city, registering many times each, and when the day of election came 

of registry from 8 o’clock in the morning until 1 in the afternoon ; during that time a gang came there from the 
Bowery; I knew several of them personally by name ; I knew that they did not live in the ward, much less 
in the district; there were some 20 or 21 of them. The following were registered from 169 Henry street, (Cor¬ 
oner Keenan’s house ;) Henry Austin, George W. Baldwin, George Brown, Robert A. Jones, Lewis Height, 
H. J. Lawrence, Charles Meyer, William Murphy, Dennis O’Neil, John Reilley, John Saunders. The fol¬ 
lowing names are registered from No. 167 Henry street, (the house of Police Justice Shandley :) George Ben¬ 
nett, Thomas Fitzgerald, George Morgan, James Weaver, George Williams. The following names were reg¬ 
istered from 197 Henry street, (the house of William M. Tweed ;) Robert Gardner, Florence S. Gerald, 
Thomas Greene, Franklin Thomas, Thomas Boyd. I knew the best portion of these men. There are several 
of them who have gotWveral aliases. None of them live in the district where they were registered. Here ia 
a photograph of one of them who gave the name of Henry Lawrence. He has an alias of Charles Williams, 
and an alias of “ Nipsey.” He was the leader of the gang. I got this picture at t^e station-house, where they 
have got pictures of all these celebrated men who live by their wits. 

3387. Q. State how this picture was taken.—A. “ Nipsey ” objected to having his likeness taken, and made 
all kinds of faces, and two men had to hold him, so as to get his likeness as accurate as possible. He registered 
from 169 Henry street, Coroner Keenan’s house. He is a celebrated pickpocket. He has stolen fortunes, and 
has been arrested several times, but somehow or other he always slips and is never prosecuted. 

3388. Q. Do you know what political party he acts with?—A. Yes, sir; the democratic. 

3390. Q. Did they swear them ?—A. 'That man Lawrence was not sworn. The thing went so far that I said 
to the registrars, “ Now this thing is played out here, by George. They are thieves from the Bowery coming 
to register from houses where they do not live, and I think you ought to put a stop to it.” One of the regis¬ 
trars spoke up and said, “We’ll lay for them on election day.” 

3391. Q. Did any of this gang swear in?—A. One or two of them were sworn. Meyer and Baldwin, and 
Murphy and Gardner were sworn, I think ; but this man Lawrence was not sworn, because he was supposed 
to be a native. I think he is an Englishman, but he passes for a native. Gardner aslo registered in the 4th dis¬ 
trict of the same ward, I think at No. 2 Pike street. Another pickpocket, who was with these men, goes under 
the name of John Reilly. His name is Patsy Nolan; he lives in Oxford street, and is now under arrest for 
stealing a diamond pin. 

.3392. Q. These men were known as repeaters?—A. Yes, sir. 

3393. Q. Repeaters are generally of that class?—A. Yes, sir; they are of the lower order, and they are 
generally men who have no character, and who would as soon take a false oath as not. I spoke to this man 
Lawrence after he registered, and said to him, “I did not know you lived up here,” “ O, yes,” said he, “I 
have lived here for two years.” One of the men has no permanent residence, and hangs out at the New Eng¬ 
land Hotel and at a place on East Broadway, north of Catharine street, No, 20,1 think. In fact, he lives all 
over. 

3394. Q. Did any of these men have their lodging or residence in the house from where they registered ?—A. 
No, sir. Henry A. Jones goes to Keenan’s house a good deal, but he does not live there. A few days after 
that I was notified to go down into the 6th ward to do duty. I did not know what I had done to be changed. 
I bad done nothing wrong, but the thought struck me that it was for being a little efficient about the registry. 

3395. Q. Do you know whether you were transferred at the instance of Police Justice Shandley ?—A. I do 
know that perfectly well, because I was told so by Commissioner Acton and by Shandley himself. Shandley 
came down and said he would get me off the police, and would kick my damned head off, calling me a damned 
big bull-head. 

3401, Q. Were you transferred between the time of registration and the day of election ? A. Yes, sir. 

3402. Q. On the complaint of Police Justice E. J. Handley?—A. Yes, sir. A few days after the election I 
was transferred back again. 

John J. Mullen, (page 642,) says : 

7096. Q. State what you know of persons registering on false names prior to the last presidential election in 
this city.—A. On the first registering day I was going down Cortlandt street, near the corner of Washington, 
when I met a young man, whom I recognized as Matthew Strip ; he keeps a grocery store in Albany street. 
He requested me to go in and register. I stated that I did not belong to that district. He said it made no dif¬ 
ference. I went in and registered under the name of J. J. Mullen, of 156 Greenwich street. The registering 
clerk knew me, and knew that I did not reside there. He gave me a wink that it was all right. His name is 
ilichael Loftus. He keeps a livery stable in Washington street, between Liberty and Cedar. While I was in 
there, some 18 or 20 persons came in with papers and registered from 41 Vesay street. The other clerk, who 
was opposed to it, passed an insinuation that it must be a very large house, as some 40 had already registered 
from there. I came out from there about 6 o’clock in the evening, and was requested to go down to Washing¬ 
ton street, near Albany, where they were registering. There I registered again, I met Strip again there, and 
Dennis Hogan, brother of the Police Justice Edward Hogan ; they asked me if I had registered there yet, I 
told them no ; they told me to go in. I asked what number I would give ; they told me to give 117 Washington 
street. I went in and registered, and then Hogan said it was all right. I made a mistake and gave the nunv 
ber as 115 Washington street, and Strip went in and told the landlord there. From there I went with Strip 
and Hogan to 34 Greenwich street and registered there, giving my residence as No. 12 Washington street. 
'I’hen I went to Patrick Moore’s, brother to Alderman John Moore, and had a drink. I had to write there the 
names and places that I had registered under, and gave the memorandum to the bartender and he put it behind 
the bar for future reference. Alderman Moore in my presence issued out, I suppose, over 200 naturalization 
papers, taking them two by two out of a cigar box. He would draw the men aside and instruct them, and told 
them that the judge (meaning Judge Hogan) was there to protect them, and they could get into no trouble. 
Hogan saw me registering there, although he knew that I lived in the 8th ward. He saw me registering again 
at 99 Greenwich street, and he said nothing. 

7097. Q. How many persons were engaged in registering at the time you speak of?—A. The street was 
crowded with men waiting for their turn to come in, long-shore men, steamboat men, farmers and greenhornst 
They got a few glasses of drink and were instructed that on election day they were to get $2 apiece for every 
time they voted. 

7098. Q. Where were the headquarters of the gang that you belonged to?—A. There were two headquar¬ 
ters ; one at Morris Power’s, in Albany street, between Greenwich and Washington; and the other, I think, 
was at 57 Greenwich street, Alderman Moore’s place. Power is married to the alderman’s sister. ’ 

7099. Q. How many gangs were there at these headquarters ?—A. I went in one gang of ten, in another of 
seven, and in another of four or five. The alderman told me two places in the 2d ward where’ 1 could regis¬ 
ter. I told him I did not know the names or numbers, and he said he would fix that for me. They would*go 
into a building where they knew anybody, and would tell the people there to say that so-and-so boarded wbh 
them; and when an officer went to inquire whether a person who had registered did reside there, they would 
always answer yes. I registered twice under the name of Miller, and twice under the name of Mullen. I 
registered altogether ten times. The names I do not recollect, but they were written down and sworn to at 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


43 


tliese repeaters, supplied abundantly with intoxicating drinks, and 


police headquarters. I registered under the names of Murphy, Morgan, Moran, Gannon, and Gray. I went 
with a gang of 18 from Allen’s place up to the l.'ith ward to register. We all registered from a hotel up there. 
I took one man’s name who had registered from the same place last year, and the clerk looked at tbe registry 
book and said: “Thatman voted last year: it is all right;” no questions were asked, I went back to the 
hotel and had some more drinks, and 1 gave the bartender there also the list of our names. Then I registered 
in King street. No. 7, near Sullivan, giving the name of J. J. Mullen, and giving my residence as 59 Sullivan 
street, which is a lager-beer saloon. John O'Neill was the clerk there. He knew me, and knew that I did 
not reside there. The other clerk was Charles Fairchild. 

7101 Q. In the interest of what political party was this registration being made?—A. The democratic party. 

7102. Q. State if any violence has been threatened to you by reason of your having communicated these 
facts to police headquarters.—A. Not many nights ago my wife and I were walking along near Sullivan 
street, in Broome street, and I got a blow that knocked me senseless. 1 heard a voice singing out: “ That is 
the son of a bitch who sold us! kill him! kill him!” My wife screeched “murder!” two colored women 
threw themselves on the top of me, and two colored boys shouted “murder.” I do not know where the police 
were. When I came to I ran to the station-house. My wife lost her hat and cloak. They knocked her down 
for howling, and it appeared that these colored women were the only persons to save me. I went up in the 
morning and made a complaint against Higgins and his brother, and several other persons whose faces 1 recog¬ 
nized. I thought I saw a knife, but I have been since informed it was a revolver. I know there is a hole in 
my hat; but whether it was made by a bullet or by a knife I do not know. I went to Police Justice Dodge 
in the morning, and stated the case to him just as it occurred. He told me to go to Judge Dowling, at the 
Tombs, as I lived in the 5th precinct. I went to Judge Dowling, and he told me to clear out. Then I went 
down to the district attorney’s office. There were two clerks in there and Mr. Gunning S. Bedford, now city 
judge. I stated the case to them, and they told me that if Dodge and Dowling took no notice of it they would 
not. I told them I would appeal to the public for protection. I came up and went into the News office to 
have a statement written out, but they would not publish it, and would not have anything to do with it. I 
am registered at 96 Amity street; as James Gannon at 245 Thompson street; at 32 Grand street as J. J. Mul¬ 
len, residing at 403 Canal street; I am registered in Prince street, between Wooster and Greene, in the n:ime 
of Jas. Gray, residing at 99 Prince street, and other places 1 forget; but the list of them is up at police head¬ 
quarters. 

7104. Q. State if any of those men engaged in this false registration have been indicted or punished, to your 
knowledge.—A. I do not know that any of them have been. 

7152. Q. Who induced you to go into registering?—A. The first who induced me was Strip. Dennis Ho¬ 
gan induced me. and so did his brother; and James Dolan, who keeps a large liquor store on the comer of 
Thompson and Amity streets, came with me and gave me a name and a number, and took me to the place 
and had me registered in Amity street. Eighteen of that gang were all registered. James Dolan is a notorious 
character and a professional thief. 


Florence Scannell, (page 539) says: 

A. I registered 150 or 200 names in my ward. 

5759. Q. How many of these names wei’e of men legally entitled to vote ?—A. I cannot tell that; probably 
none, probably a'dozen. 

.5760. Q. How many men registered these 150 or 200 names ?—A. About 30 men ; they registered about five 
apiece. 

5761. Q. Can you tell where they registered ?—A. I cannot; they registered for almost every house in the 
district where I lived. 

5762. Q. What district is that?—A. The 18th ward. 

5763. Q. How many of those names did you leave unvoted?—A. I probably voted a hundred. 

5772. Q. Were those all fictitious names that you registered?—A. I guess they were; they must have been 
fictitious, because 30 respectable men would not register 150 names. 

577.3. Q. Which houses did they register at?—A. I cannot tell; different houses. 

5774. Q. Those persons who voted upon your fictitious names, did they vote the democratic ticket?—A. I 
cannot tell whether they did or not. 

5775. Q. Did you have any understanding with these men that they were to vote the democratic ticket?— 
A. I never had an understanding with a voter in my life. 

5776. Q. How many men did you get to vote upon the names you registered?—A. About 20, I guess. They 
voted upon from 70 to 100 names. 

5777. Q. Did they vote several times ?—A. Not that I know of. I suppose some of them voted two or three 
times. 

5778. Q. Did you give them slips of paper with names and numbers on?—A. Yes. 

5792. Q. Who keeps the Compton House?—A. My brother and a Mr. Fagin. 

Q. Is your brother a deputv sheriff?—A. Yes, sir. 

Q. Is Mr. Fagiu also deputy sheriff?—A. He is connected with my brother. The appointment was given 
to me first; but I did not want to have it, and I gave it to my brother and Mr. Fagin. 

5793. Q. Do you know who were living in that house in November last?—A. There were so many living 
there that I cannot tell the names. 

5794. Q. Did you not register fictitious names from the Compton House ?—A. Yes, sir; I did. 

5795. Q. Look at this list of 152 persons registered as living in the Compton House, and say w'hich of them 
lived at the Compton House in November last.—A. I cannot say how many people I know ; some few names 
I recognize. 

5796. Q. State them.—A. Christopher Brown, Daniel Brown. Patrick Boylan, Wm. Burgoyn, Daniel A. 
Creamer, Charles Davis, Pierce English, Patrick Fitzsimmons, John Flood, James Gardner, F. A. Hauckey, 
James Lewis, Albert A. Meigs, Henry Owens, John Rollins, J. J. Scannel, (that is my brother,) and Florence 
Scannel, myself: Wm, O’Brien, whose name is on the list, I know, but he does not live at that house; there 
are 50 men who live at the Compton House, and who voted from that place, whose names are not on the list; 
the names I have mentioned are of men who work for me ; that is the reason I recollect them; I may know 
all of them by sight; my recollection is very poor. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5797. (2- Hid you have care of the repeaters in the 18th ward?—A. No, sir; I had not care of more than a 
^^^9^ Q*. How largo a number of men known as repeaters did you furnish ballots to ?—A. I did not furnish 

^'*^5799. Who did furnish tickets to the men you had registered?—A. I have nothing to say as to who did. 

58()(». Q. Do you know who did?—A. Yes, sir. ,, x , xx ^ 

5801. Q. State to the committee their names.—A. I cannot answer that; that would not bo honest to my friends. 

5805. Q. You say you had men registered in every precinct in the 18th ward?—A. Not every one. I did 
not register the names myself; I sent them to be registered. 




44 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


changingcoats, hats, or caps, as occasion required to avoid recognition 
or detection, commenced the work of voting early and often,” and this 

5806. Q. How raiiny men did you send out to register these names?—A. Probably 30. It might have been 
only 20. 

Alexander Ostander sworn and examined. 

I am a lawyer for 20 years; for 12 years in this city ; I spent a couple of hours on the afternoon of election 
day down in the 6th ward; I visited the poll in Elizabeth street, I think in the 6th ward, near Bayard street; 
there was a grocery on the corner of B.nyard and Elizabeth ; I noticed quite a crowd in the store and fibout it, 
and I stepped inside; there were several men leaning over the counter, engaged, as I thought, in looking over 
some papers; a man in a blue coat, just inside the door, partially stopped me as I was going in, and I said, 
“ Can I get a light for my cigar ?” He said there was nobody smoking there, and rather edged me out; I took 
the hint and went out and walked along to the polling place, and the first thing I observed was a couple cf 
men changing caps outside and close to the polling place; one of them went in, and I followed Inm in and I 
saw him vote; he then came out and re-exchanged caps with the other man; this opeiation was repeated 
several times, different men voting; there seemed to me to be half a dozen more men who were banded 
together engaged in that business, as I saw these men in companj’’ together, not only at that polling place, but, 
as I will tell you shortly, I saw them going together to another one in the same ward; I saw several men, 
and this blue-coated man appeared to be their leader ; a little wliile after, going around to a poll which was 
at No. 46 Bayard street, in a barber shop, and which was awmy about one block from this polling place on 
Elizabeth street, up towards Bowery, there was, just toward getting to it, a feed store; the company stopped 
in front of that feed store, and they were furnished with little slips of paper on which were names and num¬ 
bers; how I knew that these were names and numbers was because I saw a man (not the blue-coated man, 
but another man who appeared to be also a leader) reading the name which was upon one of the papers and 
the number to a man wdio apparently could not read; there were from four to seven of these men furnished 
with slips at that time and went in and voted. 

2274. Q. Were they the same men who had voted at the other polling places ?—A. Some of them were the 
game men, for I recognized them. One of them, on going into the polling place, was told by the inspector, 
“you have voted before to-day, sir.” He appeared very indignant, and said he had not. The inspector took 
his name and number, and the man gave him his card of business. Another of the same men was told that 
the name was just voted, and the fellow simply turned upon his heel and went off without making any 
remark, I also saw these men coming out of a grocery store with these little slips of paper in their hands, 
and they also changed caps before going into the Bayard street polling place. 

2275. Q. You saw these men vote at diflferent polling places?—A. Yes, sir. 

2276. Q. Can you state whether the same man voted more than once at the same polling place after changing 
his hat or cap?—A. I would not swear positively that I saw any one do that, but I told you that I had never seen 
these men before, and things were agoi>d deal mixed up ; I was taking notes as rapidly as I could, and these men 
were changing hats and caps so frequently that I do not know. I could swear positively that I saw one man vote 
more than once at one polling place, but I am positive that I saw men go from the polling place on Elizabeth 
street, who had voted there, to the polling place on Bayard street, and vote there. From there I went to No. 
67 Baxter street, opposite to Franklin, and there I remained until the close of the poll. This was near the 
time of closing the polls. I saw the same operation of changing caps repeated there by several men who 
stepped into an alley-way, just on one side of the polling place, where they could make the exchange, and 
step right out into the street and into the polling place and vote. I did not see them deposit their votes, because 
there was a great crowd in the room, and they went behind a sort of screen to vote. There was also a counter 
that extended from the screen out to the window opening on the street. I stood by that window, and a few 
minutes before the poll closed I saw a man come out from behind the polling place, behind the screen, with a 
slip of paper, upon which he wrote two names and numbers and handed them to a person outside the counter, 
who went out and brought in ttvo men, as I took it, to vote upon those numbers. 

2283. Q. Have you ever known, in a contested election, that persons would go and find out who had not 
voted and send in other persons to personate them?—A. Yes, sir. 

2284. Q. That is the inference you drew in this case?—A. My inference was that these men who had access 
to the polls found that there were two names registered of men who had not voted, and they furnished those 
names to the parties outside that they might vote upon the names. 

2285. Q. That is the general style of repeating, is it not?—A. It is. 


George Bliss, Jr. 

I am a lawyer, and have been in this city for the last thirteen years. My knowledge of police 
matters arises from my being the attorney of the board of health and the board of excise, which is 
composed in part of the board of police. Their offices are in the same building. My relations, therefore, to 
police matters have been rather intimate for two or three years. I have been there every day during that 
time, with rare exceptions. I was actively concerned in endeavors to prevent frauds at the elections. Having 
very active charge of that matter through the city, my attention was of course directed to it. I found this 
state of things: I would receive information that a man was intending to register fraudulently at a given 
place, and would send that information to the police. A man would come up and say he lived at a certain 
place. The inspector would question him as to whether he lived there, and w'ould administer an oath to him. 
I saw two or three instances of this kind. The inspector would challenge the man and swear him, and the 
man w'ould swear that he lived at such a place. The inspector having only an unsworn statement handed to 
him, the board considered that it was bound to allow the man to register. Before the election, inquiry enabled 
us to ascertain that the man did not live at the place from which he claimed to vote. He would come up on 
election day, be challenged, and swear his vote in. (To Mr. Kerr.) I saw that in a single case. I didnot 
see the same man who presented himself and was registered come on election day and vote; but I saw the 
thing done partly in the registry and partly in the voting by different men. Under the registry law, the 
inspectors are obliged, if a man who has registered swears his vote in, to take it. The inspector who has 
charge of the books then requires the police to arrest the man. Another inspector says, “Don’t arrest him!” 
and it is a question of republicans and democrats, the board being divided two and two. In one of the cases 
which I saw at one poll, the officer declined to make an arrest, as the majority did not direct him to do so. In 
the other case, the officer did make the arrest. The party was taken before a justice and held to bail, and I 
know by general report that he, with all the others, was discharged the next day. That is substantially the 
state of the case which did prevail at the last election at all the polls in this city. I say that from having had 
before me and talked with nine-tenths of the republican registrars of this city. 

See Evidence, 2273, 2276. 


See Evidence, pages 419, 425, 427, 428, 436, 448, 452, 473, 480, 482, 485, 487, 501, 505, 
429, 535, 507, 512, 544, 574, Ac., 2769, 3071, 3088, 3043, 3051, 1885, 2895, 2902, 3316, 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


45 


was carried on by these vagabonds untd, wearied and drunken, night 
closed on the stupendous fraud which their depravity liad perpetrated. 

With all the concealment whicli cunning could invent, or peijury 
secure, or bribery purchase, or the fear of punishment inspire, or the dread 
of violence from bands ofconspirators and democratic desperadoes could 
command, or the blandishments of more accomxdished knaves could entice, 
or the hope of office could buy,i^^ or fear of the loss of jdace could b’*ing,i-^ 
all of which woidd natoally conspire to throw obstacles in the way of or 
defeat the investigation of the committee, it is by no means possible 
that the extent of these frauds has been revealed even in any one ward, 
but this may be ai)proximated from the proof as to election districts in 
various parts of the city, and by statistical tables showing the voting 
population at pre\dous periods, with the average increase in those i)eriods, 
from which the actual voting poimlation of 1868 may be coiux^uted with 
reasonable certainty. These frauds are so systematic in New York that 
the operation is called ‘‘rei)eatingy’ and those engaged in it are called 

rexieaters.” The evidence of ^b*epeatmg” consists of proof: 

First. That names of persons were registered from houses of given 
numbers and streets, on which the x^oll-lists show votes to have been 
given, though, no i^ersons of those names had any such residence or exist¬ 
ence anywhere. 

Second. That certificates of naturalization in great numbers to names 
of fictitious persons were distributed to enable the work of repeating to 
be perfected. 

Third. That gangs of men were actually engaged in the business, as 
shown by witnesses who saw them and their repeating books. 

Fourth. Of the disclosures made by the repeaters themselves j and 

Fifth. Of statistical tables demonstrating that the vote of 1868 was far 
in excess of the voting x)opulation. 

1.— FALSE REGISTRIES AND VOTING AS FROM SPECIFIED HOUSES AND STREETS. 

Under the first class of i^roof, and as a specimen of what undoubtedly 
existed all over the city, the committee i^resent the following table: 

2788, 1846, 1853, 391, 3400, 3260, 3269, 3675, 3695, 2924, 2067, J825, 1807, 1814, 1856, 
2429, 3055, 3098. 

Evidence as to repeating.: The fact of “repeating ” in the interest of the democratic party 
is proved by witnesses unimpeached as follows : W. H. Hendrick, 2452 ; John M. Lawrence, 
4024 ; Michael Brady, 5819 ; James Strong, 6248; John McClusky, 7833; Francis Charles 
Murray, 6705; John McCalre, 6788; John Wood, 6368; John Gregory, 6455; William 
Dorans, 4496-4539; James Melville, 4287; George Harris, 4187 ; Joseph Benson, 4269. As 
to Geo. Johnson, there is some conflict in his statements, but none as to the fact of bis re¬ 
peating, 4926-5966. See also evidence of William H. Greene, 3386; George-W. Walling, 
3676; James Irving, 3844; John Coyle, 3850, as to release of repeaters by the judges. 

Then there are others about whose evidence there is some controversy: George Hill, 4941 ; 
James Nichols, 4988,6170; William Wood, 5027; George Melville, 5226; Charles Reilly, 
4816; John Heath, 7042; James Clark, 5287; James Green, 5334 ; James Smith, 6906; 
Charles Ferguson, 6913; John Hughes, 6^17; John Kagle, 6924; Edward Clark, 6945; 
Edward Cobb, 6947; William Wilson, 5424; George Nelson, 6228. As to some of these 
there is some evidence to disprove their residences as given. The fear of violence may, 
perhaps, account for some of this. (See evidence of Edward Sanford, 5412, 5479, 6033; 
William Ward, 7040, 7233; Edward H. Bergen, 5480; John J. Mullen testified to false 
registration for repeating, 7095. He is contradicted by Edward Hogan, 7394, but is corrob¬ 
orated, 8584. And see O’Brien, 5382-5483; Murray, 5510,5832; Le Barnes, 5858, 5918; 
Gaillard, 6847.) , 

See Testimony, answers 1813, 1900, 1984, 1987, 1931, (page 193,) 4132, 4135, 5506, 
5832, 5840, 5918, 6000, 6003, 6847, 7102, 8297. 

I'^^See Evidence, 2851, 2852, 2885, 571-572. 

Evidence, 8293, 3402; Costello’s evidence, and 3395, 3386. 



46 ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 






















































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


47 


2.—NATURALIZATION OF FICTITIOUS PERSONS. 

It lias already been sliowid^ti certificates of naturalization Avere 
issued on fictitious names. 

3.—GANGS OF “REPEATERS.” 

Tlie evidence shows conclusively that bands of men, on the days of 
registration and election, traversed the city of Xew York, registering and 
A'oting yn assnined or fictitious names. 

Some idea of the mode in which this was done, and the official position 
of persons engaged in it, may be inferred from the extracts from the eyi- 
deiice and table hereinaljove given. 

The extent of the aggregate of all forms of illegal Amting, as has been 
stated, may be deduced from the statistical tables alluded to. The extent 
of the ‘Y’epeating” may be inferred from the eAudence.^^^ 

Hoav the 7th ward AA\as manipulated may be seen from the interest 
that James O’Brien, sheriff of New York, took in it. He breakfasted 
‘ ‘ coilfidential friends on the morning of the election. Eepeaters testify 

that several of their number partook of his hospitality. “ Some 300 or 
400 men Avere sent there”—deputy sheriffs, (3887, 3880)—for duty in this 
single Avard on the day of the election, though he ‘Hlid not apprehend 
that the 1,390 republican” Amters of that Avard would disturb the peace or 
overaAve the men who cast G,812 democratic Axites. These apiiointments 
were made AAdthout any “ requisition from the mayor, or governor, or 
police authorities.” Such appointments were unusual, and had not been 
made for years. The sheriff* could not fail to knoAV of the plans of the 
repeaters. The police force of the city, OA^er 2,000 in nnmber, a large 
liroportion of whom are democrats, are charged a\ ith the duty of preserv¬ 
ing the peace. Yet the sheriff says he appointed these deputies in this 
Avard and “orJcrcJ them to arrest any one who interfered ivith the voting 
Of course, the repeaters must not be interfered aa ith! This Avas evidently 
a iiart of the scheme of repeating. 


II.— Fraudulent canvassing. 

There is eAudence to show that it ivas a x)art of the gigantic scheme of car¬ 
rying the democratic tich:et in the State of New Yorh by fraud to delay the can- 


No, — Catharine street, 29 East Broadway, (3675, 3676;) 25 Allen street, (4295.) Nnmbers 14,16, 18, 20, 29, 38, 

39, 40.-63. 66, 73, 80. 82, 87, 90, 92, 108, 117, 120, 163, 165, and 173 East Broadway, (Evidence, 3676, 4532, 4536, 
and 4538.) Numbers 34, 37, 40, 42, 43, 44, 45, 54, 73, 76, 80, 92, 96, 98, 106,111, 122, 124, 150, and 227 
Henry street, (Evidence, 3676, 4532, 4536, and 4538.) Numbers 13, 18, 26, 28, 38, 42, 48, 50, and 54 Market 
street, (Evidence, 3676, 4.532, 4536, and 4538.) Numbers 54 and 64 Monroe street, 173 Madison and 83^ Division 
street— {lb.) Corner of Monroe and Jackson streets, (Evidence, 6382;) Albany street, between Greenwich 
and AVashington and Alderman Moore’s, .57 "Greenwich, 156 Greeinvich, 117 Washington, and 59 Sullivan 
streets, (Evidence, 7096-99;) and 103 Crosby street, (Evidence, 4237, 4269, 4496, 4503-0.5, 4509, 4510.) 

But one of the largest and most thoroughly organized headquarters was at the Jackson Club, corner of Second 
avenue and Thirty-second street. James O’Brien, sheriff of the countyof New A’'ork, would seem to be an active 
member and a controlling spirit of the Jackson Club. In connection with this club-house, where some two or 
three hundred repeaters were lodged the night before election, and where O’Brien was present during a great 
portion of the night, the sheriff, who resided within a single block, admits that on the following morning he kept 
open house at his own residence, and the repeaters testify to being taken there from the club-house before dtiy- 
light and fed. (8ee Evidence, 4237, 4269, 4510, 4515, 4518, 4519, 4926, 4989, 5335, 5336, 5388, 5389, 5399, 5402, 
6541, 6547, 6550, 6567, 6575, 6579, 6580, 6593.) See 197 Henry street. Evidence, 3098, 3386; Coroner Keenan, 
3386 ; McClusky, Evidence, 7841. 

Evidence of registering illegally attempted for the purpose of repeating, and on fraudulent naturalization 
papers ; Evidence, pages 31, 32, 34, 35, 40, 41, 43, 44, 46, 47, 85; number’s 1252,1806,1846,1966,1978, 2061. 

See Cliapter II, ante. 

127 See Evidence, pages 223, 234, 237, 279, 288, 289, 292, 315, 347, 392, 419, 425, 427, 428, 
436, 448, 451, 452, 454, 473, 480, 482, 485, 487, 50J, 505, 507, 512, 522, 544, 553, 554, 557, 
561, 562, 563, 574, 582, 586, 605, 609, 6’20, 621, 622, 623, 626, 637, 658, 711, 55, 36, 37, 39, 

40, 50,52; numbers 1807,1845,18.57,1885,1930, 2067, 2273, 2453, 2770, 2788, 2895, 2905, 
2929,3071,3088,3269,3317, 3386, 7841. 

128 Evidence, 5402; and see “Errata” to the volume of evidence, for the expression “con¬ 
fidential friends.” 



48 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


vassing of the vote in the city of New Yorlc until the result in the cou7itios of 
the IStute should be Icnown, and then inalce up any deficiency not supplied by 
repeating and other fraudulent voting^ by stuffing the ballot-bojees'^—hy a 
£i*auduient canvass, or count of the vote. 

A. OAKEY hall’s SECRET CIRCULAR. 

During the political canvass of 1868, A. Oakey Hall, now mayor of 
iNew York city, was secretary of tlie democratic State committee, with 
an office in the city. Samuel North, who during the war Ifad been 
arrested and tried by the military authorities “for making false votes 
under the soldiers’ voting law,”^^® was secretary of the main committee. 
He and Hall “ to a very great extent directed or supervised” the details 
of the business of the committee. Immediately preceding the November 
election a secret circular was written by Mr. Hall, x)rinted, and “ sent to 
the chairman of every county democratic organization in the State,’”^° as 
follows: 


[Private and strictly confidential.! 

Rooms of the Democratic State Committee, 

October 27, 1BC8. 

My Dear Sir : Please at once to communicate with some reliable person, in three or four . 
principal towns and in each city of your county, and request him (expenses duly arranged 
for this end) to telegraph to William M. Tweed, Tammany Hall, at the minute of closing the 
polls, not waiting for the count, such person’s estimate of the vote. 

Let the telegraph to be as follows: 

“This town will show a democratic gain (or loss) over last year of (number: ”) or this one 
is sufficiently certain: “This town will give a republican (or democratic) majority of-.” 

There is of course an important object to be attained Ipy a simultaneous transmission at the 
hour of closing the polls, but no longer waiting. Opportunity can be taken of the usual 
half-hour lull in telegraphic communications over lines before actual results begin to be 
declared, and before the associated press absorb the telegraph with returns and interfere with 
individual messages ; and give orders to watch carefully the count. 

SAMUEL J. TILDEN, Chairman. 


And for some reason this circnlar was kept so secret that it was pre¬ 
pared and issued without the knowledge of Mr. Tilden. 

The concluding words in italics were written “ to call particular attem 
tion and make it emphatic.'’^ There was of coui'se important object 
to be attained.'’'’ 

A. oakey hall’s advice AT A SUNDAY MEETING OF DEMOCRATIC CANVASSERS. 

Some facts in connection with this may be material. 

Air. Hall testifies “ that the practice at former presidential elections 
in canvassing the electoral vote was simply to count each ticket as a whole 
without reading the name of each elector.” But on the 28th October a 
circular was issued from the “rooms of the Tammany Hall general com¬ 
mittee,” signed by John Fox, George A. Purser, and A. Oakey Hall, to 
the democratic canvassers of the city, requesting them to meet at Tam¬ 
many Hall on SuNDAA^ before the election.^^^ At this meeting Air. Hall 
‘advised the democratic canvassers to canvass all the names of elec¬ 
tors”—that is, to “ read over the name of every elector on every ticket.”^^ 
He says, “ one of his objects was to prolong the count as far as possible.”^^ 


Evidence, 5565. 

132 Evidence, 3567, 3553. 
13* Evidence, 3564. 


13* Evidence, 2937. 
133 Evidence, 3553. 
13* Evidence, 3558. 


131 Evidence, 2938. 
I*'* Evidence, 3555. 



ELECTION FKAULS IN NEW YORK. 


49 


THE EFFECT OF IT. 

The effect of this ‘^then was, that,” in answer to the private circular^ 
Tainniany Hall would get the vote from the country (counties, by tele¬ 
graph) before they could get the vote of the city, ” the polls closing at 
“ six minutes before 5 o^clock p. Another effect of this would be 

that it tcoidd enable the two eanvassers at each polling place, where a co 7 i- 
spiracy 7vas arranged for the purpose, to change repidylican ticlcets for deyno- 
cratic, or stuff the hallot-boxes,^^ add democratic ticlcets, and have them 
counted accordingly. 

The instructions for delay had the desired effect. The democratic can¬ 
vassers very generally followed their instructions. ‘‘More than two 
hundred” telegrams came to Tammany Hall in answer to the circular, 
showing how well the programme was arranged, understood, and carried 
into effect. By about half past 8 o’clock p. m. on the evening of the 
election “about one-third of the State had been heard from.”^^^ 

The returns of the different wards of the city are sent by telegraph 
to “ the headquarters of the iiolice department, 300 Mulberry street,” and 
“ the clerk of the superintendent of the metropolitan police department” 
testilies that “ the total presidential canvass (of the city) was not ascer¬ 
tained until nearly 1 or 2 o’clock of the night after the election; and 
though some of the wards were retm-ned earlier, Mr. Hall himself says 
the returns were “almost three hours later than usual.” 

In some of the districts, where the democratic canvassers commenced 
the canvass in the umisnal mode advised by Tammany Hall, this method 
was abandoned after the canvass had progressed, private adviees^"^^ 
communicated to such canvassers seems to have led to a sudden change 
of purpose and practice. MTiether they were adAused the purpose of 
the delay had been accomiilished may be inferred. With this private 
advice all legal scruples as to the mode of canvassing at once disap¬ 
peared. 

BALLOT-BOX STUFFING. 

That this time was employed to some extent in “ stuffing ballot-boxes” 
is proved beyond a doubt. Henry Johnson, a poll clerk in the third elec 
tion district, fourth ward,^^^ testilies as follows: 

There were names added to the poll-list during the day of persons who had not voted— P5 
names in that district. The total vote returned was ^2; the number of votes actually 
polled was eOT. During the afternoon names were taken from one of the registers of one of 
the district inspectors to the number of 85 ; and 15 or 20 at a time were added to the voting 
list, Avhile there was a lull in the rush of voters. In the evening the counting of the presi¬ 
dential vote was delayed until about half-past 11 or 12 o’clock, for some purpose which at 
that time was unknown to me, now well known ; the democratic canvasser insisting upon 
counting the vote of each of the 35 electors separately, and making out a tally-list for each; 
and the republican canvasser insisting upon taking each ticket with 35 votes, and making 
out a single tally list, which would have taken three-quarters of an hour, while the other 
way would have taken eight or ten hours. By that time the republican canvasser had be¬ 
come pretty well intoxicated, and during the evening there were 85 tickets, containing each 
of the democratic candidates, obtained from ^ome of the booths outside, and when the tick 
ets were shoved out on the table to be counted by the canvassers these additional tickets 
were thrown in so as to make the number correspond with the number of names registered. 
From the time of the closing of the polls the republican and democratic canvassers were 
wrangling as to the propriety of counting the votes. At half-past 9 or 10 o’clock the 
democratic canvasser asked me if I had any objection to keeping the tally. I told him if > 

136 Evidence, 3558. i37Evidence, 3566. i38 Evidence, 2937. 

139 Evidence, 3562. i-ii Evidence, 4406. i-ii Evidence, 3561. 

1^-2 See Evidence of Charles Nettleton, February 6. 

1^3 See evidence of Costello and others, February 6. The evidence, page 362, shows the votes 
returned as Johnson testifies, and this corroborates his evidence. 

Ill Evidence, 82, 86. 

H. Bep. Com. 31-4 






50 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


they directed that to he done, I should certainly do it. They went on and tallied about 500 
votes, when two or three gentlemen came in, called him one side, and whispered to him. He 
came hack and agreed to the terms proposed hy the repuhlican canvasser. I then asked 
him why he had been objecting to that all this time. He said that two years ago the re¬ 
publicans in the interior defeated John T. Hoffman by holding back until they had heard 
from the city, and that now he meant to be even with them and to hold back the count until 
the interior had been heard from. 

THE DISTRICT OF JOHN MORRISSEY, JAMES M’CARTIN, AND GEORGE FRANCIS TRAIN. 

In the 5tli congTcssional district in New York city, and tlie 5th election 
district, 13th ward, the canvass, as returned, showed votes for repre¬ 
sentative in Congress, for John Morrissey, (democrat,) 229; for James 
McCartin, (republican,) 131; for George Francis Train, (independent,) 1. 

Train’s attorney took ‘‘a large number of affidavits of persons who 
swore that they voted for Trainand he procured also “affidavits of 
various parties who swore that they voted for Train” in that election 
district where the canvassers found he only received one vote. 

Peter Hale testities that “ from 30 to 50 voted for Train. He saw the 
tickets deposited in the ballot-box.” 

FRAUDS IN THE FIVE DIFFERENT WARDS. 

Some idea may be formed of the mode and extent of the fraudulent 
voting or canvassing, by other facts. 

By law, none are entitled to vote unless they are registered. 

It is impossible to tell how many votes were added by canvassers in 
the 310 election districts of New Y^ork city, in most of which, those 
engaged in the frauds were satisfied to keep within the registry. But 
in some of the districts, in five of the twenty-two ivards, even this ijrecau- 
tion was not used, as will be seen from the following table showing the 
excess of votes over registry:’^’’ 


District. 

Ward. 

Regisl’d. 

Vote. 

Excess. 

Sixth...... 

Fifth. 

520 

588 

68 

Eleventh ...... 

Sixth.... 

863 

864 

1 

Thirteenth... 

Eighteenth.. .. 

513 

517 

4 

Twenty-first. 

Nineteenth.. 

180 

190 

10 

Twenty-third ....._......_..... 

Nineteenth .... 

179 

227 

48 

Thirtieth .... .... 

Nineteenth... 

285 

305 

20 

First... 

T went v-sec.ond ... 

885 

901 

16 

Total... 


3, 425 

3, 592 

167 




And it is abundantly proved that many names of voters were put on 
ithe poll-lists of voters when no such names were registered. 

, It was not possible for the committee to trace this species of fraud in 
detail in all the districts. Its existence is proved. It was not confined 
to one locality, but was wide-spread.^'^^ Ample arrangements were made 
I to perfect it.^^® 

Evidence, 4986. 

,146 Evidence, 5283. 

>147 Evidence, 37J8. 

Evidence, 5953, 4567, 5561. 

Charles W. Burton testifies: 

I attended the election in one of the wards of this city, (the 3d district of the 19th ward ) where some three 
> votes were received which were not on the registry. * * i was at the polls when they were closed and one 
of the canvassers refused to go on with the count while I was there. One of the canvassers was anxious to 
go on, but the other refused. [Evidence, 261. J 

Marshall Murray testifies: 

571. Q. We are advised here that certain officers received ballots and that at a certain hour of the day they 

turn over, the ballot-boxes to two other officers called the canvassers?_A. Yes, sir ^ ^ 

572. Q. And that the canvassers are constituted in the same way ?—A.’lhey are supposed to be so consti- 




























ELECTION FBAUDS IN XEW YOEK. 


51 


'Die democratic party, without any fraudulent votes, had a large ma¬ 
jority in the city of Xew York. Their purpose, therefore, was to carry 
the :<tate. Frauds were planned on a scale commensurate with the 
object, and executed so as to accomplish it. and this furnishes evidence 
of their extent. It is impossible that those engaged in frauds so numer¬ 
ous, wide-spread, and extensive, would fail to arrangements to 

make their work effectual. 


THE SECBET CIRCULAH. 

A. Oakey Hall, the author of the seciet circular, was a witnass before 
the committee He could not fail to know that it had been charged that 
••the vote in Yew York was largely in excess of the legal voters yet, 
on the stand as a witness, he made no denial of this, nor did he aver 
that the secret circular had no purpose on the part of any one to secure 
such a result.^^ 

He states one of its objects thus:^” 

Tlie purpose was to get local estimate? from our democratic friends with which to compare 
and to check the retnms when thee came in. * * * * 

The object was to get what would seem to be snperficial guess-work, but which was 
really an approximate statement- 

By law the presidential electoral vote must be counted first.^^ Adopting 
the usual mode of counting, this could be done in a very brief time, for 
Mr. HaU says, ••after closing the polls” an ••hour usually elapses when 
the results are beginning to be known everywhere.*^ 

Acc-ording to 31r. Hall. then, the object was to find out how well the 
interior democrats could guess I He wanted their -^ocal estimates with 
which to compare and to check the returns when they came in.” Thiee 
hundred and forty democratic canvassers were solemnly assembled on the 
Sabbath, and instructed to delay the count: •• the chairman of every coimty 

t3»<L I was ta explain that to too. I ^seovered in September last that iome forty- or more of theee 

caaTvser^. who were the bkwi noey men in the republican party hi thi* city, inrariably ramed np a.« ean- 
'i-aaeer^ : and that they were at the ame time koldin^ aneenre potaQom in the street commi^wonerg office at 
$3 a day; and that the only datie« that they performed wa» to aci a« canva^ni, and to get this apDointmeBt 
wrth a liew to ceonting the Tote«. I knew wfaat that meant, and I called the attention of onr State central 
coBxmittee to the fact. I know aQ about this connting a man ont and eonnting a man in: I knew it was done 
for money: I knew that if yon and I were eanvasgers ia a eer^un eleetioa district in Xew York, and that if 
there were TOCO rotes poU^ that district, that if John Doe got 350 and Richard Roe 4o0. John Doe had a 
majority of 100: bat I eonld not nBdm-stand that John Doe would get 9t50 and Richard Roe only 50 unless yen 
and 1 imderRooi each other. I probed the thing pretty folly, and went before oar State central ommittee 
and made a statement of the facts; they appointed a committee, of which I was chairman, to ventilate these 
facta, and we did it pretty thorooghly. Instead of forty men being in that pocitkta I foand three tunes the 
nnmber—scaly fellows who were in the market: I struck oat myself 225 names from this entire list. They 
held the office registrar* and canvassers. 

573l Q. Professing to be repubUcacs ?—A. They were m point of fact. 

574. And were hmght over and were acting in the interest of the democratic party?—A. Yes, sir. 

575. Q- Does the law require that the votes shall be canvassed in the presence of other parties than the 
caavaasers ’—A. The law requires that they shall be canvassed pnblicly. bat during the investigation which 
I had o«c«»>Qed to make I f<>and some ea»es^ where they had locked themselves up in a room, taken the 
li«Il<:>c-bax in there, and eanv-jsse«l It to son themselvea. 

576l Q- Yiolaring the law entirely •—A. Violating the law: the poll-list shows that so many votes were 
j^^Ued. and that the candidates have run pretty even, bet ffie canvassers took so many Srom A to give them 
to B. and the total talliea. 

Senate Mis. Doc. Xo. 4, 3d session 40th Cong., p. 6. 

He says, in connection with the purpose to get local estimates from the country, that 
•‘ the idea of this circular was not to perpetrate frauds, but to check frauds.*’ Whether by 
“ checking frauds*’ there was a purpose to offset country frauds by city frauds, as a check, 
does not appear. Colonel Samuel North, who, with Hall, directed all the details of the 
committee, did not ask to appear as a witness, nor did any member of the committee or per¬ 
sons implicated in frauds deem it advisable to call him. 

Mr. Hall further testides : 

I wish » disavow the remotest intentiotn. on oar port, of in any way advising the canvassers in the city of 
Xew York as to the state of the country polls: and. as a matter cf fact, I state that no one single canvasser 
in the city of New York knew what was the country poll, excepting as he may have heard it was announced 
sc Tamnlany Hall or Cooper Institute. 

The public announcement gave all the opportunity necessary to know the state of the 
canvasa to any engaged in a conspiracy. 

^Evidence, *2937. 


Evidence, 3565. 



52 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


democratic organization of the State** was addressed, and 200 telegrams 
received to test the guessing capacities of rimil democrats, for the innocent 
edification of the luban leaders of Tammany Hall, including A. Oakey 
Hall!: 

T\'hy this coidd not have been as well accomplished without the secrecy 
enjoined by this circular does not appear. 

But then there was - another object,** Mr. Hall says: 

Another object of this circular was to induce gentlemen upon our side to apply in such 
numbers and so frequently to the telegraph offices of the State that the operators tcould know 
that rtturr.s of some kind were expected over the wires, for I believe that nine-tenths of the 
telegraph operators in this State are republicans. 

From this it would seem that all over NTew York State, outside of its 
enlightened commercial metropolis, the republican telegi'aph operators, 
on the evening of an election at which a President, governor, members of 
Congi-ess. senators, members of assembly, and other officers were voted 
for, did not -know that retimis of some kind were expected over the 
\\ires.** But happily for Yew York city, the talent of its high officers 
was equal to the emergency. 

The Sundag meeting of canvassers, the secret cii'cular to the democratic 
chairmen, induced ^-gentlemen upon the democratic side to apply in such 
numlHU's and so frequently to the telegraph offices of the State that the 
operators** did find out - that retimns of some kind were expected.*’ 

Mr. Hall says the cfrcular was headed -sti'ictly confidential** because 
they - did not want to atn'act pai'ticular [public] attention to it.** Yet 
how this woidd enable operators to know that -returns of some kind 
were expected** is not perceived. This mode of reaching the republican 
opemtors was rather indirect. The work might have been accomplished, 
l>erhaps. if the sui>erintendents of telegraph lines had sent a general 
despatch giving notice - that retimis of some kind are expected I** 

These objects alone would scarcely seem to justify so great an 
expemliture of time, talents, and other resoiu’ces, in relation to the 
secret circular. 

The examination of ^Ir. HaU proceeds: 

3557. Q. Your object, then, was to get the returns from the country before they got the 
returns from New York ? « 

A. No: our object was to prevent their getting the New York vote ; it was nothing to us 
to get their vote, except as we opened the wires and made them send their vote. 

Yothing to us to get their vote.** Then why was the secret circidar 
sent! It says there was an important object to be attained by it. 

But Mr. Htdl proceeded to testify: 

There was. of course, an important object to be attained in the words written by me in 
the manuscript after the receipt of the circular, because I wanted to call particular attention 
of parties into whose hands this might fall through the post, and to make it emphatic, 

YTiat that important object" was he does not disclose, beyond what is 
stated. But whatever the -important object** was, it seemed necessary, 
in order to accomplish it. that the condition of the vote in the interior 
of the State shoidd be immeffiately known in the city, for he says, in 
answer to the question: " 

*2940. Q. But the moment you commenced receiving telegrams in response to that circa 
lar, you then desired that they should know it ? 

A. Certainly. 

And the importance of the object brought 200 telegrams, which were 
read as soon as received from the desk at Tammany Hall, -and then at 
the ^Manhattan club, to splendid congi'egations of mourners.** 

It is a significant tact that Samuel Yorth did not volunteer to enlighten 
the committee, nor did any one of the committee or others deem it 
advisable to call him. * 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


53 


CHAPTER T. 

HOW THESE FRAUDS WERE PERPETRATED—^RESPONSIBILITY OF THE 
DEHOCRATIC PARTY. 

The city of Xew York embraces and is coextensive with the connty. 
The city and connty government comprises a metropolitan board of police 
commissioners elect^ by the legislature. This boaixi appoints a superin¬ 
tendent of police, a police force of over 2.000 police officers, 1.360 insi>ect- 
ors of registry and elections. 680 poll clerks, and an equal number of can¬ 
vassers. The city and county government also has a mayor; a common 
council of 21 aldermen and 21 assistant aldermen; a comptroller who is 
the chief financial officer; a city chamberlain, appointed by the mayor 
with the consent of the board of aldermen: a board of 12 supervisors; a 
sherifl:*. with deputies iunumerable: a supreme court, with five judges: 
a county clerk, who is ex officio clerk of the suiireme court.*with a deputy 
iind numerous assistants: a sui>erior court, with six judges, a clerk, deputy, 
special deputy, and assistants: the court of common pleas, with thr^ 
judges, a clerk, deputy, and assistants; the marine court, with three 
judges ; a court of general sessions held by a recorder and city judge; 
eight police justices: eight district courts, all with clerks and other offi¬ 
cers : a disti'ict attorney: a street commissioner and deputy, with clerks 
and employes ranging from 70 to 6tXj. The mayor, aldermen, assist¬ 
ant aldermen, comptroller, half the supervisoi's. the judges, sheriffs, 
county clerk, district attorney, and police justices are all elected by the 
voters. The city government has revenues amounting to about 
$23.tKH).000. with a patronage to disi>ense. contracts to let, and power 
otherwise larger than many of the States, Yew York city sends 5 
senators and 21 members of assembly to the legislature, and six represen¬ 
tatives to Congress, all elected by the voters. 

All these officers are democrats except half the board of police com¬ 
missioners, half the election officers.'^ about one-half of the i>olice force.^* 
one police justice,and five supervisors; and there is but one^* republican 
ward in the city. 

With this army of democratic officers, a portion of whom are unscru¬ 
pulous and corrupt, and with tbe power of appoiutment over and pat¬ 
ronage for a multitude of men whose places too often depend on parti¬ 
san services, with the capacity by fraud to so enlarge the vote of the 
city as to control the election in the State of a governor and other State 
officers, and the electors of President and Yice-President, sometimes 
decisive of a presidential election in the whole nation, with ix)wer to 
elect members of Congress who may decide the polLtic-al complexion of 
Congress, there exist powerftd motives for. and the amplest means 
of. i)er]>etTating vast firauds. These motives have been indulged and 
these means employed to an extent which knows no parallel in this 
country. Prior and np to the time of the late presidential election it 
was p^pable and i>eifectly notorious^^ that naturalization frauds were 
being perpetrated on an extensive scale, and that bands of ••repeaters" 
were organized and hired for their work. Almost at the head of politi- 


Evidience. 15-55, 1931, (page 157,) 4359. 
51—*2935, 
i'* No. 351-2. 

^5^ See Eridence, 544, 1*235, 6665, 6669. 

^ Evidence, pages *26, *25; Nos, *2547, 395*S, 3765. 




54 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKE. 


cal operatious in IsTew York stood Samuel ISrortli, who was arrested and 
tried during' the war for making false votes under the soldiers^ voting 
law.” 

No democratic official^ officer of justice^ or 'politician tooJc any measures 
to defeat or prevent these f raudsj hut they did tahe measxires to aid thenij and 
to obstruct the purposes of those who attempted 'in vain to defeat them. 

These frauds are so monstrous in character and extent that they could 
not have been the work of a few, or of many irresponsible individuals. 
It ivas the worh of the democratic party. In their purpose and modes of 
execution they show a systematic plan, devised by controlling minds, for 
the pui'i^ose of carrying the election in the State. The plans were on a 
scale comprehensive enough to accomplish the pui'pose designed. 

THE MEANS EMPLOYED TO ACCOMPLISH THE FEAUDS. 

The means emi^loyed to secure these thousands of illegal votes were 
the use of fraudulent certificates of naturalization^ to enable aliens and 

repeaters’’^ to vote; the system of repeatingso successfully and exten¬ 
sively adopted ; and f rauds in canvassing the result of the vote. All these 
have been adverted to. To make these means successful the necessary 
agencies were employed to prevent detection as far as possible, and to defeat 
the purposes of those who would expose or interfere with the execution of 
these fraudulent schemes. 

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF CITIZENS. 

An association of republican citizens,^®^ desiring to prevent these frauds 
of repeaters ” and of persons voting in districts where they were not 
entitled, took steps to prevent them, but they met with such obstacles that 
their work was practically unavailing. 

THE POLICE CENSUS OBSTEUCTED AND PEEVENTED. 

By law the police force is charged with “ the general duty of prevent¬ 
ing the violation of the election la ws.”^®^ There was in existence an order 
of the Metropolitan Police Board requiring a census to be taken of legal 
voters with a view to detect and prevent attempted fraudulent voting.^^^ 
To carry out this purpose the superintendent of police, a republican, 
recently before the presidential election ordered a portion of the police 
force to take a census of the voters in different wards, though the demo¬ 
cratic members of the board ‘^refused to make an order to require the 
census to be taken.”^^^ 

A. Oakey Hall, then district attorney, elected mayor of the city in 
December, says the avowed object of taking the census “ was to prevent, 
and if carried out as avowed it would decidedly i)revent, fraud.” Yet 
he, an officer of the city, charged with the duty of prosecuting violators 
of the election laws, and counsel of the police board, says,^®^ as a demo¬ 
cratic editor and a democratic politician I myself gave advice” to the 
people, and especially democrats, not to furnish the names of persons to 
the police force engaged in taking the census prior to the last election.” 
He could not fail to know of the purposes of the “repeaters 5 ” he took no 
steps to detect or prevent the execution of their plans, but defeated the 
purposes of the police force. 

Evidence, 3686, 340], of Wm. H. Green. Note to Chapter IV. 

Evidence, 1957, 4802. >63 Evidence, 3530. >63 Evidence, 3514. 

Evidence, 3520, Evidence, 3533. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


55 


Under liis advice his democratic followers and the democratic news¬ 
papers threw such obstacles in the wav of the census that it became 
impracticable to take it and it was abandoned.i®^^ 

HOW CHALLENGING WAS PREVENTED—TERRORISM AND VIOLENCE. 

By some means many of the inspectors of registry and election were 
appointed for duty in districts where they did not reside and so could not 
have personal knowledge of voters.^®^ 

Challenging illegal voters was so far prevented by terrorism and vio¬ 
lence that it was of rare occurrence either at the registry or on the day 
ot the election, and in many districts no challenges were made.^®^ It 
woidd be imxiracticable here to describe fully the means resorted to to 
prevent challenges, but they are abundantly shown in the evidence. 

The 2,000 deputies of Sheriff O’Brien were ordered to arrest any one 
who interfered with the voting.” 

Challenging was to a great extent prevented by the advice given and 
followed that the holder of a certificate of naturalization xiresenting it 
could not be questioned as to his right under it to register and vote.^^^® 

THE CONSPIRACY. 

When the connection of Sheriff O’Brien with his “confidential friends” 
is understood, his appointment of 300 to 400 deputies in the 7th ward, 
the arrest of Urmy by a posse of his deputies, the motive for and i)ur- 
pose of appointing 2,000 deputies on the day of the election, can be under- 
stood.ie® 

The increase of the clerks and employes in the street commissioner’s 
department to beween 500 and 600 about the time of the election, is also 
a significant fact. 

But the evidence of a grand conspiracy to perpetrate these frauds is 
abundant. The mayor of the city, now the governor of the State, the attor¬ 
ney general of the State, the district attorney, now the mayor, and others 
less distinguished, rendered it valuable aid. 

On the 19th of October the Tammany Hall (democratic) general com¬ 
mittee called a meeting, intended to be private, of the 680 democratic 
inspectors of registry and election of the city, to be held on Sunday^ 
October 25, to receive instruction from the district attorney and Tam¬ 
many Hall leaders as to their duties in registering voters and receiving 
their votes. 

Although it was notorious that thousands of fraudulent certificates of 
naturalization had been distributed broadcast^'^^ over the city to per¬ 
sons who never appeared in court to be naturalized, and that others had 
been procured on fictitious and assumed names to be used by repeat¬ 
ers, yet the district attorney advised these inspectors, and a good 

See Evidence, .3111, 3112, 3115, 3099, 3514, 3517, 3520, 3533, 3547, 3537. 

^66 Evidence, 2095, 2147, 3031. 

167 See Evidence, 462, 93.3, 1073, 1306, 1785, 1799, 1813, 1824, 1825, 1844, 184.5, 1968, 
2093, 2220, 2924. 3027, 3075, 3099, 326.3, 40.59, 406.3, 4132, 4164, 4213,4575, 4580-83. 4606, 
4820, 3514, 3553,' 1872, 1900, 1984, 1922, 1930, 1935, 2341, 2897, 2912, 3260, 3395, 3863, 
3386. No sufficient challenging, 933, 1073, 1306, 1785, 1799, 1813, 1968, 2093, 2220, 2924, 
3027, 3263, 3075, 1824, 1844. Obstacles, 1786, 1794. Republican meeting of inspectors, 
1279, 1300, 1960. 

See last section Opinion Attorney General, page 337. 

^69 Evidence, 3863. 

*70 Evidence, 2850, 2881. 

*71 Evidence, 2, 92, 199, 222^ 784, 1149. 

172 Evidence, 7800-3, 7805-8, 7961. . 



56 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


many citizens/’ “that when a x>erson had a certificate of naturalization 
it was conclusive evidence of his right to be registered as a voter.” ^ 
And the attorney general gave a written opinion that “ if the papers are 
in form and have the signature of the clerk and the seal of the court 
impressed, the board has no legal power to disregard them.”^^^ 

This advice was implicitly followed by the democratic inspectors.^"^ 

That this advice, so well calculated to encourage fraud, was erroneous, 
may be seen from the evidence of A. Oakey Hall, as follows: 

3535. Q. Do you know tlie reputation of Henry E. Davis, John K. Porter, Henry Hilton, 
and William Fullerton, as lawyers and men of integrity?—A. Yes, sir; in my judgment 
there are no better lawyers or men of more integrity in the city of New York than those 
gentlemen. 

They gave an oinnion as follows: 

New York, October 28, 1868. 

First. We are of the opinion that the inspectors of registry must be “satisfied” that any 
person claiming to be registered is a legal voter, and in seeking to satisfy themselves they 
may gather evidence from the statements of the applicant, and from other sources. If, either 
from an examination of a person who presents to them a paper purporting to be a certificate 
of naturalization, or from other evidence, they are not satisfied that the applicant is the per¬ 
son to whom the certificate was issued, or are not satisfied that he is entitled to its possession, 
in any such case it is the duty of the inspectors to refuse to register such persons. 

Second. As the inspectors must be “ satisfied” of the right of the applicant to be registered, 
his mere claim to be so registered, apart from his oath or from other evidence, does not in 
any way establish his right. Inspectors in receiving or rt’jecting names act quasi-judicially, 
and must act fairly upon evidence satisfactory to their own minds. 

Third. We are of the opinion that the oath of an applicant for registry is not conclusive 
as to his right to be registered, and that consequently, even if an applicant offers to take 
and does take the legal oaths, the inspectors should still refuse to register him if from evi¬ 
dence they are satisfied that he is not a legal voter within the election district. 

On tlie 31st October, tlie mayor of the city, himself a candidate for 
governor, issued a proclamation which, while falsely asserting that the 
United States marshal had “assumed to himself the power and duty of 
appointing swarms of special deputies to take their places at the polls,” 
though he did not appoint oue,^"^® was oblivious to the fact that Sheriff 
O’Brien had appointed 2,000 deputy sheriffs, with orders “to arrest any 
one who iiiterfered with the voting;” and then the proclamation, without 
any siiecific notice of or warning to the “repeaters’? or holders of fraudu¬ 
lent certificates of naturalization, paralyzed all etforts to detect and pre¬ 
vent fraud, and gave encouragement to these classes to vote illegally, by 
saying: 

Let no citizen, however, be deterred by any threats or fears from the discharge of his duty 
at the polls or elsewhere, but let him assert his rights boldly, resolutely, and at the same 
time with calmness and dignity, and he will find his perfect protection under the laws and 
lawfully constituted authorities of the State of New^ York. 

By virtue of authority vested in me by law, I hereby offer a reward of $100, to be paid on 
the arrest and conviction of any person charged with a violation of the election laws of this 
State, and a like sum to be paid on the arrest and conviction of any person charged with 
intimidating, obstructing, or defrauding any voter in the exercise of his right as an elector. 

He did not enumerate “ repeating” or voting on fraudulent certificates 
of naturalization specifically as violations of tlie laws, tbough lie was 
specially careful to warn all wbo might intimidate voters, whom be ad¬ 
vised to assert their rights boldly. He saw the necessity for this, though 
not the greater necessity for detecting repeaters and other illegal voters. 

” Evidence, 3547, 3592. ^^4 Evidence, 3568, 3435. ’ 

Evidence, 2319, 2403, 27G5, 2766, 2098, 4163. In Westchester county aliens were fur¬ 
nished with certificates of naturalization by the deputy county clerk without any proceeding 
before a judge or court. The democratic, inspectors refused to allow inquiry into the validity 
of naturalization papers. Evidence as to registering and voting on fraudulent papers, 2765, 
3492,3568,3533,1042, 1060, 1806, 1825,1845,1849, 1864,361,381,383,403, 462, 468. 

Evidence, 3.290. 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


57 


The proclamation characterized the allegations of fraud in naturaliza¬ 
tions as gross and unfounded charges against those high in authority.” It 
denounced the grand jury of the United States court” for indicting in 
the usual form those notoriously guilty of naturalization frauds, and 
alleged that the purpose was to “ intimidate them in the discharge of their 
Xniblic duties f as if it was a public duty for courts to issue, and people 
to distribute, fraudulent certificates of naturalization! 

OniUNITY" FOR CRIME—PROTECTION TO THE GUILTY. 

With the courts, the officers of justice, all controlled by men elected 
as democrats, and with the vast official and personal influence of the 
dominant party in the city, men can escape all punishmenT; for crime if 
faithless officers so determine. Immunity and protection were promised 
repeatedly^"" to those engaged in these election frauds. 

IS'umerous’ arrests were made by some of the police of persons ille¬ 
gally voting in the interest of the democratic party,but none by the 
sheriff or his deputies. 

A majority of the board of inspectors of election are authorized to 
make arrests for illegal voting.^"^ 

The board of metrt)politan police commissioners being equally divided 
politically,^^® the election officers are generally in the same condition. 
The democratic inspectors in each election district have it in their power 
therefore to prevent arrests, and very often availed themselves of that 
power to shield the guilty.^®^ 

Many others would have been arrested, but it was so well understood 
that arrests were to be followed by release that this mode of pre¬ 
venting frauds was but of little avail. 

And it is a lamentable fact that official dereliction of duty reached 
such a fearful point that all who were arrested under city or State 
authority have been released.^®^ 

The grand jury assembled since the election manifested no disposition 
to prevent these frauds,and the guilty perpetrators are all at large. 

Evidence, 1074-5, 7096, 4779, 3605,3685, 3844, 3690,3709,3395. Evidence, pages 29, 
32,68. Evidence, number 1253, 1807, 1845, 1946,2783, 1966, 3055, 3066,3400. Release, 
3605, 3685, 3844. Power to arrest, 1966, 3846. All democrats but one, 3846, 3512. 

*78 See Evidence, 306, 319,352, 629, 793, 1254, 1807, 1946, (page 188,) 2783, 3066, 3400. 

*79 1966. 

*80 Evidence, 317, 562, 568, 1236, 2739, 6675. 

*8* Evidence 933, 1786, 1870, 2757, 2767, 3196, 3260, 3316-17, 4135, 4163. 

182 Evidence, 3605, 3685, 3844. 

*83 John H. White testifies as follows ; 

To'tlie Chairman: 

4779. I reside in this city; have lived here for over 20 j'ears; am a lawyer by profession ; was a witness 
before the grand jury of the court of oyer and terminer in the month of November last. A. Oakey Hall, our 
present mayor, was then district attorney. I was summoned to appear before the grand jury, and was 
examined by Mr. Hall. I w'as personally acquainted with more than half of them. They were, with but 
one exception, all prominent and leading democrats. 

4782. Q. Can you state if any indiciments were found by the grand jury for illegal voting or fraud in con¬ 
nection w ith the elections of this city ?—A. I never heard that any one was found. 

4783. State what you know, if anything, of evidence of fraud being produced to the district attorney or to 
the grand jury in reference to illegal voting.—A. I was asked by the district attorney whether I knew of any 
frauds being perpetrated at the late elections. I said I did; that 1 knew of the fact that false naturalization 
papers were obtained; that many persons voted illegally; and that I had evidence of that kind in my posses¬ 
sion which I could produce. One of the jurymen remarked that I was not called for that purpose ; that if 
they needed me, they would let me know. They then requested me to retire, and told me that they had got 
through with me. 

4784. Q. State whether steps were taken, with your knowledge, either by the district attorney or the grand 
jury, to investigate illegal voting.—A. I never received any notice from the grand jury. I told them that I 
would be ready at any time to give them information, but they never called on me. 

4785. Can you state what connection any of the members of the grand jury had with Tannnany Hall?—A. 
The foreman of the grand jury was Mr. Charles H. Haswell. He is a prominent member of the democratic 
party • another member was John G. Bradley, one of the sachems of I'arnmany Hall, and State senator; there 
was also Morgan'L. Harris, Henry D. Felter, Patrick G. JIaloney, William Withers, Morgan Jones, that I 
noticed at the time as prominent members of the democratic party. 

4786. Q. State to what extent, within your knowledge, persons have been convicted or punished for illegal 




58 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


apprelieuding no danger from prosecutions. Tlien the vast preparations 
for naturalization upon a scale without precedent, the manner of secur¬ 
ing naturalizations, the democratic naturalization offices, the plans for 
false registering and repeating, the distribution of fraudulent natural¬ 
ization certificates, extending not only over New York city but to other 
counties of the State—these and all the lacts in connection Avith them 
prove a grand conspiracy of Avhich the democratic leaders could not 
have been ignorant, and Avhich, therefore, had their sanction, as they 
took no measures to prevent it, but did render it valuable aid. 

Congress has never enacted any law prescribing the tunes, places, or 
manner of holding elections for representatives in Congress, or aftixing 
l)enalties for frauds at elections of representatives, or electors of President 
and Vice-President. 

The investigations of the committee show that State laws, and their 
mode of administration, cannot, in all cases, be relied on to prevent these 
frauds, or i^rotect citizens in the exercise of the elective franchise, and 
especially in some of the great cities. 

The national government should always liaA^e the power of self-preser- 
Amtion, and should not i)ermit great frauds on the elective franchise in* 
the election of national officers in States unable or unAvilling to preA^ent 
or punish them. 

In the feAV days which remain of the present Congress it would not be 
practicable for the committee to mature, or Congress to consider, adequate 
remedies for the evils which our iiiA^estigatious disclose, but they seem 
to require that, at some time, Congress should consider, among other 
measures, the folloAAung: 

I. A bill to prohibit the supreme court of the State of New York, in the 
county of Ncav York, and the superior court of the city of Ncav York, 
from admitting aliens to become citizens. 

II. A bill reAusing the naturalization Iuaa^s in such manner as not to 
restrict the existing rights and facilities afforded to aliens to become citi¬ 
zens, but to secure the most liberal provisions for that jAurpose, and pro- 
Aude adequate penalties for Adolations of the Iuaa s by courts, Avitnesses, 
and applicants, and to secm*e legal naturalizations to persons entitled 
thereto. 

III. A bill requiring that the members of the House of PepresentatiA^es 
of the next and eA^eiy succeeding Congress from each of the States, and 
delegates to Congress from the Territories, shall be elected on the same 
day in all the States and Territories, Avhicli shall be the same day that 
electors of President and Vice-President shall be appointed in each State 
in the years when such electors are to be appointed. 

I V. A bill declaring officers under State authority, performing any duty 
affecting elections for members of the House of KepresentatiA^es, to be, 

voting, or any frauds upon elections, in this city for the last three years.—A. I do not know of a single instance. 
I have known of the arrest of parties, but they were subsequently discharged. * * * * 

4792. Q. Do you mean to say that the district attorney neglected his duties in the punishment of crime 
through the agency of the grand jury ?—A. I have merely stated what took place, so far as I know. 

4793. Q. Do you know any motive that would justify you in making such a statement as to throw doubt 
upon the fidelity of the grand jury?—A. I was examined in reference to what took place at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel in regard to the books and papers of the republican party. That was the first intimation 1 had upon 
the subject upon which I was to be examined. The district attorney then asked me if I knew of frauds being 
perpetrated at the last election. I told him I did; that I had evidence in my possession which I could pro¬ 
duce. One of the grand jury, and I think Mr. Hall also, stated that they were not upon that subject; if they 
wanted me, they would let me know. 

4794. Q. Do you mean to say that you could have stated at that time facts within your personal knowledge 
relative to fraud?—A. Yes, sir—from my own knowledge. I had in my possession at the time fraudulent nat¬ 
uralization papers. 

4795. Q. How do you know they were fraudulent?—A. They were papers surrendered to mo by parties 
who had obtained them. I would have given them to the grand jury, with the names of the parties. 

4796. Q. You say no indictments have been found that you know of against persons engaged in illegal 
voting: please state whether you know of any strong republican community in New York finding an indict¬ 
ment and punishing persons for offences against the election laws.—A. I think there have been some prose¬ 
cutions in the interior of the State; I think one in Livingston county. See 3395. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


59 


for sucli purposes, officers of the United States, and prescribing penal¬ 
ties for fraudulent voting and other election frauds either by officers or 
others. 

Y. A bill providing a mode of contesting the election of President and 
Yice-President, and of the electors thereof. 

YI. A joint resolution proposing an amendment of the Constitution so 
as to provide that “Congress may at any time by law make or alter 
such regidations” as have been, or may be, prescribed in any State for 
the a])pointment or election of electors of President and Yice-President. 

YU. A joint resolution proposing an amendment of the Constitution so 
as to provide for the election of President and Yice-President directly by 
the voters of the United States, or that the electors of President and 
Yice-President now authorized shall, like Pepreseutatives in Congress, 
be elected in single districts prescribed by the States, unless prescribed 
by Congress. 


CHAPTER YI. 

THE EXTENT OF THE FRAUDULENT DEMOCRATIC VOTE IN NEW YORK 

STATE IN 1868. 

At the election on the 3d of November, General Grant for President, 
and Hon. John A. Griswpld for governor, were the republican candidates 
in opposition to Hon. Horatio Seymour for President, and Hon. John T. 
Hoffman for governor, the democratic candidates ; the total republican 
vote was 419,883; the total democratic vote was 429,883; democratic 
majority, 10,000 5 total vote, 849,766. In the city of New York the 
republican vote was 47,738; the democratic vote was 108,316 j democratic 
majority, 60,678; total, 156,054. 

The largest frauds were in New York city, and in the strong democratic 
counties. 

HOW THE FACT AND THE EXTENT OF THE FRAUDULENT VOTE IN NEW 
YORK CITY IS SHOAVN. 

The evidence shows that an immense fraudulent democratic vote was 
cast in the city of New York, and this is confirmed by the fact that the 
increase of votes in 1868 over previous years was Vastly greater than the 
ordinary average increase of voting population, and by the further fact that 
the percentage of voters to population largely exceeded that of any previous 
year. These also demonstrate the extent of the frauds in the city. 

It has already been shown that illegal or fraudulent certificates of 
naturalization were issued, probably to the extent of 68,343, on most of 
which votes were cast, and the “ rei^eaters” cast many thousand illegal 
votes in addition. 

THE VOTE OF 1868 TOO GREAT AS COMPARED WITH VOTERS IN PRE¬ 
VIOUS YEARS. 

The official State census of New York shows that the actual voters \i\ 
the city in each tenth year, commencing with 1835 and ending 1865, Avith 
the percentum of increase each decade, have been as follows 


See Table O, Evidence, 3723. 



60 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Year. 

Actual voters. 

Decades. 

Rate per cent, 
of increase. 

1 RflF; . 

43, 091 
63, 927 
88,’887 
128,975 



]845. 

1835 to 1845 

18.3 

1855. 

1845 to 1855 

39 

1865^®^ . 

1855 to 1865 

45.2 




Thus it will be seen the total increase of voters in a period of 30 years 
was 132J i)er cent., or an annual average increase of 4.4 per cent, per 
year—the increase in the last period of 10 years being 4J per cent, per 
year. Taking the largest rate of increase in these several decades of 14 
])er cent, a year, and the estimated number of voters for 1808 could only 
be 140,386, or only 140,000 at the average rate of increase. 

But all the actual voters do not vote. From 1845 to 1805 the average 
per centum of voters who actually voted in the State was^^® only 76.00, 
and the average at presidential elections from 1848 to 1804, inclusive, 
was 87.19. In cities, as a general rule, a larger per centum of voters do 
not vote than in the country.’^'^ In the vote of 1808, in the whole State, 
including the frauds, the average was only 92 jier cent, on the basis of 
the census of 1805, while in New York city the per centum was 108! 


The soldiers voted in 1865. (Evidence, 5565, and page 356.) No inference can be drawn 
against tlie number of voters by reason of absence of soldiers; on the contrary, many of 
them voted who, of course, subsequently settled elsewhere and ceased to be voters in New 
York in 1868, so that the estimated vote of 1868 should be really reduced thereby. 

^®®See Senate Mis. Doc. No. 4, 3d session 40th Congress, as follows: 

Actual and comparative results of different elections. 


(The number of votes shown by the census is here supposed to increase equally between the years on which 

the census is taken.) 


Years. 


1845 . 

1846 . 

1847 . 

1848 . 

1849 . 

18.50. 

1851 . 

1852 . 

18.53. 

1854. 

18.55. 

1856. 

18.57 . 

18.58 . 

1859 . 

1860 . 

1861. 

1862. 

1863 . 

1864 . 

1665. 


Senators . 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

Governor . 

Secretary of state 

Governor. 

Secretary of state 

fiovernor. 

Secretary of state 


Office for which cast. 


Number of votes 
actually cast ns 
shown by State 
census. 

Number of voters 
in the State as 
shown by the 
census. 

Percentage of votes 
cast to the num¬ 
ber of voters. 

337, 496 

539, 379 

62. 38 

406, 720 

550, 673 

73. 85 

325, 013 

561,967 

,53. .52 

460,166 

573,261 

80. 27 

407, 059 

584, 556 

69. 63 

432, 597 

595, 850 

72.51 

401, 083 

607, 144 

66. 06 

525, 391 

618, 439 

84. 95 

372, 100 

629, 733 

59.25 

470, 595 

641,027 

73. 59 

436, 419 

652, 322 

66.90 

594, 347 

669,414 

88. 78 

440, 022 

686, 506 

64. 09 

545, 529 

703, 598 

77. 53 

503, 063 

720, 691 

69. 80 

673, 469 

737, 783 

91.27 

487, 567 

754, 875 

64. 59 

603, 038 

771,967 

78.12 

599, 439 

789, 059 

75. 97 

731,010 

806, 151 

90. 68 

573, 421 

823, 484 

69. 62 


For the whole State the ratio of absentee.-; at presidential elections, since and including 1856, has been as 
follows: 1856, 14.5 per cent.; 1860, 12.3 per cent ; 1864, 10.1 per cent. In former years the proportion of 
absentees in New York city has been uniformly greater than it has been through the State. For the same 
time above specified the ratio of absentees in New York city has been : 1856, 14.2 per cent.; 1860, 12.3 per 
cent.; 1864, 11.6 per cent.; taking the voting population to be as stated by the census of 1855 and 1865, and 
allowing for the gradual increase in other places. Part of this m:iy be accounted for by the fact that’meu 
“pair off,” Sz.c. 


Evidence, Table No. 3, 4236, p. 423. 




































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


61 


But if 00 per cent, of the voters actually voted in the city the proper 
vote would be ldl,747, whereas 150,054 votes were cast, showing a fraudu¬ 
lent vote in the city alone of 24,307. 

So much for actual voters. 


THE VOTE TOO GREAT AS COMPARED WITH THE VOTE OF PREVIOUS 

YEARS. 

IS'ow for actual and estimated votes. In the period from 1848 to 1867 
the increase in votes has been at the rate per cent, as follows : 

From 1848 to 1852. 8 per cent. 

From 1852 to 1856. A cent. 

From 1856 to 1860. 20 per cent. 

From 1860 to 1864. 15J cent. 

The vote of 1864 was 110,390: the vote of 1865 was 81,868—a decrease 
of 29f x)er cent. 

The vote of 1866 was 114,169—only an increase of a little over 3 per 
cent, on the vote of 1864. 

The vote of 1867 was 111,862—a decrease on the vote of 1866. 

From 1848 to 1864 the average increase is 20J per cent, in every four 
years, or about five per cent, a year; from 1856 to 1864 the average yearly 
increase was less than 4J x)er cent. 

It has been abundantly demonstrated that the average increase since 
1840 has not exceeded four per cent. 

The vote of Xew York city in 1868 was 156,054, being an increase of 
49 J per cent, in one single year! 


188 Evidence, 5562. Mr. Sweetzer gives the vote as follows : 


Y ear. 

Total vote. 

Year. 

Total vote. 

Year. 

Total vote. 

1850. 

36, 552 
42, 790 
57, 341 
4.5, 386 
60, 367 
56, 047 
79, 606 

1857. 

59, 770 
69, 699 
56, 734 
95, 583 
55, 976 
76, 848 
66, 896 

1864. 

110,390 
81,863 
114,169 
111,862 
156, 078 

]85l. 

1858. 

1865. 

18.52. 

1859. 

1866. 

1853. 

1860. 

1867. 

1854. 

1861. 

1868. 

1855. 

1862. 


1856. 

1863. 




Evidence, 4236. 

In 1866 John T. Hoflfman was the democratic candidate for governor against Reuben E. 
Fenton, republican. The contest was exciting, and the latter was elected by 13,787 majority. 
This brought out a full vote. In 1867 the contest was over secretary of state and attorney 
general. 

Senate Mis. Doc. No. 4, 3d session 40th Congress, as follows: 



Whole vote cast as 
per election returns. 

Calculated at 4 per 
cent, per annum 
on vole of 1840. 

Calculated at 4 per 
cent, per annum 
on vote of 1860. 

Available voters es¬ 
timated from cen¬ 
sus. 


95, 583 

92,225 

95, 583 

98, 033 


57, 462 

95,914 

99, 406 

101, 642 


76, 947 

99, 750 

103, 382 

105,251 


66, 946 

103, 740 

107, 517 

108, 860 


no, 390 

107, 899 

111,817 

112,469 


81,920 

112,215 

116, 289 

116,078 


114,255 

116, 703 

120, 940 

120, 721 


112, 007 

120, 371 

125, 777 

125, 550 


156, 054 

125,185 

130, 808 

130, 572 





















































62 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The percentage of increase from 1864 to 1868, as indicated by the 
enormously large vote of the latter, was 41 jU per cent.,^®® or more than 
twice as much as the average percentage of increase of previous presidential 
elections ! 

The accuracy of this is shown by a comparison of the actual and estimated votes from 
I860 to 1867, inclusive, in all which years the actual vote never exceeded the estimated vote. 
The frauds of 1868 are proved by the fact that this year there is a large excess of the actual 
vote. And the same law of increase applies elsewhere, as shown by the following statement 
of actual and estimated votes: 



1855. 

1860. 

1864. 

1868. 

' 1^-- ~ 

A vnfpfl in V.riA p.mint.y............................ 

19, 957 
19, 957 

23, 326 

26, 438 

30, 379 

Votes estimated at 15 per cent increase in each period of four years 

22, 950 

26, 393 

30, 352 


If the votes actually cast at that election had been at such [usual] average, there would 
have been 133,000 votes, or 23,000 less than has been actually declared in the official can¬ 
vass. Taking the rate of increase from 1860 to 1864, 15^ per cent., as the basis of the num¬ 
ber of votes that should have been polled in 1868, there would have been 128,500, or 27,500 
less than were declared. 

So much for actual and estimated voters. 

THE VOTE TOO GREAT AS SHOVU^ BY THE AVERAGE RATIO OF VOTERS 

TO POPULATION. 

Henry E. Sweetzer, wbo is connected with the democratic press of 
the city, shows by a table the ratio of votes to i)opnlation at each pres¬ 
idential election from 1852 to 1868, (taking the popidation as retmmed 
by the census immediately preceding such elections,) as follows: 


Year. 

New York city. 

Year. 

New York State, except New 
York city. 

Vote. 

Population. 

Ratio. 

Vote. 

Population. 

Ratio. 

1852. 

57, 341 
79, 606 
95, 583 
no, .390 
156, 078 

515, 547 
629, 904 
813, 669 
813, 669 
726, 386 

1 to 8. 99 

1 to 7. 82 

1 to 8. 51 

1 to 7. 37 

1 to 4. 65 

1852... 

439, 624 
517, 883 
579, 573 
620, 331 
693, 688 

2,581,847 

2, 838, 591 

3, 067, 076 
3, 067, 076 
3, 105, 391 

1 to 5. 89 
1 to 5. 48 
1 to 5. 29 
1 to 4. 94 
1 to 4. 47 

1856. 

18.56. 

1860. 

1860 . 

1864. 

1864. 

1868. 

1868. 




While the average ratio of voters to popidation from 1852 to 1860 was 
1 to 8.44, this ratio was increased in 1868 to be 1 to 4.65. The war 
withdrew from the city a considerable voting population, many of whom 
perished by casualties or disease, and many more of whom become per¬ 
manent residents else where. 

190 Evidence, 4236, 5562. 

191 Evidence, 3741 and 6952, where Judge McCunn testifies; 

I find from a “report of the special committee on volunteering in the county of New York,’’ signed by 
Orison Blunt, Wm. M. Tweed, and Wm. R. Stewart, that the whole number of men furnished from first to 
last, during the rebellion, by the city and county of New York, was 148,676. 

There were not actually that number, as this includes re-enlistments. Three months regi¬ 
ments and others were re-enlisted. 

Mr. Jarvis, the intelligent and candid clerk of the common pleas, testifies as follows ; 

6311. Q. State whether during the war a large proportion of the foreigners of this city went into the army ?— 
A. I do not know the fact. I presume they did; a great many did. 

6312. Q. State whether from your knowledge of the city, in addition to those who were killed and died of 

disease, a large'portion of those who went into the army did not remain in other portions of the country ?_ 

A. Yes, sir. 

And see Evidence, 3741, 6952, showing 148,676 soldiers furnished by the city, many of 
them foreigners. 











































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


63 


Tliis is confirmed by tlie fact that the State census of 1805 only sho^Ys 
a city population of 720,380, while the population of 1800 was 813,009. 
Yet in the face of these facts the ratio of voters to po])ulation was 
largely increased in the city wliile there Avas no corresponding increase 
in other portions of the State. 

But if the population of 1808 be estimated by the usual average 
aft'orded by the census returns of 1850, 1855, 1800, and 1805, it Avill be 
785,79(y‘^‘^ and if a liberal increase be made on this, and Avith any possible 
ratio of Amters to population, the result A\muld shoAV more than 27,000 
fraudulent a otes. 

If the ratio of Amters to population was allowed to be as one to six, 
which is greater thamcas ever aseertained at any previous election, then on 
a population of 785,790 the Amte Avouldonly be 130,905, thus showing a 
fraudulent vote of 20,089. 

^Yllen all these tests unite in proving the same resxdt, eorrohorated hy undis¬ 
puted facts, shoiving great frauds, the conclusion hecomes irresistible that at 
least 25,000 fraudulent votes were cast in New Yorlc city at the election in 
November. 


THE DEMOCRATIC SIXTH WARD. 

But this is proA^ed still further by conclusive details. 

By way of example the population and Amte, past and present, of the 
sixth ward may be cited. 

The total male population in 1800 was 13,405, which had diminished in 
1805 to 9,717, a loss of 3,748,^^^ by reason of business houses supifianting 
tenement houses.^^'^ 

The Amting population of this ward, as shoAAm by the census of 1805, 
was, native, 599 ; foreign, 3,540 ; total, 4,145. The i)robability is it had 
not increased, but rather diminished. But if the highest rate of increase 
of 4J per cent, per aiuium be allowed the Am ting population of 1808 Avould 
be 4,707, and conceding the largest average of 90 per cent, for actual 
Amters and the Amte cast Avould be 4,230 ; AA^hereas the Amtes reported as 
caiit were 5,401, thus showing a fraudulent Amte of 1,105, Avdiich doubt¬ 
less was, in fact, OAmr 2,000 in that single AAmrd. 

It is unnecessary to trace wards in detail. The evidence shows the 
existence of these frauds in Amrious parts of the city, and the inference 
is irresistible that the conclusion already deduced is correct. 

These frauds extended to other counties of the State, as shown by the 
testimony and as demonstrated by the same tests applied to the city.^*’^ 


i^^This is shown by Sweetzer’s Table A, evidence, 4236, page 424. 

See Table L, Evidence, page 361. 

Judge McCimn testifies : 

The reason why the population of the lower wards of the city, including the'sixth, decreased is this : stores 
have crept in where the tenement houses were before ; in fact, the tenement houses have nearly all been pulled 
down and stores erected on their sites. 

The census returns exhibit the law of increase of the voters of the State, viz : 

The decade from 1825 to 1835 “covers the time when the Erie canal was finished, and when New York 
absorbed a large relative share of the westward tide of migration. Accordingly the census of 1835 shows 
an increase of voters amounting to 3 6-l()ths per cent, per annum. The next decade, (1835 to 1845,) the 
increase of voters shown by the census of 1845 is a little less than at the rate of 21 per cent, per annum. For 
the next decade, (1845 to 1855 ) the increase shown by the census of 185") is a little less than 2 per cent, per 
annum. For the next decade, tl855 to 1865,) the census of 1865 shows an increase in the voters of a little over 
24 per cent, per annum. 

“A calculation of 21 per cent, per annum on the number of votes given by the census of 1835 gives 820 more 
than are shown by the census for 1845. An increase of 2 per cent, per annum on the number given in the 
census of 1845 gives us 657,494 in 1855, which is 4,613 more than is given by the census returns of 1855. Now 
if, on this number of 657,494, wo compute 21 per cent, per annum to 1865, we will have 838.513, which is 
15,117 more than is shown by the census of 1865; and, continuing the calculation on this number of 
838,543, and at the same rate, to 1668, we will avoid all question of the census of 1865, and have, as the num 
ber of voters this year, 903,018.” 

That such a calculation must surely give enough to cover the reality—that while it probably is somewhat 
too large, it is certainly not too small—is shown by these considerations. It is based on all the four census 



64 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


III tlie counties which i^^ave large democratic votes tlie percentage of 
votes to voters is greatly in excess of the average of the other counties, 
as may be seen by the following: 


Counties. 

Albany. 

Kings. 

Kew York.. 
Westchester 


Percentaj^e of 
votes to voters. 

. 05 

. 102 

. 108 

. 92 


In other counties the democratic vote was largely increased over that 
of previous years, and especially where the testimony shows the exist¬ 
ence of extensive frauds. 

In view of all the facts it is safe to estimate that the total fraudulent 
and illegal votes cast in the State of Kew York, at the election in Novem¬ 
ber, 1868, were not less, and probably exceeded, 50,000 votes. 


returns of 1825, 1835, 1845, and 1855. It allows for the last thirteen years the highest rate of increase shown 
by the census returns for any period of ten years in the last 33 years, and the number taken for the basis of 
this calculation in 1855 is 4,673 higher than that given by the census returns of 1855. It covers the whole time 
of the war; takes no note of any probable diminution of voters thereby; gives for 1865 more than 15,000 
excess above the census returns of that year, and continues the rate of increase on the whole at 2i per cent, per 
annum down to the present time, which rate is, in fact, a trifle over what is shown by the census to be the 
highest rate for any period of ten years since 1835. 

If the number of qualified electors in the State this year be not more than 903,018, as we have found, 
then the number available to deposit their votes in the ballot-box cannot exceed 812,717; and, at least, the 
excess, 37,034, shown in the returns, must, necessarily, be false and fraudulent .—Senate Mis., No. 4, "id ses¬ 
sion 40tA Congress. 







PART II. 

REMEDIES FOR ELECTION FRAUDS. 


CHAPTER I. 

Natwralization frauds so extensive and palpable as those practiced in 
the supreme court of the State, exercising jurisdiction in the city of New 
York, and in the superior court of the city, demand a prompt and eft'ec- 
tiial remedy. 

Jiirisdietion in naturalization is exercised under national antliority. 

Courts so reckless, regardless, or negligent of duty as these are shown 
to be ought not to be permitted to continue the exercise of powers which 
have been so grossly abused. 

A bill is reported accordingly; 


A BILL withdrawing jurisdiction of naturalization from certain courts in New York city. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled^ That the supreme court, the 
circuit courts, and the courts of oyer and terminer in the city and county 
of New York, and the superior court of the city of New York, shall not 
hereafter have power to admit any alien to be a citizen. 

CHAPTEE II. 

NATURALIZATION. 

The investigations of the committee show conclusively that there is 
urgent necessity for a revision or amendment of the acts of Congress 
under which aliens are admitted to be citizens, commonly called ‘‘the 
naturalization laws.” 

By the Constitution, Congress has power “to establish an uniform 
rule of naturalization.” (Art. 1, sec. 8.) The rule, whatever it may be, 
should be established in the most enlarged spirit of liberality, justice, 
and humanity. 

The exigencies of political parties should not determine what the rule 
should be, but the interests of civilization should always command the 
most sacred regard. 

With the exception of a few isolated instances in which descendants 
of the aboriginal inhabitants of the country have become citizens, the 
entire population of the American republic are of foreign birth or ances¬ 
try of a comparatively recent period. 

With the triumph of liberal i>rinciples in the election of Abraham 
Lincoln to tlie presidency, followed by the proclamation of emancipation 
and the reconstruction of the revolted States of the south on the basis 
of “equal and exact justice to all men,” a new era dawned upon the 
reiniblic in the advanced interests of civilization and philanthrophy. 

That homogeneity so often deemed essential to unity and peace is no 
longer regarded as an indispeusable element of national existence. Exjie- 
H. Eep. Com. 31-5 



G6 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


rience lias bridged over apparent antagonisms, and the republic is so 
enduring in its structure and so liberal in its policy that the civilized 
inhabitants of every climate share its blessings under laws inviting them 
freely to participate in its benefits. 

Tlie right of expatriation, so often maintained, and recently vindicated 
so ably and fully by this government, is a part of that policy.^ 

Congress, by the act of July 4, 1864, provided for the appointment of 
a Commissioner of Immigration, made provisions to enable indigent 
emigrants from foreign countries to come to and settle in the United 
States, and otherwise encouraged immigration.^ 

Some of the States have passed laws of a similar character, and sent 
agents abroad to invite immigration.^ 

All this has been done on the faith of a naturalization policy estab¬ 
lished by laws sanctioned in their general purpose by almost universal 
consent for over 60 years. 

Good faith and justice require that existing rights and facilities for < 
becoming citizens should not be abridged, and as to the time of resi¬ 
dence it has been sanctioned by treaty stipulations. Foreigners or their 
descendants have made the republic what it is, with all its material and 
moral resources. 

Immigration adds to our productive industry, and thus enlarges all 
our resources. 

It is well that the public judgment will sanction no measure hostile to im¬ 
migration, or looking to an abridgment of the prmlege to become citizens. 

The alien and sedition laws passed during the administration of John 
Adams afford an instructive lesson as to the impolicy of exposing the 
authors of any new measures to the charge of being unfriendly or too 
severe in the admission of citizens. 

1 The treaty between the United States and the King of Prussia, in the name of the North 
German Confederation, proclaimed May 27, 1868, contains these provisions: 

Article I. 

Citizens of the North German Confederation who become naturalized citizens of the United Slates of 
America, and shall have resided uninterruptedly within the United States five years, shall be held by the North 
German Confederation to be American citizens, and shall be treated as such. 

Keciprocally: Citizens of the United States of America who become naturalized citizens of the North Ger¬ 
man Confederation, and shall have resided uninterruptedly within North Germany five years, shall be held 
by the United States to be North German citizens, and shall be treated as such. The declaration of an inten¬ 
tion to become a citizen of the one or the other country has not for either party the effect of naturalization. 

Article II. 

A naturalized citizen of the one party on return to the territory of the other party remains liable to trial 
and punishment for an action punishable by the laws of his original country and committed before his emigra¬ 
tion ; saving, always, the limitation established by the laws of his original country. 

Article IV. 

If a German naturalized in America renews his residence in North Germany, without the intent to return 
to America, he shall be held to have renounced his naturalization in the United States. 

Reciprocally: If an American naturalized in North Germany renews his residence in the United States, 
without the intent to return to North Germany, he shall be held to have renounced his naturalization in North 
Germany. The intent not to return may be held to exist when the person naturalized in the one country 
resides more than two years in the other country. 

The republican national convention at Chicago, on the 21st pf May, 1868, adopted as a 
part of their platform the following : 

9. The doctrine of Great Britain and other European powers, that because a man is once a subject he is always 
so, must be resisted at every hazard by the United States, as a I'elic of feudal times, not authorized by the 
laws of nations, and at war with our national honor and independence. Naturalized citizens are entitled to 
protection in all their rights of citizenship, as though they were native-born; and no citizen of the United 
Suites, native or naturalized, must be liable to arrest and imprisonment by any foreign power for acts done or 
words spoken in this country; and if so arrested and imprisoned, it is the duty of the government to interfere 
in his behalf. 

-13 United States Statutes at Large, 385. 

3 In some of the States aliens, having declared their intention to become citizens, are by 
law entitled to vote. In 1846 the legislature of New'- York established a board of commis¬ 
sioners of emigration, still in existence. 

The following is from the platform of the National Republican Convention of May, 1868; 

11. Foreign immigration, w'hich in the past has added so much to the wealth, development, and resources 
and increase of power to this republic, the asylum of the oppressed of all nations, should be fostered and 
encouraged by a liberal and just policy. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


GY 


Xo one now would think of denying to aliens the right to become 
citizens. To do so would give us a class of people disfranchised and 
under disabilities, always dangerous because not allied with or interested 
in the preservation of institutions they would justly deem inimical and 
hostile. It is only natural, as it is just, that tlie people should respect the 
government that gives equal political privileges to all. That govern¬ 
ment is always best in which an insult to the humblest inhabitant is an 
oflence against the whole constitution. 

But while all this is true, the government, the naturalized citizen, all 
the i)eople, have a right to insist upon a full, fair, and faithful comi)li- 
ance with the laws regulating naturalization. A government that can¬ 
not exact this is unable to command respect, and one that will not is 
fiiithless and false to all its citizens. 

Jetterson in his inaugural stated that naturalization should be granted 
“ with restrictions, perhaps, to guard against the fraudulent usurpation 
of our flag, an abuse which brings so much embarrassment and loss on 
the genuine citizen and so much danger to the nation of being involved 
in war, that no endeavor should be spared to detect and suppress it.” 

The investigations of the committee were directed to an inquiry into 
the character of the frauds practiced in the State courts of New York 
under cover of the naturalization laws. 

It is abundantly shown that during the year 18G8 in New York city and 
State, and especially in October, many thousands of illegal and fraudu¬ 
lent certificates of citizenship were granted by these courts. Among the 
frauds were these: 

1. Numerous person s securing pay for their services personated aliens, 
many of whom were not entitled to naturalization, while perjured wit¬ 
nesses, often giving false or assumed names, made the requisite proof, and 
secured from corrui^t or negligent courts certificates of citizenship, 
which were scattered broadcast over the city of New York, and else¬ 
where, to aliens who never appeared in court or took any oath of allegi¬ 
ance. 

2. Certificates of citizenship were secured by the same means, to ficti¬ 
tious names, to enable real voters on such names to register and vote 
repeatedly at the same election; and native-born citizens applied for and 
procured certificates of natiiralizatioii on their own or assumed names, 
for the same puri)ose. 

3. Certificates of citizenship were issued by the courts without evi¬ 
dence, or the presence of the persons naturalized.^ 

4. A single judge, sitting generally only afew hours each day, naturalized 
055 applicants in one day, hearing the applications and evidence of 150 
persons at one time, complying with none of the requirements of the law, 
professing to admiiiister an oath in a given form to all the applicants, 
and then to all the witnesses in a lot; but in fact, as to many of them, 
no oath at all, and by this means enabling fraudulent naturalizations to 
be effected in favor of persons not present and without any witnesses. 

5. In one court, by one judge, certificates of naturalization were 
granted in October, 1868, in nearly all cases on unauthorized—and con¬ 
sequently illegal—affidavits, made' in open court, whereby all applicants 
and witnesses were relieved of prosecutions for perjury. 

G. In some of the courts the clerks, with the knowledge and sanction 
of the judge, in violation of law, heard applications aiKl gmnted certifi¬ 
cates of citizenship regular on their face, but utterly void in law. 

7. Numerous persons were engaged in procuring and selling, or giving 

■* Evifhnco of Theodore Allen, John McClusky, Nathaniel Jarvis, George Bliss, M. R. 
Leverson, R. W. McAlpine. 




68 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


to aliens and otliers, certificates of naturalization tlius fraudulently or 
illegally x^rocured. 

For these frauds and illegal x^roceedings existing laws x^rofess to fur¬ 
nish no xienalty, excex)t only for xieijury and forgery of certificates of citi- 
zenshix) j the latter of which, x)erhax)S, is x)rovided for in the 13th section 
of tlie acF of Congress of March 3, 1813, though the question whether 

^ Benjamin B. Rosenberj}^ was arrested in the city of New York, on the 21st clay of Octo¬ 
ber, I8t)8, by United States Marshal Murray, on two charges of having feloniously uttered 
fraudulent naturalization papers. 

IBs examination was set down for the 22d, before United States Commissioner Osborn. The 
X^rosecution was represented by United States District Attorney Courtnej", James T. Brady, 
John Sedgwick, and Assistant United States District Attorney Ethan Allen. For the defence, 
Messrs. Abraham K. Lawrence, Win C. Barret, and Chas. Donohue appeared. By agree¬ 
ment the matter was postponed to October 24, when the parties reassembled, the prosecu¬ 
tion having an additional representative in ex-Judge Fullerton, and the defence in John 
Craham. 

The case was opened by District Attorney Courtney, who called attention to the 13th sec¬ 
tion of the act of Congress of March 3, 1813, under which the prosecution of the cases was 
instituted, and the examination of witnesses for the prosecution was then proceeded with. On 
the 27th October the prosecution rested. Counsel for the defence moved to dismiss the pro¬ 
ceedings on the ground that the act of March 3, 1813, had no application to this case, that 
the statute, being not remedial, cannot be liberally or equitably construed ; but being a crimi¬ 
nal as well as a penal statute, must be strictly construed. From the title of the act, the date of 
its passage, and the fact that at such time the United States was at war with Great Britain, coun¬ 
sel argued that it was intended solely to prevent the employment on-board the ve.ssels of 
this country of persons other than native-born, naturalized or native persons of color, and 
that the section on which the prosecution claimed to found these proceedings was special 
in its character, and could not be directed against any other thing than thai referred to in 
the title and other provisions of the act, which was simply the employment of other persons 
than natives, &c., on United States vessels. 

Ex-Judge Fullerton and James T. Brady, for the prosecution, claimed the act of March 3, 
J813, to be general in its application, and that the certificates of naturalization obtained from 
the accused were false, and contained a falsehood on their face, as no such pprsons as were 
named therein had any existence ; that this was sufficient to stamp the papers as false and 
fraudulent, admitting the signatures of the clerk and seal of the court to be genuine. 

Upon the opening of court, on the 3lst, the commissioner pronounced his opinion, concur¬ 
ring in the view taken by Justice Irwin, of the United States district court for the western 
district of Pennsylvania, sitting as circuit judge, (Pittsburg Leg. J., 4th June, 1853,) that 
the construction of the act of 1813 is general in its application to all classes of naturalized 
citizens, and applicable to the case in question. 

Passing to the question whether the evidence is sufficient the commissioner, after 
quoting the following authorities upon the duties and powers of courts in naturalizino- 
and the effect of the record of naturalization, (act of Congress April 14, ISOiJ; 7 Hill” 
i37; 18 Barber, 444; Spratt vs. Bpratt, 4 Pet., 406; Richie vs. Pittnam, 13 Wend., 254; 

1 Seld., 263, 273, 278; 6 Cer., 176,) found that a judgment, decree, or sentence may be 
impeached by proof: First, when it is known that such judgment never existed or was 
void ab initio; secondly, that it was fraudulent; thirdly, that it has been revoked; (11 
St., Tr. 230, 261 ; 1 Ves , 159; Andr., 392;) and that these certificates of citizenship arc 
false certificates; that the defendant caused or procured the same to be falsely made, and 
that the onus probandi was upon him to show that they were genuine. For these reasons 
he ordered the surety to surrender the defendant to the custody of the United States marshal 
and commanded the marshal to keep him to await the action of the grand jury in default of 
$10,000 bail. 

November 11, in the United States circuit court, before Judges Nelson and Blatchford 
counsel for the defence moved to quash the indictment. ’ 

Ex-Judges Pierrepont and Davies appeared as additional counsel for the prosecution. The 
district attorney moved to set aside the motion to quash, and Mr. Stoughton, for the accused 
opened the argument. The principal questions arising under the motion he claimed to be : 
First, “Is it criminal, within the meaning of the act of March 3, 1813, to forge, utter, or 
dispose of certificates of naturalization, except for the purposes therein mentioned • and 
second, if yea, w'hat facts must be set forth in the indictment to constitute a crime under the 
meaning of the 13th .section of said act?” Upon the first question the learned counsel main¬ 
tained that the wliole tenor of the statute w-as simply to prevent the employment on United 
States vessels of persons other than citizens or native-born colored people; and as to the 
second, he claimed that the act was not now in practical operation, and had been regarded 
as obsolete, with the exception of the provision as to the time necessary to constitute residence 
in the United States. But, further, that if alive, the personation by false witnesses was 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


69 


even that is of general application so as to cover any of these cases is 
controverted, and is now pending in the Supreme Court of the United 
States. 

It is manifest that some provision should he made to remedy every one 
of the evils known to exist, or which may he reasonahly anticiirated. 

There is a reason for providing penalties against State judges for 
frauds, which may not he necessary against judges of the national 
courts. 

As to tire latter there is a national remedy hy impeachment. 

Congress should not he asked to rely on the uncertainty of impeach¬ 
ment, under State authority, of State judges.® 


never contemplated by or provided against in the statute, which simply declared it a crime 
to forge or utter a copy of citizenship in order to procure for an alien employment upon United 
States vessels. For the prosecution ex-Judges Pierrepont and Davies argued that the statute 
was of general application, made to restrain frauds by certilicates of citizenship. 

On the 25th Judge Davies resumed, quoting Spratt vs. Spratt, (4 Peters, 49d,) which he 
maintained was against the views of counsel for the defence. 

Messrs. Graham and Stoughton followed in reply on behalf of the accused ; the only 
additional points raised being that the United States marshal was disqualified from being 
a complainant when he summoned the grand jurors; that the act of March 3, 1813, did not 
provide for the offence of criminally using a genuine certificate ; that the indictment should 
aver upon its face the motive for or object of the crime as intended to be proven ; otherwise, 
as a fact, in this court what is to prevent an independent prosecution in the State courts, 
and the punishment of the defendant twice for the same offence? That the first four counts 
in the indictment fall for the reason that they deny that the person named in the certificate 
is a real person, and the court, therefore, cannot see that the documents are capable of doing 
harm or mischief. That the tliird and fourth counts set forth two distinct offences—“pass¬ 
ing” and “using as true”—and are therefore bad ; for if they are co-ordinate offences, involv¬ 
ing the same punishment, each count should contain one offence. And, finally, that the fifth 
Count is bad, as it avers that the citizen who in the other counts is represented as a fictitious 
person is a real one, and the one for whom the certificate of naturalization was intended; 
and, also, for the reason that it charges “ a making sale of” and a “ disposing.” 

On November 29th the court announced that it was divided in opinion on the questions 
presented, and had certified the following to the Supreme Court of the United States for its 
decision: 

First, Whether it is necessary, under the 13th section of the act of Congress approved 
March 3, 181entitled “An act for the regulation of seamen on board the public and pri¬ 
vate vessels of the United States,” that said indictments should aver that the certificates of 
citizenship or the evidence of citizenship therein mentioned was produced to the commander 
of a public vessel of the United States or to a collector of customs. Second, whether the 
certificates of citizenship or the evidence of citizenship mentioned in the said 13th section 
embraces any other certificate or evidence than the certified copy of the act of naturalization 
mentioned in the said section of said act, and the proofs of citizenship mentioned in the 4th 
and 6th sections of said act. Third, whether the said indictment is invalid for the reason 
that the certificate set out therein is not a certificate of citizenship as is mentioned in said 13th 
section. 

6 On the 6th of April, 1844, Benjamin C. Elliott, judge of the city court of Lafayette, was 
impeached and removed from office by the senate, the high court of impeachment of Louisi¬ 
ana, on articles of impeachment charging that he— 

I. Grossly and culpably neglected to cau.se the records and proceedings of the court to be kept in respect 
to all the acts and proceedings of said court under the naturalization laws of the United States. 

II. That he unlawfully and corruptly caused and permitted 1,748 certificates of naturalization to be 
issued * from the 2d of March, 1841, to the 4th of January, 1844, in fraud of the naturalization laws, &.c. 

III. That he permitted his clerk to issue fraudulent certificates. 

IV. For issuing fraudulent certificates corruptly for money.— United States Senate documents, vol. 9, 
1844-’45, 2d scss. 28th Congress, Doc. No. 173. 

In that case it was said, in a report to the House: 

It further appears that nearly 400 of these certificates were issued in one day. It seems to your committee 
impossible that this could have been legally done. Twelve hundred oaths administered and 80i) witnesses 
examined as to the age, the quaiificatious, the residence and moral character of the different persons natural-, 
ized in open court by the judge. 

The report does not show whether the question was made as to the power of the State to: 
impeach for frauds in the exercise of a jurisdiction conferred by national law. (7 Hill, N. Y. 
Rep, 137; People vs. Sweetman, 3 Parker Grim. Cases ; 18 Barlow, 444.) But there can be 
no doubt of the power of a State to impeach its own officers who, exercising a national juris-- 
diction, prove themselves unfit to perform any duty. 




70 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


One of the remedial measures wliicli lias been suggested is to with¬ 
draw the business of naturalization from the State eourts.'^ 


■^Tlie New York Times of February 13, 1869, contains the following: 

THE GERMAN’S AND THE NATURALIZATION LAWS. 

The German republican central committee held a meeting last night at its headquarters, Steuben House, 
Bowery, General Sigel presiding. After the usual routine business, a delegation from theGermHU republican.s 
of Hudson county. N. J., with the object of co-operation in national questions, was received. The sub-com¬ 
mittee, appointed to confer with a similar committee from the German Uiuon democratic general committee 
concerning the amendment of the naturalization laws, was heard. The resolutions adopted by the joint com¬ 
mittees were: Firstly, that the in’portance of immigration is manifest and should be duly appreciated. 
Secondly, that naturalization shottld be facilitated as much as possible, and the period fixed for the attaininent 
of full citizenship shortened, and should not be intrusted exclusively to the United States courts. Thirdly, 
that the action of Congress in this matter deserves the support of the foreign-born citizens. These resolutions 
were unanimously adopted; ahso, that the same should be presented in a petition to Congress, that a mass 
meeting of all the German citizens in support of these steps should be called, and that the press be called upon 
to assist this movement. The action of the German republican central committee was communicated to the 
democratic committee, which adopted the above resolutions with a slight alteration. 

The committee consists of Mr. Marcus Otterburg, Mr. Andreas Willmaun, Dr. Hartwig Gucke, Dr. Hermann 
51 uhr, Mr. Arnold Renson, republicans; Mr. JIagnus Gross, Dr. W. Schirmer, 5Ir. H. Schroeder, Mr. Henry 
Scipt, 5Ir. W. Stark, democrats. 

The iiuuiber of emigrants coming to tlie United State.s from time to time from different 
countries varies very much. For many years Ireland sent a large proportion, and does yet. 
But other countries are now sending in also a tide of valuable population to add to our 
wealth, industry, and numbers. 

In 1866 the alien emigrants arriving at New York city were 233,418, of which there w^ere 
from different countries as follows : 

Number and nativity of alien passengers arrived at the port of New York during the years 

1866 and 1867, who were liable to bonds or commutation under the acts of the New York leg¬ 
islatures of April 11, 1849, July 11, 1851, April 13, 1853, and May 14, 1867. 


Nativity. 

1866. 

1867. 

Nativity. 

1866. 

1867. 

Germany __.........._ 

106.716 

117, 591 

1 Russia. 

154 

185 

Ireland.. 

68, 047 

65^ 134 

Portugal. 

96 

79 

England. 

36, 186 

33' 712 

1 Mexico. 

56 

28 

Scotland. 

4, 979 

6j315 

Nova Scotia. 

40 

22 

Sweden. 

3, 907 

4, 843 

Canada. 

28 

42 

Switzerland.... 

3, 685 

Sj 985 

China... 

26 

17 

France. 

3, 246 

3, 204 

East Indies. 

15 

4 

Denmark. 

1, 526 

1, 372 

Africa... 

15 

2 

Holland. 

1^506 

2 ,156 

Australia.. 

12 

44 

Italy. 

918 

l' 032 

Central America. 

12 

7 

Norway. 

583 

'309 

Turkey. 

8 

(5 

W’’ales... 

540 

142 

Japan. 

7 

87 

Spain. 

315 

203 

Greece. 

5 

8 

West Indies. 

246 

214 

Sicily...... 

1 

Poland... 

231 

268 




Belgium. 

157 

1, 623 

Total___ 

233,418 

242, 731 

South America. 

155 

97 



See annual reports of the commissioners of emigration of the State of New York for the 
year ending December 31, 1866, and for the year ending December 31, 1867. 


Number and destination of passengers during the year 1866. 


States. 

January. 

j February. 

JIarch. 

April. 

j 5Iay. 

June. 

July. 

August. 

September. 

October. 

November. 

December. 

Total. 

Arkansas. 

4 

1 


1 

4 

2 


8 


5 

7 


90 

Alabama. 

2 

1 

1 

1 

4 

15 

10 

8 

13 

13 

22 

6 

96 

Australia. 





1 


1 


1 




3 

British Columbia .. 


2 

2 

3 



1 

1 

1 

1 


11 

Canada . 

60 

37 

112 

112 

231 

163 

210 

301 

153 

182 

100 

80 

1, 741 

California. 

45 


50 

109 

185 

149 

317 

214 

186 

175 

105 

108 

i;678 

■Connecticut. 

64 

130 

219 

427 

892 

392 

391 

330 

258 

261 

250 

97 

3, 711 

Central America... 




1 

1 


1 



o 

o 


7 

Cuba. 

1 


2 


1 



1 



4 

2 

11 

Delaware. 

2 

2 

11 

16 

34 

19 

50 

11 

43 

18 

25 

7 

238 

District Columbia.. 

30 

14 

56 

77 

184 

118 

113 

80 

59 

62 

58 

33 

890 

Florida. 





A 


4 




2 


10 
































































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


71 


But this is not deemed advisable. Unless national courts are substi¬ 
tuted equally accessible to applicants, the facilities for naturalization 
would be greatly abridged or rendered inconvenient and attended with 
unnecessary expense. 

It has been proposed to confer jurisdiction of naturalization on regis¬ 
ters in bankruptcy, and require them to hold terms for business in every 
county, to be paid by fees, and without compensation from the govern¬ 
ment. 

In many localities the business would nof justify such officers in hold¬ 
ing terms in every county. 

These officers may be as liable to err in judgment, or become faithless 
to duty, as the judges of the State courts. 

CongressWias power to control and subject to penalties State officers 
who consent to execute national laws as fully as officers (treated by 
national law. It will not do to withdraw all confidence from all State 
officers merely because some have been recreant to their trusts. When 
such recreancy becomes universal in State officers the only remedy will 
be to dispense with their existence. 


Number and destination of passengers during the year 1866—Continued. 


States. 


Georgia. 

Illiuois. 

Iowa. 

Indiana. 

Kentucky. 

Kansas. 

Louisiana. 

Massachusetts. 

Maryland. 

Maine. 

Michigan. 

Minnesota. 

Missouri. 

Mexico. 

Mississippi. 

New Hampshire... 

Nova Scotia. 

New York. 

New Jersey. 

Nebraska. 

North Carolina .... 
New Brunswick ... 

Oregon. 

Rhode Island. 

Ohio. 

Pennsylvania. 

South Carolina .... 
South America .... 

Texas. 

Tennessee. 

Verment. 

Virginia. 

West Indies. 

Wisconsin. 

Utah. 

Nevada . 

Colorado. 

Prince Ed’ds Isl’nd. 
Idaho . 


January. 

! 

February. 

IMarch. 

April. 

May. 

0) 

p 

p 

Jaly. 

August. 

1 

September. 

October. 

November. | 

December, 

Total. 


5 

8 


45 

9 

40 

25 

15 

46 

23 

9 

225 

I,C07 

365 

1,124 

1,593 

3, 873 

3, 858 

4,034 

1,426 

1,113 

1, 602 

1,522 

869 

22, 386 

111 

55 

384 

308 

916 

634 

684 

147 

320 

414 

383 

137 

4,493 

137 

96 

124 

212 

554 

604 

418 

215 

248 

287 

190 

118 

3, 201 

44 

49 

76 

97 

245 

211 

224 

168 

173 

143 

141 

65 

1, 636 

25 

10 

14 

78 

61 

59 

70 

28 

24 

49 

34 

16 

468 

13 

4 

12 

20 

41 

42 

94 

49 

89 

30 

88 

68 

5.50 

263 

181 

1,070 

1,480 

2, 704 

1,300 

1,250 

902 

644 

925 

686 

469 

11,874 

69 

60 

79 

240 

286 

195 

242 

150 

149 

158 

126 

64 

1,818 

26 

8 

38 

98 

60 

14 

17 

24 

5 

21 

7 

12 

330 

97 

64 

117 

153 

677 

433 

575 

409 

372 

618 

424 

246 

4,185 

297 

64 

1.55 

270 

591 

657 

657 

213 

141 

202 

143 

69 

3,459 

249 

127 

273 

335 

825 

630 

!156 

398 

443 

630 

477 

175 

4, 918 

4 

1 


1 


2 

o 


1 


2 

6 

19 

2 


9 



1 

13 

3 

23 

3 


11 

65 

11 

1 

10 

16 

59 


4 

13 

28' 

20 

28 


189 

4 

1 

6 

2 



6 

7 

6 

3 

9 

6 

50 

5,613 

3,636 

6, 986 

8, 781 

15, 745 

13, 035 

10, 779 

6, 686 

6, 039 

8, 475 

7,615 

4, 217 

97, 607 

291 

252 

569 

630 

1,775 

968 

513 

596 

529 

685 

606 

283 

7, 877 

5 

2 

22 

12 

3 


19 

7 

12 

5 

23 

9 

119 

1 

1 

2 

1 

21 

46 


52 

3 

7 

3 

3 

140 

f> 



1 

9 

7 

4 

14 

7 

6 

10 


60 

9 




6 

9 

2 


8 

3 

1 


38 

94 

57 

80 

194 

6.52 

327 

154 

164 

156 

246 

192 

76 

2, 392 

481 

375 

720 

1,081 

2, .341 

1,568 

1,348 

989 

927 

1,317 

1,094 

682 

12, 923 

1,284 

773 

1,381 

2,448 

4, 609 

3, 2.56 

2, 206 

2, 042 

1,630 

2,214 

1,907 

1,124 

24, 874 

3 

1 

2 

7 

10 

15 

26 

12 

49 

23 

18 

5 

171 





1 

5 

2 

5 

3 

4 

1 

6 

27 





14 

12 


13 

21 

21 

22 

16 

124 

30 

17 

25 

122 

79 

24 

.50 

19 

74 

56 

53 

17 

566 

4 

10 

32 

14 

81 

44 

8 

6 

9 

12 

11 

7 

2:;8 

38 

18 

41 

82 

136 

156 

169 

109 

68 

80 

54 

55 

1,006 


o 


1 

4 

2 

6 






15 

439 

152 

392 

447 

1.802 

2, 055 

1,120 

571 

438 

567 

715 

462 

9,160 




2 

6 

1,125 

1,947 

2 





3, 082 




3 


1 






4 




2 


14 


10 


4 



30 








4 

1 

1 

1 


7 










1 



1 

10, 861 

6, 608 

14, 204 

19, 478 

39, 760 

32,183 

28,: 22 

16, 438 

14, 482 

19, 597 

17, 280 

9,638 

228, 851 


Totals. 




























































































72 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A bill is reported in accordance with these views : 

A BILL to amend the several acts relating to naturalization. 

Sec. 1. Be it enacted, &c., That any alien who shall have declared on 
oath or affirmation in any court authorized to admit aliens to become 
citizens of the United States that it was honafide Lis intention to become 
a citizen of the United States, and to renounce forever all allegiance and 
fidelity to any foreign juince, potentate, state, or sovereignty AvliateAW, 
and particularly by name the prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty 
whereof such alien may at the time be a citizen or subject, shall be 
authorized to acquire, hold, OAvn, use, and enjoy, by purchase or descent, 
any j^roperty, real or i)ersonal, and the same to dispose of, and transmit 
by inheritance in the same manner and as fully as citizens of the United 
States might or could lawfully do.® 

Sec. 2. That every alien, before being admitted to be a citizen of the 
United States by any court having jurisdiction thereof, shall x^rove to the 
satistaction of the court by at least one credible Avitness under oath, and 
by an oral examination in open court, the facts a\ hich are by law required 
to be i^roA^ed, and of which the court must be satisfied, and in like man¬ 
ner by his own oath all said facts except that he has beluiA^ed as a person 
of good moral character, and he shall in like manner prove by his own 
oath as nearly as xAracticable his place of birth, age, time of arriA^al in 
the United States, and the place or places where lie has resided since 
his arrival in the United States, with his iiresent residence, specifying 
the number, street, and city, town, or Aullage, if in a cit^", town, or Aullage, 
and if not such other xiertinent descrixition of the locality of his resi- 


^In ElmondorfF vs. Carmichael, 3 Littell, Ky'. R., 474, decided in J823, it is said : 

From the authorites cited, and the investigation the court has made on this subject, the following general 
rules are discovered to have existed in the laws of England, at our separation from that country : First, “ That 
an alien may take laud by purchase, and is cloihed with the title ; but he holds it for the use of the crown, 
and may be divested of it by an inquest of office found. 1 his inquest, however, is absolutely necessary, be¬ 
fore the title can be taken from him.” Secondly, ” That an alien cannot take a title by descent as be can by 
purchase, and in case the heir is an alien, the title is immediately vested in the crown, aud no iuqnest is neces¬ 
sary for that purpose, although an office of instruction may be found. ” 

There can be no doubt that the Commonwealth of Virginia, when it assumed its republican character, suc¬ 
ceeded to the rights and privileges of the crown of England, as to her own domain. And it is equally clear 
that she adopted the laws in force there at a certain period, so far as they were compatible rvith the genius 
and spirit of the new government and were not locally inapplicable, without inquii’ing into the policy of the 
foregoing principles or investigating the reasons which gave them birth. We have no doubt they were also 
adopted by Virginia at the Revolution, and composed part of her code, and ought to be adjudged to exist until 
altered by the legislature. This has been held to be true in New A'ork with regard to that State, and is so 
decided with regard to Virginia, by the Supreme Court of the United States, in the case of Fairfax’s devisee 
vs. Hunter’s lessee, 7 Crunch, 603. It is also decided in that case that a devisee is a purchaser within the 
meaning of the rule, and can and does take the estate devised to him. 

But that a grantee from the crown, or government, would or could take an estate by patent, and hold 
it for the use of the government, is a point not so clear. 7'here is considerable difference between him and 
the purchaser from an individual. The reasons which operate in the latter case are not as patent in favor of 
the former. Besides, many dicta in the English authorities are against it. See Bro. Abr., title Patent, 44; 7 
Viner’s Abr. title Prerogative, p. 78; 2 Black. Commentaries, 347, 348, j^and Tucker’s note ; Jacobs’s Law Dic¬ 
tionary, under Grants from the Crown. There is, however, opposed to these authorities, the case of Craig et 
al. vs. Bedford, 3 AVheat. 594, in the Supreme Court of the United States, precisely in point with the present. 
But this case is decided on the authority of the case of a devisee in Fairfax’s deVisee vs. Hunter’s lessee, 7 
Cranch, 603, supposing the case of the devisee and that of a grantee from the State to be precisely parallel. 
Besides, the question does not appear in that court to have undergone the same minute investigation of author¬ 
ity, the mature deliberation, aud the application of reason which usually characterize the decisions of that 
enlightened tribunal. 

In White vs. White, 2 Metcalfe’s Kentucky Reports, it was said, in 1859: 

An alien can take lands by purchase, though not by descent, at common law; or, in other words, he can take 
by act of the party, but not by the act of the law. Lands acquired by purchase he can hold until divested of 
the title by inquest of office. (Elmoudorf vs. Carmichael, 3 Littell, 474.) The consequence of this rule is that 
if he be naturalized before office found, his ul.e as purchaser becomes valid by relation, and it cannot there¬ 
after be divested. This doctrine, however, Ji es not apply to lands claimed by descent. Not being capable 
of taking by descent, he has no title to be .j. nfirmed by relation, aud his sub.sequeut naturalization cannot 
operate to invest him with the title which in the mean time vested elsewhere. 

An alien who has made his declaration of intention to become a citizen is not thereby 
rendered capable of taking- land by descent. (White vs. White, 2 Metcalfe’s Kentucky 
Reports, 191; Hunt vs. Warnicke, Hardin Reports, 61. 


i 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


73 

/ 

deuce as will identify the same; and the witness and applicant shall by 
their oaths prove that they are the identical persons they respectively 
purport and represent themselves to be, and they shall each take and 
subscribe an oath stating all said facts so required to be proved: Pro¬ 
vided., That the declaration required by the first condition of the act 
approved A])ril 14, 1802, to establish a uniform rule of naturalization, 
and to repeal the acts heretofore passed on that subject,” shall not be 
required to be proved by the oath of the applicant or witness, but shall 
be proved by the record or certified copy thereof, and the person apply¬ 
ing to be admitted a citizen shall prove by his own oath that he is the 
identical person who made said declaration and Avho is named and 
referred to therein. 

And every witness shall in every case state on oath as aforesaid his 
residence in the same manner required of applicants to be admitted cit¬ 
izens. 

No court or judge shall entertain the application of more than one 
person to be admitted to be a citizen at the same time, or receive evidence 
m support thereof. 

And in every case where an alien is admitted to be a citizen, the court or 
judge so admitting him shall make an order accordingly, written or 
l)rinted, attested by the signature of the judge and clerk of the court, or a 
lawful deputy, in open court, whicli signing shall be after the order is 
made by the court or judge, and all said proceedings shall be recorded 
by the clerk of said court, which record shall be signed by the judge and 
attested by the clerk or his deputy in open court; but it shall be 
a sufficient record to preserve among the files or rolls of said court said 
original proceedings, oaths so subscribed, and order attested by the sig¬ 
nature of the judge and clerk on one sheet of paper, which i)roceedings 
may be partly printed and partly written. 

And any person who has, or hereafter shall have, lawfully “renounced 
his naturalization in the United States,” may again be admitted to be a 
citizen on the same terms, conditions, and subject to the same limitations 
provided in this act and the acts hereby amended.^ 

And the court, before admitting any alien to be a citizen, shall be sat¬ 
isfied by competent evidence of all the facts so required to be proved. 
The clerk of the court admitting any alien to be a citizen, or his lawful 
deputy, shall furnish to tlie applicant in iwrson, at the time he may he 
admitted to become a citizen, a certificate showing that said applicant was 
admitted by said court to be a citizen, and the date thereof, which shall 
be under the seal of the court, attested by the clerk or his lawful deputy, 
and signed by a judge of said court before whom the proof was made, which 
signing shall be after the order in such case is made by the court or judge. 
And in case of the loss of such certificate a duplicate certificate may be 
granted, on proof by affidavit of the person so admitted to be a citizen 
of such loss, of his residence described as hereinbefore required, and 
that he is the identical person to whom the original was issued. When¬ 
ever a duplicate shall be required by any other person than the person 
admitted to be a citizen, the certificate shall show that fact, and shall 
not be evidence to entitle any person to vote except the children of such 
person so admitted, in cases where such children become citizens entitled 
to vote by reason of their parent being admitted to become a citizen. 

In any court in which the duties of judge and clerk are or may be law¬ 
fully performed by the same person such judge and clerk may make and 
attest all orders, records, and certificates herein required. 

9 See Article IV of the treaty of May 27, 1868, between the United States and the King of 
Prussia. 




74 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Sec. 3. In all cases where any alien is admitted to he a citizen in any 
court not in the county of or nearest to the place of his residence, the rea¬ 
son why the application so to be admitted is not made in such court in or 
nearest to the county of the applicant’s residence shall be shown by the 
oath of the applicant, to be reduced to writing and made part of the 
record; and a certified copy of the whole record and proceedings in such 
case shall forthwith be transmitted by the clerk of the court to the 
highest court of record of or in the county of such applicant’s residence, 
and if there be no such court, tlien to the highest court of record near¬ 
est the residence of such applicant; all of which shall be shown by the 
oath of the applicant or other satisfactory evidence; and the clerk of 
the court to which such record and proceedings are transmitted shall 
file and preserve the same, and make a record of the name of the appli¬ 
cant and witnesses in the same manner required as to aliens admitted to 
be citizens in such court, together with the name of the court and the 
place where it was held. 

Sec. 4. In all cases where any oath, affirmation, or affidavit shall be made 
or taken under or by virtue of this act or any of the acts hereby amended, 
and any person or i)ersons shall, taking or making such oath, affirmation, 
or affidavit, knowingly swear or affirm falsely, the same shall be deemed 
and taken to be perjury, and the i^erson or persons guilty thereof shall 
upon conviction thereof be liable to the punishment prescribed by the 
laws of the United States for i^erjury. 

Sec. 5. That if any person applying to be admitted a citizen, or appear¬ 
ing as a witness for any such person, shall, knowingly, 1st, personate any 
other person than himself; or, 2d, falsely ai)pear in the name of a deceased 
person, or in an assumed or fictitious name; or if any citizen born in 
the United States shall make application to any court to be admitted a 
citizen ; or if any judge or judges, holding or exercising the duties of 
such office under State authority; or if any clerk, or i5rothonotary of 
any court, deputy, assistant, or person performing the duties of such 
clerk, prothonotary, deputy, or assistant, shall knowingly, 1st, admit 
any alien or other i^erson to be a citizen, guilty as hereinabove specified; 
or, 2d, make, sign, attest, or deliver to any such alien or i^erson, or any 
person for him, any order, record, or certificate admitting, or x)urporting 
to admit, such alien or j^erson to be a citizen; or, 3d, make, sign, or 
attest any order purporting to admit a person to be a citizen, but 
to, or in a fictitious or falsely assumed name, or in the name of a per¬ 
son not having made application and proof as herein required; or sliall 
make, sign, attest, or deliver any certificate puri)orting to show that a 
person was admitted to be a citizen when the name purx)orting to be the 
name of such person is fictitious, or falsely assumed, or that of a person 
who ha s not made application and i^roof as herein required; or, if any x)er- 
son shall, 1st, falsely make, forge, or counterfeit any oath, affirmation, 
affidavit, certificate, order, record, signature, or other instrument, paper, 
or proceeding herein authorized or required, or authorized or required 
by any of the acts hereby amended; or, 2d, shall utter, sell, dispose of, 
or use as true or genuine, or for any unlawfid purpose, any false, forged, 
or counterfeit oath, affirmation, affidavit, certificate, order, record, sig¬ 
nature, instrument, paper, or proceeding, as aforesaid; or, 3d, sell or dis¬ 
pose of to any person other than the person for whom it was originally 
issued, any certificate of citizenship, or certificate showing any i)erson 
to be admitted a citizen; or if any person shall in any manner use for tlie 
purpose of registering as a voter, or as effidence of a right to vote or 


‘^This has been done to enable citizens to register and vote more than once. Evidence, 3643. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


75 


otliermse, unlawfully, any order, certificate of citizeusliip, or certificate 
showing such person to he admitted to he a citizen, whether lieretofore 
or hereafter issued, or made, knowing that such order or certificate has 
been unlawfully issued or made ; or, if any person shall unlawfully use, 
or attempt to use any such order or certificate, issued to or in the name 
of any other j)erson, or in a fictitious name, or the name of a deceased 
person; or, 4th, if any such judge, clerk, deputy, or other person shall in 
any respect violate any of the provisions of this act, or any of the acts 
hereby amended, or refuse to comidy therewith; or if any person who has 
been or may be admitted to be a citizen shall, on oath or affirmation, or 
by affidavit knowingly deny that he has been so admitted, or shall con¬ 
ceal or deny such fact with intent to evade or avoid any duty or liability 
imposed or required by law, every person so offending shall be deemed and 
adjudged guilty of felony, and, on conviction thereof, shall be sentenced 
to be imprisoned and kept at hard labor for a period not less than one 
nor more than five years, or be fined in a sum not less than $500 nor 
more than $1,000, or both such punishments may be imposed in the dis¬ 
cretion of the court. And every i)erson who shall aid or abet any per¬ 
son in the commission of any such felony, or attemi)t to do any act 
hereby made felony, or counsel, adVise, or procure, or attempt to procure 
the commission thereof, shall be liable to indictment and punishment in 
the same manner and to the same extent as the principal party guilty of 
such felony. 

Sec. 6. The clerk of any court shall be entitled to charge and receive 75 
cents and no more from each person making application to such court to be 
admitted a citizen, for all services about such application, including a cer¬ 
tificate that such applicant is admitted to be a citizen, which certificate 
shall be under the seal of the court, and signed by the judge and clerk 
of said court. And such clerk shall, within three days after any alien is 
admitted to be a citizen, record in a book the name and residence of 
each person so admitted, and of the witness or witnesses in each case, 
with the date of the order admitting him; which names of x^ersons so 
admitted shall be recorded in alphabetical order with consecutive num¬ 
bers affixed opposite each name, and which number shall also be placed 
on the certificate, showing such person to be admitted to be a citizen; 
and on failure to x>erform any of said duties every clerk so offending pur- 
l)osely shall in each case be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and be liable 
to indictment and punishment by a fine not exceeding $500. Said record, 
and the files, rolls, and records relating to naturalization, shall be kept 
in the office of the clerk of the court, and shall at all reasonable times 
be open to the inspection of the attorneys of the court and officers 
charged with the duty of conducting elections. 

Sec. 7. It shall be the duty of the Attorney General of the TJnited States 
to prescribe suitable forms "for all proceedings under this act, and, on ap¬ 
plication, to furnish to each judge and clerk of every court authorized 
to admit aliens to be citizens a copy thereof. 

Sec. 8 . In case any person has been admitted by any competent court to 
be a citizen, and has lost or never received a certificate thereof, and it shall 
be impracticable to procurQ such certificate in consequence of the loss 
or destruction of the records of the court admitting him to be a citizen, 
or for any other cause, or in case any person holds such certificate which 
is illegal in form or otherwise, he may surrender the same to any court 
having jurisdiction to admit aliens to become citizens; and in all such 
cases, when the facts shall be made to appear to the court by the oath or 
affidavit of any such person, or other satisfactory evidence, to be reduced 
to writing and filed and kept in such court, the court may again admit 
such person to be a citizen in the manner herein prescribed. 


76 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Sec. 0. That any court having jurisdiction may, on the application of any 
alien who has resided in the United States four years and in the State or 
Territory where the a|)plication is made six months, entertain the applica¬ 
tion of any alien to be admitted a citizen, receive the evidence, and make 
an order admitting such alien to be a citizen, and issue a certificate accord¬ 
ingly; but no such order or certificate shall be operative to admit any 
alien to be a citizen until six months after the date of such order Pro- 
vided^ That any alien of the age of 21 years and u^^wards avIio has 
enlisted or shall enlist in the armies of the United States or in the naval 
service of the United States, either the regular or the volunteer forces, 
and has been or shall be honorably discharged, may be admitted to be¬ 
come a citizen of the United States upon his petition, Avithout any 
preAuous declaration of his intention to become a citizen; and he shall 
not be required to prove more than one year’s residence Avithin the 
United States i)revious to his application to become such citizen; and 
the court admitting such alien shall, in addition to such proof of resi¬ 
dence and good moral character as is now required by law, be satisfied 
by competent proof and by the affidavit of suc.h person that he has been 
honorably discharged from the service of the United States as aforesaid, 
and in such cases the order of the court admitting such alien to be a 
citizen, and the certificate thereof, shall be operative immediately. 

Sec. 10. That in addition to the other modes provided by which aliens 
may be admitted to be citizens, any alien may be admitted to be a citi¬ 
zen of the United States in the mode and on the conditions following: 
Such alien shall, at the time of his application to be admitted, declare 
on oath or affirmation before a circuit or district court of the United 
States that he does in good faith desire to become a citizen of the 
United States; that he Avill support the Constitution of the United 
States, and that he is attached to the x)rinciples thereof, and Avell dis¬ 
posed to the good order and preserAction of the same; and that he does 
absolutely and entirely foreA^er renounce and abjure all allegiance and 
fidelity to every foreign prince, potentate, state, or soA^ereignty Avhat- 
CA^er, and particularly, by name, the prince, potentate, state, or sover¬ 
eignty whereof he Avas before a citizen or subject. In case he shall 
have borne any hereditary title, or been of any of the orders of nobility 
in the kingdom or state from which he came, he shall make an express 
renunciation of his title or order of nobility. And if knoAvn to the 
applicant he shall also state the names of his parents, and date and 
place of his birth, naming the country, state, department, duchy, county, 
commune, parish, or other municipality, the date of his leaving his 
natiA^e country, and the date and manner of his arriAml in the United 
States ; and shall also give a particular description of himself sufiicient 
to identify him, and embraciug the folloAving particulars, viz: name, 
age, occupation or business, residence, (and if in a place where streets 
are named and buildings numbered, shall state the street and number,) 
height, complexion, color of hair, color of eyes, and any other promi¬ 
nent distinguishing mark or feature Avhich he may possess, all of Avhich 
shall be A^erified by the oath of the applicant, duly subscribed by him. 
And on x)roof being made to the satisfaction of the court, by oath duly 
made and subscribed in open court, that the applicant is of good moral 
character, the court shall, if satisfied that he has complied Avith the 
conditions in this section required, make an order, duly signed by a judge 
of the court and by the clerk or his deputy, that such applicant is 

The New York courts mainly ceased naturalizing October 23. The constitution of that 
State provides that a person must be “a citizen ten days," &c., before he can vote.—Arti¬ 
cle 2, section 1. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


77 


admitted to be a citizen from and after four years and six months from 
the date thereof, wliich order shall have effect accordingly. And the 
clerk of such court shall give to the applicant in person a certificate 
under the seal of the court, duly attested by a judge and the clerk or 
deputy clerk of such court, which shall vshow such order, and also state 
as fully as the same are shown by the oath of the applicant the names of 
his parents, date and place of his birth, the date of leaving his native 
country, the date and manner of his arrival in the United States, and 
the description of the applicant. All certificates shall be numbered, the 
X)apers and proceedings in each case shall be kept on file in such court, 
and a record shall be made in each case bearing a number and date cor¬ 
responding with that affixed to the certificate, giving in appropriate col¬ 
umns the names of all aliens so admitted to be citizens, arranged in alpha¬ 
betical order, the name of the witness or witnesses in each case, the place of 
birth of each alien so admitted, the country of which he is a native, with 
a descrix)tion of such alien. The Secretary of State of the United States 
shall supply the clerk of each court with necessary blank forms of cer¬ 
tificates to be furnished to aliens, admitted in pursuance of this section, 
so engraved and printed as to prevent the imitation or counterfeiting 
thereof as far as practicable. The provisions of this act defining and 
prescribing x^erjury, felonies, and misdemeanors, shall extend to x^ersons 
applying to be admitted to be citizens under this section, to witnesses, 
clerks, dex^uty clerks, persons x^erforming the duties thereof, and all x>&r- 
sons guilty of x^erjury, or any felony or misdemeanor as defined in this 
act. 


Chapter III. 

ONE DAT THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES FOR ELECTION OF REPRE¬ 
SENTATIVES IN CONGRESS. 

The committee do not deem it necessary to enter into an extended 
argument to xirove that it is advisable to elect representatives in Con¬ 
gress on the same day throughout the United States. By the Constitu¬ 
tion ‘^Congress may determine the time of choosing the electors’’ of 
President and Vice-President. 

Congress has xirovided^^ “that the electors of President and Vice-Presi¬ 
dent shall be ax)x>ointed in each State on the Tuesday next after the first 
Monday in the month of November of the year in which tliey are to be 
axipointed.” Previous experience had demonstrated the necessity of this, 
and time has x^roved its wisdom. 

Substantially the same reasons exist for requiring that rex:>resentatives 
in Congress should be elected on the same day throughout the United 
States. 

Under such a regulation voters cannot vote in different States in the 
same year for rexiresentatives, as they have often done.^^ It is a part of 
our current history that systematic organizations and bodies of men have 
gone from city to city in different States to vote in the same year for 
rexwesentatives in Congress. 

The motive for and means of importing voters into States where political 
parties are equally balanced or party majorities are doubtful will, in a 
great measure, be removed by such a law. 

No one would now urge the expediency of electing representatives in 
different districts of the same State on different days, because it would 


^•^Act of January 23, 1845. 5 Stat. at Large, 721. 

See remarks of Judge Kelley, of Pennsylvania, in House of Representatives, Feb. 5,1869. 



78 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


open a wide door to tlie fraudulent importation of voters. Yet in adjoin¬ 
ing* districts of different States the same evil is encountered. 

If Yew Jersey and Yew York elected representatives on different days 
a portion of the migratory population of the border cities of these States 
would have the amplest lields for undetected fraud. And this is but an 
example of what may and does exist elsewhere. 

It would seem equally clear that in the years when electors of Presi¬ 
dent and Vice-President are by law required to be elected the elec¬ 
tion for 1 ‘epresentatives in Congress should take place on the same day 
with that of the presidential electors. By this means the loss of time 
to all the voters involved in two elections would be reduced one-half, and 
generally the same officers conducting both elections could perform the 
duties of both on the same day and with only the expenses of one. 

In a purely economical view this is worthy of attention, especially 
when this plan is attended with other advantages and no evils. 

As Congress has power to ‘Cilter^’ State regulations prescribing 

the times, places, and manner of holding elections for * * * 

representatives,” and as the law of Congress will become “ the supreme 
law of the land” on this subject, it will or may ex proprio operate 

upon all State laws, regulations, officers, and citizens, and no alteration 
by State authority of State laws or regulations will be necessary. 

The electi(ms for representatives in Congress should be held so as to 
provide against unavoidable vacancies.^® A bill is reported in accordance 
with these view^s. 

A BILL prescribing the time of electing representatives in Congress. 

Be it enacted, &c., That the members of the House of Bepresentatives 
and delegates from the Territories for the next and every succeeding 
Congress shall be chosen by the people of the several States and Terri¬ 
tories on the same day in each State and Territory, as follows: on the 
second Tuesday of October in each year when such members and dele¬ 
gates are required to be elected, except that in the years when electors 
of President and Vice-President are by law to be appointed the election 
for members of the House of Eepresentatives and delegates shall be held 
on the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the month of Yovember: 
Provided, That in case any vacancy or vacancies may happen in the 
representation from any State or Territory, or when an election shall 
have been held without resulting in the choice of a member or delegate, 
in all such cases the vacancy shall be filled by an election held at such 
time as is or may be provided by law in the State or Territory where 
such vacancy may hai)pen. And all laws or regulations prescribed in 
any State are hereby altered to conform to the provisions of this act. 
And all officers or persons authorized or required to perform any duty 
in relation to such elections shall conform to the requirements of this act. 
And members of the House of Bepresentatives from each State and 
delegates from the Territories shall be elected in the year 1870, and 
biennially thereafter, so that all the members of the House"of Bepresenta¬ 
tives and delegates from the Territories to which such States and Terri¬ 
tories are or may be respectively entitled shall be elected at the last 
general election preceding the time when the terms of such representa¬ 
tives and delegates will commence. 

Constitution, article 1, section 4. is Constitution, article 5. 

’6 Story says, in reference to the times of elections under State regulations, that— 

The times of elections [in different States! are quite as various [as the mode thereof,] sometimes before 
and sometimes after the regular period at which the office becomes vacant. * * This ' * * has been pro¬ 
ductive of some inconveniences to the public service, * * for it has sometimes occurred that at an e.xtra 
session a whole State has been deprived of its vote, and at the regular sessions some districts have failed of 
eing represented upon questions vital to their interests. —1 Com. on Constitution. See 826. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


79 


Chapter TV. 

THE PREVENTION OF FRAUDS IN THE ELECTION OF REPRESENTATIVES 
IN CONGRESS AND PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS. 

Ko argument is necessary to prove tliat tlie right of suffrage should 
‘^be guarded, protected, and secured against force and fraud.’’ 

The liistory of election frauds proves that in some portions of the 
Union at least State law s are inadequate in their structure and mode of 
administration to accomplish these results. 

If there could have been a free and honest exercise of the elective 
franchise in the southern States of the Union, in which the question of 
secession Avas submitted to the decision of the voters, it could not haA^e 
l)reAmiled in more than one or tAvo States. 

It is a fact, attested by uni\"ersal experience, too, that men stand in 
greater avre and dread of penalties enforced in the national courts than 
in State tribunals. 

In exciting i)olitical contests, where frauds are greatest, the possibility 
of punishment is least in the local courts. The men and the influences 
which can perpetrate the frauds can screen the guilty from punishment. 
The officers of justice are paralyzed in their efforts, and juries selected 
from the immediate locality of the frauds are too often participants in 
them or eager to screen the guilty.^® 

In the national courts, jurors are selected from the entire district, and 
therefore furnish the amiflest possible guarantee against sympathy Avith 
fraud or prejudice Avhich might lead to inconsiderate con Auctions. 

The fact disclosed by the inA^estigations of the committee that more 
than 25,000 fraudulent votes Avere cast in Ucav York city inHoA^ember, and 
that the guilty inirties wdio cast them are at large Avithout fear of punish¬ 
ment, proA^es that something must be done to prev^ent these frauds, or elec¬ 
tions will soon degenerate into a mockery and a sham. A goA^ernment 
liaAung the poAA^er to prevent them would be no less criminal than their 
perpetrators, if it could look on wuth indifference, or without alarm, 
and not exert all its energies to avoid their recurrence. 

There can be no doubt of the constitutional power of CongTess to pre¬ 
scribe penalties to avert the national calamity and disgrace involved in 
these monstrous frauds. 

By the Constitution Congress has ample power to “maZvc” ^Wegulatio7is^^ 
prescribing ‘‘the times, places, and manner of holding elections for sen¬ 
ators and representatwes” in Congress.^^ 

Congress is thus invested Avith all the powers now exercised by the 
States in relation to these elections, and can prescribe election districts, 
provide for election officers, the mode of announcing, authenticating, and 
declaring tlie result, and prescribe offences for officers. Alters, and 
others—in all respects affecting or connected Avith such elections. The 

Mr. Webster, in regard to the right of suffrage, lays down “ two great principles of the 
American system: I. The right of suffrage shall be guarded, protected, and secured apinst 
force and against fraud. 2. Its exercise shall be prescribed by previous law,” &c.—6 Web¬ 
ster's Works, 224. 

Judge White’s evidence, 4779. 

19 Art. J, sec. 4. Under the more limited power to establish post offices and post roads, 
Congress has made a penal code for offences relative to the mail service. 

Mr. Madison said, in the convention, referring to article 1, section 4: 

These are words of great latitude. * * * Whether the voters should vote by ballot, or viva voce; should 
assemble at this place or that place; should be divided into districts, or all meet at one place; should all vote 
for all t^ie representatives, or all in a district vote for a number allotted to the district—these and many other 
points * * * might materially affect the appointments.—3 Madison Papers, 1280. 



80 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW-YORK. 


Constitution “ authorizes Congress to do supremely whatever the State 
legislatures may do provisionally on any part of the subject.” 

But unless the necessity should be more general than now appears, it 
is not deemed advisable for Congress to exert its whole power in this 
respect. If great frauds continue in any one or more cities, it may 
become necessary for Congress to intervene, by providing for election 
officers and a mode of conducting elections there. 

But as this would multiply officers, the committee deem it advisable 
to adopt the election officers under State authority, declare them national 
officers for all j)ur]30ses of national elections, and provide adequate pen¬ 
alties, to be enforced in the national courts, to guard, protect, and secure 
the elective franchise against force and fraud. 

The Constitution fully sanctions this mode. In the absence of all 
regulations on this sulqect by Congress, the Constitution declares that 
‘‘the times, places, and manner of holding elections for senators and 
representatives shall be i^rescribed in each State by the legislature 
thereof.” But Congress is authorized to “ alter such regulations.” 

In doing this Congress ma^^ adopt officers provided under State 
authority and “make” all other regulations Avhich States could do, and 
enforce them in the national courts, or by such agencies as may be pre¬ 
scribed. 

“Whatever ‘regulations’ the State legislature may make regarding 
the whole subject. Congress may ‘ alter.’ 

The principle has even been carried further. In those cases where an 
exclmive power is reserved to Congress State officers may be authorized 
by Congress to execute the powers, and such officers and even citizens 
violating the national law on that subject may be made amenable to 
national penalties enforced in the national courts.^'^ 

If, then. Congress may emi^loy State tribunals to execute an exclusively 
national power, and subject to penalties all who in such tribunals violate 
national laws a fortiori^ citizens and officers directly amenable to national 


20 Farrar’s Manual of Const., p. 238, sec. 242. 

2' Farrar's Manual, 246, sec. 252. 

22 The power of naturalization is exclusively confided to Congress and the national govern¬ 
ment. 

The State courts, authorized by act of Congress to naturalize foreigners, have power to 
do so .—Morgan vs. Dudley, 18 B. Monroe, 721. 

In People vs. Sweetmau, 3 Parker Criin. Cases, 373, Pratt, J., referring to naturalization in 
State courts, said: 

The preponderance of authority * Heems to be against the power of Congress to confer such jurisdiction. 
1 Wheai., 336; 5 Id.,49; Serg. Const. L., ch. 27; 17 Johns., 15; Virg. Cases, 321; 7 Conn., 239 ; 2 Wheat., 269; 
Martin vs. Hunter, 1 Wheat., 330. 

There is another class of cases in which duties judicial * have been conferred on * State courts, which 
it is held they are not bound to discharge, but may or may not discharge them, at their option. Prigg vs. 
Com., 16 Peters, 531. 

The naturalization laws confer powers upon the .State courts, * and in entertaining them tliey are exclu¬ 
sively under the laws of the United States, and shouhl bo deemed quoad hoc courts of the United .States. [The 
act of Congress of April 14, 18 (2, sec. 2, declares the State courts to be “ district courts” of the United States for 
naturalization purposes.] The crime, (perjury.) therefore, with which the prisoner was charged was * a 
crime against the laws and sovereignty of the United States, and nut against the laws and sovereignty of the 
State. 

Bacon, J., said: 

A State court has no jurisdiction of criminal offences against the United States. U. S. vs. Lathrop, 17 Johns 
R., 4. 

And it was held that perjury in a naturalization proceeding in a State court wa.s “punish¬ 
able in the United Spates courts and not in tiie State courts.” 1 Keut’.s Com., 401. 

It i.s so held in 2 Bi.shop, Crim. Law, sec. 987 (867). State vs. Adams, 4 Blackford, 146. 
State vs. Pike, 15 N. H., 83. United States vs. Bailey, 9 Peters, 238. United States vs.. 
Winchester, 2 McLean, 135. Rump vs. Com., 6 Casey, 475. 

The act of Congress of 25th February, 1865, made it a penal offence for any officer or per¬ 
son in the military service to intimidate or prevent any qualified voter at any general or 
special election in any State from freely exercising the right of suffrage. (13 Stat., 437.) Con¬ 
gress could as well punish any citizen for a like offence. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


81 


antliority, exercising functions, performing duties, or enjoying privileges 
directly under the sanction of the supreme government, may be punished 
for any abuse of their functions, violations of duty, or perversion of 
privileges. 

On this subject it is unnecessary to call in the aid of the fourteenth 
amendment to the Constitution, the “general welfare” power of the Con¬ 
stitution, or the inherent right of the government to exercise the powers 
necessary for self-preservation. 

The power to punish frauds in choosing presidential electors, by 
the voters of the States, is essential to the national existence, and 
inheres in the supreme government. By the Constitution, a Presi¬ 
dent and Vice-President are to be chosen for the term of four years, 
by electors appointed in each State in such manner as the legisla¬ 
ture may direct. The mode directed by the legislatures now is by 
the qualified voters, by general ticket, in each State. When the 
mode is thus prescribed the Constitution enjoins upon each State in that 
mode to choose the electors: “ Each State shall appoint in such man¬ 

ner,” says the Constitution. If the electors are chosen by fmudulent 
votes the duty imposed by the Constitution is not comidied with, and 
Congress may not only regulate and provide for this, but may devise a 
mode of ascertaining what the actual result of an election has been. The 
oidy inquiry, therefore, is, when the Constitution commands that the qual¬ 
ified voters of a State shall perform a given duty in a mode prescribed by 
State law, can Congress protect the citizens of the United States in 
the performance of that duty, punish those who would prevent it, and 
employ the means essential to accomplish the end and secure the 
national ineservation ? Undoubtedly all this may be done. Congi'ess 
has done more than this. Not only as to the election of national, but 
of State officers, the act of February 25, 1865, made it a penal offence 
“ by force, threat, menace, intimidation, or otherwise to prevent * any 
qualified voter of any State * from freely exercising the right of 
suffrage.” 

The Constitution declares that “the members of the several State 
legislatures and all executive and judicial officers of * * the several 

States shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support this Constitu¬ 
tion.”— Art. 6. 

The first act passed by Congress was “an act to regulate the time and 
manner of administering” these oaths.^^ 

The fugitive slave law was an instance in which the Supreme Court 
held that Congress had power to enforce duties in States prescribed by 
the Constitution. 

It is the “right” of the national government to have presidential elect¬ 
ors chosen according to law. 

The Supreme Court has said that “the national government, in the 

23 Farrar’s Manual, 185, J87, 191, 294. The bill as originally reported by a committee, of 
which Mr. Madison was a member, contained a penal clause, which was subsequently 
omitted, not because it was unconstitutional, but upon the mistaken ground that the oath 
was a necessary qualification for office, “the omission of which would render void all official 
acts.” On the discussion of the bill it was objected that there was “ no provision for empow¬ 
ering the government” to enact the law. This was conclusively answered by Mr. Lawrence, 
of New York, who said: 

Congress have this power. It is declared by the Constitution that its ordinances shall be the supreme law 
of the land. If the Constitution is the supreme law of the land, every part of it must partake of this suprem¬ 
acy ; consequently every general declaration it contains is the supreme law. But then these general 
declarations cannot be carried into effect without particular regulations adapted to the. circumstances; these 
particular regulations are to be made by Congress, who, by the Constitution, have power to make all laws 
necesi-ary or proper to carry the declarations of the Constitution into effect. The Constitution likewise 
declares that the members of the State legislatures, and all officers, executive and judicial, shall take an oath 
to support the Constitution. This declaration is general, and it lies with the supreme legislature to detail 
and regulate it. 

H. Bep. Com 31-C 




82 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


absence of all positive provisions to the contrary, is bound, through its 
proper departments, legislative, judicial, or executive, to carry into effect 
all the rights and duties imi)osed upon it by the Constitution.” 

The right of suffrage is one of the “privileges of citizens” placed 
under the protecting care of the government by the 14th article of the 
amendment to the Constitution, and the enjoyment of which Congress 
may “enforce by appropriate legislation.”^® 

It is not necessary, therefore, to resort to the power which Congress 
has to “ make laws to perfect tlie Union, establish justice, * and promote 
the general welfare;”^® or to that inherent power of self-preservation 
which this and every government necessarily lias. 

Tlie committee report a bill in accordance with these views. 

Section 1. Be it enacted^ cOc., That if at any election for representa¬ 
tive in the Congress of the United States or for electors of Presi¬ 
dent and Vice-President, or delegate in Congress from any Territory, 
any person shall knowingly, 1st, personate and falsely assume to vote 
in the name of any other person, whether such other person shall 
then be living or dead, or if the name of the said other person be the 
name of a fictitious person or, 2d, vote more than once at the same 
election for any candidate for the same office j or, 3d, vote at a place 
where he may not be lawfully entitled to vote j or, 4th, without having 
a lawful right to vote; or, 5th, falsely register as a voter; or, Gth, 
do any unlawful act to secure a right or an opportunity to vote for him¬ 
self or other person; or, 7th, shall by force, threat, menace, intimidation, 
bribery, reward, or offer, or promise thereof, or otherwise unlawfully 
prevent any qualified voter of any State of the United States of America, 

"••Prigg vs. Pa., 16 Peters, 636. 

Mr. Madison said : “ The powers of the new government will act on the States in their 
collective characters.”— Federalist, No. 40. See 2 Elliot, 362, I Wheaton, 304. 

^^Ch. J. Taney, in reference to Art. IV., says : “ These privileges and immunities * are 
placed under the guardianship of the general government.”—16 Peters, 636; Farrar's Manual, 
184, 198. 

“ The language of the Constit on is imperative on these States as to the performance of 
many duties, ft is imperative on the States to make laws, &.C. The legislatures of the 
States are, in some respects, under the control of Congress; and, in every case, are under 
the Constitution bound by the paramount authority of the United States .”—Martin vs. Hun¬ 
ter, 1 Wheaton R., 304.) 

Madison, in the Virginia convention, said: 

Some States might regulate the elections on the principle of equality, and others might regulate them other¬ 
wise. _ * _ * * * Should the people of any State, by any means, be deprived of the right of suf¬ 
frage, tt tAat it sAouW 6e re»te£?ied tAe genera/government. * y * * 3 Elliott’s 

Debates, 347. 

In the Dred Scott case Chief Justice Taney said: 

There is not, it is believed, to be found in the theories of writers on government, or in any actual experi¬ 
ment heretofore tried, an exposition of the term citizen which has not been considered as conferring the actual 
possession and enjoyment or the perfect right of acquisition and enjoyment of an entire equality of privileges, 
civil and political. —19 Howard, 476. 

And see Judge Kelley’s speech in House of Representatives, February 27, 1866, and Gov 
eruor Boutwell’s speech, January, 1869. 

The civil rights act of April 9, 1866, (14 Statutes at Large, 27,) was justified upon the 
principles of the Constitution, as the discussions on it show. Chief Justice Marshall has 
said that when Congress is intrusted with a power it may select the means for its execution. 

On the 5th of February, 1869, Mr. Sumner introduced in the Senate a bill making it a 
penal offence “ to deter any citizen from the exercise or enjoyment of the rights of citizen¬ 
ship,” Ac., or for “any person engaged in preparing a register of voters, or in holding or 
conducting an election, to wilfully retuse to register the name, or to receive, count, return, or 
otherwise give the proper legal effect to the vote of any citizen,” &c. It is just as compe¬ 
tent to protect citizens in the enjoyment of ihe\x jyolitical as their “civil rights.”_See speech 

of Hon. Samuel Shellabarger, July 25, 1866, in House of Representatives, (Globe, 1855-’56, 
Appendix, p. 293, vol. 60,) on House bill 437, “To declare and protect the privileges and 
iumiunities of citizens of the United States in the several States.” 

Farrar’s Manual, 181,1,31,70, 118,126,291, 312, 426,148,282, 323. 

See sec 83, Stat. 6 Victoria, c. 18. 



ELECTION FRxVUDS IN NEW YORK. 


83 


or of any Territory thereof, from freely exercising the right of suffrage, 
or shall by any such means induce any voter to refuse to exercise such 
right; or, 8th, compel or induce, any such means or otherwise, 
any officer of an election in any such State or Territory to receive a 
vote from a person not legally qualified or entitled to vote; or, 9th, in¬ 
terfere in any manner with any officer of said elections in the discharge 
of his duties;*® or, 10th, by any of such means or otherwise induce 
any officer of an election, or officer whose duty it is to ascertain, announce, 
or declare the result of any such election, or give or make any certificate, 
document, or evidence in relation thereto, to wolate or refuse to comply 
with his duty or any law regulating the same, or if any sueh officer shall 
neglect or refuse to perform any duty required of him by law, or violate 
any duty imposed by law, or do any aet unauthorized by law relating to 
or affecting any such election or the result thereof; or, llth, if any j^er- 
son shall aid, counsel, procure, or advise any such voter, person, or 
officer to do any act hereby made a crime, or to omit to do any duty the 
omission of which is hereby made a crime, or attempt to do so, every 
person so offending or guilty shall be deemed guilty of a erime, and shall 
tor such crime be liable to indictment in any court of the United States 
of competent jurisdiction, and on conviction thereof shall be adjudged 
to pay a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars, or suffer imprison¬ 
ment for a term not exceeding three years, or both, in the discretion of 
the court, and pay the costs of prosecution. And for all i3uri)oses of such 
elections, and the duties in relation thereto or growing out of the same, 
all such officers are declared to be officers of the United States. 

Sec. 2. That if any i^erson shall by force, threat, menace, intimidation, 
or otherwise unlawfully prevent any citizen or citizens from assembling 
in xniblic meeting, to freely discuss or hear discussed, the claims or merits 
of any officer of the government of the United States, or of any candi¬ 
date for the office of President, Yice-President or elector thereof, or 
rex)resentative in Congress, or delegate in Congress from any Territory, 
or the laws or measures of Congress, or any measure existing, i)ending, 
or proposed, affecting the government of the United States, or any de¬ 
partment or officer thereof, or if any person shall by any such means 
break up, disperse, or molest any such assemblage, or any citizen in or 
of such assemblage, when met or meeting to discuss or hear discussion 
as aforesaid, or shall by any such means xnevent any citizen from 
attending any such assemblage, every i^erson so offending shall be deemed 
guilty of a crime, and shall be liable to indictment, fine, or iiiqn'ison- 
ment in the same manner as provided for persons guilty of any crime in 
section one of this act. 


CHAPTEE Y. 

CONTEST OF THE ELECTION OF PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT AND 
OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS. 

The necessity for some provision by which the appointment of electors 
of President and Yice-President and tffe election of a President and 
Yice-President may be contested must be obvious. 

By the Constitution*® the President and Yice-President are elected by 
electors appointed every fourth year in each State, in such manner as 
the legislature may iirescribe; but Congress may determine the time of 

See act of February 25, 1865, 13 Stat., p. 437. 

Art. II, secs. 1,2, 4. 




84 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


clioosing tlie electors and the day on which they shall give their votes. 
Congress has provided by law that the electors shall be “ appointed on 
the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November,”^® and by the Con¬ 
stitution^^ they are required to “ meet in their respective States and vote 
by ballot for President and Yice-President/^ as the law^^ requires^ ‘‘ on 
tlie first Wednesday in December” after their appointment. The Con¬ 
stitution^^ also xnovides that the returns of the votes given by tlie electors 
shall be certified and transmitted by them to the President of the Senate, 
and that ^Hhe President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate 
and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall 
then be counted; the person having the greatest number of votes for Presi¬ 
dent shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole num¬ 
ber of electors appointed f and so of the Vice-President. 

The States have, by law, regulated the manner of appointing electors 
and the mode of filling vacancies.=^‘‘ In nearly all the States they have 
uniformly been elected by the voters of each State at large, by general 
ticket; and the State laws imescribe the officers who shall conduct elec¬ 
tions, the mode of declaring and certifying the result, and the qualifica¬ 
tions of voters. 

The electoral vote of the State of New York, in 1868, was cast for 
Horatio Seymour for President by electors whose appointment was made 
by votes fraudulently or illegally cast in the city and State. General 
Grant has a majority of all the electoral votes independently of New 
York, but, in view of the great wrong perpetrated against republican 
institutions and of the possibility that similar frauds in one great city 
may at some future time determine a presidential election and endanger 
the peace of the country, it is of the highest imx:>ortance that Congress, 
now forewarned of the danger, may ascertain if there be a remedy, and, 
if not, speedily provide one. 

For such a contingency there is now no legal remedy provided. The 
two houses of Congress when assembled in order that the electoral votes 
may be counted are not clothed with judicial power to adjudge, even 
upon sufficient evidence, that the presidential electors of any State w^ere 
fraudulently chosen, or to declare that the vote of a State should be 
counted differently from that certified by the electors. 

When the returns are properly certified and show a compliance with 
the Constitution and laws, and are properly transmitted to the Presi¬ 
dent of the Senate, they are conclusive, and no inquiry can be made 

Act of January 23, 1845, 5 Stat., 721 ; 1 Brightly’s Dig., 254. 

31 Art. XII of Amendments. 

32 Act of March 1, 1792, 1 Stat., 239. 

33 Art. XII of Amendments. The constitutional prorisions relating to national elections 
are as follows: 

Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislatures thereof may direct, a number of electors equal 
o the whole number of senators and representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress; but 
no senator or representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be 
appointed an elector.—Art. II, sec. 1. 

The electors shall meet in their respective States and vote by ballot, &c. 

The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Kepresentatives, open all the 
certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. In case of no choice, then “the House of Representatives 
shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President,”—Art. XII. 

The times, places, and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives shall be prescribed in 
ciach State by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may, at any time, by law, make or alter sach regula¬ 
tions, except as to places of choosing senators.—Art, I, sec. 4. 

' The Congress may determine the time of choosing electors and the day on which they shall give Ihefar 
votes, which day shall be the same throughont the United S ates.—Art. II, sec. 4. 

34 When the electoral vote of 1864 was counted, only two votes were returned from Nevada, 
One of the electors of that State did not appear to vote in the electoral college, and the State 
had no law for filling the vacancy. (54 Cong. Globe, 2d sess. 38th Cong., 1864-’65, p. 668.) 
Louisiana and Tennessee returned votes, but they were not counted, being excluded by the 
ioint resolution on that subject. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


85 


contesting the appointment of the electors wlio made them, if they 
have been duly (leclared properly appointed. The two houses act in a 
ininisterial capacity, and their whole duty is to count the votes as cer¬ 
tified to the i)resident of the Senate, and the result follows as matter of 
public history, conclusively shown by the votes so certified returned, 
opened, and counted. The two houses do not act in a legislative capacity, 
and can do no more than judge of the regularity of the returns certitied 
to the President of the Senate from lawful States by electors duly 
appointed, and count the votes accordingly. 


3'’’ The Constitution does not expressly declare by whom the votes are to be counted, and 
the result declaied. In the case uf questionable votes, and a closely contested election, this 
power may be all important. —1 Kent's Com., 7th erf., 296, sec. 13. 

\\ hen it became necessary to count the electoral vote of 1820, a question arose as to 
whether the vote of Missouri should be included. On the 4th of February, 1821, Mr. Clay 
reported a resolution in the Hou.se which was adopted by a vote of 90 to 67, as follows: 

That if any objection be made to the votes of Missouri, and the counting or omitting to count, which shall 
not essentially change the result of the election, in that case they shall be reported by the President of the 
Senate in the tollowing manner: “Were the votes of Missouri to be counted, the result would be, for A. B., 

for President of the United States-votes ; if not counted, for A. B., as President of the United States, - 

votes; but in either event, A. B. is elected President of the United States ; and in the same manner for Vice- 
President.” 

The electoral vote was counted in the House of Representatives in the presence of the two 
houses. When the votes of the electors for Missouri were announced by the President of 
the Senate and handed to the tellers— 

Mr. Livermore, of New Hampshire, rose and said : 

Mr, Pre.sident and Mr. .Speaker: I object to receiving any votes for President and Vice-President from Mis¬ 
souri, because Missouri is not a State of this Union. 

A motion was then made by a member of the Senate that the Senate do now withdraw to 
its chamber; and the question having been put was decided in the affirmative; and the 
Senate retired. 

The IIou.se being called to older, Mr. Floyd, of Virginia, then rose and submitted the 
following resolution: 

ReKoleed, That Missouri is one of the States of this Union, and her votes for President and Vice-President 
the United States ought to be received and counted. 

Mr. Archer, of Maryland, said: 

That entertaining the same sentiments as the gentleman from Virginia with respect to the refusal to admit 
Missouri into the Union, he yet felt himself bound to move, as he now did, to postpone the further considera¬ 
tion of this resolution indetinitely. He was opposed to this house undertaking to proceed in any manner as to 
the legality of the electoral votes. He could recognize no power in the House of Representatives on this 
subject separate from the Senaie. The expressions in the Constitution in regard to the counting of the votes 
of electors, &c., he considered as imperative. All questions arising out of it, according to his construction, 
must be settled in joint meeting of the two houses. He could not agree that this house had a right to determine 
whether any vote should be received or rejected. What are the words of the Constitution? “ The President 
o* the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and 
the votes shall then be counted.” Does it not follow, asked Mr. Archer, that the votes must be counted in the 
presence of the two houses? For what purpose do they assemble together, unless it be to determine on the 
legality of the votes? If not for this purpose, the joint meeting is for form and show, and nothing else. We 
must, in my apprehension, determine the question in joint meeting, and in no other way. Entertaining this 
opinion, he said he should vote for the indefinite postponement of any proposition the object of which is to 
determine in this house the legality or illegality of any electoral vote. A.t the last election of President an 
objection was made by the gentleman who now presides to receiving the votes of Indiana, because they were 
given in before the passage of the act declaring her admission into the Union. On that occasion, as now, the 
Senate retired. I thought then, as now, said Mr. Archer, that they had no right to retire until the question 
was settled. On that occasion the House determined to postpone indefinitely the objection. The motives 
which induced that determination were doubtless various; it was my opinion then that it was improper to 
entertain the objection in the House, and I think the same of the present proposition. 

Mr. Archer wa.s followed by Mr. Randolph, who argued that Congress had no authority 
to question the electoral votes ; but the objeclion was withdrawn, inasmuch as the vote of 
Missouri would not affect the result .—Annals of Congress, 1820-’21, 16t/i Congress, 2d 
session, pp. 1154, 1155. 

Mr. Floyd’s resolution was laid upon the table. The two houses again met. The vote oi 
Missouri was announced in the form indicated in Mr. Clay’s resolution, which had been also 
adopted by the Seriate. 

On the 11th of February, 1857, both houses of Congress being in joint session for the 
purpose of counting the votes of the electors of the several States for President and Vice- 
President of the United States, the tellers reported the result of their count, which was de¬ 
clared by the presiding officer; whereupon it was moved that the vote of the State of Wis¬ 
consin be rejected, and that the tellers be instructed not to include it in their count, for the 
reason that it was cast on a day ditferent from that provided by law. Discussion ensued, 
which lasted for some time, when the Senate retired from the hall of the House and the 
Speaker resumed the chair. Debate continued in both houses for the remainder of the day, 
and was resumed the following morning, when a resolution was adopted appointing a com- 




8G 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The mode by wliicli a remedy may be provided, in case fraudulent 
votes liave decided tlie result in a State, is more difficult to determine. 

inittee of two members of the House and one member of the Senate to wait upon James 
Buchanan and John C. Breckinridge, and inform them they had, respectively, been elected 
President and Vice-President of the United States. 

In the discussion Mr. Bingham said : “It seems to me that the Constitution imposes upon 
Congress—the Senate and House—the duty of counting and announcing the whole of the 
votes duly certified as having been cast for President and Vice-President on the day pre¬ 
scribed by law, and the further duty of ascertaining and declaring for whom such votes 
were given. 

“ It is not for the President of the Senate nor the tellers to determine what votes shall be 
counted or rejected. The Constitution provides that ‘the President of the Senate shall, in 
the presence of the Senate and House, open alt the certificates,’ but it does not provide that 
he shall count ‘ the votes,’ the language being that ‘the votes shall then be counted.’ What 
votes s hall then be counted ? All that appear upon the face of the certificates thus opened ? 
Not at all; but only the votes to which each State is entitled, and which by the certificates 
appe ar, or may be presumed, to have been given at the time required by the Constitution 
and prescribed by the statute.”—34 Congressional Globe, 'M sess.'Mth Cong., page 652; and 
see Appendix Congressional Globe, Isf sess. 34</t Cong., vol. 33, 1855-’56, page 126. 

The Hon. John C. Hamilton, of New York, in a recent article advocating an amendment 
of the Constitution so as to provide for the election of electors of President and Vice-Presi¬ 
dent in single districts, and to authorize Congress to decide on the validity of their election, 
said that “the validity of” their election should “be decided by Congress.” He adds: 

The motive for the last clairse is obvious. The only provision for determining the lawfulness of the 
elections is now with the State canvassers. The right to do this is obviously proper to Congress, as the 
representatives of a nation whose government is a “representative democracy.” 

Elsewhere it has been said: 

To have the executive officers dependent upon the legislative would certainly bo a violation of that 
principle, so necessary to preserve the freedom of republics, that the legislative and executive powers should 
be separate and independent. Would it have been proper that he should be appointed by the Senate?^ I 
apprehend that still stronger objections could be urged against that—cabal, intrigue, corruption, everything 
bad, would have been the necessary concomitant of every election. 

To avoid the inconveniences already enumerated, and many others that might be suggested, the mode 
before us was adopted. By it we avoid corruption, and we are little exposed to the lesser evils of party and 
intrigue ; and when the government shall he organized, proper care will UNDOUBTEDLY be taken to counteract 
influence even of that nature. The Constitution, with the same view, has directed that the day on which the 
electors shall give their votes shall be the same throughout the United States. I flatter myself the experi¬ 
ment will be a happy one for our country.— Mr. Wilson, of Pennsylvania, Elliot's Debates, vol. 3, p. 298. 

In 1865, during the rebellion. Congress, by concurrent resolution, directed that no certifi¬ 
cates of votes from the rebel States should be opened or votes counted in their presence. 

On the 13th of February, 1869, Mr. Robertson, of South Carolina, introduced into the 
Senate a proposition to amend the Constitution, as follows : 

Article 17. The Congress shall have the power to establish a tribunal for the purpose of considering and 
determining all questions which may arise as to the validity of the electoral vote of any State for President 
and Vice-President of the United States, which said tribunal shall exercise its jurisdiction under such regula¬ 
tion as Congress shall make. 

On the 15th February, 1869, Mr. Bromwell, of Illinois, introduced in the House a some¬ 
what similar proposition. 

On the 8th February, 1869, the House of Representatives passed the following preamble 
and resolution, previously adopted in the Senate: 

Whereas the question whether the State of Georgia has become and is entitled to representation in the two 
houses of Congress is now pending and undetermined; and whereas by the joint re,solution of Congress passed 
July 20, 1868, entitled “ A resolution excluding from the electoral college votes of States lately in rebellion, 
w'hieh shall not have been reorganized,” it was provided that no electoral votes from any of the States lately 
in rebellion should be received or counted for President or Vice-President of the Unites States until, among 
other things, such State should have become entitled to representation in Congress pursuant to the acts of 
Congress in that behalf: Therefore, 

Resolved by the Senate, (the House of Representatives concurring,) That on the assembling of the two houses 
on the .second Wednesday of February, 1869, for the counting of the electoral vote for President and Vice- 
President, as provided by law and the joint rules, if the counting or omitting to count the electoral votes, if 
any, which may be presented, as of the State of Georgia, shall not essentially change the result, in that case 
they shall be reported by the President of the Senate in the following manner : “Were the votes presented, as 

of the State of Georgia, to be counted, the re.sult would be, for-for President of the United States,- 

votes; if not counted, for-for President of the United States,-votes ; but in either case-is 

elected President of the United States ;” and in the same manner for Vice-President. 

Georgia bad been reconstructed and admitted to representation in Congress by the act of 
June 25, 1868, and six of her representatives were in Congress when the resolution passed. 
But a question was made as to whether that State had complied with said act so as to entitle 
her to representation, and her senators were not admitted. On the 10th February, when the 
vote of Georgia was presented, General Butler objected, and proceedings and a discussion 
were had wdiich are so recent as to be within the recollection of all. 

On the same day, when the certificate from Louisiana w^as real, Mr. Mullins, of Tennessee, 
made an objection to counting the vote, as follows: 

I object to auy count of the votes ceiuified from the State of Louisiana, and raise the question in regard to 










ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


87 


It may be that the Supreme Court of the United States has not, and 
cannot have, original jurisdiction to decide upon the right of a President* 
to hold the office.^® 

Every government ought to have the powers necessary to its preser¬ 
vation,^" to secure the rightful expression of the will of the people through 
the ballot-box, and to furnish a remedy in case fraudulent votes have 
defeated that will. 

It would seem to the committee that this power, so essential to the 
existence of the government, the maintenance of popidar sovereignty, 
and the peace of the nation, is inherent in the government and may be 
deduced from the letter, spirit, and puri^ose of the Constitution; and if 
so, that Congress may provide laws ‘‘necessary and proper for carrying 
into execution’^ the powers of the government derived from the people, 

them that no valid election of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States has been held in 
said State. 

The Senate having retired, “the question whether the vote should be counted ” was decided 
in the affirmative in the House by yeas 137, nays 63; not votincr, ‘22. 

After the roll was called, before the result was announced, Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio, 
attempted to submit the following: 

I make the point of order and of constitutional law, that no objection can be made or entertained to count¬ 
ing the electoral vote of any State, except that there is no such State entitled to vote, or that the certificate 
transmitting the vote is irregular in form, or that the vote was not given at the time or in the manner required 
by law, or by the electors shown to be duly elected ; aud it is not competent even upon sufficient evidence 
to prove that electors were chosen by fraudulent or illegal votes, or that an election is irregular or invalid 
when duly certified, until a law regulating the subject is enacted ; and no vote of the House can be taken to 
decide the objection not made, but it must be decided in the whole convention. 

As no evidence had been taken to show that “ no valid election was had in Louisiana,” it 
would seem to be a most dangerous rule to hold that the vote of a State regular in form may 
be rejected vt ithout evidence, and this subject certainly needs to be regulated in some way. 

The able speech of Mr. Shellabarger, in the House, of February ]], conclusively shows 
that the joint rule (No. 22, of February 6, 1865) of the two houses in relation to counting the 
vote is unconstitutional, and he discusses the constitutionality of the concurrent resolution of 
February 8, 1869, as to Georgia. Neither the rule nor resolution is a law. The Constitution 
declares that “the President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of 
Representatives, open all the certificates, and the vote shall THUN be counted.''^ 

This joint convention of the two houses is constituted a tribunal to decide upon the count¬ 
ing of the votes. The power might have been lodged with a designated number of each 
House if the Constitution had so provided. Yet in either case it is difficult to see how the 
Senate and House, in their legislative capacity, can make rules to bind a convention having no 
legislative attribute, and as wholly distinct from Congress as if composed of diiferent officers. 

It is equally difficult to perceive how each house, acting separately, can decide any question. 

The Constitution says, “ the vote shall then be counted ”—that is, be decided by the whole 
convention, whose duties may of course be regulated by law, and which may be enlightened 
by evidence taken in pursuance of such law. But this tribunal constitutes a tiers-6tat, in 
which a majority of all must decide. 

The Constitution nowhere says the houses may act separately, even to make a concurrent 
rule, or adopt a concurrent resolution like that as to Georgia. It is impossible legally to 
decide a question until it has arisen, and until the vote of a State is presented neither house 
can know what objections may exist to it. The Constitution says it shall “ ” be decided. 

If so, it cannot be determined by a concurrent rule in advance, and Congress cannot prop¬ 
erly avoid the duty of deciding. If they may act separately on such subjects, or in counting 
the vote, or deciding questions, then one senator may give a casting vote decisive of a presi¬ 
dential election. 

The whole discussion on this subject is full of instruction, and engaged many of the ablest 
men in Congress. 

It shows that this is the weak point in our Constitution, from which revolution may come 
if ample provision is not speedily made to regulate it. 

36Marbury vs. Madison, 1 Cranch, 137; in re Metzer, 5 Howard, 176-191; in re Kaine, 14 
Howard, 119; Osborn vs. United States Bank, 9 Wheaton, 820. 

37 Federalist, No. 59; 2 Elliot’s Debates, 276, 277; 1 Story on Constitution, sec. 816. 

38 Sec. 2. Story on Const., 3d ed., 356, sec. 1483; act of Congress of 1st March, 1792, 
ch. 8, sec. 11; 2 Elliot’s Debates, 359, 360; Journal of Const. Convention, 361-382. 
Story doubts if Congress has power to provide for a vacancy in the office ot President not 
in terms authorized by the Constitution, but in that he is clearly wrong. 

“ America has chosen to be, in many respects and to many purposes, a nation, and for all 
these purposes the government is competent and complete. The people have declared that in 
the exercise of all powers given for these objects it is supreme. It can then, in effecting 



88 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Coustitutioii the President of the Senate, in the presence of the 
two houses of Congress, is to open the certificates of the presidential 
electors, showing the votes for President, and these are then to be counted. 
(Article 12, amendments.) 

Congress also has power to ‘‘make all laws necessary and proper for 
carrying into execution all powers vested by the Constitution in the gov¬ 
ernment, or in any department or officer thereof.’^ (Article 1, section G.) 

The President of the Senate is an officer, and the two houses are a 
department. 

Congress may therefore pass all laws necessary and proper to enable 
this department to ascertain the result of a presidential election, 
and to “ enforce duties positively enjoined by the Constitution.” But 
during the few days which remain of this Congress it is not practicable 
to mature and consider a well digested bill providing a mode of contest¬ 
ing the election of presidential electors, or the office of President and 
Yice-President, or of prescribing a plan by which the two houses of 
Congress, when assembled to count electoral votes, may receive evidence 
and decide controverted questions. It cannot well be doubted but all this 
may be provided for under the power Avhich Congress has to execute the 
provisions of the Constitution. 


these objects, legitimately control all individuals or governments within the American terri¬ 
tory.” (Cohens vs. Virginia, 6 Wheat., 413.) 

“ In all those instances which are within the sphere of the general government the higher 
obligations of allegiance and duty to it supersede what was due to the State governments.” 
(Rawle on the Constitution, 30.) 

“ If any given power was originally ve.sted in this State, (New York,) if it had not been 
exclusively ceded to Congress, or if the exercise of it had not been prohibited to the States, 
we might then go on in the exercise of the power until it came practically into collision with 
the exercise of some congressional power. When that happened to be the case, the State 
power would he so far controlled.” (Livingston vs Van Ingen, 9 Johns , 507.) 

“In every other case of legislation, (except taxation,) the concurrent power in the State 
would seem to be a power entirely dependent, and subject to be taken away absolutely 
whenever Congress shall choose to exercise their powers of legislation over the same subject. 

* ^ * * The national government ought to be supreme w'ithin its constitutional limits, for 

it is intrusted with the paramount interests and general welfare of the whole nation.” (1 
Kent’s Com., 393.) 

“ The judiciary act is the true exposition of the Constitution, with respect to the concurrent 
jurisdiction of the State courts and the exclusive jurisdiction of those of the United States. 
By that act the jurisdiction of the State courts was excluded in all criminal cases, and with 
respect to offences arising under acts of Congress.” (Ely vs. Peck, 7 Conn., 239.) 

“The progress and impulse of popular opinion is rapidly destroying every constitutional 
check, every conservative element, intended by the sages who framed the earliest American con¬ 
stitutions as safeguards against the abases of popular suffrage.” (1 Kent’s Com., 229, note A.) 

“ Congress is expressly authorized to employ necessary means for the execution of its pow¬ 
ers, &c. ‘ Necessary ’ stands for any means calculated to produce the end.” (McCulloch 

vs. the State of Maryland, 4 Wheat., 316 ) 

The Constitution prescribes certain duties to the States as political bodies, and to their 
governments, officers, and people. Madison declared that “the powers of the new govern¬ 
ment will act on the States.” (Federalist, No. 40.) 

Laws, then, must be made to enforce the Constitution. Hamilton says, “ The States, 
well as individuals, are bound by these laws.” (2 Elliot’s Deb., 362.) The Supreme Cou 
say, “The legislatures of the States are, in some respects, under the control of Congress. 

(1 Wheaton, 304.) 

The first act passed by the first Congress under the Constitution, June 1, 1769, was to 
enforce the Constitution, in requiring members of State legislatures to take a prescribed oath. 
(See debates on that bill, and 16 Peters’ R., 636; see debate in House of Representatives on 
National Bank bill, Feb. 2, 179], Prigg vs. Pennsylvania, 16 Peters.) 

The President is the chief executive officer of the nation. He can only be lawfully elected 
in the prescribed mode. The Supreme Court has said that “the national government is 
bound, through its proper departments, legislative, &c., to carry into effect all the rights and 
duties imposed upon it by the Constitution.” (16 Peters; see Farrar’s Manual of the 
Const., 186-201.) 

The fourteenth amendment to the Constitution secures the “ privileges of citizens,” and 
gives power to enforce the security by law ; and the right to ascertain the real result of an 
election is a proper mode of securing these privileges. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


89 


CHAPTER VI. 

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT AUTHORIZING CONGRESS TO REGULATE 
THE APPOINTMENT OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTORS. 

By tlie Constitution tlie President and Vice-President hold “office 
during the term of four years,” and are to be elected as follows: 

“Each State shall appoint, in such luauuer as the legislature thereof 
may direct, a number of electors equal to the wliole number of senators 
and representatives to which the State may be entitled in Congress.”^^ 

These electors are required to vote by ballot for President and Vice- 
President, and transmit the result to the President of the Senate, to be 
declared in the presence of the two houses of Congress.^*^ 

The Constitution declares that— 

The Congress may determine the time for choosinj^ the electors and the day on which 
they shall give their votes, which day shall be the same throughout the United States.-*^ 

It will be seen the national government is dependent on the pleasure 
of State legislatures to provide for the a])pointment of electors of Presi¬ 
dent and Vice-President. This places tlie national government in an 
attitude of dependence utterly inconsistent Avith its safety and peace, 
and invites dissatisfied States to combine for the purpose of destroying 
the government—a work in which they may be encouraged by the jealousy 
of foreign nations seeking our overthrow.'^^ 

Under the old confederation: 

Rhode Island at a very critical period withdrew her delegates from Congress, and thus 
prevented some important measures from being carried.'*^^ 

The possibility of a combination of States to suspend indefinitely the 
legislative functions of the government induced the convention which 
framed our nat onal Constitution to reserve to Congress the right to 
make or alter State regulations as to the times, places, and manner of 
holding elections for representatives in Congress.'^'^ 

The very fact that this original and revisory power is reserved to Con¬ 
gress has, until recently, avoided the necessity for its exercise. 

It has operated as a salutary inducement to the States to so far per¬ 
form their duties as not to invite the exercise of the power of Congress. 

But Avhile this necessary iiower has been reserved to Congress as to 
representatives, it has been strangely withheld as to electors of Presi¬ 
dent and Vice-President. 

The same reasons for reserving the poAver to Congress in the case of 
representatives applies with equal if not greater force to electors of 
President and Vice-President.^^ 

And now, Avhen it is shoAvn that in the largest and most populous of all 
the States—the great State of IS'ew York—at the recent presidential elec- 

Constitution, art. 2, sec. 6. 

■‘°Art. 12 of Amendments. 

Const., art. 2, sec. 1. 

■*2 Federalist, No. 59. This subject is forcibly presented by Judge Story in reference to the 
election of representatives in Congress. (1 Story, Com. Const., 814, et sequor.) 

Story on Const., sec. 816. 1 Elliot’s Debates. 44, 45; Federalist, No. 22. 

Const., art. 1, sec. 4. 

When the Constitution of the United States was submitted to the New York convention, 
Mr. Jay, afterwards Chief Justice Jay, discussing the clause giving Congress power to regu¬ 
late the election of representatives, said : “ Suppose that by design or accident the States 
should neglect to appoint representatives, certainly there should be some constitutional 
remedy.” This sagacious statesman was correct, and his reasoning applies with equal force 
to States whieh will not preserve the purity of the ballot, not only as to representatives but 
also as to presidential electors. 



90 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


tion, probably more than 50,000 frandnlent votes were cast by a fearful 
conspiracy, defrauding the people out of their rightful choice of electors, 
and that the men who executed these frauds are at large, having immu¬ 
nity from all punishment, Avhile those who planned and aided them reap 
the rewards of office, it is not too much to say the time has come when 
the national government should be clothed with the power to make and 
alter State regulations respecting the times, places, and manner of 
choosing electors of President and Vice-President, leaving Congress to 
judge Avhether and Avhen it may be expedient to provide officers either 
in some of the great cities, or generally to conduct such elections. In 
doing this, an opportunity is afforded also to secure to every cpialified 
A^oter the right to vote hy ballot in co7ivenient election districts to he presci'ibed 
by law. 

This subject has attracted attention, and the plan of clothing Congress 
with the power proposed has receiA^ed the sanction of some of the ablest 
and best statesmen of the country.^® 

The committee report a joint resolution in accordance AAuth these 
views: 

JOINT RESOLUTION proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United 

States. 

Resolved hy the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in 
Congress assembled, (two-thirds of both houses concurring,) That tlie following amendment 
of the Constitution of the United States be proposed to the several States for adoption, pur¬ 
suant to the fifth article of said Constitution: 

Article —. 

Congress may at any time by law make uniform^^ regulations, or alter by a uniform rule 
those prescribed by the legislatures of the several States, for the appointment of electors 
of President and Vice-President, who shall be chosen by the votei's in the States qualified 
to vote for members of the House of Representatives, and who shall vote by ballot, in con¬ 
venient election districts prescribed by law. 

ELECTION OF PRESIDENT AND VICE-PRESIDENT DIRECTLY BY THE 
PEOPLE, OR BY ELECTORS CHOSEN IN SINGLE DISTRICTS. 

There is eAudently a strong and growing feeling in favor of electing 
the President and Vice-President directly by the people. The subject 
is AA^ell Avorthy of consideration. 

But if this should not be deemed practicable or advisable now, the 
plan of electing in single districts the electors of President and Vice- 
President, noAY authorized by the Constitution, merits the most serious 
consideration. 

^^’On the 28th January, 1869, Mr. Buckalew, (democrat,) of Pennsylvania, introduced into 
the Senate of the United States a proposition to amend the Constitution as follows : 

The 2d clause, 1st section, article 2, of the Constitution of the United States shall be amended to read as 
follows : Each State shall appoint, by a vote of the people thereof qualified to vote for representatives in Con¬ 
gress, a number of electors equal to the whole number of senators and representatives to which the State may 
be entitled in the Congress ; but no senator or representative, or person holding an ofiSce of trust or profit 
under the United States, shall be appointed an elector; and the Congress shall have power to prescribe the 
manner in which such electors shall be chosen by the people. 

The object of requiring a uniform rule is to prevent Congress from authorizing elections 
by districts in one State, and by general ticket in another, to suit the exigencies of politi¬ 
cal parties. 

This has been proposed in Congress.—Ashley’s speech of May 29, 1868. The President 
in his annual message of December 9, 1868, said : 

I renew the recommendation contained in my communication to Congress dated the 18th July last—a copy 
of which accompanies this message—that the judgment of the people should be taken on the propriety of so 
amending the federal Constitution that it shall provide— 

1st. For an election of President and Vice-President by a direct vote of the people, instead of through the 
agency of electors, and making them ineligible for re-election to a second term. 

2d. For a distinct designation of the person who shall discharge the duties of President, in the event of a 
vacancy in that office by the death, resignation, or removal of both the President and Vice-President. 

3d. For the election of senators of the United States directly by the people of the several States, instead of 
by the legislatures; and , 

4th. For the limitation to a period of years of the terms of federal judges. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


91 


The Coiistitutiou provides that each State shall appoint, in such 
manner as the legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors 
equal to the whole number of senators and representatives to which 
the State may be entitled in the Congress.”—2, sec. 1. 

It is competent for the legislature of any State to provide for the 
election of these electors in single districts prescribed by State law. 
Edorts have been made to secure this in some of the States, but they 
have uniformly failed.^^ 

Electors have generally been chosen in the States by a general ticket 
tor the whole State, and by votes cast by the voters in prescribed elec¬ 
tion districts. The legislatures of some of the States have appointed 
the electors. 

In some of the States representatives in Congress were chosen by 
general ticket, but this was deemed so unequal and unjust that Congress 
interposed in 1862, and required, as a general rule, that they should be 
elected by single districts composed of contiguous territory.^® 

A change of the Constitution, so as to provide for the election of these 
])residential electors in single districts, has been urged by some of the 
ablest men of the nation. 


On the 7th of May, 1800, Alexander Hamilton wrote to Governor Jay, of New York, and 
ur^ed him to call the legislature of that State together, for the purpose of districting the 
State so as^ to elect presidential electors in single districts. He says : “As to its intrinsic 
nature, it is justified by unequivocal reasons of public safety. The reasonable part of the 
world will approve it.”—7 Hamilton's History of the Republic, 380. 

He regarded the mode which has been adopted in a few of the States, of appointing presi¬ 
dential electors by the legislature, as contrary to the spirit of the Constitution, if not its 
letter. He said the Constitution had “not made the appointment of the President to depend 
on pre-existing bodies of men who might be tampered with beforehand,” and he insisted that 
the Constitution “referred it in the first instance to an immediate act of the people," * “to 
men chosen by the people for the special purpose.”— See No. 68 of the Federalist. 

His son, Hon. John C. Hamilton, eminent for his learning, says that Hamilton, “at the 
first election of President, urged that the electors should be chosen by the citizens. * ^ 

He had also, during the preceding year, written to Van Rensselaer, the lieutenant governor, 
on this subject. An effort in conformity with these views, it is seen, had recently been made 
in Congress to provide for districting the States, for the express purpose of choosing electors 
of President, and had been defeated.”—7 Hist, of Repub., 378. 

50 Act of July 16, 1862; 12 U. S. Stat., 572. 

51 In an article in the “Washington Chronicle” of February 2,1869, Hon. John C. Hamilton, 
referring to this subject and the contest between Burr and Jefferson for the Presidency, says : 

Aaron Burr and Jefferson were competing for the democratic vote in opposition to John Adams, who had 
lost the confidence, never fully enjoyed and never deserved, of the leaders of the Washington party. The 
success of the democratic effort depended upon the vote of the State of New York. To gain the legislature 
was the great object. While throughout the interior of the State the strife was warm, the city of New York 
was the chief arena of the contest. Jefferson’s letters show how intensely he was watching the result. The 
labors of Burr were incessant, and he triumphed. How did he triumph ? 

Hamilton expressly states, by the foreign vote of that city. To insure his success in controlling the legisla¬ 
ture, he was elected a member of it in an interior county not his residence. Thus was proved the truth of 
Jefferson’s remark, that “ great cities are the sores of the body politic.” It was to prevent the recurrence of 
such a scene that Hamilton framed the amendment providing for the districting of each State by Congress, 
to choose the presidential electors. Had the expression of public opinion been fairly obtained since, this might 
have been regarded only as a calamitous exception in our history by those who have forgotten that the result 
of this election established the dominion of the slave power and the continuance of slavery in this republic for 
sixty years. But have not recent events justified Hamilton’s precautionai’y prudence 1 How was the recent 
election in New York carried ? How was the republican party cheated out of the votes of that State ? Who can 
honestly deny that it was carried by “cabal, intrigue, and corruption,” by grossest frauds, that will fester and 
prevail unless this amendment shall become a part of the Constitution. New York now is the only victim of 
her city ; but as vast emporiums of commerce are formed elsewhere near the heart of the nation, similar occur¬ 
rences will, indeed must, ensue. In deciding whether the amendment shall pass, it is always well to remember 
that an omission to exert, when necessary, a salutary power of the Constitution is as great dn offence against 
dufy as to abuse a power. 

The amendment framed by Hamilton is in these words, the parts not within the quote marks being 
added: 

“As the most eligible mode of obtaining a full and fair expression of the public will. Congress shall,” in its 
first session after each decennial census, “divide each State into districts equal to the whole number of sena¬ 
tors and representatives from each State in the Congress of the United States; each of said districts shall be 
formed, as nearly as may be, with an equal proportion of population in each, and of counties and, if necessary, 
of parts of counties contiguous to each other, except where there may be some detached portion of territory 




92 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The reasons which support the policy of electing representatives in 
single districts are equally cogent in favor of selecting presidential 
electors in the same way. 

In the last presidential election the vote of the city of New York gave 
the entire electors of that State to Horatio Seymour, whereas, if the 
election had been by single districts. General Grant would have received 
17 electoral votes from that State. This is cited simidy as an instance 
where one great city by a fraudulent vote has controlled the choice of 
every district of the State. The purjiose of the frauds on the elective 
franchise in New York city was to carry the State. 

If the possibility of doing this shall be removed, in every State wliere 
the controlling iirHuence of large cities may enable successful frauds of 
this kind to be repeated with similar results, the highest motive therefor 
will cease to exist. And this is precisely what will be accomi)lished by 
selecting presidential electors in single districts. 

This scheme of course contemplates an abandonment of the idaii here¬ 
tofore adopted in some of the States of appointing j)residential electors 
by the legislature; so flagrantly in violation of the republican idea that 
all political power should flow directly from the people. 

The Constitution is ^‘a new evaugeP^ to the nations.’^ It has reared 
the grandest fabric of human government ever known to man. But the 
institutions of a country cannot by any prescience be created in full- 
grown perfection; they must grow by the experience of the past in the 
ever-recurring necessities of the present and the future. 

The investigations of the committee have develoi)ed election frauds of 
monstrous i)roportions and most dangerous character. If Congress shall 
devise an adequate remedy to prevent their recurrence, so that the elect¬ 
ive franchise shall forever honestly reflect the popidar will, enlightened 
by education made universal under the fostering care of benign laws, 
and extended in the spirit of catholic justice by a universal suflrage 
which knows no distinctions founded on creed, race, color, nativity, edu¬ 
cation, or i:>roperty, recognizing forever the x)olitical equality of all 
rational adult male citizens guiltless of infamous crime, the republic 
will continue to bless with happiness and prosperity the innumerable mil¬ 
lions of people who will throng this continent, soon to be exclusively its 
own, where it may abide and endure perpetual as time. 

The committee report a joint resolution in accordance with these 
views: 


JOINT RESOLUTION proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States. 

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States 
of America in Congress assembled., (two-thirds of both houses concurring,) 
That the following amendment of the Constitution of the United States 


not sufficient of itself to form a district, which then shall be annexed to some other district,” the validity of 
which eiections shall be decided by Congress. 

On the 1st of February, 1869, Judge Spalding, of Ohio, introduced in the House of Rep¬ 
resentatives a proposition to amend the Constitution, as follows : 

As the most eligible mode of obtaining a full and fair expression of the will of the people in the choice of 
President and Vice-President and representatives in Congress, it shall be the duty of Congress, at its first 
session after each decennial census, to divide the respective States into electoral and congressional districts, 
the electoral districts equalling in number the senators and representatives from said States, respectively, iii 
Congress, and the congressional districts equalling the number of representatives in the same body : said dis¬ 
tricts shall be formed, as nearly as may be, with an equal amount of population, and be made up of counties 
and parts of counties, parishes, or other subdivisions contiguous to each other. Each of said electoral districts 
thus formed shall quadrennially choose one elector of President and Vice-President of the United States, and 
each of said congressional districts shall biennially choose one representative to the Congress of the United 
States; the time, place, and manner of holding such elections of electors and representatives to be prescribed 
by Congress. 

Bingham’s argument on trial of the assassins of President Lincoln, p. 30. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 93 

be proposed to the several States for adoption, pursuant to the fifth 
article of said Constitution: 

Article —. 

The electors of President and Vice-President shall be chosen as fol¬ 
lows : 

Two®^ electors of President and Vice-President shall be chosen at large 
from each State by the qualified voters therein. 

A number of electors in each State equal to the whole number of rep¬ 
resentatives to which such State may be entitled in Congress shall be 
chosen in single districts of contiguous and compact territory, each con¬ 
taining, as nearly as practicable, an equal amount of population. 

The times, places, and manner of choosing such electors shall be pre¬ 
scribed in each State by the legislature thereof, but the Congress may at 
any time by law make or alter such regulations. 

Congress shall prescribe the mode of determining the validity of the 
choice of electors, and of contesting the right to the office of President 
and Vice-President. 


^^Tbis preserves the present distribution of power, and will make it practicable to adopt 
congressional for electoral districts. If all the electors should be chosen in single districts, 
the electoral and congressional districts must necessarily be different. 



INDEX TO REPORT. 


A. 

Page. 

Adams, Robert G., testimony of. 29 

Arrests. b7 

Archer, Mr., remarks of. 

B. 

Barbour, judge, reference to. 9,20 

Blank applications, number of, printed by order of court. 12,13 

Blank certificates, number of, printed by order of court. 12,13 

Blanks, number of, aud time when furnished to the courts. 14 

Blanks, form of, in supreme court. 32, 33, 34 

Blanks, testimony relating to.-. 

Biser, Abner, testimony of. 18 

Butler, James P., testimony of.-. 38 

Boeck, Maximilian, testimony of.1. 20 

Bliss, George, jr., testimony of. 22,24,44 

Barnard, judge, reference to.21,24,25,34 

Ballot-box stuffing, reference to. 49 

testimony relating to. 49 

Bill, relating to the election for representatives to Congress, &c. 82 

Bingham, Judge John A., remarks of. 86 

reference to argument of. 92 

Buckalew, as to constitutional amendment. 90 

C. 

Common pleas, court of. 22 

Cook, Peter, testimony of. 24 

Canvassing, fraudulent. 47 

Circular, secret. 48 

Committee of citizens. 54 

Census, obstruction of. 54 

Challenging, how prevented. 55 

Conspiracy of democratic party. 55 

Crime, immunity for. 57 

Contest of the election of President, Vice-President, &c. 83-88 

Constitutional provision, as to national elections. 84 

Clay, Henry, resolution of. 85 

Constitutional amendment, discussion of. 89 

Committee, joint resolution of, as to constitutional amendment. 90,92 

D. 

Dolan, Hugh F., testimony of. 41 

Davis, Henry E., opinion of. 56 

E. 

Evils demanding a remedy. 1 

Elliott, Benjamin C., impeachment of. 69 

articles of impeachment of. 69 

F. 

Frauds, extensive preparations for. 12,13 

specific evidence of. J4 

individual instances of. 14 

in five different wards. 50 

how perpetrated. 53 

means employed for accomplishment of. 54 

proved in detail in Sixth ward. 63 

















































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


95 


Frauds, remedies for. 

Frost, Calviu, testimony of. 

Fullerton, William, opinion of. 

Fraudulent democratic vote, extent of ... 

how shown 

Floyd, -, testimony of. 


G. 

Garvin, Judge, reference to. 

testimony of.. 

Gale, Moses D., reference to. 

testimony of.. 

Gillespie, Adam, reference to. 

testimony of. 

Greene, William H., testimony of.. 

Guilty, protection of.. 

German Republican Committee, resolution of. 

Georgia, preamble and resolution as to.. 

H. 

Hendrick, William H., testimony of. 

Hall, A. Oakey, testimony of. 

secret circular of. 

advice of, to democratic canvassers 

effect of advice of. 

object of secret circular of. 

reference to.. 

Hilton, Henry, opinion of.. 

Hoffman, John T., extract from proclamation of_ 

Hamilton, John C., as to constitutional amendment 
Hamilton, Alexander, as to presidential electors .... 

I. 

Impeachment of Benjamin C. Elliott. 

J. 

Jones, Judge, reference to. 

Jarvis, Nathaniel, jr., testimony of.. 

Johnson, Henry, testimony of. 

Jay, Chief Justice, remarks of. 

Johnson, President, as to constitutional amendment 


K. 

Kent, Edwin R., testimony of. 


L. 

Lyle, Henry, testimony of. 

Lackey Joseph L., testimony of. 

Loew, Charles E., reference to. 

admissions of. : - 

testimony of. 

Leverson, M. R., testimony of. I . 

Livermore, Mr., reference to. 

Lawrence, (Judge) William, as to constitutional amendment 

M. 

McCnnn, (Judge) John H., reference to. 

testimony of. 

Meeks, Joseph, reference to.. 

Morrell, Judge, reference to.. 

Minor applications, reference to. 

IklcCluskey, reference to. 

McDonald, testimony of.-. 

McAlpine, R. W., testimony of. 

Mack, Patrick, testimony of. 

Murray, Robert, testimony of. 

Mullen, John J., testimony of.. 

Morrissey, John, district of. 

McCartin, James, district of. 

Madison,-, as to voting. 


Page. 

65 

16 

56 

59 

59 

85 


9,23 
12 
13 
19 

30 

31 
41,42 

57 

70 

86 


40,41 

51 

48.51 

48 

49 

51.52 
54,56 

56 

56 

86,91 

91 


69 


9 

12,21,22,25,62 
49 

_ 89 

90 


35 


.. 12,20,25 

.. 18 

. 16,21,27 

. 24 

. 28,34 

21,22,23,24,25,28, 34 

. 85 

. 87 


7,9,20,22,23,24,25,26,35 

. 17,23,35,37,62,63 

. 9 

. 9 

.. 10 

. 16,27 

. 16 

.. 21 

. 24 

.. 39,51 

.. 42,43 

. 50 

.. 50 

. 79 



























































96 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


N. 


Neany, Thomas, lestimony of. 

Naturalization frauds. 

certificates of, unusual number. 

number in common pleas.. 

superior court. 

supreme court. 

each day. 

in Kiripfs county. 

procured by republican committee 

fraudulently procured and sold. 

distributed iu ’‘bundles” and “quantities”. 

office of, No. 6 Centre street. 

certificates of, sent to other counties. 

delivered to persons without request. 

issued to fictitious persons. 

issued by clerks. 

democratic offices of. 

certificates of, false personation for, perjury, &c. 

daily average issue by superior court. 

supreme court. 

issued to “ gangs ”.. 

issued in supreme court.-. 

number of fraudulent. 

manner of, in court of common pleas. 

superior court. 

supreme court. 

bill withdrawing jurisdiction of certain courts as to. 

in amendment of the several acts as to.. 

North, Samuel, reference to. 


O. 

Ostrander, Alexander, testimony of. 

O’Brien, James, reference to. 


Page. 
18 
5,17 
5 
5 
5 
5 
9 
9 
12 
14,15 
15 
15 

15 

16 
16, 47 

9 

20 ,-,! 

96 

3 

4 
27 
35 
35 

24,25 
22,24 
65-70 
72-77 
54 


44 
47,55 


P. 


Porter, John K., opinion ot. 56 

Pratt, J., as to naturalization. 80 

President and Vice-President, electors of, direct by the people, &c. 90 

R. 

Repeating. 38,39 

Repeaters. 39 

headquarters of. 39 

card of. 41 

exchanging of caps, &c., by. 44 

gangs of. 47 

Registries, fraudulent. 45 

table of. 46 

Rosenburg, Benjamin B., arrest, examination, &c., of. 68 

Representatives to Congress, election of, on one day, &c . 77,78 

bill as to elecdon of. 78 

prevention of frauds in the election of. 79-83 

Robinson, Mr., as to constitutional amendment. 86 


S. 

Supreme court, witnesses appearing a great number of times on the naturaliza¬ 


tion applications of. 10 

Superior court, witnesses appearing a great number of times on the naturaliza¬ 
tion applications of. ] 1 

Supreme court, reporters aud spectators driven from. 21,22 

testimony as to. A ... 24 

judges of, obstructing investigation. 26,27 

certificates granted by. 27 

blank applications and certificates procured by. 27 

Superior court, testimony as to. 24, 30 

Scannel, Florence, testimony of. 43 


























































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 97 

P.nge. 

Sweetzer, Henry, tables of. 61,62 

Story, as to elections. 78 

Spaulding, Judge, as to constitutional amendment. 92 

Statistics—(see tables.) 

T. 

Table showing the number and nativity of emigrants arriving at the port of New 

York, &c. 7,8,70 

Table showing the number naturalized in King’s county. 9 

repeating of witnesses in supreme court. 10 

repeating of witnesses in superior court.. 11 

number of blanks furnished to the supreme and superior courts. 14 

number of blank applications and certificates procured by 

supreme court. 27 

number naturalized in the supreme court. 28 

discrepancy in testimony of Westlake and Gillespie. 31 

fraudulent registries, illegal voting, &c. 46 

comparative results, &c. 60,61 

the number and destination of passengers during the year 1868.. 70,71 

Treaty between United States and North German Confederation. 66 

Terrorism and violence.-. 55 

Train, George Francis, district of. 50 

Tracy, Richard, testimony of. 17 

Tilden, Samuel A., reference to. —... 48 

Tickets, red, reference to. 13,19 

V. 

Violence and terrorism. 55 

Vote, fraudulent, (democratic,) extent of. 59 

how shown ..... 59 

Vote of 1868, too great as compared with voters of previous years.^ .59,60 

votes of previous years." 61 

shown by the average ratio of votes to population- 62 

Vote of 1868 too great—all tests unite in proving. 63 

W. 

Wilbur, Charles E., testimony of. 13 

Witnesses, democratic professional. 12 

Westlake, Owen E. 30 

testimony of, as to number of naturalization applications, on 

file in superior court . 28 

Walling, George W., testimony of. 39 

White, John H., testimony of. b7 

Webster, Daniel, as to suffrage. 79 


H. Kep. Com. 31-7 


































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VIEWS OF THE MINORITY. 


Mr. Kerr, from the minority of the Committee on Kew York Election 
Erauds, submits their views. 

The minority of the committee being tcholly unable to concur icith the majority 
either in their assumptions of authority^ statements of facts, or conclusions 
upon the law and evidence, respectfully submit the following report: 

It is unquestionably true that irregularities, frauds, and outrages have 
been committed in connection with the conduct of elections ever since 
elective governments were organized amongst men. They are gveat 
evils, and interpose great obstacles to the success of representative and 
republican governments; they demand the co-operation of all men, and 
the most unpartisan and vigilant care of legislators to prevent them; 
they have more or less attended upon elections in all parts of our coun¬ 
try ; they seem to arise out of the imperfections in human nature and 
laws, and were never yet successfully overcome by any people, or under 
any past or present condition of civiliza tion. 

A manifest excess of zeal on the part of the majority seems to have per¬ 
suaded them that the world has been to some extent a stranger to such 
things until the last general election in Kew York. It may not be 
improper for us, therefore, to remark that the history of popular elec¬ 
tions in oiu'S and every other country, and the records of this house in 
connection with contested elections, supply deplorable evidences of the 
wickedness, lawlessness, and corruiitions of men and society, and of high 
officers of government in such matters—important and vital as they are 
to the well-being of society and government. It is not alone in New 
York that such conduct has characterized elections. The dominant 
Xiarty in this house have, in their disposition of many contested elections, 
set examples of most questionable character to be followed by the people. 
It is conspicuously unjust for the majority to intimate or assume that such 
w rongs and crimes disgrace the members of the democratic party alone. 
This investigation has elicited disgusting evidences of the demoralization 
and criminality of individual members of both political parties. 

The history of elections throughout our country since the predominance 
in it of the present republican party furnishes numerous and stupendous 
examples of lawlessness and frauds in the interests of that party. Tlie 
conduct of elections by them in the city of New York, in the State of 
Ohio, in the State, and especially at Indianapolis, the capital, of Indiana, 
in Kentucky, Missouri, and many other States, during and since the late 
war, has been in the highest degree dishonorable to them and to our 
country, and subversive of the great aim of representative institutions. 
The freedom and purity of elections were many times utterly destroyed; 
and unauthorized persons in very great numbers, and many times w hole 
companies and regiments of soldiers, were, in defiance of law, voted, and 
voted repeatedly in their interests, and elections were thus controlled. 

It appears to be the judgment of the majority that the remedy for 
these great evils can only come from Congress, and need not be ex])ected 
to originate in or be provided by the States of the Union. We fear the 
experience of the country cannot justify concurrence in their oiiinion. 



100 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


Oon.iu’ess has exercised undisputed authority in this District (of Colum¬ 
bia) for many years, and supreme and irresistible, but in our judgment 
usurped, i)ower in many States of the south; but the conduct and inci¬ 
dents of popular elections in these several places affords no reliable or 
encouraging evidence of improvement or reform under federal super¬ 
vision. The body of electors in these places, under congressional tute¬ 
lage, appears to have been depreciated very materially in the essential 
elements of good citizenship. Their elections bring us innumerable evi¬ 
dences and examples of violence, corruption, confusion, lawlessness, and 
anarchy. We trust the people will give solemn consideration to this 
great subject before they consent to commit these vital interests to the 
regulation and jurisdiction of the federal government. 

Before we proceed to the presentation in detail of the facts and our 
conclusions in reference to the late elections in Kew York, we must sub¬ 
mit, for the better understanding of this matter, a few general facts, the 
signitLcance of which will need no suggestions from us, 

THE REPUBLICAN PARTY CONTROL NEW YORK. 

Let it not be forgotten that, for many years past, the State of New 
York has been under the control of the republican party. Its laws for 
tlie government of the State at large, and of all its cities, and for the 
regulation of all its elections, were either enacted by that jiarty or were 
subject to its unrestricted control, for amendment, repeal, or reformation. 
If, therefore, they are defective, the fault is theirs, and they should be 
held responsible for the evil results which have followed. 

It is true the city of New York has been democratic for several years; 
but it is also true, and it is an impressive fact in this investigation, that 
it was and is the policy of the republican party to deny to and divest 
the city of New York of the great fundamental right of municipal self- 
government. This has been very effectually done by that party, and 
there have been created by it several ‘Hmards” and ‘teommissions,’’ in¬ 
vested with most important powers and jurisdiction, and relieved of all 
responsibility or subordination to the city or the people of the city in the 
discharge of their duties. The p)owers thus wrongfully taken from the city 
embrace the exclusive control of all elections^ and of the entire police force of 
the city. All cleciion officers are appointed and removed^ and all police offi¬ 
cers are appointed and removed^ solely by one of these boards^ called the 
‘‘Metropolitan Board of Police.’^ The result of this transfer of power 
from its rightfid possessors has not been promotive of the good order, 
good government, or honor of that great city. 

Let it also be remembered that the election officers to conduct all elec¬ 
tions are constituted, as stated by Hon. A. Oakey Hall, x>resent mayor 
of the city, in his testimony: 

The police board at the designated period, in anticipation of the November election, are 
charged with the duty of naming four inspectors of tlie registry and of election, the individ¬ 
uals being charged with the two duties in the 340 districts of this city ; the persons so named 
execute both duties. They care for the registry and they take the votes. The police board 
are also charged with the duty of appointing, in time for the election, two poll-clerks at each 
election district, and two canvassers at each election district. The poll-clerks assist the 
inspectors in their duty, and also the canvassers. There is no law, that I am aware of, estab¬ 
lishing that the four iuspectors or the two canvassers shall be equally divided between the 
two political parties, but such has been the usage. It is made the duty, by the police act, 
of the superintendent to detail on election day at least one policeman at each poll in each 
election district. There is usually, how'ever, one oflBcer inside the poll and one outside. 

2946. Q. How was it during the last general election?—A. All this machinery which I 
have described was in operation, so far as I know, and I visited during the election day 
more than JnO polling places personally. 

2947. Q. Was this machinery, so organized and constituted, the only machinery for the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


101 


protection of the election and of the poll against frauds or unlawful conduct of any kind?— 
A. It was the only legal machinery, but not the only practical machinery. The” practical 
machinery consisted of each party furnishing at each poll a challenger, and each party tnore 
or less appointing a committee to conduct the poll and to take charge of the expected illegal 
voting, it was generally done by the local candidates, or supposed to be done by the local 
candidates or their friends. 

2948. Q Do you know of any interruption on the part of any officer of the legal force tt» 
which you have referred to the organization of that sort of voluntary force ?—A. I do nut, 
except what I have read in the public prints. 

2949. Q. Do you know of any other force, lawful or unlawful, being organized for the pur¬ 
pose of {)rotecting the polls on election day by anybody?—A. I have already stated that the 
two political parties had agents there. 

Under such an organization of election and police oflicers, aided by 
other officers, challengers, committees, and such political machinery tis 
is usually supplied by the voluntary action of i)tirties, it would sevm 
almost impossible that very extensive frauds could be successfully prac¬ 
ticed in the interests of either party, at least without the consent and 
co-operation of both; and wherever great frauds were in fact commitbHl 
upon the ballot-box or the registry, the testimony strongly tends to show 
that this was the case. 

ORIGIN AND MOTIVES OF THIS INVESTIGATION. 

This committee was called into being by this house in compliance with 
a memorial from the Union League of New York. There was no contest 
pending to render it proper or necessary. It is not confined in its scope 
or puri)oses to investigations into the conduct of congressional elections, 
or elections for electors for President and Vice-President, but extends to 
all elections for all kinds of officers of the State of New York at the 
November election in 1868. This involves an assertion of jurisdiction 
that does not rightfully exist in this house. 

The League, a few days after that election, in order to make a basis for 
their ‘‘memorial,” emifioyed several attorneys to %corl{ up the case and 
discover evidence necessary to give it some support. These lawyers ai e 
John A. Poster, Samuel J. Glassey, John H. White, and John I. Daven¬ 
port. The latter is also the clerk of this committee. These gentlemen 
are all earnest partisans of the League. They were all continued in the 
service of the League, after the memorial was presented, to aid the majority 
of this committee in jn'oeuring, organizing, disciplining, and in some 
cases paying for such testimony as has been taken by them. See testimony, 
pp. 114, 118, 183, 227, 352, 472, 597, 604. 

Besides these gentlemen, it also appears in evidence that Howard T. 
Marston and George Bliss, jr., attorneys, William P. Wood, a United 
States detective, and other members of the League, were employed in the 
same business. Tlieir talents, ingenuity, and industry were expended 
in efforts only to promote the interests of the League in a piuvly i)artisan 
sense. 

In addition to all these, the Lea gue placed at the service of the majority 
of the committee an indefinite number of messengers to serve their pro¬ 
cess and do the bidding of the officers of the committee and of the other 
attorneys and agents of the League. The country, the House, and all 
impartial and just minded men may readily infer from these facts tlie 
spirit, intent, interested and partisan motives whi(di have served the 
majority of the committee, and have presided over the preparation of 
this case for the League. 

How well calculated these facts are to defeat and pervert the high and 
honorable object, and to destroy utterly the fairness and judicial char¬ 
acter of such an investigation as this no man of intelligence can for a 


102 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


moiiieiit fail to see. These interested agents have expended boundless 
industry to discover^ or to seeure men to sivear to, frauds, or alleged frauds, 
committed in all parts of the State by democrats, but none to discover 
or make proof of frauds committed anywhere by republicans. The truth 
of this statement is amply and signilicantly vindicated upon almost every 
page of the testimony taken by the committee. The majority in their 
report appear to have been unable to resist or rebuke this partisan animus, 
and, with resi)ect, we submit that it uniformly colors and discredits their 
conclusions. 

THE REPIT^LICAN SUBORNATION OFFICE IN JERSEY CITY AND WILLIAM 

P. WOOD. 

Tliis man seems, during the labors of this committee in Kew York, to 
have wholly forgotten Ids obligations and duties as a hired detective in 
the service of the treasury of the United States. He organized an 
office in Jersey City, in Taylor’s Hotel, in room No. 18, with a corps of 
sliort-hand reporters, all undoubtedly in the employment and under the 
pay of the League, to which his agents in New York in the like service 
sent numerous persons, lislied up from the sinks and cesspools of de¬ 
moralization, vice, and crime in that great city, who were there and by 
him and his assistants examined; induced by promises of protection 
from puidshment and of iiecuniary reward to make statements of one 
kind or another, Avhich were there written down, and then sent back to 
New York and handed to the committee as the basis or gidde for the 
chairman in the examination of the witnesses. Numerous witnesses, 
both republicans and democrats, testify that these persons, the general 
class, were the most debased of common criminals in the city of New 
York. Their testimony on almost every page and line bears the most 
ample and fatal ear-marks and indicia of falsehood and viciousness. It 
is the most solemn conviction of the undersigned that a large majority 
of the witnesses whose testimony was taken by the committee were 
totally unworthy, uiion any iirinciple of law or rational conduct, of 
belief or respect. 

AVe give the following examples and illustrations of the business done 
at Mr. Wood’s office in Jersey City: 

Louis Campbell testifies, at page 5G0, as follows: 

At the time I made the statement at Taylor’s Hotel in Jersey City I was what you may 
call drunk. Whiskey was bought for me and I was made drunk. ^ * i was plied with 

liquor before the statement was made. It was represented to me that nothing would be 
done about it, and when I got back to New York I got !$10 in money for going over and 
making this statement. 

60:iB. Q. What statement are you referring to now?—A. The statement, they say, is here 
that I made in New Jersey. 

6039. Q. When did you go over to make a statement in New Jersey ?—A. I was over in 
New Jersey on Saturday. 

Michael Edwards testifies, at page 572, as follows: 

62*28. I gave my name here as George Nelson. What I testified to the other day was 
that 1 went to a place in Wooster street and Crosby and voted several times, and it was an 
untruth. 

6229. Q. What you swore to the other day was an untruth ?—A. An untruth. I was told 
I would get paid for it, and receive the sum of $10—$5 for making a statement in Jersey 
City, and $5 for the statement here. 

John Keating testifies, at page 578, as follows : 

6313. Question. State if you know of any combination or conspiracy in this city or in 
Brooklyn organized with a view to induce persons to give false testimony before this com¬ 
mittee in relation to repeating; if so, state what you know about it.—Answer. I was pass- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


103 

ing by and I saw'the policemen around, and I saw some excitement, and I walked in, and I 
heard the investigation committee was here investigating frauds ; and I was standing near 
tlie door and Mr. James Ward was coming up, and we got to talking about how dull the 
times was, and a man came up (Colonel Wood) and put his hand on our shoulders and said, 
“Everything is right, boys,” and took us aside, and he said for us to come in here and give 
testimony that we repeated the democratic ticket on the 3d of November, and he said he 
would be a friend of ours, and for us not to go back on him like the rest of them did. He 
gave me $10—15 apiece—to divide amongst me and Mr. Ward, and bid us good day; and 
Mr. Wood went off and I gave Mr. Ward $5, and here is the $5 now, sir; I have got it in 
my pocket yet, [laying a $5 bill upon the table. ] 

James \Yard, at page 573, testifies substantially to the facts proven 
by Mr. Keating. 

J. F. Tapper, the stenographer of Colonel Wood’s Jersey City office, 
testifies as follows, at page 660, concerning something he saw in that 
office: 

7306. Q. Who examined the witnesses over there?—A. I examined most of them. 

7308. Q. Did any of thena state to you that they were thieves and pickpockets ?—A. One 
man, in answer to a question of Colonel Wood, as to what his occupation was, said, “I 
steal for a living when I get a chance.” 

7309. Q. Was his statement taken ?—A. His statement was taken. 

7310. Q. And forwarded over here?—A. I suppose so. The name he gave was Harris. 

7311. Q. Colonel 'Wood made no objection to taking his testimony ?— A. No, sir. 

Samuel Baker, another witness from the Jersey City (Wood’s) office, 
testifies as follows, at pp. 554, 555: 

5960. Q. What money did you get ? A. I got $5 for the statement, and $5 after I was 
Bwmrn here. 

5961. Q. Where did you get the first $5 ?—A. I got the first $5 in Jersey City. 

5962. Q. Whereabouts ?—A. In a liquor store there. 

5963. Q. Who gave it to you ?—A. Dorans; he said he got it from Colonel Wood. 

5964. Q. Who gave you the $5 after you had testified here ?—A. Dorans ; he said he got 
that from Colonel Wood also. 

5965. Q. When you went over to Jersey City, whom did you see there ?—A. I saw Colonel 
Wood and two short-hand writers. 

John Korton, another witness, testifies, at page 570, as follows: 

6174. Q. State what money you got for making your statement the other day, and from 
whom you got it.—A. I received $5 in Jersey City. 

6175. Q. For the statement you made the other day ?—A. Yes, sir; I also received $5 here 
at this hall. 

6176. Q. State who got you to go over to Jersey City.—A. A young man by the name of 
Samuel Baker; he received the money from Colonel Wood; he gave me $5 to go over there, 
and $5 for giving my evidence here. 

W"e could give numerous others, but it is not necessary to do so. 

It is a remarkable and iuiiiortant fact that Mr. Wood, although in the 
immediate vicinity of the committee all the time it was in New York 
city, never sought an opportunity, under oath or otherwise, to explain 
these things, and his conduct in connection with these scoundrels and 
perjurers j and the managers of the case for the League never dared to 
put him upon the witness stand. The reason is obvious. His conduct 
and true character in these matters further appear in other portions of 
this report. 

naturalization, and the increased NU3IBER NATURALIZED IN 1868. 

A very ingenious but scarcely fair attempt is made in the report of 
the majority to create the impression that the number of aliens natural¬ 
ized in the city of New York during the year 1868 was enormously large 
as compared with tlie 12 years next previous. One of the means by 
which such a disproportion is apparently shown is by taking the average 
number naturalized yearly during the 12 years as the basis for compari¬ 
son. This average was 9,207. How unfair it is to take that number 


104 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


will be made manifest by gi^ang tlie total number naturalized in each of 
the 12 years, which we repeat as stated in the majority report: 


1856—Total naturalizations. 16,493 

1857 .do. 8,991 

1858 .do. 6,769 

1859 .do. 7,636 

1860 .do. 13,556 

1861 .do. 3,903 


1862- 

-Total naturalizations- 

.... 2,414 

1863. 


.... 2,633 

1864. 


.... 12,171 

1865. 


.... 7,428 

1866. 


.... 13,023 

1867. 


.... 15,476 


It appears that the number naturalized during the years 1861, 1862, 
and 1863, when the war was in full progress, was much smaller than in 
any of the other nine years. The total number for the three years was 
8,950, which was only about the ordinary number for a single year. By 
taking the average number, the small naturalization during these three 
years is made to reduce the apparent number naturalized in each of the 
other nine years, while the number who omitted naturalization then 
have doubtless almost all become citizens since, thus increasing the num¬ 
ber in subsequent years. The reason why the number naturalized dimng 
the war was comparatively small is well known. If a man became a 
citizen he was liable to be drafted, while, if willing to be a soldier, he 
volunteered without waiting to be naturalized, and obtained a bounty. 
The effect of this cause in reducing naturalizations is shown by the fact 
that notwithstanding the small naturalization of the three years next 
preceding 1864, and the excitement which attended the contest between 
Lincoln and McClellan, the number naturalized that year was less than 
in 1860 or in 1866. 

Another means by which the increase in 1868 is made larger is by 
overstating the number naturalized in 1868. It is put by the committee 
at 41,112. That number is obtained by including 27,897 as the number 
naturalized in the superior court. This number was given by a young 
man named Westlake, who was directed by the clerk of the court to 
count the naturalizations, as the committee had requested him to fur¬ 
nish them with the total number. The number was not only proved 
after^wards by the deputy clerk to be over 9,000 too large, but the per¬ 
sons who examined all the papers in the court on behalf of the commit¬ 
tee, or the Loyal League, reported to the committee that the number 
naturalized in October, 1868, was 8,654 less than the number stated by 
Mr. Westlake for that month. Deducting 8,654 from the total of 41,112, 
we have 32,458 as the total number naturalized in 1868. That the ma¬ 
jority should have adhered to the larger number in face of these facts is 
not calculated to produce a favorable impression as to the fairness of their 
report. 

Another reason of the increased naturalization since 1865 is that, in 
that year^ the republican legislature of New York, in the hope of re¬ 
ducing the democratic vote, which was fast becoming a majority in the 
State, passed a law that no adopted citizen should be registered-as a 
voter in any incorporated city or village unless he exhibited his certifi¬ 
cate of naturalization to the registering officers. As these, in each dis¬ 
trict of the city of New York, were supposed to consist of two republi¬ 
cans and two democrats, all of whom were appointed by a board of 
police then composed of three republicans and only one democrat, the 
law was administered with great rigor. In consequence large numbers 
of adopted citizens who had been voters for a number of years found 
themselves disfranchised, because they could not produce their papers. 
So, also, the sons of many such, naturalized while minors by the citizen- 
sliip of their fathers, were disfranchised because unable to produce the 
certificates of their fathers. As a general rule, all these persons have 

















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 105 

been naturalized again, as the easiest way to get over the difficulty, and 
they have largely increased the numbers of natui’alizations during the 
years 1866,1^67, and 1868. 

Nor is this all. The aggressive character of the republican legislation 
in the State of New York towards the city, and especially towards its 
inhabitants‘if of foreign birth, has awakened a feeling of resentment; 

of late, year after year, thousands have come forward and secured 
citizenship for the purpose of aiding to vote the republicans out of power, 
who, under a wise and more liberal policy, might have remained indif¬ 
ferent. 

New York city is also the centre of naturalization, as it is in other 
respects, for many of the surrounding counties of the State of New 
York. In most of these counties the county seat is inland, and it is 
easier and less expensive for a large majority of the inhabitants of Eich- 
niond, Queens, Westchester, Putnam, and Eockland counties, in the 
State of New York, to go to the city of New York for any business than 
it is to go to the county towns of the counties in which they respect¬ 
ively reside. Besides, in such counties the courts are seldom open, while 
in New York they are seldom closed. This tendency to go to New York 
for naturalization has doubtless been increased by the additional rail¬ 
road facilities provided within the last few years. 

But it does not need such justification to prove that the number natu¬ 
ralized in 1868 was reasonable in comparison with former years. It will 
be seen by the total natoalization in each year given above that in 
each of the presidential years, 1856,1860, and 1864, the number natural¬ 
ized was, as near as need be, at least double the naturalization of the 
year immediately preceding or immediately succeeding. So, also, in 1868, 
the total naturalization, 32,458, was about double that of the year 1867, 
and less than double that of 1856, against which no comi>lain"t has ever 
been made. No more conclusive vindication of the number naturalized 
is needed than that it was less than double the number admitted to have 
been fairly naturalized in 1856, twelve full years previous. 

Complaint is made, however, because only about one-tenth of the num¬ 
ber naturalized in 1868 went through the coui't of common pleas. This 
complaint is of such trifling importance as hardly to deserve refutation. 
Three thou.sand one hundred and forty-five were naturalized in that 
court in 1868, against 4,662 in 1864. One good reason for the preference 
of the other courts is that they were held much nearer to the naturali¬ 
zation offices of the respective political parties—a fact in itself amply 
sufficient to determine the preference of parties desiring to be natural¬ 
ized. A more conclusive reason, however, is found in the fact testified 
to by Mr. Jarvis, the clerk of that court, that they did not naturalize 
‘teapidly enough.^ There were but three judges to that court, and they 
could only attend to naturalization between the hours of 10 and 11 a. m. 
and 3 and 4 p. m., while in the other courts there were nine judges, sev¬ 
eral of whom would attend to the business at the same time, and hold 
court, if necessary, until late in the evening. That the supreme court 
did not issue naturalization certificates prior to 1868 is of even less 
importance, in view of the fact that it was both the right and duty of 
that court to admit to citizenship all applicants who were duly proved 
to be qualified. Only those who are at heart opposed to admitting per¬ 
sons of foreign birth to the inestimable privilege of American citizenship 
will object that the necessary facilities were afforded to applicants for 
the privilege, or complain that, when there was a large number apply¬ 
ing, the judges sought to expedite rather than delay business, and 
incommoded themselves by holding coui’t until late hours that they might 


106 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


aid those who, while seeking to become American citizens, could not for¬ 
get that their families were dependent upon the earnings of their daily 
hibor. 

It is said very truly that one judge i)assed upon over 900 applications 
in a day. Why should he not have done so, if he were ])atriotic and 
kind-hearted enough to endure the fatigue? Any good business man, 
quick in mind and movement, and of prompt habits, who will practice 
the little that is to be done in such cases so that he can do it with des¬ 
patch, can easily pass upon two applications in each minute, on an aver¬ 
age, and consider them separately. At this rate he could pass upon 
900 in eight hours. The judge who is said to have been so fast in natur¬ 
alizing x)ersons is a man of unequalled quickness in the despatch of all 
the business of his court. 

Many of these objections may seem plausible because the methods of 
doing business in the ISTew York courts are not generally known. It is 
usual for a judge there to give his fiat for the entry of an order by 
merely writing the initial letters of his name; and that was all the 
writing a judge had to do in passing upon naturalization i:>apers, and 
that he could do wiiile examining the w itness. All the oaths may be 
administered in all court business by the clerk, being merely done in 
the presence of the court; and the oath of allegiance could be adminis¬ 
tered to the applicant by the clerk wdiile the witness was being examined 
by the judge. So also in respect to the record of the naturalizations. A 
labored attempt is made in the majority report to show^ that the New 
York naturalizations are illegal because a record was not made up at the 
time ill eaeh case. It is not the practice of the courts in that city to 
make up their records immediately. The material for the record is pro¬ 
vided at the time, and it is then made up at convenience. The press of 
business in these courts wdll not wait for slow formalities. Records are 
almost universally made up subsequently to the proceedings; but w hen 
made up they are records, and have all the authority attaching to 
records and can only be impeached in the manner provided by law. 

The point most strenuously urged in the majority report is the grreat 
number of what are called minor applications that were issued. These 
are issued without any previous declaration of intention to become citi¬ 
zens, to iiersons who arrived in the country before they became eighteen 
years of age. The advantage wdiich this form of natimalization has is, 
that it can be accomplished at once; w hile if the party w as older than 
eighteen w hen he arrived in the country he cannot be naturalized until 
the expiration of two years after the time at wdiich he is proved in open 
court to have declared his intention to become a citizen. Nearly all the 
naturalizations in the supreme court Avere upon applications as minors. 
Ill the superior court less than eighty per cent, of the naturalizations 
were of that class. Eighty per cent, does not seem disproportionate 
when we remember that Mr. Cook, of the republican committee, who 
had charge of the republican naturalization office, testified that about 
sixty per cent, of their naturalizations a\ ere of the same kind. 

The number of minor applications Avas necessarily large. Persons 
Avho had voted for years, having been made citizens" w hile they were 
minors by the naturalization of their fathers, were denied registration 
ill 1865 because they could not produce certificates of the naturalizatiou 
of their fathers. In such a case the re-naturalization of the father 
would not help the son, because, having ceased to be a minor he would 
not be reached by it. The only recourse was for the son to be natural¬ 
ized, and this could be done immediately because he was under 18 when 
he arrived in the country. In this Avay the proportion of minor appli¬ 
cations was largely increased. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


107 


Kevertheless there is no doubt that many fraudulent naturalizations 
were obtained from the courts, and that they were mostly in i^re- 
teuded minor cases. These were so obtained by perjury and forgery. 
The judges were imposed upon. We shall consider the manner in which 
tliis was done more fully under another head, to which reference is here 
made. 

The tables prepared by the Loyal League agents, after an examina¬ 
tion of the api)lications singly, only show 2,749 cases in the supreme 
court, and 2,379 in the superior court, in which they claimed that the 
witnesses belonged to i\\Q.gang of common swearers. These 5,128 cases 
undoubtedly include all the fraudulent naturalizations and a very large 
number of honest ones. The number of specific cases of fraud of which 
any proof was ofiered is very inconsiderable, and it was i)roved that 
the number of those who voted was very small in proportion to the 
number who held fraudulent certificates. Most persons who had fraud¬ 
ulent or even doubtful certificates either failed to claim a vote or were 
driven otf by the inspectors and police. 

It is undoubtedly fair to assume that a spirit of hostility to persons of 
foreign birth, and of opposition to their free admission to the enjoyment*, 
of citizenship and suffrage, had much to do in the origin and conduct 
of this investigation. Why this hostility? Is it because this class of 
citizens too generally vote the democratic ticket ? It cannot be said 
that they do not make good citizens. They are generally orderly, indus¬ 
trious, and obedient to law. They bring to our coumry untold millions 
of values and wealth. They are generally frugal, thrifty, and self-sup¬ 
porting. They ask and receive no donations of money from Congress to 
relieve the distresses of their poor. They ask the guardianshii) and 
pecuniary support of no Freedmens’ Bureau. They contribute in taxes 
a large proportion of the revenues that suxiport all our governments. 
They contribute most effectively, and to a vast extent, in money, muscle, 
industry, talents, mechanical skill, and executive ability, to the devel¬ 
opment of all our great material interests, and to the resulting increase 
in our national values, resources, prosperity, and happiness. 

In every hour of national peril or emergency they have always been 
prompt and effective in their support of the government. During the 
late war they were everywhere faithful and loyal, and gave more than 
their full proportion of volunteers and other soldiers to the armies of the 
Union. The great city of Kew York alone gave, during that fearful 
struggle to sui)X3ort the government, near a hundred thousand men of 
foreign birth or parentage. They have at all times given the highest 
evidence of devotion to our institutions. Impelled by the love of them, 
and the desire for the freedom which they are intended to secure, they 
left their homes and severed the attachments of their nativity and early 
lives, and sought identification in allegiance, interests, and liberty wuth 
us. 

It ill becomes the republican party to deny them these i)rivileges. 
They have advanced the negro by a single leap from slavery to suffrage. 
Let the Irish and German immigrant be treated with at least equal lib¬ 
erality. The most effectual guard against fraud in naturalizations and 
voting is to throw open the door of welcome to them. Let every man 
who has resided a year upon our soil, with the hona fide intention to 
acquire citizenship, become an American citizen and share in all the 
rights and duties of a citizen ) or, if it be preferred, let him be natural¬ 
ized upon six months’ residence, and become a voter six months after¬ 
wards. If the suffrage everywhere follows a year’s residence, and the 
elections are held on the same day throughout the United States, we 


108 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


sliall hear less of election frauds. This is the greatest measure of reform, 
as well as the noblest measure of justice. Let it be accomplished. 

In a far different spirit is the proposition of the majority report, to 
prohibit naturalizations by the supreme and the superior courts in the 
city of New York while any of the present judges remain on the bench, 
or, in other words, during eight years in one court and six in the other. 
Among the judges of those courts are men who are without superiors 
in the Union for high integrity of character. The attempt to put such 
a stigma ui)on them will excite the universal indignation of their fellow- 
citizens, while the real object sought, the prevention of naturalizations 
in that great city, will signally fail. The democratic vote will roll up 
faster even than it has under the proscrixffive legislation of the repub¬ 
licans in the State. Organizations will be formed of adopted citizens to 
secure the naturalization, day by day, in the court of common pleas, of 
all their countrymen who have resided five years in the country; and 
those who are now lashed to desperation by 70,000 democratic majority 
in that city will find that they have aroused the lion in his strength 
when they hear a majority verging upon a hundred thousand thundering 
about their ears. 

It cannot be pretended by the most fanatical of political bigots that 
the emigrants coming annually by hundreds of thousands to our shores 
are not, in intelligence, industry, morality, capacity for self-government^ 
and even loyalty, immeasurably superior to the emancipated negroes of 
the south, and their labor infinitely more intelligent, skilful, and pro¬ 
ductive. Experience has showm most clearly that these emigrants can 
be safely intrusted with citizenship and its most imi)ortant franchises. 
They have never proven false to the country or its institutions. The 
colored man in the south, in his natiural dulness and kindness, and 
original lack of individuality, or i^ersonal power or enterprise, steadily 
adhered to the fortunes and interests of his rebellious master, and most 
materially contributed to sustain and continue that sanguinary struggle. 
Yet he is made a citizen and given suffrage. 

The admitted fact that emigrants usually seek their homes in the 
northern and western States can afford no sound objection to the pro¬ 
posed change. To dignify intelligent labor by confering the rights of 
citizenship, and to identify the affections and interests of those who toil 
with the institutions and people of a State, is as important to Pennsyl¬ 
vania as it can be to South Carolina. 

INCREASED VOTE IN NEW YORK CITY IN 1868. 

The chief desire of the majority in the testimony taken and in their 
report seems to have been the injury of the democratic party, by shelving 
that the vote in the city of New York was both excessive and fraudulent. 
Failing to do this in detail, an attempt was made to cover up the failure 
by the introduction of 13 pages of tables, (pp. 352 to 365 of testimony,) 
prepared by a Mr, Marston. Wliat the tables amount to, except as a 
monument to the industry of the compiler, no human ingenuity can 
devise. So far as they have any pertinency to this investigation, their 
value is destroyed by adopting the State census of 1865 as'the basis of 
comparison. That census was taken under the direction of a republi¬ 
can secretary of state, and the fact that the population of the city of 
New York and the adjoining counties was understated, for the purpose 
of reducing their representation in the State legislature, is so notorious 
that “ Depew’s census ” has become a by-word among aU parties. No 
one in New York professes to believe in its correctness. The mere fact 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


109 


that the population of that great and growing city, which w^as 813,669 
by the United States census of 1860, was reduced by Depew's census of 
1865 to 726,386, a loss of 87,283, is sufficient in itself to prove the worth¬ 
lessness of the return. 

The first of Mr. Marstoifs tables is a statement of the number of men 
enrolled in the city of NTew York in 1863, preparatory to the draft. It 
might be thought that any reference to that enrolment would be so 
unpleasant to republican ears that this table would have been omitted. 
That enrolment was made by men who had only one idea, and that was 
to make it large. Mechanics were enrolled where they lived, and again 
at their shops, and often where they happened to be for a few hours 
working at a job. Those who made the enrolment even hung around 
bar-rooms and took dovTi the names of those who came in to drink. To 
such an extent was this matter carried that when the draft was made 
many persons were each drawm two, three, or four times. This was the 
severest kind of‘^repeating” ever known in the United States. The 
fact was so conclusively proven that the government repudiated the 
enrolment and made a reduction of 20,000 in the quota of men the city 
was required to furnish. Only one reason can be guessed for including 
tliis table. Mr. Marston, who says he is a democrat, and made democratic 
speeches during the campaign, but was employed by the Loyal League 
committee to prepare the tables, probably thought that this particular 
table would be a good satire upon the actions of the League in origi¬ 
nating this investigation. K there were 151,052 citizens and persons 
who had declared their intention to become citizens, between the ages 
of 20 and 45, ui 1863, it seems absurd to doubt that there must have 
been many more than 156,078 citizens entitled to vote five years after¬ 
wards, as the latter included all those over as well as those under 45 
years of age. 

Tables of very great value, prepared by Mr. Henry E. Sweetser, of New 
York, were also put in evidence, (pages 422 to 425 of the testimony.) These 
are very pertinent and clear in the results they demonstrate, one of which 
is that the proportion of votes to population is not so large in the city of 
New York as it is in the rest of the State, or in the States of Connecticut, 
New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Tke only reasonable test of the vote 
in New York is a comparison with the vote of Philadelphia. In New 
York the vote in 1868 was 156,078, and the population in 1860 was 
813,669, being one vote to every five and a fraction (j^) of population, 
and in Philadelphia the vote was 116,158 to 562,529 of population, being 
one vote to every four and a fraction cf population. As Philadel¬ 
phia gave a majority for Grant we have no outcry about its large vote. 
Perhaps it would be well to have a committee of investigation, as this 
committee would not allow tlie minority to introduce evidence that 
republican ‘U^epeaters’^ were sent from New York to Philadelphia. 

With a singular one-sightedness the majorityof the committee can 
oidy look at the increased vote in New York as a democratic major¬ 
ity. They never apply their percentage to the Grant column, or allow 
it a place in their tables. In 1866 the vote in New York for Fenton 
was 33,492, and in 1868, for Grant, 47,748, being an increase of over 42 
per cent.; while the vote in 1866 for Hofiman was 80,667, and in 1868, 
for Seymour, 108,033, being an increase of only 34 per cent. If the 
increased vote were a sin, on whose shoulders rests the greater burden ? 

There was indeed abundant material in the city of New York for a very 
large number of naturalized aliens. Even “ Depew^s census,” which noto¬ 
riously understated the population of the city, gives 151,838 as the num¬ 
ber of unnaturalized aliens in that city in 1865, after the close of the Avar. 


110 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


This was more than one-fifth of the entire population of the city. As 
more than three years had elapsed last October since that census w^as 
taken, but a very small portion of that number of aliens could then have 
been less than five years in the country. The mere statement of the fact 
that there was this abundant material for naturalization, should be suf¬ 
ficient in itself to silence all cavilling as to the number naturalized, 
except so far as the naturalization was shown to be fraudulent. 

Many reasons may be given why the democratic vote should have 
increased largely in the city of New York, butnonefor any considerable 
increase of the republican. Yet the republican vote was very largely 
increased. The testimony taken in the contested election case of Dodge 
vs. Brooks, shows that thousands of voters in districts overwhelmingly 
democratic, who attended the polls to vote at the presidential election 
in 1864, were shut out by the delay in receiving votes purposely prac¬ 
ticed by the republican inspectors. In the few republican districts, the 
democrats allowed the republicans to vote without delay, but for the 
strong democratic districts, republican inspectors were carefully selected, 
who were utter strangers in the districts to which they were respectively 
sent, and who had the assurance to challenge systematically for the mere 
purpose of delay. From one to two hundred votes in a district, voting 
ten democrats to one republican, were kept waiting all day, and the 
polls closed with a like crowd in attendance, waiting to vote and losing 
their votes. More than double the number of votes were taken in a 
republican district than were allowed to be polled in a democratic dis¬ 
trict. It was estimated at the time by well-informed politicians that 
General McClellan was in that manner robbed of at least 10,000 votes 
in the city of New York; more than enough to have changed the result 
in the State. This opinion is fully justified by the sworn testimony to 
which we have referred, and which may be found in the printed docu¬ 
ments of the 39th Congress. 

The majority in their report indicate their disapprobation that inspec¬ 
tors were appointed in the several election districts who were unac¬ 
quainted with the voters. It is gratifying to have them thus rebuke the 
infamous course heretofore pursued by their political friends. When the 
inspectors were required by law to register the voters they knew in the 
district, as was formerly the case, it is notorious in that city that the 
republicans sent inspectors to districts in which they were unacquainted, 
so that they should not be able to register voters who did not appear in 
person. After this law was changed so that voters were required to 
appear in person, the republicans continued to appoint inspectors who 
were strangers in the district, in order that they might challenge more 
freely. A man has to be very shameless to challenge without provoca¬ 
tion another whom he knows to be a legal voter. Strangers have less 
scruple. The republican inspectors were therefore generally appointed 
for districts far distant from the places of their residence. The repub¬ 
lican legislature amended the law for the apparent purpose of permit- 
' ting such practices j and to such an extent was this dishonest challeng¬ 
ing carried, that the democratic common council were compelled to make 
more than 100 new districts in order to foil these desperate partisans, 
and secure to the people the more certain exercise of their right of suf¬ 
frage. All such schemes for keeping out legal votes are as dishonest as 
the polling of illegal votes, and we heartily join with the majority in 
rebuking the plan by which such wrongs have been accomplished. 

One reason why the democratic vote has been largely increased in 
New York, is the constant emigration there has been to that city from 
the southern States. During the war true Unionists moved north. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Ill 


because they loved the old Union and would not help destroy it. These 
vote the democratic ticket because they are opposed to negro domina¬ 
tion, and the reconstruction policy of Congress. Those whose Unionism 
was based upon dollars and cents lingered around the army and fattened 
at the flesh-pots. Since the war was ended, others have moved north 
because they found a longer residence at the south, in its present deplora¬ 
ble condition, unendurable. Both of these numerous classes have largely 
settled in New York, and aided by thousands to roll up its immense 
democratic vote. 

Another reason for the increased democratic vote in New York, is the 
manner in which that city has been treated by the republican legislature 
of the State. In 1865 a law was passed that in incorporated cities and 
villages no naturalized citizen not on the poll list of the next preceding 
election should be registered unless he produced his certificate of natu¬ 
ralization. Although this shut out thousands of naturalized voters, it 
did not reduce the democratic vote in the city as largely as the repub¬ 
lican managers expected. So the next year, 1866, they passed a law 
applicable only to the cities of New York and Brooklyn, by which, in 
Uiose cities, no person could be registered unless he appeared before the 
inspectors in person. This proscrii)tive legislation, and other laws ot 
like character, especially the excise law, roused the indignation of the 
people irrespective of party. At the next election, although no Presi¬ 
dent was to be chosen, 3,779 more votes were polled than in 1864; but 
this did not show the democratic gain, for while Hoffman for governor 
received 6,768 more votes than McClellan did for President, Pentoii 
received 3,194 less than Lincoln. This feeling of hostility has been 
steadily grooving ever since, as shown in the large vote of last fall. 
Nothing is more difficult than to repress the spirit of a great people, 
who not only “know their rights but dare maintain them.^^ 

Nothing is alleged in the majority report calculated to break the force 
of the facts we have stated except a suggestion that New York sent 
a great many soldiers to the war, many of whom died and others may 
have settled at the south. It is too true that many of them died, but 
' very few settled at the south. Only a few of the officers joined the grand 
army of carpet-baggers, and they were selected by the republican poicer 
and were mostly republicans. The fact is that the democratic vote in 
New York city has been increased by the returned soldier. The majority 
of the committee are therefore able to state no reason why the demo¬ 
cratic vote in New York should not have been increased, but we have 
shown conclusive reasons why it should have been. 

THE TAMIVTANY NATURALIZATION COMMITTEE. 

Tlie only recognized naturalization committee of the democratic party 
in the city of New York, w as appointed by Tammany Hall, and presided 
over by Judge Moses H. Gale, a man of know n purity of character. 

Beside Judge Gale the committee consisted of P. H. Keenan, of the 
7 th w^ard; S. McGrane, 20th ward; Alexander Ward, of the 22d ward; 
Anthony Miller, of the 13th ward; and Hugh O’Brien, of the 14th ward. 

The committee had their office at the corner of Centre street and Tiyon 
Bow, (not at No. 6 Centre street.) A Mr. Mulligan had charge of this office 
with some 20 employes. He (Gale) “emifloyed them as they had always 
been employed before, to be in attendance there to fill up naturalization 
blanks for parties who desired to procure their naturalization papers 
under the auspices of Tammany Hall—in other words, to facilitate the 
naturalization of all persons who w ere entitled to get out their impers. 


112 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


and whose design and intention it was to support the democratic candi¬ 
dates at the approaching election.’^ (Page 310.) 

Further on (p. 311) Mr. Gale swears: 

I know of no instance of any fraud having been committed. I know of no instance in 
■which a false or fraudulent paper has been taken out. 

On the same page Judge Gale swears as follows concerning the Posen- 
berg office at No. 6 Centre street; 

It is a place in Centre street, above where the Tammany Hall office was. Mr. Rosenberg 
had nothing to do with our office. I did not employ him, but if he came in at any time ask¬ 
ing for a few blanks, as I believe he did on one or two occasions, he got them. 

3‘.H4. Q. After the Rosenberg case, did you use any further efforts or give any directions 
to avoid the frauds with which he was charged, in connection with any committee over which 
you had control?—A. As soon as I heard of that Rosenberg affair I went to the roorns and 
called Mr. Mulligan and the other men and said : “ Boys, has there been anything going on 
here contrary to the directions I have given?” They said : “ No, sir; nothing of the kind. 

I said: “My design has been to conduct this thing so as to have it entirely satisfactory to 
Tammany Hall, and to do my duty as a member of the committee. You know what my 
instructions were. If any of you have done wrong, or know of anything wrong, let me 
know and I will stop it at once.” 

Concerning the issue of “red tickets” by the Tammany Hall commit¬ 
tee, the following testimony of Judge Gale will be found on page 313: 

3360. Q. Did you furnish to the German naturalization committee those red tickets ?— 
A. I presume they were furnished ; I did not refuse any one the tickets ; they were- value¬ 
less until they got into the hands of the clerks of the courts ; and then they became a charge 
against the committee. 

Samuel J. Tilden testifies, at page 259, in answer to interrogatories, as 
follows; 

2746. Q. You have stated your official connection with the party machinery during the 
last political campaign: I ask you whether you have heard through the public press, or 
otherwise, of certain prosecutions being instituted against one Benjamin B. Rosenberg, for 
the procurement and use of fraudulent naturalization papers ?—A. Through the public press 
1 became advised of there being such a prosecution ; I did not read the testimony. 

2747. Q. Do you know anything about the place. No. 6 Centre street, where Rosenberg 
did business ?—A. I do not. I never heard of him until I read of him in the newspapers on 
that occasion. 

2748. Q. Did you have any knowledge, personally or officially, that such a man existed * 
there, or that there was such an office acting in the interest of the democratic party ?—A. I 
did not. 

William M. Tweed, a prominent member of the Tammany organization, 
testifies as follows, at page 26G: 

2814. Q. Do you know anything of this room. No. 6 Centre street?—A. No, sir ; I do not. 

2815. Q. Do you know whether that was the office of Moses D. Gale or of his committee ?— 
A. I am confident in my own mind it was not. 

There is not one line of testimony to show that the democratic organ¬ 
izations in the city of New York were, directly or indirectly, parties to, 
cognizant of, or in any way responsible for the frauds in procuring 
naturalization iiapers. The testimony, fairly weighed and taken together, 
conclusively shows that these frauds were, all perpetrated by lawless and 
irresponsible individuals, upon their own account and for personal gain 
in the procurement or sale of such papers, and without any reference to 
the success or defeat of any political party. 

NUMBER SIX CENTRE STREET. 

Emanuel S. Goldstein, (pp. 69 to 77,) a clerk of the German naturali¬ 
zation committee, testifies as follows about the naturalization office at 
No. 6 Centre street: 

828. Q. You say you were employed by the general German naturalization committee'to 
aid, at No. 6 Centre street, in the preparation of naturalization papers ?—A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


113 


829 Q. Who paid you for that service ?—A. The general German committee. 

8:i0. Who is the ciiairman ?—A. Supervisor Hermann. 

840. Q. Did you ever administer an oath to a man who desired to be naturalized ?—A. 
No, sir. 

841. Q. Did you ever tell him he could be naturalized in any way, except by going- to the 
court-house and appealing before the court ?—A. No, sir. 

Ill regard to the five fictitious names for which William Thomas 
Simms testifies at p. 12, that he obtained natimilization papers, Mr. 
Goldstein testifies (pp. 73, 74) as follows: 

880. Q. Were the names of these five persons put upon the list ?—A. That is what I do 
not know. Every name we put on that was naturalized. With their witnesses and 
from our place we sent them over to the court-room with their witnesses. 

805. Q. Or with somebody who pretended to be their witnesses ?—A. Yes, sir. I only 
knew that one name of the five—Antonio Gomez—who wanted to be naturalized. I am the 
one who wrote the application for him. Nobody was there but myself and Rosenberg, and 
I wrote the application for him. 

Charles Henry Liep, the proprietor of the saloon in which this office 
(G Centre street) was located, testifies as follows, (p. Gl); 

658. Q, Who were the other clerks besides Rosenberg ?—A. Augustus Hennet, Emanuel 
S. Goldstein, Major Bromson, Mr. Kemmerer, Ludwig Stumpf, and Dr. G. Johnson. 

659. Q. Do you know of any of them furnishing naturalization papers to persons without 
their having to go to court?—A. No, sir. 

660. Q. Did you see naturalization papers delivered to persons who came there for them ?— 
A. I did see them after they went to court with their witnesses and got examined. They 
would come over and have refreshments. 

676. Q. State whether the German democrats had another naturalization office where this 
kind of information could be had during these six weeks?—A. The only regular place was 
this place at No. 6 Centre street. It was said that they did a little business in No. 13 Centre 
street, but I could not say. I do not know how much business was done there. I do not 
know who gave them power or authority there. 

677. Q. State generally whether during all these weeks you knew of any fraudulent natu¬ 
ralization papers being made or sent to anybody.—A. Not to the best of my knowledge. 

678. Q. Did you see anything that excited your suspicion that this man Rosenberg acted 
dishonestly—selling these papers, or making money to put it in his pocket ?— A. No, sir; no 
money at all was handled there. 

679. Q. Had he any right to take money from any of these persons ?—A. No; nobody was 
allowed to take money, and anybody reported for it would be discharged ; that was the bar¬ 
gain. The expenses were all to be paid by the party generally. 

683. Q. Was tliis naturalization committee elected by the German general committee,, or 
was it appointed by the Tammany Society ?—A. It was elected by the Germans in our own 
body. We have our own headquarters. We organize ourselves every year, elect a chair¬ 
man, treasurer, vice-president, secretary, &c., and appoint all the committees for the year. 

684. Q. What did people come to Rosenberg for ?—A. To get naturalized. 

685. Q. Did he furnish to any that came there little red tickets?—A. Yes, sir; for the fee 
of the clerk. That paid the costs. 

688 . Q. Was the witness sworn down there at your place ?—A. O, no; the witness went 
to the judge. The blanks were only filled up there, and signed ^by the applicant and the 
witness. 

Lewis Jounassolin, another witness, testifies at pages 415-418, as fol¬ 
lows: 

I was employed three or four weeks by the German democratic union committee as one of 
the clerks of naturalization, in the office at No. 6 Centre street. I know of no person being 
furnished with naturalization who was not present in court and applied for them himself. 
The secretary of the German democratic naturalization committee employed me; this com¬ 
mittee is a branch of the executive committee who are elected in ward meetings; I never 
informed this committee that there was anything wrong in Rosenberg’s transactions ; mem¬ 
bers of the committee would frequently visit the office and superintend generally the tran¬ 
saction of business. I do not know that there was anything to indicate to any member of the 
committee who visited the place that anything wrong was going on ; they did not pay much 
attention to the business; if they had examined it closely they might have discovered some¬ 
thing ; they never, to my knowledge, gave any direction in regard to fraudulent naturaliza¬ 
tion papers, and I have no knowledge that they knew that anything of the kind was going 
on. There is a general committee of the German democratic Union party; they are in close 
connection with Tammany Hall; the members of this generaT committee are elected by 
delegates from the 22 wards of the city ; this general committee^ is divided up into sub-com 
mittees, as, for instance, finance committee, naturalization committee, committee on printing. 
The Tammany Hall naturalization committee had their headquarters at No. 1 Centre street. 

H. Eep. Com. 31-8 


114 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


This committee paid me three dollars a day for my services, and when the night sessions 
commenced, one dollar for each night; my services as interpreter in the superior court I 
offered gratuitously to Judge McCunn. 

4174. We used the Tammany tickets. Mr. Hermann, chairman of the general naturaliza¬ 
tion committee, is also a member of the Tammany general committee. 

When a man came in Rosenberg would que>tion him, ask him how long he had been in 
the country, and the like, and then ask him if he had any witnesses with him. In some 
cases the man would say “ no,” and Rosenberg would say to him that he must have one. 
Rosenberg would often say to a man who had no witness, “Before I bite your finger there 
must be some sugar on it.” He meant by this, I suppose, before he would do anything for 
the man in relation to furnishing him with a witness, he must pay him. Rosenberg would 
then call a man by the name of Bernard Lockmann. He would then take the man into a 
back room, and after staying there a few minutes would come out, and then come to my desk 
and tell me to make out the application for this man; that he would be the witness in the 
case, and I would make out the application accordingly. He would then take the applica¬ 
tion and go aw'ay with the applicant. When Lockmann came out with the applicant the 
clerks would fill up the application with his name in as witness. I could not say whether 
that was all Lockmann’s business or not. I could not state how many papers Lockmann 
witnessed in this manner. I should think I prepared at least 25 of them. Rosenberg said 
to the persons coming in about his biting their finger with sugar on it to as many as about 50. 

It clearly appears that the naturalization committee of the German 
democratic organization, under ’whose direction the office at No. 6 Cen¬ 
tre street was established, were Avholly innocent of the crimes there 
committed by Eosenberg, had no knowledge of them, did not in any 
way, directly or indirectly, connive at them, but distinctly and emphat¬ 
ically disapproved all such conduct, when it came to their knowledge, 
or they had reason to believe it existed. There is no testimony in the 
record that implicates any single member of the German or Tammany 
committees in participation or knowledge of the unlawful conduct of 
any of the naturalization brokers, who were mere individual adventurers 
and criminals. 

FRAUDULENT NATURALIZATION CERTIFICATES, AND HOW PROCURED. 

It is true that a considerable number of certificates of naturalization 
was obtained by fraud and perjury. In some instances it is no doubt 
true that men legally entitled to naturalization obtained it upon false 
grounds; and in others, persons not entitled obtained it by perjury in 
themselves and their witnesses 5 and many secured it unlawfully by giv¬ 
ing their names to one or another of a class of reckless and lawless 
scoundrels engaged in the business of selling their criminal consciences 
for money in the fraudulent procurement of such certificates, and the 
latter would, by themselves or others, personate in court both the appli¬ 
cant and his witness. But it is confidently alleged by us that it is 
impossible, upon a fair consideration of all the testimony, both in chief 
and on cross-examinations, and of the characters of the witnesses, to find 
that the aggregate number of naturalizations procured unlawfully in all 
the courts in the city of New York, in October last, exceeds froni 1,000 
to 1,500. It is impossible, with any accuracy, to determine tlie precise 
number issued or obtained; but in the estimate we have made of the num- 
^ber procured we have made a liberal allowance for individual cases not 
discovered and produced to the committee by the numerous and vigilant 
scavengers of the League. 

We invite especial attention to the important fact, which we desire to 
emphasize, that it is not, in our entire record, satisfactorily shotvn hy 
credihle or nnimpeaclicd testimony, that any one or 7 nore clerhs, judges, 
or other officers of aony of the courts, was, icith knowledge, directly or 
indirectly, a party to or participant in a single one of these frauds. 
No single witness testifies that any one of these officers in a single in¬ 
stance was corruptly and for any kind of personal advantage or gain 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


115 


concerned in any of those frauds. About 15 of the clerks, and two of 
the judges, and some other officers, all iinimpeached, aad so far as we 
know entirely nnimpeachable, testify that no such frauds were committed 
with their knowledge, and that no certiftcates were obtained except 
upon the actual x>ersonal presence in court of an applicant and a witness 
at the same time in each case, and that it would have been imi)ossible 
for viny person to procure any certificate in any other way. But they 
all admit that it was possible for frauds to be put upon them by corrupt 
men and perjurers, without their knowledge. All courts and all tribu¬ 
nals for the investigation of truth are liable to be deceived and abused 
by such means. 

We will refer under this head,’for illustration, to the testimony of three 
of the principal witnesses who attempted to make the impression that 
they per})etrated these frauds with the knowledge or connivance of the 
courts or officers. Every statement of these self-convicted criminals 
which questions the purity of purpose of the courts or their officers is 
overwhelmingly contradicted by the unimpeached testimony of numer¬ 
ous witnesses. 

In our judgment, the true solution of nearly all this fraudulent con¬ 
duct is to be found in the fact, apparent in most of the cases, that the 
parties engaged in it were men of the lowest and most abandoned char¬ 
acters, whose controlling aim in all they did was personal gain, without 
regard to either political party. It is probably true also that these 
reckless men were sometimes subsidized and to some extent used by a 
few of the most Avorthless and reckless of local ward i)oliticians of both 
l^arties, and thus incidentally to the advantage or injury of the responsi¬ 
ble leaders of both. The criminals from whose class these naturalization 
brokers and those called ‘‘repeaters” come, are of the lowest order of de¬ 
based men, and their existence in any community is a very great public 
misfortune, and they supply bad elements to be used by other men only 
a little better than they, and thus become the source of the greatest evils 
to society, and interpose obstruction to the fair and honest working of a 
great deal of the political machinery which governs our country, and offer 
great temptations to corrupt the lower managers of both parties, and in 
fact often accomplish this result, to the great injury of both i)arties and of 
good government. These reflections are at once suggested and justified 
by the condition in New York and the testimony we have taken. These 
classes in every just sense are an unmitigated curse to all parties. If it 
were possible, they should be exorcised from every community 5 but it 
is not. Their presence is chargeable to no party. Obvious considera¬ 
tions attract them and give rise to them in all great cities. They are 
unlawfully used by all parties. Why they are not more rigorously con¬ 
trolled and punished is not satisfactorily explained. We believe it 
explicable, however, upon one theory alone: that in these crimes they 
are acting, to a greater or less extent, in the interests and service of the 
base and bad men of both parties, who, by combining for the protec¬ 
tion of their evil and lawless instruments, are able too often to prevent 
punishment. These men, who are thus potential, sometimes have rep¬ 
resentatives of their class in subordinate offices. The officers in the 
practical government of the city of New York who could be most effec¬ 
tive to restrain or piuiish these wicked men are the officers of elections 
and of the police. If these were honest, vigilant, and faithful, and 
would co-operate to that end, these crimes could, in a very great degree, 
be prevented. Let it be remembered here that all these offijers are 
appointed under republican auspices^ as we have elsewhere more fully 


116 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


shown. Persons who desire to reach just conclusions as to the respon¬ 
sibility in the ju’emises can draw their own inferences. 

AVe now invite attention to the testimony of the three witnesses above 
referred to. 

James Collins testifies: 

7313. Q. State if you know anything about fraudulent naturalization papers.—A. Only 
in this way: I had been “knocking around” the City Hall, off and on. I got a situation 
there once in a while. At the time these naturalization papers were coming up Councilman 
Gillmore came and asked me if I would naturalize men for him. I said I would do so—the 
same as the rest of tlie men were doing. He asked me how that was. I told him to fetch 
me the men and I would get them naturalized for two dollars apiece. I said, “If you get 
the witnesses, I will make the application.” He said, “I have got no witnesses; I want 
you to go witness.” Next day he came to me, and I told him I would naturalize for all that 
he wanted. I have naturalized from 500 to 700; that is, I said I knew the men so long. 
Some I had never seen before; some I had. That is all that I did in the naturalization 
business. 

7314. Q. For what political party did you do this ?—A. The republican. 

7365. Q. Did you use red tickets?—A. Yes. Councilman Gillmore furnished the tickets. 
He sometimes gave me white tickets and sometimes red. 

7366. Q. Most generally red ?—A. About equal, I guess. 

7389. Q. State if it was for republicans and in the interest of republicans that these cer¬ 
tificates of naturalization were got ?—A. I suppose so. I suppose Mr. Gillmore would not 
be w'orking the other way. 

7390. Q. Is he a republican ?—A. Yes, sir. 

7391. Q. You got in such men as he wanted ?—A. Yes. 

7392. Q. How did it happen that you used the red ticket of the democrats? Did you 
commit a fraud upon them by getting their tickets ?—A. I do not know about that. 

7393. Q. You could not get them without getting them fraudulently by pretending that 
the persons to be naturalized were foreigners?—A. I never asked how they got them. This 
republican gave them to me. Part of them were red tickets and part white. 

Testimony, pp. GGO to GG4. 

Henry Lyle (page 4G0) swears tliat he was engaged during the months 
of September and October in fraudnlently procuring naturalization papers 
for anybody that came along and wanted them, and would pay him from 
one to five dollars apiece for them. In this way he SAvears he obtained 
from GOO to 4,000. He sometimes acted as witness himself under assumed 
names, and sometimes personated both witness and applicant. He paid 
for these papers with “ red tickets,” obtained at No. 1 Centre street. 
The Avitness on cross-examination could only recollect the names of nine 
liersons for whom he obtained papers. The Avitness swore that he AA^as 
a democrat, and in reply to further interrogatories ansAvered as follows; 

4728. Q. You say you were serving the^democratic party in doing this business ?—A. Yes, 
sir. 

4729. Q. Did the democratic party secure your services ?—A. No, sir. 

4730. Q. Your .services were volunteered then ?—A. Yes, sir. 

4731. Q. While you were serving the democratic party it appears that in a financial 
aspect you were serving yourself too?—A. That is it. 

4666. Q. What do you get for telling all this story ?—A. I have not been promised one 
cent. 

4667. Q. Don’t you expect something?—A. I have not been promised anything. 

4668. Q. Don’t you expect anything?—A. I may expect something. 

4669. Q. From whom do you expect anything?—A. I do not know exactly whom I 
expect anything from ; I may expect something from Mr. Utley. 

4670. Q. Who is he?—A. He is in the custom-house. 

4671. Q. From whom else do you expect anything ?—A. Mr. Utley took me to Mr. White, 
a lawyer of this city; I think he is connected with the Union League. 

4685. Q. Have you not been posted up by somebody as to your exemption from punish¬ 
ment for this testimony ; and if so by whom?—A. Mr. White told me that I would be pro¬ 
tected ; he said the law protected me. 

4686. Q. Didn’t somebody read to you the law and tell you that you would not be pun¬ 
ished?—A. Yes, sir. 

4687. Q. Who was that who did so?—A. That gentleman standing there, (pointing to 
Mr. Davenport, clerk of the committee.) 

John McClasky, (pp. 71G-7I7) evidently one of the most corrupt 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


117 


witnesses tliat appearecl before the committee, swears that he procured 
somewhere ‘/near 10 or 40’’fraudulent certificates of naturalization from 
the supreme court of the city and county of ISTew York, obtaining the 
papers through Mr. McKean, a deputy clerk of that court. 

7926. Q. Directly or indirectly, by words or signs, did you give him (McKean) to under¬ 
stand that the persons named in those applications represented persons who did not exist ?— 
A.^I said nothiug to him but what I have stated. I don’t know what he thought. 

7927. Q. Did you give him to understand that those w^ere fraudulent papers that you de¬ 
sired him to put through ?—A. No, sir. 

7942. Q. Did Judge Barnard know that you were trying to practice fraud upon the court ?— 
A. I can’t tell what he thought. 

7943. Q. Do you know ?—A. I can’t tell that. 

7944. Q. Did you tell him or intimate to him that you were so engaged?—A. No, sir. 

NATURALIZATION BLANKS AND “RED TICKETS.” 

It is attempted by the majority to sustain certain theories and assump¬ 
tions concerning the number of fraudulent naturalizations by showing 
that very large numbers of blanks for applications and certificates were 
printed for the different courts. This fact neither establishes nor justi¬ 
fies the conclusion based upon it. The blanks for applications were 
distributed witli great liberality to any persons of any party desiring 
them, and, it is safe to aver that, much the greater number of them were 
destroyed and never returned to any of the courts. They had no legal 
value to anybody until they were filled up and produced to the court by 
actual applicants for naturalization. 

Substantially the same is true of the “red tickets” used by the Tam¬ 
many organization, and the “white tickets” used by the republican com¬ 
mittees, for the temporary payment of the costs of naturalization to the 
clerks of the courts. These tickets were mere pledges by the respective 
political parties to the clerks, that, after the hurry of the business of 
naturalization was over, the respective organizations would pay to them 
the aggregate amounts of the tickets of the respective colors delivered 
to them by applicants for naturalization. It has been the custom of both 
parties in New York, for over 20 years, to conduct the business of natur¬ 
alization ill this way. These tickets possess no value until they are 
delivered to the clerks by the persons seeking naturalization. The num- 
ber, therefore, either of blank applications or of tickets, is in no material 
degree important to this investigation. Testimony pp. 477, 311. 

For example, the witness Adams, a republican, who testifies at page 
IGG, in reply to a question on this subject, said : 

A. I had had knowledge of the operations of naturalization for some 30 years, and I knew 
that it was usual for political parties to send to clerks these tickets to pay the fees of natur¬ 
alization papers. 

But the majority attempt, by a strained and fanciful use of figures, 
based upon the vague testimony about the numbers of blanks of various 
kinds that were printed for the use of the courts, to convict the clerks 
of the supreme court of having fraudulently sent some 27,000 certificates 
of naturalization into other counties and remote parts of the State to be 
distributed to persons who never appeared in court to procure them. So 
grave a charge as this ought not to be made by any man against another 
without the most clear and satisfactory proof to support it. Yet_, whilst 
the charge is made, not openly, but by indirection, insinuation, it is left 
withotit one line of decent^ direct^ or credible testimony to support it. 
without one line of decent, direct, or credible testimony to support it. 
There is not a particle of testimony that any clerk, officer of any court, 
or any judge, in any one case, issued such certificates, for such purpose, 
or used them in any such way, or was a party to the same, or ever issued 


118 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


or awarded a single certificate of naturalization except Jmia fidCj and 
after the actual personal ap])earance in open court, of both an applicant 
and a witness, together, and upon leaving in the court as a record his 
application and affidavits. 

The testimony shows that persons occasionally came to Xew York city 
from other counties to obtain their certificates, but it is shown, in but a 
few cases, that this was fraudulently done, and in those cases in which 
it is alleged to have been fraudulently done, there is no attempt to impli¬ 
cate a single officer, clerk, or judge in guilty knowledge or participation 
in what was being done. It is to us, therefore, matter of i)rofound 
surprise that such unjust charges should even be insinuated, 

NATURALIZATION BY CLERKS—NOT COURTS. 

It is in evidence that, in some of the counties, (not in Yew York city 
or county) a practice has grown up which tolerates the hearing of appli¬ 
cations for naturalization and the issuing of final certificates by clerks 
of the courts having such jurisdiction, without any proper judicial par¬ 
ticipation in the business by the courts. This practice appears to have 
been based upon the idea that the courts having such jurisdiction are, 
in legal contemplation, open at all times for the ti ansaction of any busi¬ 
ness which does not require previous notice to be given to opposite 
parties. But it is a most dangerous practice, and involves, in our judg¬ 
ment a most serious and unjustifiable departure from the manifest 
requirement of the law of Congress that every grant of naturalization 
shall be done as a judicial act. We also think that the law itself 
demands reform so as to close the door against all excuse for such mode 
of execution of it. 

To indicate more fully the manner in which this practice grew up and 
in which the business Avas conducted, we will incorporate a part of the 
testimony of Wright Banks, deputy clerk of Westchester county. 

6857. Question. State what has been the practice in that court on the subject of naturaliza¬ 
tion in reference to parties appearing in open court.—Answer. For five or six years, and up to 
the latter part of August last, the practice was to have the witnesses sworn by the clerk in 
the clerk’s office, and the papers were always understood to he issued on authority of 
the judge, though not in his presence. In August, or early in September, 1868, Judge Coch¬ 
rane, the present county judge, directed that the clerk should examine and record the appli¬ 
cation for naturalization in the open court-room, in his presence; and with the exception of 
about 50 of the naturalizations in 1868 all were examined and naturalized in that way in open 
court, the judge being present and judging of the qualifications of each applicant. 

6858. Q. Had those 50 been naturalized prior to that order ?—A. Yes, sir. 

6859. Q. And all since that order have been examined in open court?—A. Yes. 

6860. Q. State what means you have of knowing what the practice has been in previous 
years.—A. In 1850-’51 I was a clerk in the clerk’s office in Westchester county, and had charge 
of naturalization as one of my perquisites. At that time the business was invariably done in 
the office, with or without the presence of the judge. I remained in the office about two 
years. I had some business connected with the office again in 1868, when, I am aware, the 
practice existed ; and again in 1865-’60, up to the present time. 

6861 Q. You know of your own knowledge that that is the way the busine has been 
conducted ?—A. I do. 

6862. Q. When did this judge come into office?—A. The 1st of .lanuary, 1868. 

6863. Q To what political party is he attached?—A. The democratic. 

6864. Q. Who were the judges previous to his administration?—A. John W. Mills, in 
]85()-’51. For 12 years prior to the 1st of January, 1868, Judge Wm. H. Robertson was judge 
of that court. He is now a member of Congress. Judge Mills was a democrat and Judge 
Robertson a republican. 

6865. Q. Was that the practice under Judge Robertson ?—A. Yes, sir, 

6866 Q. With his knowledge ?—A. Yes. 

It is very manifest that tliis dangerous mode of doing tlie business of 
naturalization bad its origin in considerations arising out of tlie pressure 
of other business upon the courts, and the convenience of parties honestly 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


119 


seeking naturalization. The testimony does not, in any degree whatever, 
suggest or justify the conclusion that it liad its origin in political motives, 
or is chargeable offensively to any political party. It was tolerated, con¬ 
tinued, and practiced alike by courts and clerks belonging to both parties. 

We esteem it our dutjyy also, to state, in justice to the clerks w ho exercised 
such unauthorized jurisdiction, of the political associations of many of 
whom we know nothing, that the testimony entirely fails to show that 
they did it corruptly, or without a general purpose and desire to do their 
duties according to the law. The business, in our judgment, both in and 
out of the city of New York, was often done with too great haste, and 
without sufficient deliberation. This, however, resulted from the great 
and in some places unprecedented rush of applicants for naturalization, 
and the natural desire of courts and officers to award it to persons entitled 
to it. 

ffHE ]VIANNER OF NATURALIZATION, AND THE CONDUCT OF THE COURTS 
AND THEIR OFFICERS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH. 

As this investigation was predicated upon the allegation that natur¬ 
alization papers were fraudulently issued by the proper courts of the 
city and county of New York, it becomes an important, in fact a vital^ 
question to ascertain whether that allegation has been proven by the 
testimony of witnesses; for unless it can be satisfactorily 

shown that the courts of New York and their officers were parties to 
the faudulent issue of these naturalization papers there is an end of the 
whole case, and the question reduced to a mere individual violation, or 
attempted violation, of law, which is no new thing in this country or 
any of its great cities. 

After it had been shovm by the testimony of Murray and several of 
his deputies that a man named liosenberg was engaged in the unlawful 
business of obtaining naturalization papers by fraud, it became neces¬ 
sary that the majority of the committee shoidd follow up that fraud and 
fix it upon the courts of record of the city and county of New" York. 
Accordingly one Montague Kichard Leversoii, an Euglishman, who set 
out in his testimony (p. 119) with the declaration ‘‘that for the last 18 
years his attention* had been specially devoted to wEat may be termed 
the philosophy of legislation; he wms a disciple of Jeremy Bentham, the 
great father of the modern school of legislation, and had had the bene¬ 
fit of the personal teaching of John Stuart Mill and William Ellis.’^ 

This formidable witness (p. 120) then proceeded to detail the result 
of his personal observation in Judge Barnard’s court—first producing a 
report of the same wiiicli he caused to be published in the New York 
Tribune of the 23d of October, 1868, over his own signature. 

The chairman of the committee (Judge Ldwrence) desired the witness 
to read this report as his testimony, but objection being made he was 
allow^ed to use it only to “refresh his recollection.” (P. 120.) 

The witness testified in substance that persons wmre naturalized by 
Judge Barnard to the number “of 110 to 150, or even 200, at once;” and 
“he remembered on one occasion 180 w'ere called up in one batch.” 
“The average was about 110 to 150 in a batch.” (P. 121.) “When 
they came up they would be divided in groups around tour or five 
Bibles. Each Bible would be held iq) by four or five or six men in the 
centre, and the others would either touch it or stretch out their hands 
toward it on being directed to do so by the clerk or judge.” (P. 122.) 

The Avitness further testified that on one occasion, while he was Avithin 
the court-rooms observing this business of naturalization, the judge 


120 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


(Barnard) ordered the room to he cleared, and he was forcibly ejected 
by the officer of the court. (P. 123.) 

At i)age 124 the witness testifies that the proceedings in Judge 
McCunifs court had a far greater semblance of regularity, and what he 
saw in the court of common pleas seemed to him so entirely regular as 
not to call for any further attention. 

On the same page the witness swears there would be four or five 
batches, varying from 110 to 200 in number, averaging about 140 or 150, 
got through by Judge Barnard in each hour. 

The testimony of this witness runs through 18 pages, and corresponds 
]>retty nearly with the extracts quoted abo\e. It was, therefore, un¬ 
necessary to go into it any further beyond showing the animus of this 
‘‘disciple of Jeremy Bentham.” 

On cross-examination, at page 131, he swears: 

A. I have acted with the republican party in this election. 

1380. Q. Did you ever act with any other party in this country?—A. I have not. • 

138!. Q. You appear to have given a good deal of attention aud a good deal of time to 
the investigation of this matter; have you done that upon your own voluntary motion, or 
upon the employment of others?—A. I was applied to by gentlemen connected with the 
citizens’ committee, sitting at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

1382. Q. Appointed by the League ?—A. No, not by the League ; I don’t know who they 
were appointed by; it was a citizens’ committee acting with the State republican committee. 

1383. Q. And by that committee you were employed to look after this matter?—A. Yes, sir. 

11. AY. McAlpiiie, a reporter on the N^ew York Tribune, was called by 
the majority of the committee to sustain the allegations of Leverson in 
regard to the proceedings in Judge Barnard’s court. 

The witness testifies at page 211 that he saw “ two lots” naturalized 
AYhile he wtis in the conrt-room. “ There were from fiO to 100 in each 
lot,” (p. 211.) At the same page the witness swears he was in court 
“perhaps an hour.” “The names of witnesses were called.” “The 
clerk administered the oath.” “1 do not know that any were natural¬ 
ized except those who either touched the Bible or held up their hands,” 

(p. 212.) 

2140. Q. How did the number of names called compare with the number herded together?— 
A. It was very nearly a tally. There were very few who did not answer to their names, 

(p. 212.) 

The testimony of James Collins and Henry Lyle on this subject is 
elsewhere referred to, and this completes the list of witnesses (so tar 
as the minority of the committee recollect) who Avere introduced to 
sustain tlie charge made by Leverson, that the courts of the city of 
Ycay York, and their officers, Avere parties to the fraudulent issue of 
naturalization papers. 

It is proper now, in order that the responsiliility for the issue and cir¬ 
culation of these franduleqt pa|)ers may rest AAdiere it justly belongs, 
and that the attempt of the majority of the committee to fix it upon 
the courts of Ncav York and their officers may be exposed and success¬ 
fully disproA^ed, that Ave should refer to the testimony of a number of 
highly respectable and intelligent gentlemen, Avhose opportunities of 
observation Avere confessedly better, and AA'hose reputation ffir trutb 
and veracity is at least as good as that of “ Jeremy Bentham’s” dis¬ 
tinguished disciple, the Tribune’s reporter, and the Union League’s paid 
agents. 

Peter Cook (p. 477) testifies that “he was a member of the Bepublican 
Katnralization Committee of Yo. 25 Chambers street.” “ He Avas in the 
supreme court once or twice, bnt in the superior court he Avas there con¬ 
tinually,” (p. 477.) “ Judge McCunn did the most of the naturalization 

business.” “ He could despatch business quicker than almost any other 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


121 


jiid.U'e.” “He would question the applicant sharply and vigorously,” 
(p. 478.) 

At the same page the witness further swears: 

I have not observed any irregularities of any kind on the part of any of the judges in the 
naturalization business. I have often observed that the judges were deceived. 

j\Ir. Cook, in answer to interrogatories, swears further as follows: 

4892. Q. You say you never saw any irregularities on the part of the judges or clerks of 
the courts in,the business of naturalization?—A. No, sir; and I have been very sharp in 
watching this business. 

4893. Q. State from your observation whether it was practicable for any person to appear 
both as witness and applicant in the same case.—A. Not very well. 

4894. Q. Do you think it possible for a person to be naturalized in these courts without 
having with him somebody as a witness?—A. In Judge Barnard’s court and in Judge 
McCunn’s court two men were always there, one as applicant aud one as witness. In fact, 
it was a perfect system for witness and applicant to appear both together before the judge. 

489.5. Q. State from your observation in connection with this business whether it was 
possible at all for one man to be both applicant and witness in one case.—A. It might pos¬ 
sibly happen when a large crowd was there that persons would appear before the judges as 
witnesses, be sworn in, answer the questions, and then dodge around in the crowd to the 
clerk’s desk and take the oath of allegiance. 

4925. Q. Do you know the fact that there were men employed as witnesses?—A. I do not 
know that they were employed of my own knowledge. I kuow that men hang around 
naturalization offices and the City Hall and offer their services to any person as witnesses. 

IIoii. Jolin E. Brady, of tlie court of common pleas of N'e>Y York city, 
vdiom the majority of the committee in their report allude to as “a dis¬ 
tinguished aud upright judge,” testifies (p. G54) that when a judge desires 
to naturalize as rapidly as he can, “ he might get through with one in a 
minute.” On the same page he testifies as follows: 

7226. Q. What would be the objection to sAvearing half a dozen applicants and half a 
dozen witnesses together, provided they are examined separately?—A. I cannot see any 
objection to that. 

7227. Q. The oath is the same to all: “You shall true answers make to such questions as 
may be demanded of you?”—A. Oh, yes ; fifty might be sworn at a time, if they could put 
their hands on the book. 

7228. Q. And it would be a legal, good swearing?—A. Oh, yes, certainly. I do not 
think it is the best practice, but such a tiling might be done, aud done lawfully ; if it is done 
in such a way as that each person understands the oath that is taken I do not see any ille¬ 
gality in it. 

Judge Garvin, (p. 477,) one of tlie justices of the superior court of Yew 
Y^ork city, testifies tliat “ a large number of persons who were entitled 
to naturalization pajters during the war delayed getting them for fear of 
the draft, and they delayed getting them until the year 18G8.” 

Judge G. also testifies, (p. 44G:) 

4482. Q. Did you give any directions to your subordinate officers in regard to the preven¬ 
tion of frauds or irregularities in the procurement of certificates of naturalization.—A. Yes, 
sir. I gave strict directions to the clerks not to naturalize any persons who did not come 
right directly from my presence, so that there could be no false personation. I always gave 
strict directions not to deliver the preliminary papers to any one but the applicant himself, 
and to administer to him the oath of allegiance immediately ; if the applicant did not appear 
right away, the clerk should lay the papers aside. 

“I rejected a great many applications every day; I suppose from 20 
to 50 a day,” (p. 447.) “I admiui.stered the oath to the applicant and 
witness tit the same time,” (p. 447.) 

Judge John II. McCuiiii, also of the superior court of Yew York city, 
testifies in substance as follows: “I never administered the oath ol citi¬ 
zenship to persons in squads or singly outside my court-room, nor to 
squads in the court-room.” “I would sometimes hold court tor natural¬ 
izing persons until II or 12 o’clock at night.” “I rejected a large num¬ 
ber of applicants,” (p. 838.) “ I recollect that I refused men coming from 


122 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Eosenberg’s office as witnesses/^ (p. 340.) I never, at any time, excluded 
tlie public from tbc court-room during business liours,” (p. 341.) 

Concerning tbe circulation of fraudulent naturalization papers. Judge 
McCunn (p. 347) testifies as follows: > 

3671. Q How could certificates of naturalization be procured by persons who had not 
been before the court ?—A. By forgery only. 

3672. Q. Suppose men testify that they have got papers that were sent to them in a dif¬ 
ferent way ?—A. They must have been represented in court by some one else ; it is impos 
sible for the court always to guard against that. 

William C. Barret (page 262) testifies “ that lie was in Judge Barnard’s 
court on three occasion last October when he was in the act of natural¬ 
izing persons. There was a great crowd of men in the room.” The wit¬ 
ness says he saw nothing that was actually wrong.” He saw nothing 
wrong on the part of the judge, or on the part of the officers of the 
court.” 

T. Easton Bennett, (404,) a clerk in the superior court for the past 17 
years, confirms the testimony of Judges McCunn and Gaiwin. 

Isaac Heyman, (page 376,) a clerk in the supreme court, swears that 

Mr. Koch or Mr. Kent, who sat on the bench next to Judge Barnard, 
would call ofi‘ the names of the witnesses and applicants, wffien the 
judge wmuld swear them in. He SAvore them in by reading to each of 
them the oath that is appended to the application.” ‘Wfter the princi¬ 
pal and w itness were both sw'orn in he wmuld sign orders for the appli¬ 
cation so granted,” fpage 376.) 

Edward B. Heath, (page 390,) a clerk in the office of the superior court, 
testifies as follows: 

4002. Q. Did you see in tlie court or among tbe officers any disposition to get through 
fraudulent naturalization papers ?—A. I never did ; not in a single instance. 

4003. Q. You do not know anything of the kind ?—A. No, sir. 

Lewis Jonassohn (page 514) testifies that witnesses were individu¬ 
ally questioned in Judge McCunn’s court.” “The judge sent away a 
great many Irishmen one night because they did not give proper 
answers to the questions he put to them.” 

Kathaniel Jarvis, jr., (page 198,) clerk of the court of common pleas, 
(a tribunal which the majority of the committee do not even undertake 
to criticise,) testifies as follow^s : 

]996. Q. Considering the organization of your court—its number of judges; the time 
they sit; the time devoted to this business, and the rules in regard to it adopted by the court 
—I ask you, in reference to the other courts and their organization, how much more of this 
business the other courts could have done than your court could ?—A. They could have 
done three times as much. 

Q. State whether, from your knowledge of the manner in which this business is ordinarily 
transacted, it is not practicable for persons who design fraud to deceive and mislead your court.— 
A. Yes, sir; it is a very easy thing. 

1997. Q. And it is in the power of such persons to perfect frauds 1 —A. Yes, sir ; it is very 
easy to accomplish them. 

1998. Q. Without any corrupt knowledge on the part of the judges or officers of the court?_ 

A. Yes, sir ; it is a very easy thing to do. 

Edwin E. Kent, (page 383,) an attorney and counsellor at law and clerk 
in equity to the supreme court of the city and county of Kew York, tes¬ 
tifies “ that witnesses and applicants were examined by Judge Barnard 
separately.” “ From eight to ten applicants and the same number of wit¬ 
nesses w^ere swmrn at a time.” “Air. Loewq the clerk of the court, cau¬ 
tioned his employes against attempts at fraud, and said that he would 
discharge any person in his emifioy wlio did anything wuong.” 

Charles E. Loew, (page 143,) the clerk of the supreme court of the city 
and county of Kew York, testifies that “Judge Barnard Avould call the 
applicant, and then the Avitnessj that Ai^as the uniform mode in each par- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


123 


ticular case. EigTit or ten were sworn at a time, sometimes by tlie iiul^e 
and sometimes by myself.’’ ^‘Tlie witnesses were examined by Judge 
Barnard, and never passed without examination.” am confident that 
I never saw more than a dozen applicants and a dozen witnesses sworn 
at one time.” 

Joseph Meeks, (page 317,) deputy clerk of the superior court, testifies 
that he ‘‘never at any time suffered any of his deputies to issue any cer¬ 
tificates of naturalization to any person without first having received the 
order of the court therefor.” “The court naturalized some days 300 and 
some days 500; and one day, when the entire force of judges was on the 
bench, 2,000 were naturalized.” 

John B. McKean, (page 367,) a clerk in the office of the supreme court, 
testifies as follows: 

3704. Q. Did the court ever pass upon and order a naturalization in the absence of the 
witness as well as the applicant ?—A. No, sir. 

3705. Q. State whether you know of any persons having been called up and naturalized 
without the witness being present in open court.— A. No, sir; no one that I know of. 

3700. Q. State if you know, or have had reason to believe, that persons were naturalized 
or were declared to he naturalized who were never themselves before the court.—A. No, sir; 
I never had reason to suppose that such was the case. 

The Avitness further swears that he has been a clerk of the court for 
seven years, and iieA^er saw anybody taken by violence or x)hysical force 
out of the court-room. (LeA^erson, it will be remembered, SAvore that he 
was forcibly ejected by order of Judge Barnard.) The Avitness could not 
say positively Iioav many persons were naturalized in the supreme court 
in one day. He did not think, hoAvever, “it varied over 400 or 500; prob 
ably not that.” (Page 371.) “The principals Axere SAVorn first, and the 
Avitnesses afterAvards. They would put their hands on the Bible and be 
SAVorn in.” “ Tlie principals retired after the3^ had been SAVorn, and before 
the witnesses Avere SAVorn.” 

James M. Sweeny, (page 168,) clerk of the superior court, testifies that 
he “ neA^er saw persons naturalized in batches in the superior court.” 
“The applicant and witness Avere SAvorn.” “I have made inquiry, and 
am satisfied that my subordinates liaA^e done nothing wrong.” “ In con¬ 
nection AA'ith my inquiries, I did not deA^elope any irregularities in the busi¬ 
ness of naturalization on the part of any of the judges or on the part of 
my subordinates.” 

Sylvester E. Kolan, (p. 436,) a clerk of the superior court, swears as 
folloAvs: 

4379. Q. State whether, in view of the manner in which this business was transacted, it 
could have been practicable for any person to obtain naturalization papers without being 
personally present in court and taking the oath of allegiance.—A. It was impossible to do 
so unless they were falsely personated. I never knew it to bo done. 

4380. Q. Did you ever hear of the judges with whom you co-operated in this business 
attempting to put any persons who were suspected of being guilty of improper conduct or 
improper intentions upon the court under arrest?—A. I know that Judge McCunn did on 
several occasions, and has often reprimanded persons and told them not to come before him 
at all. He has often cross-examined parties very closely, and not getting straight answers 
to his questions, he would reject the applications and warn the witness not to appear before 
him again; that if he did he would commit him. 1 believe he did commit one or two, but 
what was done with them afterwards I cannot say. 

Judge James Emmett, (page 490,) a republican for twenty years and a 
lawyer and citizen of very high standing, both for intelligence ami integ¬ 
rity, called, at the instance of the chairman of the committee, to prov^e 
the insulficiency and illegality of the manner in which the business of 
iiaturalization was transacted in the courts of ISToav York, disappointing 
the expectations of the majority, testified as folloAvs: 

5087. Q. What is the power of the deputy clerk so appointed to sign the name of the 
county clerk?—A. It has been held in this State that he has power to sign the name of the 


124 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


clerk. I slioiild think, also, that a special deputy, properly appointed, could sign the name 
of the clerk in regard to proceedings iu courts. 

5088. Q. How as to certificates authenticating a judicial order?—A. My recollection of 
that statute relative to the appointment of special deputies is that it did not give such power 
to special deputies. 

5089. Q. How as to the power of administering oaths and attaching jurats?—A. That I 
think a special deputy might do, and if the law authorizes more than one, then all. 

5090. Q. Does not the act of Congress require the oath to be administered to witnesses 
and applicants in cases of naturalization to be in these words: “You solemnly swear that 
you will tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, touching naturaliza¬ 
tion, so help you God?”—A. I suppose the act of Congress does require an oath to that effect. 
But if the witness is produced in court and his statement is reduced to writing and read over 
to him, and he testifies to it, I think that will satisfy the provisions of the law. I do not 
think the act of naturalization would be vitiated because the common law oath was not 
administered. The witness, however, I think, should be produced, and the court ought to 
make an oral examination, and not to naturalize a person upon the mere production of an 
affidavit prepared and signed out of court, without additional examination. I never knew 
that to be done while I was on the bench. But if the witness was produced and the affidavit 
was read to him, I should think that would answer the requirements of the statute; after 
he had made his deposition it would then be the duty of the court to examine him if there 
was any reason for so doing. 

5091. Q. The next question is as to whether, to test the veracity of witnesses, questions 
cannot be asked that are not printed on the paper?—A. Most unquestionably. 

5092. Q. How could such questions be asked unless the common law oath was put to the 
witness'?—A. That is difficult to say. I do not mean to say that merely the production of 
the witness with an affidavit prepared and signed outside, would be sufficient; but I think 
if he is sworn, and made to understand its contents, that would be sufficient. 

Thomas Kyaii, (p. 438,) chief officer of the superior court, confirins the 
testimony of preceding witnesses in relation to the business of iiatnrali- 
zatioii in that court. 

In \dew of the overwhelming testimony to which we have referred, it 
is difficult to see how the allegations and inferences of the majority of 
the committee in regard to irregularities, corruption, and fraud on the 
part of the courts of New York and their officers can be sustained. 

Before leaving this branch of the investigation, it should be stated 
that the testimony of Henry Lyle, (p. 460,) concerning the procurement 
of fraudulent naturalization papers, through Judge McCunn’s court, is 
flatly contradicted by Judge McCunu, who swears, (p. 500:) 

That the aforesaid Lyle is a poor, broken-down, drunken fellow. He appeared in court 
as a witness for some applicant; be was in a drunken condition, and I ordered him to be 
put under arrest. 

5211. Q. State whether, during the time this naturalization business was going on, you 
had any conversation with him about the registration of persons naturalized by you.—A. 
Never in my life. 

5212. Q. Did you ever say to him in effect that if the registers refused to place the names 
of persons for whom he got out certificates of naturalization upon the registry list you would 
compel them to do so?—A. I never exchanged one word with him off the bench iu my life. 

DISCREPANCY IN THE COUNT IN SUPERIOR COURT. 

The majority of the committee lay great stress upioii an alleged dis¬ 
crepancy iu the actual number of naturalizatiou certificates issued by 
the superior court of New York city during the month of October, 1868, 
and the supposed number as given by Owen E. Westlake, in his table, 
which appears on page 201 of the printed testimony, to wit, 26,225. It 
will be perceived by reference to the testimony of Mr. Westlake, at the 
above-mentioned page, that he does not state how he arrived at the 
number given in the table presented by him 5 and for aught that appears 
in his testimony the figures may have been the result of a very imperfect 
count—or even guesii-\Yov\^. Tliis view is sustained by the testimony of 
Mr. Jos. Meeks, (p. 321,) the principal deputy clerk of the superior court. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


125 


Ill answer to certain interrogatories, Mr. Meeks swears as follows: 

3439. Q, How many of these papers did you issue on any one day last October?—A. We 
averaf^ed some days 300, and some days 500; and one day, when we had the entire force of 
judg'es on, we had about 2,000. 

3440. Q. Did you naturalize 25,000 in 30 days ?—A. No, sir. 

3441. Q. How many did yon naturalize in the 30 days preceeding the last day?—A. To 
the best of my knowledge we naturalized about 18,000 during the month of October. We 
commenced on the first and closed on the 23d. I counted them, and to the best of my 
knowledge I make the number about 18,000 for that mouth. 

Mr. Meeks was recalled, and, at page 728, lie swears: 

On my previous examination I swore that we had naturalized 18,000. When the state¬ 
ment was presented to me, showing that we had naturalized a larger number, I was surprised 
at the increase over my count. I then made inquiry as to the'manner in which that count 
had been made. At that time Mr. Glassey, I think, or some person representing this com¬ 
mittee, had asked permission to allow a count to be made in the office. After the count had 
been made, Mr, Glassey informed me of the discrepancy between the count as rendered by 
Mr. Westlake and the count as made by the clerks representing this committee. I then 
directed Mr. Gillespie to make an actual count of each and every paper in the office, which 
he did and furnished me with the result. In consequence of the statement which Mr. Gil¬ 
lespie furnished me, I found that the count which I had originally made was correct, and 
found that it agreed with the search made by the clerks sent by this committee. These 
clerks made the count over 18,(JU0, and on actual count Mr. Gillespie made it 18,432. 

The table furnished by Mr. Adam Gillespie, at page 052, x)iirporting to 
give the immber of naturalizations in the superior court of New York 
city, from 1850 to 1808, inclusive, was evidently made up from the figures 
of Westlake, above referred to, so far as it concerns naturalizations during 
the month of October, 1808. Mr. Gillespie, however, upon being recalled, 
at page 733, SAvears as folloAvs: 

8223. Question. State to the committee whether, within the last few days, you made a 
count of the entire number of applications for naturalization in the superior court of the city 
and county of New York; and, if so, what the result was —A. I have. The result has 
been that the w'hole number of applications on which certificates of citizenship were issued 
in the superior court from the 1st to the 23d of October, inclusive, was 18,432. 

8224. Q. When did you-make that examination?—A. About a week ago. 

8225. Q. By whose direction?—A. By the direction of Mr. Meeks and Mr. Sweeney. 

8226. Q. How did you make it?—A. By counting each paper. 

8227. Q. Who has charge and has had since the commencement of this business, in Octo¬ 
ber last, of these applications ? —A. I have. 

8228. Q. State whether any of these applications, since they were placed in the court and 
became files of the court, have been lost or mislaid or abstracted or destroyed.—A. I can 
safely swear that none have been destroyed or abstracted, and that all are at present on file 
in the office of the superior court—all that ever were there. 

8229. Q. State how the custody of these papers has been kept since the business was 
done, and since they were executed and left in the court by the respective parties.—A. They 
w'ere locked up. 

8232. Q. State to the committee if you know how this error in the original count was 
made. I mean in the count reported to the committee by Mr. Westlake.—A. There were 
some four or five engaged in making the first count. It was done in a very hasty manner 
and under the impression that it was an estimate of the number that was required by the 
committee. It was done in a few hours, at night, in about three or four hours after business 
hours had closed. 

8233. Q. State who were present.—A. Mr. Edward B. Heath, Mr. Owen Westlake, Mr. 
Owen McNeirney, Mr. Jesse Oakley, and myself. 

8234. Q. How could this error have occurred ?—A. I do not know of my own certain 
knowledge how it could have occurred; I can only presume that it occurred by counting 
some papers over a second time. The place where these papers were counted is a very small 
office or room, about the size of this table. I suppose that the papers were counted over a 
second time. They were not counted singly or separately. There was a package put up 
containing 100 papers, and the remainder of the papers were put up in packages approxi¬ 
mating the size. I now present to the committee a statement of the number of applications 
for naturalization, according to my count, which statement shows the number of applications 
each day from the 1st to the 23d of October, inclusive. 

The testimony of Edward B. Heath (p. 749) and John S. Thompson, 
(pp. 751,752,) clerks in the office of the superior court, confirms that of 
Mr. Gillespie. The discrepancy was occasioned by the imperfect count 


126 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


of Westlake. This is proven beyond all question by the testimony 
quoted above. 

The majority of the committee made no attempt to impeach the testi¬ 
mony of Mr. Meeks, Mr. Gillespie, Mr. Heath, and Mr. Tliompson, con¬ 
cerning' the eorrectness of their figures 5 and we are therefore bound to 
coneliide that the number of naturalizations in the superior court during 
the month of October, or the first 23 days thereof, Avas 18,432, and not 
26,225, as the majority of the committee would haA^e it appear. 

ATTEMPTED BRIBERY BY UNION LEAGUE OFFICERS. 

George B. Gifford testifies, at page 496, as folloAvs : 

5139. Question. Do you know John H. White ?—Answer. Yes, sir; I am well acquainted 
with him. 

5140. Q. Have you had any conversation with him lately ?—A. I had about a week ago, 
last Tuesda}' night. 

5141. Q. Where?—A. In front of the Union League club room. 

5142. Q Please state what it was?—A. I went up there in company with a friend of 
mine by the name of Henry Darling. Previous to that a boy came to me and said that Mr. 
White wanted to see me at the Union League rooms. I went up there about S o’clock in the 
evening with Darling. We met White in front of the Union League club rooms and entered 
into conversation. He said he wanted me to testify to frauds committed by the democratic 
party at the presidential election. I told him I knew of no frauds being perpetrated by the 
democratic party. He said that that would make no difference; that as long as I would 
swear to the facts that he would write in the shape of an affidavit, he would pay me liberally 
for such evidence. I told him that I would have nothing to do with the affair at all. The 
reason he asked me, I suppose, was because I was formerly a member of the republican 
party, and was formerly in the revenue service. 

Henry Darling testifies, at page 497, substantially to tlie same effect 
as Mr. Gifibrd. Mr. White denies he had the conversation. 

LaAAT’eiice Farrell testifies, at page 590, as follows: 

6532. Q. Do you know anything of Davenport and Grinnell ?—A. Yes, sir; I know 
Davenport and Grinnell; there is Mr. Davenport there. 

6533. Q. Do you know anything about this case ? If you do, state it.—A. I received $30 
from Mr. Glassey, and Mr. Foster, and Mr. Davenport, on Saturday night, to keep men 
until Monday to furnish evidence that they had voted illegally in the 21st ward. 

6534. Q. When was that ?—A. In December I got men to come on Monday to furnish 
evidence that they voted illegally in the 21st ward. 

6535. Q. Who besides Mr. Davenport was engaged in that ?—A. Mr. Glassey and Mr. 
Foster. Mr. Glassey told me I would get the money as soon as Mr. Davenport got back. 

6536. Q. What did you do in respect to the matter?—A. I did not do anything. I did 
not furirish the men. 1 asked Mr. Foster what he wanted of the men, and he stated he 
wanted to furnish evidence against Sheriff O’Brien, a democratic leader, so tliat he could 
prosecute him. I said if I would lurnishthe men, if they were arrested what protection would 
they have, and Foster told me that General Grant, being elected arrd having the power, he 
would turnish the money and send them out of the United States, if they wanted to go out. 

6537. Q, Have you had any talk with any other republican leaders in reference to this 
matter?—A. I saw John Jay, and he told me to go to the committee. 

Foster, Davenport, and Glassey all admit that they bad a conversation 
with Farrell under the assumed name of Pierce. 

Davenport swears, at page 603, that he paid l^ierce (Farrell) $30, and 
this is substantially confirmed by the testimony of Foster, page 598, and 
Glassey, page 595. 

In this connection we again call attention to the conduct of certain 
persons who were in the service of the league, assisting William P. 
Wood, before referred to at some length. 

THE POLICE CENSUS. 

John Dunne, a policeman, testifies at pagus 293, 294, and 295, in rela¬ 
tion to a census ordered to be taken by Police Superintendent Kennedy, 
for election purposes, as follows : 

3118. Q. Do you know of any law of the State of New York that requires a policeman 
to become a census-taker ?—A. I do not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. ' 127 


3J19. Q. Is it not the fact that you were directed by the superintendent of police of this 
city to make this census in the interest of the republican party?—A. The orders, so far as I 
could learn, came from the superintendent of police. 

3123. Q. State whether it was any part of your duty as a patrolman to make up partisan 
lists ot voters tor anybody.—A. I never knew it to be previous to getting this order; the 
rules and regulations of the police department did not call for it. 

This luuiutliorized ceusiis was made as folly as it could be in view of 
its admitted xmrtisan fyorpose and cliaracter. Its validity was ques¬ 
tioned by the citizens generally 5 tind the inquiries of the ]>ersons engaged 
in it were by many disregarded. In so far as it was taken, it was done 
under the order of the republican superintendent of police, Mr. Kennedy, 
and in the interests of his political party. It certainly increased the 
means and knowledge at his command with which to prevent the frauds 
which afterwards were committed. AVhy were they not prevented to a 
greater extent than was done"? To prevent them entirely was beyond 
all human i)Ower, under any existing government. But, with the ma¬ 
chinery, the physical force, and the large authority of the board of police, 
it is to us matter of great surprise that so many outrageous frauds as 
are alleged by the majority were allowed to be committed. They cer¬ 
tainly could have been‘prevented, in a \ery great degree, by better and 
more efficient organization. 

STANLEY AND WILKES. 

Florence Scannel testifies as follows, at page 539, that a week before the 
November election he had a conversation with Marcus Cicero Stanley, 
in company with George AVilkes, at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. The wit¬ 
ness says: 

I agreed with him to register a number of names and leave them unvoted, provided they 
would give me two republican canvassers in the December election. I fulfilled my part of 
the contract, but they did not theirs. 

57.54. Q. With whom did you make this contract?—A. I made it with both Stanley and 
Wilkes. 

5758. Q. What did you do for Wilkes and Stanley?—A. I registered 150 or 200 names 
in my ward. I voted some myself, and left some for them to vote. 

5759. Q. How many of these names were of men legally entitled to vote?—A. I cannot 
tell that; probably none, probably a dozen. 

5784. Q. Was it the agreement that the republicans would vote for these names?—A. 
Yes, sir. 

James Gorrey testifies, at page 569, that he was a canvasser in the 
15th district of the I 8 th ward; that he made the aquaintance of a man 
named Scamiel, and he introduced him to a man named Stanley, who 
said: 

“ This man has just been confirmed.” Mr. Stanley asked me my politics, and I told him 
I did not hardly think that was necessary, but I was a democrat, and appointed a democratic 
canvasser; and he said to me, taking me one side, “Do you want to make a stake?” I 
said that depended upon circumstances; and he says, “I guess it does not make much dif¬ 
ference to you who wins this race now.” I said, “ It won’t benefit me anyway, that is cer¬ 
tain.” He says, “I am interested in the vote that Grant and Griswold are going to poll in 
the 18th ward, and if you can assist me any it might be worth a couple of hundred dollars 
to you.” I put up my hands in that way, (illustrating,) and said, “No, I am not one of 
that kind of people; you must look to somebody else for one to get anything of that kind 
done.” 

Stanley is afterwards sworn himself, and of course denies what Gor¬ 
rey states, but he sustains Scanuel in several very important iiarticulars. 
(Testimony, p. 639 et seq.) 

John E" McGoweii testifies, at page 527, that two days before the 
November election he met Marcus Cicero Stanley at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel. 

He asked me if I was a canvasser in the 3d w^ard in this city, and I told him I was. He 
then offered me $50 to change tickets for him at the election. He wanted me to give him 


128 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


the governor and electoral ticket, and stated he would swap off the other tickets with rne. 
That was the substance of the conversation. I have not seen him afterwards to talk with 
him. 

5576. Q. For whom did he want you to make this change?—A. In favor of the republi¬ 
cans. I was a democratic canvasser. 

Marshal Murray was present on the occasion of this interview. 

ALLEGED OBSTRUCTIONS TO INVESTIGATION BY THE COURTS AND MR. 

LOEW. 

It is attemiited by the majority to show that the judges of the supreme 
court were unwilling that their records and files concerning naturaliza¬ 
tion should be examined by the committee. In our judgment this does 
great injustice to these ofiicers. Neither of the judges ever made any 
objection to their examination with the utmost freedom by the committee. 
Their offence consists only in the fact that they said 7iothing in reply to 
a written request to permit ‘‘ other not members or officers of the 

committee, to take temiiorary custody of the papers, records, and files 
for examination. These other parties’’ were well understood to be the 
hired iiartisans of the League. The judges preferred to leave the clerk 
to act upon his own judgment in the surrender of these records for 
examination to the temporary custody of any persons, responsible or 
irresponsible, holding him responsible under the law for their safety. 

The clerk, Mr. Charles E. Loew, at all times treated the committee 
with respect and courtesy. He never denied to the committee any access 
to or facilities for the most complete examination of any of his files. He 
always furnished them with iiromptness and cheerfulness any particular 
papers desired by them. He hesitated at first to consent to let “other 
parties” take charge of his files because he doubted his legal authority 
to do so, and because he feared that the committee would send men • 
whom he believed to be untrustworthy or who were known to be per- 
sonallj^ offensive to him. But he did consent, and every facility was 
afforded to the committee to make, or cause to be made, the most minute 
and thorough examinations. He was called upon at a late hour on the 
6 th of February to produce to the committee in New York for a second 
examination all the files for the 21st and 23d days of October, and at 
once made an imperative order for one of his deputies, Mr. Plumb, whose 
duty it was to get together again (for they had all been distributed alpha¬ 
betically after the first examination by the committee’s agent) all the 
papers for those days, and to take them to the committee that evening. 
Mr. Plumb found it to be physically impossible to comply with this order 
that evening. He therefore worked some time after the office hour for 
closing that day, and then Avorked nearly all the next day, (Sunday,) in 
order to comply with the request of the committee, and Avas ready on 
Monday morning, February 8, to present the desired files. But on Sat¬ 
urday night, without his knowledge, the committee adjourned from Noav 
York and returned to Washington. 

Mr. LoeAV was then required by the committee to bring those files, 
some 1,500 in number, to Washington for examination, out of the State 
of New York, out of the jurisdiction of his court, and in direct viola¬ 
tion of the laAv of the State prescribing his official duties. This, and 
this only, he declined to do, and he did right. He is a State, and not a 
federal officer. These were files of a State, and not a federal court. 
Congress has no poAver to compel State courts to exercise federal juris¬ 
diction. They may exercise or refuse to exercise such jurisdiction, at 
Bieir option. If they accept and exercise it, they neither cease to be 
State courts, nor become federal courts to any extent whatever. Con¬ 
gress acquires thereby no power oA^er them or their records. 


r 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 129 

Ill our judgment tliis attempt to prejudice these officers in the public 
estimation is \itterly unsustained by the testimony and does them great 
injustice. We refer to the testimony of all the witnesses who say any¬ 
thing on this subject to vindicate what we say. 

ILLEGAL YOTING. 

Notwithstanding the great number of witnesses examined, and the 
mass of testimony taken by the committee, the proof of any considera¬ 
ble number of illegal votes having been actually cast is, in our opinion, 
remarkably deficient. Win. H. Bridgman, canvasser, (p. 261,) SAvears 
that according to the poll-list of the 4th district, 21st ward, 10 iiersons 
had voted tAvice on the same name. The canvassers, however, drew a 
corresponding number from the box. Bridgman’s testimony is confirmed 
by that of Butler H. Bixby, another canvasser of the same district, (p. 
261.) 

Joseph Dumble, (p. 491,) a registrar, and inspector of the 2d district of 
the 4th ward, swears that he kncAV of only one fraudulent Amte in his 
district, and that Avas the case of a man Avho did not live at the house 
from AAffiich he registered. He further swears that about 900 votes were 
registered in the district, and that the total vote actually cast was about 
99 short of the registry. 

James Dennis, (p. 612,) registrar, and inspector of the 7th district, 21st 
ward, swears that he knew of two cases of fraudulent naturalization 
papers; but does not swear that he knew that men voted on these pa¬ 
pers. On the next page, he swears that there were 404 Amters registered 
in the district, and only 362 votes iiolled. 

Henry Johnson (p. 735) testifies that he was a poll-clerk in the 3d dis¬ 
trict of the 4th ward at the last presidential election, and that 85 names 
were added to the Acting list in the course of the afternoon of the day 
of election. He further testifies that there Avere about 800 voters regis¬ 
tered in this district, and that when the polls closed there were 150 voters 
remaining outside unable to cast their votes. This the witness says was 
OAving to the conduct of a Mr. Costello, a republican inspector, Avho per¬ 
sisted in challenging voters Avithout sufficient ground. 

The witness, in answer to interrogatories on cross-examination, testi¬ 
fies further, as follows: 

8335. Question. Did you see any frauds practiced by either the republican or democratic 
inspectors before the board of canvassers organized ?—Answer. I did not see any out-and- 
out cheating. I thought there was unnecessary delay and challenging by Mr. Costello, the 
republican inspector. It seemed to me to be unnecessary for him to challenge persons 
whom, as he said, he had known well for a number of years. 

833fi Q. State whether as a matter of fact, in consequence of that, the entire legal vote 
of the district was not polled.—A. I do not think it could have been.* 

8337. Q. How did you ascertain the precise number of legal votes cast?—A. We kept 
the names of those who voted on the inspector’s book, and there were 685 names registered 
there as having voted legally. 

8338. Q. Were you able to say whether they were or not all legal voters ?—A. That I 
had nothing to do with; that was the duty of the inspectors to ascertain. 

In answer to fiirtber interrogatories on cross-examination the Avitness 
stated that he first told a Mr. Leash about fraudulent votes having been 
cast in his district, and subsequently repeated the story to an officer at 
the Union League. The witness also says he voted for General Grant. 

(It is to be observed in connexion with the testimony of Mr. Johnson, 
quoted above, that he is flatly contradicted on all material points by one 
or more Avitnesses more recently called.) 

Martin B. Austin, (p.286,) inspector of election 12th district, 13th ward, 
testifies that he “kneAv of no illegal votes cast at the i)residential elec¬ 
tion except one to which he had previously alluded, and there was some 
H. Bep. Com. 31-9 



130 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


question as to wlietlier that was an illegal vote. There was no voting 
twice, or attempting to vote twice, on the same names.’’ Mr. Austin 
swears he has always voted the republican ticket.” 

Abraham Baker, (p. 303,) a challenger in some election district of Kew 
York city, (he does not say where,) swears that the voting was conducted 
at his precinct with unnecessary rapidity, and that one of the inspectors 
said he couldn’t find certain names on the registry. The witness could 
not say whether all the legal voters voted or not; and he further testi¬ 
fies that he knew of no repeating at the polls. Mr. Baker says he is a 
republican. 

Simeon E. Belmont, (p. 3,071,) republican inspector of election for the 
12 th district of the 8th ward, testifies that “a dozen men voted seven 
times;” but on cross-examination he swears that ^^only 425 votes were 
polled in the district, about 50 less than were registered.” 

Henry Beeney, (p. 409,) inspector of election 9th district, 6th ward, 
after makiug vague statements about illegal votes ha^dng, in his opin¬ 
ion, been cast in the district in which he says he was thoroughly 
acquainted, further swears, on cross-examination, that he ‘^cannot give 
the name of any person who voted illegally at my precinct,” (p. 411.) 

Henry J. Chapman, (pp. 1’03, 204,) inspector of election IGth district 
of the ICtli ward, and a republican, swears that, so far as he “knew, 
there were no frauds in the registration or in the voting.” “ The election 
was fairly conducted; the democratic inspectors acted fairly and hon¬ 
orably.” 

Kichard G. Hunt, (p. 204,) inspector of election 19th district, 11th 
ward, and a republican, swears that he could state only one person who 
voted illegally, on the name of another. On further examination he 
testified that, so far as he knew, the inspectors “ excluded all illegal 
votes,” (p. 206.) 

Lorenzo Carey, p. 274,) inspector of election 6th district, 6th ward, 
testified that he “ could not specify any case of illegal voting.” Mr. 
Carey is a republican. 

John Donnelly, (p. 225,) inspector of election 5th district, 6th ward, 
testifies that he did not know of any illegal votes having been cast in 
the district at the November election. “ The board were unanimous in 
admitting or rejecting voters.” 

Francis Donnelley, (p. 299,) inspector of election 3d district, 11th 
ward, (the same district referred to by Mr. Baker above,) and a repub¬ 
lican, after testifying about oiie man voting twice, says all the inspec¬ 
tors except himself seemed to agree to receive the votes that were depos¬ 
ited ; says the poll-list fell short of the registry about 75 names, and 
that there were a good many registered who did not vote, (p. 302.) 

Thomas Flynn, (p. 254,) inspector of election 19th district, 13th ward, 
testifies that he does not know of any illegal vote having been cast in 
said district at the November election, (p. 255.) “ There v^ere 500 names 

on the registry, and 470 or 480 votes polled,” (p. 255.) 

John Gillmore, (p. 458,) inspector of election, 7th district of 4th ward, 
and a republican, testifies that he does not know of his own knowledge 
of any illegal votes having been cast in said district at the November 
election; 715 votes were registered, and about 500 polled, (p. 259.) 

William A. Jenner, (p. 48,) chairman of the board of registers and 
inspector 5th district of the 18th ward, and a republican, testifies that 
the board did not permit any illegal votes to be cast in said district, yet 
he thinks there was one, although he could not recollect the name of the 
party, (p. 50.) 

William Joralemon, (p. 212,) inspector of election 5th district, 6th 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


131 


ward, testifies that the hoard took all proper precaution to guard the 
polls and the registry against illegal votes,” and “ he does not know of 
any illegal votes' being cast there. 

John Kennel, (p. 034,) inspector of election 2d district of the 3d ward, 
testifies: 

So far as I know, the inspectors of registry and 'election tried to do what was right. 
There were very few who,came there to be registered who were not^ challenged. They all 
swore in. When a man swears in he must be registered. 

Mr. Kennel says he voted for General Grant for President. 

William J. Lontrell, (p. 441,) inspector of election 12th district, 8th 
ward, testifies as follows: 

4416. Q. IIow many votes were given in your precinct ?—A. Somewhere between 400 
and 500 ; I could not state the exact number; there were about 500 registered; there were 
about 70 votes less cast than were registered. 

4418. Q. State whether there was an apparent effort by the board, so far as you observed, 
to prevent illegal registering and illegal voting?—A. There was; in fact I think it was 
carried to excess; I think Mr. Bell, the republican inspector, carried it to excess; he would 
challenge almost every man that came up, whether he knew him to be a legal voter .or not. 

4422. State whether anybody, to your knowledge, voted more than once at that election 
in your district.—A. I did not see anybody vote more than once ; I gave particular attention 
to that thing, as there was so much said of repeaters and frauds on election. 

4423. Q. Do you know of anybody voting four times that day ?—A. No, sir. 

John J. Mulligan, (p. 252,) inspector of election 12th district, 13th 
ward, testifies as follows: 

2686. Q. Was there any disposition evinced by any member of the board to have illegal 
voters put on the registry or admitted to vote ?—A. Not that I am aware of. 

2637. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes having been registered or given in your pre¬ 
cinct.—A. No, sir; I think they were all legal votes. 

Arther McKenna, (p. 395,) inspector 5th district, 1st ward, and a re¬ 
publican, testifies that two illegal votes were cast in his district, because 
he could not ascertain that the voters lived at the number and street 
put down on the registry. 

Patrick Mack, (p. 414,) inspector of election and chairman of the 
board of registration and inspection 5th district, 4th ward, testifies that 
he ^HMnlis he of 100 or 200 illegal votes having been cast in his 

district, but on further examination he can only mention the names of 
three persons whom he says voted illegally. 

Joseph Maloy, (p. 457,) testifies as follows: 

4591. I was an election officer in the 4th district of the 4th ward at the last presidential 
election. I know nothing of illegal votes being cast in that precinct. I had the poll-list of 
registered voters, and as a man came in to vote I checked his name off. I do not know of 
any repeating being done at that precinct. I believe, however, there was a man arrested 
afterwards for repeating in another district who voted at ours. 

James J. Neeles, (p. 203,) inspector of election 6th district of the 6th 
ward, testifies as follows: 

2781. Q. Were any illegal votes given that you know of?—A. None that I know of; I 
am a resident of that district for 21 years ; I know a large proportion of the voters ; I should 
think I know from 150 to 200 of them. 

2782. Q. State whether those who voted were generally known by some member of the 
board.—A. They generally were, either as old voters, or as persons who had come to the 
right age to vote. Some one member of the board was acquainted with each man. 

John Osborn, (p. 85,) chairman of the board of registers and inspectors 
of the-district, and a republican, testifies as follows: 

There were no illegal votes polled at my place that I know of. They were attempted 
but could not go through. I think we protected our polls so that no illegal votes got in. 

George Merritt, (p. 521,) inspector of election, 5th district, 16th ward, 
testifies as follows: 

5553. Q. State whether of your own knowledge you have reason to believe that illegal or 
otherwise unauthorized persons were registered by your board ?—A. No, sir; it a man 



132 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


appeared and desired to be registered, and I had any doubts about him, I would make him 
show his papers. I know almost everybody in the ward, and could easily tell whether they 
were legal voters or not. 

Samuel S. Eoberts, (p. 190,) insbiector of election, 2(1 district, 17tb 
ward, testifies as follows: 

1972. Q. State if you know any facts that led you to suppose that it would be dangerous 
to challenge on election day.—A. I do not know of anything that would have deterred me 
from challenging a voter. 

1973. Q. Or deter any one else ?—A. Or any one else. 

1974. Q. You say you examined and scrutinized the applications for registration under 
all these new certificates pretty carefully ?—A. Yes, sir. 

1975. Q. And where there was any doubt you swore them?—A. I asked them if they 
would take the oath. 

1976. Q. Do you think in that way at registration you got rid of all the illegal votes ?— 
A. I think that our strictness there prevented a great many from coming there to be regis¬ 
tered. 

1977. Q. And that you kept your polls pretty pure ?—A. Yes, sir. 

1978. Q. How many did you reject ?—A. I suppose we may have rejected some 20, more 
or less. 

Porter G. Slierman, (p. 84,) register and inspector of election, 8tli dis¬ 
trict, 17tli ward, testifies as follows: 

937. Q. Did you know of any illegal votes having been given at your precinct ?—A. No, 
sir; I do not positively know of any ; I know if I had it to do over again I would retain all 
of these papers instead of allowing anybody to vote upon them. 

Dugald Stewart, (p. 90,) inspector of election, 17tb district, 20tli ward, 
testifies as follows: 

1106. Q. State if you know of any person having registered on naturalization papers who 
was not entitled to be registered.—A. No, sir; I do not know of any in that district. 

E. n. Springsteen, (p. 218,) inspector of election, 19tb district of the 
lltb ward, testifies as follows : 

2211. Q. Was there harmonious action in your board with reference to excluding illegal 
voters from registering and from voting ?—A. Yes, sir; there was. 

2212. Q. You all concurred in it ?—A. We all concurred in having things done fair and 
square. 

2213. Q. Was any one admitted to register or vote excepting by the consent of the board ?— 
A. Not one. 

2214. Q. And in this the board all concurred?—A. Yes. sir. 

2215. Q. From all you know, was the election fairly and honestly conducted ?—A. Yes, sir. 

Solomon Leixas, (p. 227,) inspector of election, IGtli district, 6tli ward, 
testifies as follows: 

2330. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being either registered or voted at that 
place?—A. No, sir. 

2331. Q. Did you use ordinary precaution to protect the polls ?—A. We did. 

2332. Q. State to the committee what action you took for the purpose of protecting them ?— 
A. We looked at all the papers, and any paper that we thought doubtful we did not receive. 
We found one paper, for instance, that was all correct, but we did not receive it on account 
of the man saying he did not have his first papers. All the rest were in due form, I believe, 
to the best of my knowledge and belief. 

Dennis Shea, (p. 389,) inspector of election, 4tli district, 4tli ward, and 
a republican, testifies as follows : 

3992. Q. Were there any persons who voted there who were not legal voters ?—A. Not to 
my positive knowledge. If I w’ere aware of it they could not vote. 

3993. (i^. I think you said you challenged everybody whom you suspected ?—A. Every¬ 
body ; and I made three or four arrests. 

3994. Q. Did the rest of the board co-operate with you to prevent fraud ?—A. Yes sir. 

3998. Q. You do not know of any illegal votes being given in that precinct?—A.’I can¬ 
not swear to any. 

William W. Young, (p. 47,) inspector of election, 4tb district, 17tli 
ward, testifies as follows: 

510. Q. And where a man could not recollect the name of the witness you rejected his 
paper ?—A. Yes, sir ; being satisfied that the papers were not issued in a regular way. 

511. Q. None of these men registered or voted?—A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


133 


512. Q. Were there any illegal votes given at your precinct ?—A. I think not. 

513. Q. You kept them all out?—A. We were very cautious. I have been an inspector for 

six or seven years, and I had made up my mind that we might as well have the thino- go 
on straight. Everything we thought illegal was thrown out. ” 

514. Q. If any man could not recollect where he got his papers, or who his witness was, 
you threw out his vote?—A. Yes, sir. 

Benjamin Van Biiren, (p. 20G,) inspector of election, IGth district, 16th 
ward, testifies as follows: 

2079. Q. State to the committee how the election there was conducted, and how the officers 
discharged their duty both at the registration and the election.—A. Everything went on 
very pleasantly. They all seemed to do their duty. I saw nothing that I supposed to be 
illegal. Judge Willis being an ex-judge, did most of the swearing for us. 

2080. Q. There was no difference or ill-feeling among the members of the board ?—A. None, 
whatever. 

2081. Q. Everything went off pleasantly?—A. Very agreeably and pleasantly. 

2082. Q. And there was no illegal voting or registration so far as you know ?—A. I do 
not think there was an illegal vote polled. 

2083. Q. You think that the registration and election were properly conducted?—A. Yes, 
sir. 

2084. Q. And that none but legal voters voted ?—A. No, sir. 

2085. Q. Nothing improper transpired at the polls ?—A. Nothing, that I saw. 

The testimony of several other registrars and inspectors of election 
might he given to the same effect, but it would be merely cumulative. 
Efficient evidence has been already presented to disprove the allega¬ 
tion of the majority that a very large number of fraudulent votes ivere cast 
at the election in question. We submit, on the testimony of the regis¬ 
trars and inspectors to whom we have above referred, that it appears 
very clear that not 100 fraudulent votes are proven to have been actually 
cast in the districts which they represented, and which were, no doubt, 
purposely selected by the majority of the committee and the agents of 
the League'as affording the worst examples of illegal voting to be found 
in the great city of New York. 

CHARACTER OF SOME OF THE COMAHTTEE’S WITNESSES. 

Perhaps the most disagreeable feature of the protracted and laborious 
investigation made by the committee was the character of a number of 
the witnesses subpoenaed to appear and testify before it. 

The falsity of their statements was in many cases apparent on their 
faces as well as on the faces of the falsifiers. They were men whose 
testimony would not have been admitted by any respectable tribunal in 
the country, or believed by any intelligent jury, and it was with aston¬ 
ishment that we saw them presented to give evidence tending to injure 
the reputation of respectable and upright men. The testimony of these 
false witnesses is found on nearly every page of the printed evidence, 
and relates to a variety of subjects. 

We shall only, for the purposes of this report, present a few of their 
statements, and then show the reputation of those who made them. 

First. At page 407, one Michael Costello, a republican, in the 3d dis¬ 
trict of the 4th ward, relates a “Munchausen” story about “repeaters,” 
and the manner in which they threatened his very life. 

At page 442, Mr. Matthew T. Brennan, one of the police commissioners 
of the city of New York, testifies concerning this man Costello as 
follows: 

4430. Q. Are you acquainted with a man by the name of Costello, at present a bell-ringer 
in this city?—A. I am. 

4431. Q. What is his reputation for truth and veracity in this community?— A. I would 
not believe him under oath if he was an interested party. 


134 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKE. 


To tlie same effect, Hon. Morgan Jones, ex-member of the House of 
Eepresentatives, testifies, (p. 438:) 

• 4392. Q. Do you know what is the general reputation of Costello among his neighbors 
for truth and veracity?—A. I think he is a bad fellow; his reputation is bad for truth and 
veracity. 

4393. Q. On that reputation would you believe him under oath?—A. No, sir. 

John P. Thurston (p. 430) testifies as follows concerning Costello’s 
conduct at polls: 

4330. I was an election officer at the last presidential election in the 3d district of the 4th 
w'ard. 

4331. Q. Did you see any obstnuctions thrown in the way of men’s voting so that they 
all did not get their votes in?—A. Yes, sir. A man by the name of Michael Costello, chair¬ 
man of the board of inspectors, challenged almost every legal voter who presented himself, 
and would delay them by swearing them and examining them. 

4332. Q. He challenged men he knew to be voters?—A. Yes, sir. 

4333. Q. And in that way retarded the voting?—A. He delayed it a great deal. 

4334. Q. Was it carried to such extent as to leave many persons at the polls at the time 
they closed in the evening, waiting to deposit their votes?—A. Yes, sir; the're were at least 
a hundred on the sidewalk who could not vote when the polls closed. There was one man 
in particular by the name of McLaughlin, whom I have known for many years to be a legal 
voter. Costello also knew him. 

It is fortunate that tlie best arranged scliemes of fraud generally fail 
from the inability of any human mind to anticipate and guard ev^y 
point. However accomplished the scoundrel may be by whom any such 
scheme is contrived, or however artfully he may be aided by others, 
when it is put forth and subjected to the scrutiny of other minds its 
falsity is almost certain to be conclusively demonstrated. A man call¬ 
ing himself Henry Lyle was examined before the committee, under cir¬ 
cumstances which marked him as one of the chief cards of the investi¬ 
gation. He was hunted up by one IJtley, a removed custom-house officer 
seeking to get back, and was tutored before examination by Mr. Daven¬ 
port, one of the clerks furnished to the committee by the Loyal League. 
Lyle told the most marvellous stories, one of which was that during the 
month of October, 1868, he falsely swore, as witness, to affidaAuts upon 
which he i)rocured from 600 to 1,000 certificates of naturalization. That 
number he said he “ would swear toand he added: “ Sometimes 1 
would swear to 20 or 30, and sometimes 50 a day.” These Certificates, 
he said, were obtained in the superior court, before Judge McGunn, and 
in the supreme court, before Judge Barnard; although, not bearing in 
mind the old adage that ^Giars should have good memories,” he forgot 
himself on his further examination, and said that he never went before 
Judge McCunn. He further testified that in 100 of these cases he per¬ 
sonated the applicant and took tlie oath of allegiance; that between 50 
and 100 times he acted as witness as well as applicant, which would 
leave, according to his story, from 400 to 800 cases in which he appeared 
only as a witness. He also testified that he signed different names as wit¬ 
ness, to use his own language, “Just as it happened to come into my head. 
Sometimes I would sign my own name, at others that of Henry Law¬ 
rence, or Lines, or any name.” He afterwards testified that he “ put 
down” the name of Henry Lyons as witness. These are the names by 
which, as he said, he appeared as a witness, and are the only names he 
specified. Tables were prepared and put in evidence before the committee^ 
by persons selected by and acting for the Union League or the committee, 
(it does not clearly appear which,) or both, showing the number of times 
that the name of each person who frequently acted as a witness in natu¬ 
ralization cases in the supreme and superior courts, during October, 1868, 
appeared upon the papers. Neither Henry Lyle, n or Lawrence, nor Lines, 
nor Lyons appears in either of these tables. It is thus clearly proven that 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1^5 


neither the real nor an assumed name of tliis wholesale liar, who swore 
that he was a witness in from COO to 1,000 cases, is found upon the 
papers of any of the persons naturalized or appearing to be naturalized. 
Whether the cases were honest or fraudulent, he was no witness. 

In this connection the testimony of the following named witnesses 
will shed more light upon Lyles true character. 

Thomas Kynn (p. 510) testifies— 

That he knows a man named Henry Lyle. He appeared in court several times under the 
influence of liquor, and acted in a disorderly manner. I turned him out several times. He 
was generally intoxicated when he was at the court. 

5529. Q. State whether it is, from your knowledge and observation of the superior court, 
possible for this man Henry Lyle, during these days of naturalization, to have come into 
court and to have secured, on his own testimony, as either witness or applicant, from 600 to 
1,000 certificates?—A. No, sir; it would have been utterly impossible. 

The testimony of Samuel S. Acker (p. 519) is to the same effect. 

Austin D. Pettit, (pp. 493, 494,) for whom Lyle swore he procured 
naturalization papers, thus disposes of that individual. In reply to a 
question as to whether he knew Lyle, the witness answered, Yes, sir!-' 

5110. Q. What is his character for truth and veracity?—A. Not very good in my opinion. 

5111. Q. What is his reputation among his neighbors for truth and veracity ?—A. I could 
not say; I have never associated with his neighbors. 

5112. Q. What means have you of knowing his character for truth and veracity ?—A. 
Generally from his mode of life. He is an habitual drunkard. 

5117. Q. State whether you did ever at any time procure 10 final certificates of naturali¬ 
zation from any court in anybody’s name or names and give them to Henry Lyle?—A. No, 
sir; I never did. 

A witness named John J. Mullen (p. 642) testifies to having ^h^epeated’^ 
largely in the interest of the democratic party at the November election. 
He also stated that he was acquainted with Police Justice Edward 
Hogan, who testifies (p. 665) that he knew such a man. 

7408. Q. State what you know in reference to this Mullen?—A. I can only say that I 
know him as a professional thief for four or five years. 

7409. Q. Are you acquainted with his general reputation?—A. I should say that I am. 

7410. Q. Do you know what his general reputation is for truth and veracity?—A. It is 
bad. 

7411. Q. From that general reputation would you believe him under oath?—A. I would 
not. 

T. J. Gillmore, (p. 208,) a messenger, furnished the committee by 

The League,” testifies as follows: 

2105. Q. I went last evening to serve a subpoena issued by this committee, directing Pau 
Dehlman to appear as a witness. The name is Dellinger—not Dehlman. He keeps a bar¬ 
ber shop in avenue C. When I went in, Charles E. Loew, county clerk, was there, waiting 
to be shaved, and there was quite a crowd of other roughs there too. 

2106. Q. You include the county clerk in that description ?—A. Yes, sir. When I presented 
the subpoena to the barber, Mr, Loew told him not to take it unless I had the original to show 
him. I said the original was in possession of the committee. Dellinger would not take the 
subpoena, and as they showed a disposition to be quarrelsome I left. 

At page 256 Mr. Loew was recalled and interrogated as to bis where¬ 
abouts on the evening mentioned by Gillmore, and having satisfactorily 
shown that he was not in the barber shop,” and that Gilmore’s whole 
story was false, whereupon Gillmore was recalled, confronted Avith Mr. 
Loew, and examined as follows: 

2730. Q. Do you see that gentleman ?—A. Yes, sir. 

2731. Q. Is he the gentleman whom you testified to yesterday, as having interfered with 
you in the service of a subpoena?—A. He is the gentleman, or else he looks very much like- 

him. T. ; I • 

2732. Q. Do you say that he is or that he is not the party?—A. I do not think he is. 

This thing developed a very mean attemiit to cast odium, most unjustly 
and Avithout any regard for truth Avhatever, upon Mr. Loew. Who 
inspired this unmanly attempt Ave do not say. 


136 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The witness Montague Richard Leverson, who swore (p. 119) that 
he saw from 110 to 150 persons naturalized in Judge Barnard^s court, is 
thus disposed of by Mr. William R. W. Chambers, (p. 038:) 

7044. Q. Are you acquainted with M. R, Leverson, who has been a witness before this 
committee?—A. I have known him for some time back. I was employed in the city inspec* 
tor’s department, and he used to be in and out of the office. I always knew him as Lawyer 
Leverson. 

7045. Q. Do you know his general reputation for truth and veracity ?—A. Yes; his gen¬ 
eral reputation is bad. 

7046. Q. From that general reputation would-you believe him under oath?—A. No, sir; 
I would not. 

Iti concluding this head it is only necessary to refer to the testimony 
o,f Sheriff O’Brien, (pp. 515, 51C,) in regard to the character of some of 
tiie witnesses sent over from Wood’s office at Jersey city to testify before 
the committee. Mr. O’Brien was asked who gave directions to arrest 
certain parties. He answered as follows : 

As I understood that the committee wanted me to take a party whom they had here as a 
witness to be identified, I took one down to the 6th ward station-house to be identified by 
Captain Jourdan; this is a sample of the lot of witnesses that have been here; they are all 
thieves, and they get pay for coming here and swearing. 

Further on Mr. O’Brien swears: 

I met a lot of suspicious people out in the entry. I knew them to be a lot of English 
thieves, and I took them to Captain Jourdan to identify^them, and found them to be common 
criminals. 

It should be borne in mind that the parties alluded to were waiting in 
the entry of the United States court-house to be examined as witnesses 
before the committee. Marshal Murray himself testified that he believed 
the most of these witnesses were thieves. 

THE CONDUCT OF MARSHAL MURRAY. 

Allusion has elsewhere been made to the conduct of officers of the 
Union League and its paid agents, and officers of the federal and State 
(New York) governments, in the matter of this investigation. We have 
shewn that it not only originated with these partisans, but was stimulated, 
and as the testimony clearly proves, sui^ported and carried on by them 
during the entire session of the committee. Their “footprints” are 
visible on nearly every printed page of the testimony, and the individual 
conduct of many of them justly subjects them to severe criticism, if not 
reprobation. Prominent among these gentlemen stands Mr. Robert Mur¬ 
ray, United States marshal for the southern district of New York. We 
append a few extracts from the testimony touching his connection with 
political affairs in New York and with this investigation. 

The following questions were put to him on cross-examination, (p. 7:) 

58 Q. Do you know of any money being raised in this city with a view of operating on 
the election or controlling it ?—A. I have always been in the habit of contributing money 
myself for election purposes. 

62 Q. How much did you contribute last'fall?—A. Perhaps $3,000 or $4,000. 

David Hogan testifies, at page 531, that he had a conversation yvith 
Marshal Murray and Marcus Cicero Stanley, at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, 
prior to the last November election, in reference to voting and getting 
repeaters, and repeating himself. The witness says: 

I went over to the Fifth Avenue Hotel with a friend of mine, by the name of Ferguson, 
and also one by the name of Jones, and another man whose name I do not recollect. We 
heard that there was a good deal of business going on at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in connec¬ 
tion with the election; I said to Ferguson that there was a good deal of money floating 
around there, and that we might try and get some of it. I went there and saw Marshal 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


137 


Murray; he said he wanted me to get 10 good men to vote on election day in the western 
district of the 21st ward, and one or two districts of the 18th ward, and he asked me how 
much it would be worth ; I told him it would be worth $1,000; Murray said that was too 
much ; we talked a little while, and he finally offered me $300 ; I said I would take it; I then 
made an agreement with him to meet him at the Hoffman House the night before the election; 
we went there that night and met him there ; he introduced us to a man, whom I had not 
seen before, with very heavy black whiskers, and he paid us the $300; I then went to the 
bar-room and divide^ it up between myself, Ferguson, Jones, and the other man. 

The testimony of John Jones, page 548, and Hiram B. Ferguson, page 
564, is to the same effect, and confirms Hogan in every essential point. 

Thomas Sullivan testifies, at page 528, that— 

John Donovan and himself were standing in Chambers street, (New York,) whilst the com¬ 
mittee were in session, and that Marshal Murray came up and asked them what they were 
doing there. 

He asked us then if we would not make an affidavit that we breakfasted at Sheriff O’Brien’s 
house on the morning of election, and repeated for the democratic party in the election. 
I told him I would not make such an affidavit. 

5605. Q. Did he offer you any reward ?—A. Yes, sir. 

John Donohue, at page 529, confirms Sullivan’s testimony in every 
material point. Mr. Murray of course denies the statements of these 
witnesses. 

At page 545, Mr. Murray was recalled and interrogated in regard to 
his authority for placing 24 policemen around the room occupied by the 
committee for its sessions. He (Murray) answered as follows: 

I asked the superintendent of police this morning to send me eight or ten men. Things 
looked rather rough about here at 10 o’clock this morning. There was a rough crowd in the 
hall, and I made a requisition upon the superintendent for eight or ten men. 

When called upon for a copy of the requisition made upon the super¬ 
intendent for these policemen, he replied ‘‘that he did not keep a copy.” 

His first excuse for calling to his aid so large a force of police was that 
he did it for the protection of the building, (the United States court¬ 
house,) but on further examination (p. 546) it appears that he appre¬ 
hended personal danger also, although he says he “has considerable 
courage.” It appears clear to us that the chief, if not the only, purpose 
of this singular display of force was to embarrass the minority of the 
committee in the presentation of evidence, and to drive away their wit¬ 
nesses by intimidation. The array of armed and uniformed policemen 
was utterly uncalled for by anything in the circumstances, or in the con¬ 
duct of the witnesses produced by us. In their characters Mr. Murray 
himself testifies that they were no worse or more vicious than the wit¬ 
nesses called by the majority during the preceding days. It is extremely 
probable that Mr. Murray did not desire the presence of the witnesses 
called by the minority, because some of them had testified to unwelcome 
facts about him, and others might do so. 

It is a significant fact, and ought not to be omitted from this connec¬ 
tion, that Mr. Murray was, no doubt, consulted about the establishment 
of Wood’s subornation office at Jersey City, and often went over there to 
advise with Wood as to its management and success; and must have 
been aware of the infamous purposes which controlled it, and the dirty 
work it was organized to do, and did so successfully. These facts further 
explain his conduct in reference to the police, and his objection to the 
presence in the hall of democratic detectives to aid in exposing the frauds 
and perjuries of the thieves sent over from that office. 

In this purpose to exclude our witnesses and embarrass us, Mr. Le 
Barnes, sergeant-at-arms of the committee, an earnest partisan of the 
League, seems to have fully sympathized. 


138 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


In support of this allegation we invite attention to the following extract 
from Miirray^s testimony (p. 546.) 

5848. Q. Do you think.you have the right to bring these policemen here and supersede the 
sergeant-at-arrns of this committee?—A. I had nothing to do with the policemen. I sup¬ 
posed that you were going to conduct your own business in your own way, with your own 
sergeant-at-arms. 

5849. Q. Suppose our sergeant-at-arms wanted the witnesses in the hall and in the 
doorway ?—A. He told me that he did not. 

5850. Q. Did he ask you to send for these policemen ?—A. No, not particularly. 

5851. Q. Did you have any talk with him on the subject ?—A. Not to-day. 1 did yester¬ 
day. 


ILLEGAL REGISTRATION. 

Among the witnesses who testify to the illegal registration of names, 
is Michael Brady, (p. 544) who says that at the house where he resides 
(49J Dominick street,) there was but one voter at the last presidential 
election, and that there were live names registered fiom said house. He 
further swears, that he examined the registry-list in regard to certain 
houses in William street, and found about the same excess in registra¬ 
tion, over the actual residents of the houses referred to. 

He swears, however, on cross-examination, that he did not inquire for 
the persons who were registered from these houses until a week after 
the charter election in December a month after the presidential election. 
On cross-examination the witness also swore (p. 544) that he was 
requested to examine these poll-lists by Major Strong. He is connected 
with the Union League. He found the poll-books at the Union Ueague 
club-house. There were probably about 200 of them there j I cannot 
positively say how many. 

It will be perceived that the witness (Brady) swears that he found 
these books at the Union League. On this point, the testimony of Judge 
John H. White, a i)rominent member of and counsel for that organiza¬ 
tion in the matter of investigating tliese alleged election frauds, contra¬ 
dicts Brady flatly. At page 050 Judge White swears as follows in answer 
to certain interrogatories: 

7176. Q. Does the law require any of these registry-books to be deposited at the Unioil 
League headquarters ?—A. No, sir. 

Q. By what authority are they deposited there ?—A. The registry books were not there. 
We had books there which we had made up ourselves. I had charge of that matter. 

William W. Woodward (p. 436) swears that he noticed three parties 
in the 9th district of the 6th ward, registering under assumed names, 
and one party registered twice. He does not swear, however, that the 
first three had registered under their real names previously, or that any 
of them actually voted. 

Certain election inspectors express the opinion, in their testimony, 
that there was some illegal registration in the districts where they re¬ 
spectively ofiiciated, but it does not appear in evidence that any consid¬ 
erable number of illegally registered persons voted. 

The exploits of repeaters will be given under another head. 

REPEATERS AND REPEATING IN THE INTEREST OF BOTH PARTIES. 

We come now to the prolific subject of “ repeating,” as it is called, and 
invite the attention of the House to the following analysis of the testimony 
relating tliereto, which upon examination will be found to sustain the 
\dews of the minority of the committee hitherto expressed in this report, 
on the general subject of illegal voting. 

Joseph Benson, (p. 427,) an old man 70 years of age, swears that he 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


139 


voted four times. He gives the niiinher of the precincts at which he 
voted, hut does not give the number of the ward. He acknowledges 
that he was rather boozy,” and don’t positively recollect which ticket 
he voted. 

Michael Costello (p. 407) swears about seeing gangs of repeaters” 
around the polls, but his character for “ truth and veracity” is broken 
down by the testimony of Brennan and Jones, elsewhere quoted. 

Edward Clark (p. G26) swears that he voted 15 or 18 times. He voted 
in the 10th and 11th wards, and in different wards afterwards. He 
does not state which districts in said wards he voted in. He says fur¬ 
ther that he got so drunk he did not know what he was about.” 

On cross-examination he discloses the true reason why he testified as 
he did. He says: 

When I asked for the money for voting they licked me. That is the reason I make this 
statement. I want satisfaction. I got nothing for repeating except what I had to eat and 
drink. My politics are republican. I do not like the democrats much. I have got a grudge 
against them. 

Edward Cobb (p. G26) testifies that he voted 15 or IG times at least. 
He gives the number of the district where he voted legally^ but does not 
state in which districts he voted illegally. He acknowledges that he 
made his first statement about repeating in Wood’s office, at Jersey City. 
The reason he did so is explained in his own language, as follows: 

I did so for satisfaction because I had been promised |30 for voting and got nothing ; I 
had always voted the republican ticket until that day; my father is an old republican, and 
I always follow his ways ; I have been always a republican in principle. 

William Dorans (pp. 448, 449) testifies that he “ repeated” from 10 to 
15 times. From 20 to 30 others were engaged with him in the same 
business. He don’t state, however, the numher of the districts in which 
he voted, and don’t know which ticlcet he voted. He thinlcs it was the 
democratic ticket.” 

Charles Ferguson (p. G21) testifies that he voted at the last president¬ 
ial election 14 or 15 times. He don’t tell the number of the districts in 
which he voted and did not notice which ticket he voted. He supposes 

the rest of the party voted the same ticket that he did, but he does 
not know wdiat ticket it was.” 

William H. Greene (pp. 315, 31G) testifies about a number of men reg¬ 
istering from 1G9, 197, and 1G7 Henry street, the residences of Coroner 
Keenan, Police Justice Shandley, and William M. Tweed. The witness, 
however, did not know of more than one of them having voted and he 
was arrested. Greene is a republican and only knew one of these 

would be” repeaters as a democrat. 

Charles Grant (p. 428) testifies that he voted about 3G times at six 
different places. He did not know the number of the districts in which 
he voted. On further examination (p. 429) it turned out that this ex¬ 
tensive ‘Hepeater” was referring exclusively to the mayoralty election in 
Kew York in December last, and the ticket that he repeated so indust¬ 
riously was the Colliding (republican) ticket. 

James Green (p. 507) testifies that he took breakfast at the house of 
Sheriff O’Brien on the morning of the election, and that he subsequently 
voted nine times. He does not remember any of the names on which he 
voted. 

The witness acknowledges that he first made his statement in Jersey 
City, (Wood’s office.) 

Sheriff O’Brien was recalled, (p. 509,) and contradicted the testimony 
of Green so far as it related to 40 or 50 repeaters having breakfasted at 
his (O’Brien’s) house on the morning of the election. 


140 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


John Gregory (p. 58G) testifies that he voted twice. He was with a 
gang of 15 or 20, but could not say they were engaged in voting more 
than once; witness could not say which ticket he voted; he received 
nothing for voting twice; witness was promised money for making this 
statement, at Wood’s office in Jersey City. 

William II. Hendrick, alias William H. Travis, a frequenter of faro 
banks, testifies (p. 237) that he joined a gang of repeaters and continued 
to operate with them, on the advice of Sui)erintendent Kennedy and 
George Bliss, jr., counsel of the police board. Witness testifies that he 
was furnished with various names on slips of paper, and went around 
with the gang of repeaters to register them; witness says the gang was 
under the control of Alderman Norton, his brother, Peter Norton, and 
Peter Mitchell; he, the witness, says he went into the business of illegal 
registration for money, hut didnH get any ; says he is a republican, and 
voted for Grant; he did not vote but once, and did not know that any¬ 
body else voted on the fictitious names registered by himself; his right 
name, he says, is William H. Hendrick, but he enlisted in the army under 
the assumed name of William H. Travis. Prom his own statements, under 
oath, it is evident that he is a very depraved character; and soon after 
he entered upon this unlawful and disreputable business he was employed 
as a clerk by the Union League at $18 per v^ek, which position he still 
held at the time he testified. The following is his statement about it, 
at page 247: 

2576. Q. How have you mauagecl to ^et a living since then?—A. Since then I have been 
employed as a clerk in the office of the Union League, and am now in that service. 

2577. Q. At what compensation?—A. I have been getting $18 per week. 

George Harris, (p. 419) testifies that at the last presiaential election, 
he ^^wenr around to four or five different districts, and voted two or three 
times at each place, this mostly in the 21st ward,”—the 4th, 5th, 6th, 
8th, and 9th districts. He was with a gang of 20 or 30. He could not 
say ^^what ticket this gang voted,” (p. 421.) Witness first told Colonel 
Wood that he had voted illegally. He should not have told Wood if 
it had not been for William Doran one of his, (Wood’s,) spies: he, (Wood,) 
sent for Doran and asked him. (p. 422.) 

George Hill (p. 482) testifies that he was one of the gang of 16 or 20 
rexieaters on the day of the election, and that he ‘G^oted nine or ten times 
in the different election districts of the city, mostly in the 8th ward.” 
The witness swears he was very hard up, and had to steal, or do some¬ 
thing to get a living. On further examination the witness testifies (p. 483) 
as follows: 

4958. Q. What reward do you expect for coming here ?—A. I do not expect any reward. 

4959. Q. Have you not had assurances that you would be rewarded to testify in this way ?— 
A. I do not know as I had. I refuse to answer whether I had or not. 

4960. Q. Who saw you before you came here in relation to this testimony ?—A. I saw a 
man in Jersey City. 

John Hughes (p. 622) testifies that he voted eight times at the late 
presidential election, but does not know ‘‘what ticket he voted,” or what 
IDolitical party he acted with. On cross-examination he testified: 

I do not know what ticket I voted, or the others voted ; I do not know how many times 
they voted ; I was to get $20 or $25 for it; I got about $10, I guess, from the man who had 
the party; I do not know his name, and never heard it; I never saw him after that; I got 
so intoxicated that I did not know what I was doing; I got intoxicated about 3 o’clock ; I 
was drinking all the time, but after that I do not recollect. 

John Heath (p. 637) testifies that he— 

Voted the democratic ticket at the last presidential election, at 63 East Broadway, and in 
Canal street twice. There were about 25 in the party, and they all voted, I suppose, a couple 
of times. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 141 

On cross-exainination, liowever, lie testifies tliat lie did not know tlie 
man avIio gave him the slips to vote on: 

I suppose he was a democrat. The whole crowd was drunk. Two or three of them were 
“fightings drunk.” I am 22 years of age. I was born in this country. I never “repeated ” 
before. I was proinised money or I would not have done it. I got no money. My father 
is a republican. If I had not been drunk I would have voted the republican ticket. I have 
been over to Jersey City and made a statement. 

George Johnson (p. 480) testifies that he repeated” largely in the 4thj 
5th, Gth, 7th, and 8th precinets of the——ward. He did not look at the 
ticket, blit ‘HhiidvS it was a Seymour and Hoffinaii ticket.” 

On cross-examination the witness testifies that he never received a 
cent for “repeating,” and that a Mr. Doran asked him to appear before 
tlie committee and testify. 

493L Did anybody tell you that you rvould be protected from prosecution if you came here 
to testify?—A. I was under that impression. 

4935. Q. Who told you of it ?—A. Mr. Doran and Mr. Le Barnes, deputy sergeaut-at-arms 
of this committee. 

4936. Q. How did he come to tell you of it ?—A. Somebody asked him outside in the entry, 
and he said there was some law passed protecting witnesses who testified before a congres¬ 
sional committee, stating at the same time that if I did not testify I was liable to be arrested 
at any moment. 

4937. Q. And if you testified you would not be arrested or punished?—A. Yes, sir. 

John Kiigle (p. G23) testifies that he voted four times at the last presi¬ 
dential election. He forgot the names he voted for. He was under the 
influence of liquor. He “voted the democratic ticket all through.” 

On cross-examination he savshe was told it was tlie democratic ticket. 
The following is the witness’s estimate of “repeaters: ” 

6926. Q. What kind of men do you associate with ?—A. I suppose they are gentlemen; 
they pretend to be so. 

6927. Q. Do “gentlemen” here follow repeating?—A. They did then. 

6928. Q. “ Gentlemen ” of high standing ?—A. Yes, sir. 

6929. Q. Of moral integrity and worth?—A. They are supposed to be. 

John M. Lawrence (p. 392) testifies, on examination-iii-chief, that he 
“ repeated” at the ^November election: 

4029. Q. State whether you voted the democratic or the republican ticket at the last presi¬ 
dential election.—A. I voted a split ticket. I voted for John A. Griswold for governor, and 
for Horatio Seymour for president. I chucked the Hoffman ballot out both times. The 
straight democratic ticket was given me, but I ivould not vote it. 

4033. Q. Whom did you next talk to in reference to it ?—A. I cannot answer that question. 

4034. Q. How was information of it brought to this committee?—A. By Brady, through 
the Union League. 

4035. Q. Brady is a republican, is he?—A. Yes, sir ; he is the m wh o furnished me 
with the Griswold tickets. I saw him before I had voted, and he gave me a full republican 
ticket and wanted me to vote it, and I would not do that. 

4036. Q. You told him that you were not a legal voter ?—A. He knew before that I had 
registered three times, once legally and twice illegally. 

James Melville (p. 425) testifies to “repeating.” He does not state, 
however, which ticket he “ repeated.” His true character api^ears quite 
fully in the following extract from his testimony, (p. 42G:) 

4258. Q. What has been your business ?—A. I have been in no business. 

4259. Q. How long have you been here ?—A. About three years. 

4260. Q. Have you got a family ?—A. Not in this country. I have one child in England. 

I have had no business since I have been in this country. I brought plenty of money over 
with me; a pretty fair share, about £600. 

4261. Q. Did you ever invest it in anything?—A. I have gambled a good deal. 

4262. Q. Gambled it pretty much all away ?—A. Yes, sir. 

4263. Q. Did you ever make anything by gambling?—A. Yes, sir. 

4264. Q. How much have you on hand now ?—A. I cannot say; I have very little. 

4265. Q. Have you ever been arrested for any criminal offence?—A. No, sir. 

4266. Q. Where have you done your gambling?—A. All over New York. 

Geo. Melville (p. 501) testifies to “ repeating” five or six times at the late 
presidential election. The only place, however, he recollected having 


142 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


voted at was in Canal street. Witness didn’t know wliat ticket lie 
voted. Witness says lie first made a statement about illegal voting tlie 
day before lie testified, at AVood’s office, Jersey City: 

524."). Q. Were you druuk wbeu you gave the statement ?—A. Not very drunk ; I had 
been drinking. 

5265. Q. When were you told that if you came here to testify you would not be harmed 
under the laws of the Uriited States ?—A. Yesterday morning. 

5266. Q. Who told you that?—A. My friend Smith. 

5267. Q. Did he read any law to you ?—A. No, he did not. The clerk at Taylor’s Hotel, 
however, read me the law. 

Francis Murray (p. G05) testifies to liaving voted three times at the 
late presidential election: 

6708. Q. What wards?—A. The 7tb and 8th. 

6709. Q. In different districts?—A. I could not tell you as to that. I was pretty full of 
whiskey, to tell the truth about it. 

On cross-examination the witness swears (p. 000) that he could not 
recollect of having voted more than once. Further on, the following 
questions and answers occur: 

6756. Q. Hov.^ long have you been here at the building ?—A. I have^been here ever since 
about 1 o’clock, I think. 

6757. Q. In Marshal Murray’s room ?—A. Yes. sir. 

6758. Q. How many of you were in there ?—A. I could not tell you how many there was ; 
it was full most of the time. 

John AlcCabe (p. 009) testifies to having repeated ” eight or nine 
times at the late presidenthil election. The ticket was siqyposed by him to 
have been democratic: « 

6802, Q. Were you right drunk all day?—A. Yes, sir, I was drunk all day. 

6803. Q. Then you cannot recollect much of what did transpire ?—A. No, sir, I cannot.. 
(P. 619.) 

6809. Q. You are a democrat, I suppose?—A. Yes, sir. 

6810. Q. You would not vote the republican ticket if you were sober, I suppose ?—A. I 
don’t believe I 'W'ould. 

6811. Q. You would be just as likely to vote the republican ticket when you were drunk? — 

A. Yes, if I ^vas beastly drunk. \ 

6812. Q. As drunk as you were that day?—A. Yes, sir ; just as likely to vote the republi¬ 
can ticket as any. (P. 610.) 

The witness further testified to having been over to Wood’s office at 
Jersey City, (p. 010,) and made a statement about repeating.” 

John J. Mullen (p. 042) testifies to having ‘‘repeated” largely in the 
matter of registration, at the instance of Dennis Hogan, brother of 
Police Justice Edward Hogan; on cross-examination,however, he testi¬ 
fies as follows: 

7109. Q. Did you know it was unlawful to register in that way ?—A. Yes. 

7110. Q. What made you do it?—A. To get in with these parties, and to find out what 
kind of a swindle was going on, in order that I might expose them. 

7111. Q. Who put you up to do this ?—A. Superintendent of Police John A. Kennedy ; 
he told me to find out all that I could. 

7112. Q. When did Kennedy tell you this ?—A. He told me on Sunday morning before 
election ; it was too late then to capture those papers. 

7113. Q. Did you see Kennedy the second time?—A. Yes, sir; I was five hours in the 
building, while they were taking my statement. 

7132. Q. How many times have you been convicted of criminal offence ?—A. I have been 
convicted twice ; that is all I recollect. 

7133. Q. No more than twice?—A. I have been convicted twice for assault and battery, 
and twice for petty larceny. 

7134. Q. What was'the punishment for assault and battery ?—A. One month in the Tombs 
the first time, and two months the second time. 

7135. Q. When w'ere you convicted first of larceny?—A. In 1866. 

7139. Q. You were tried by a jury ?—A. Yes. 

7140. Q. And found guilty ?—A. Yes; of petty larceny. 

7141. Q. What was your sentence?—A. Six months’ imprisonment and $100 fine. 

7142. Q. Did you serve out your six months ?—A. Yes. 

7143. Q. How long have you been in the penitentiary altogether?—A. About two years. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


143 


By reference to tlie testimony of Police Justice Edward Hogan, (p. 
G64,) it will be seen that lie states that Miillin is a notorious thief, and 
that he would not believe him under oath. 

Janies Nichols (p. 485) testiftes to having “repeated” six times at the 
November election, all in the 22d ward. There was something like 
27 in the party with him. In answer to the question, “ Who procured 
you to come heref’ the witness replied as follows: 

A. Parties sent me here. 

^ 5007. Q. Who were they?—A I came here partly by myself. I thought the thing was 
right. I saw about this committee sitting here in the papers. 

5008. Q. At whose request did you come ?—A. I decline to answer. 

The testimony of Nichols is best explained by that of John Norton, 
(p. 570.)—recalled at his own request—who testifies that when he was 
first before the committee he gave the name of Jas. Nichols. His real 
name is John Norton. The following extract from his testimony dis¬ 
closes the means whereby men were procured through the agency of the 
“ Jersey City office” to testify falsely before the committee for money: 

6173. Q. You did not act as a repeater?—A. No, sir. 

6174. Q. State what money you got for making your statement the other day, and from 
whom you got it ?—A. I received $5, in Jersey City. 

6175. Q. For the statement you made the other day?—A. Yes, sir; I also received $5 
here at this hall. 

6176. Q. State who got you to go over to Jersey City.—A. A young man by the name of 
Samuel Baker; he received the money from Colonel Wood ; he gave me $5 to go over there, 
and $5 for giving my evidence here. 

6212. Q. How many times did you vote upon the day of election?—A. I voted once in 
the 8th ward ; I don’t know what the district is ; it is right between Amity and Bleeker. I 
gave the right name. (p. 571.) 

Alexander Ostander (pp. 223, 224) testifies to seeing a gang of men 
going from one voting place to another, changing caps, &c., but he can¬ 
not say that any of them voted more than once. 

On further examination he testifies as follows: 

2238 Q. What political party do you belong to ?—A, I am a republican. 

228‘J. Q. Do you belong to a secret political organization ?—A. I belong to the Union 
League. 

2290. Q. Is that a secret organization ?—A. Well, I suppose it is in some respects. 

Chas. Reilly (p. 473) testifies to “gangs” of “ repeaters” going around 
from place to place during the progress of the registration in the city 
of New York; says he voted four times under assumed names. Thinlis 
he voted the democratic ticket, (p. 474.) On cross-examination he tes¬ 
tifies as follows: 

4837. Q. What induced you to go into this business?—A. A friend of mine. 

4838. Q. Are you a gambler ?—A. No, sir; I used to gamble a little, and gfot broke. 

4839. Q. Have you ever been indicted for any offence?—A. I was indicted for assault and 
battery, but the“charge was withdrawn before it was brought up. 

Further on (same page) he discloses the practice which prevailed in 
the “army of the Potomac” during a republican administration: 

4851. Q. Are members of the fire department authorized to vote at 18 years of age?— 
A. Nobody objected to my having a vote, and I supposed I had a right to vote. I was in 
the army, and everybody voted there. 

4852. Q. In what army were you in ?—A. In the army of the Potomac. 

4853. Q. Were you ever naturalized?—A. I served in the army, and I supposed that na¬ 
turalized me. 

The witness was slightly in error in supposing that he was naturalized 
and entitled to vote simply by serving in the army. Having served and 
received an honorable discharge are the conditions precedent to naturaliza¬ 
tion in any other than the ordinary mode. We have no doubt, how¬ 
ever, that he told the truth when he said ^‘‘everybody had a vote in the 
armyf because that was under congressional and republican auspices. 


144 ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

George W. Walling, (p. 347) inspector of the metropolitan police of 
the city of New York, testifies that Sax)erinten(lent Kennedy sent for 
him and introduced him to a young man Avhom he (Kennedy) said, 
“ knew something about parties who were registering for the purpose 
of repeating.” It seems that this young man piloted the witness to 
No. 29 East Broadway, whereupon he, (the Avitness) together with other 
officers of police, seized a hook that was on a table, at which young men 
were sitting, and we took the eight persons whom we found there, with 
the book, to the police headquarters,” (p. 348.) 

The book, according to the inference to be drawn from the witnesses^ 
statements, was used by ^Yepeaters” for the purpose of recording ficti¬ 
tious names. The witness further stated that the book had been in the 
possession and under the control of Kennedy, police superintendent, 
since he captured it. The character of the book may be inferred, how¬ 
ever, from the following question and answer, (p. 350.) 

3708, Q. Do you find the following entries in tlie book ? “ Grand Army of the Republic. 

Many men of many-“Early and Often Association will hold their third annual 

ball.”—A. Yes, sir. 

William Wood (p. 487) testifies that he voted from 16 to 20 times in 
the late residential election. He voted in the 10th and 7th wards, and 
cannot remember any of the names upon which he voted. 

The witness, on cross-examination, stated he received compensation 
for his ‘‘ repeating ” but declined to say by Avhom it was paid. 

On further examination, however, it turns out that the witness was 
from Wood’s Jersey City office, and as a matter of course could only 
testify in one Avay. After haAung been over there, on xiage 488, the fol- 
loAving questions Avere put to him: 

5056. Q. Who did you see about it in reference to coming here to testify?—A. I do not 
know the man’s name. 

5057. Q. Where did you see him?—A. In Jersey City. 

5058. Q. What place?—A. Taylor’s Hotel. 

5059. Q. How many persons were present at that place at that time?—A. Three or four. 

5060. Q. How came you to go there?—A. A friend of mine brought me over there. 

5061. Q. Who was he?—A. I could not tell you his name. 

Win. Wilson (p. 512) testifies as folloAVS: 

5425. Q. State what frauds were committee at the last presidential election of which you 
have any knowledge.—A. I voted a good many times myself at that election; I cannot tell 
how many times ; I voted once in Canal street; I was intoxicated most of the day and could 
not recollect where I voted. 

5426. Q. Can you remember whether you voted more than once?—A. I could not exactly 
say whether I did or not; I got pretty drunk after I voted the first time. 

It appears that this Avitness also came from Wood’s Jersey City office.” 

5452. Q. Where did you go yesterday to make a statement of what you were sworn to 
here ?— A. I went over in Jersey City yesterday. I did not suppose I would have to answer 
any more questions here thau what I stated in my affidavit in Jersey City. 

5453. Q. With whom did you go to Jersey City yesterday?—A. I went over by myself. 

5454. Q. At whose request?—A. At the request of a man by the name of Smith; I do 
not know his first name. 

On further examination the Avitness testified that he “ Avas drunk Avhen 
he voted,” (fi. 514.) Witness does not say for Avffiom he voted. 

John Fox testifies at page 630. 

6969. I voted four or five times at the last presidential election, in the 8th, 9th, and 15th 
wards ; I believe I voted the republican ticket; I d<i not know the names that I voted on. I 
got the name and address on a slip of paper. There was a crowd with me, but I cannot 
say whether they voted or not. 

James Allen testifies at page 632. 

6980. I was engaged last presidential election in repeating in the interest of the republican 
party ; there were four or five in the company ; they were all repeaters ; they repeated four 
or five times ; I only repeated three times myself. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


145 


Robert Costello testifies at page G24. 

6937. I voted at the last presidential election seven or eight times. I voted the Grant and 
Griswold ticket. I voted at the 8th district, loth ward. There was a whole crowd of us 
going around—about 20. They all voted the same ticket. They voted about as many times 
as I did. 

John Clark testifies same page. 

6939. I voted at the last presidential election. I voted for Grant and Griswold. I voted 
five times at least in the several districts of the 8th ward. I was short of money at the time 
and could not find any easier way of getting money. I was with a gang of seven or eight. 
They voted as I did. I cannot tell how many times they voted. I voted in Greene street, 
Thompson street, and Renwick street. 

Cornelius Dolierty testifies at page G32. 

6981. I voted eight or nine times at the last presidential election; I voted in Perry street, 
Washington street, Hudson street, twice in Prince street, in Fourth street, near Jay, in 
Crosby street, Greene street, and Spring street; I voted for Griswold; I voted the full repub¬ 
lican ticket; I guess there were 20 or 22 in the gang; they all voted the same ticket; some 
of them voted 18 or 20 times; I left in the afternoon at 2 o’clock; I voted once under the 
name of Williams; that is the only name I can recollect; I was promised $25 for voting, but 
I did not get it. 

John Glemion testifies at page 625: 

6941. I voted at the last presidential election. I voted the republican ticket. Several of 
my friends came around saying that money could be made easy, and that no one would 
know anything about it. I voted in the 15th, 9th, and 16th wards. I do not know how 
many times I voted—eight or nine times. There were about a dozen in the party with me. 
I only know one of them. I think his name is Frost. He handed me the republican ticket 
to use. 

Peter Loftiis testifies at page G32: 

6978. I voted three times at the last presidential election; I voted the republican ticket; 
there may have been five or six in the gang ; they were all repeaters; they voted the same 
ticket that I did; I voted in the 4th district of the 8th ward, in Grand street; that is my 
proper district; I voted in the 1st district, in Greene street, and in the 6th, in Prince street. 
The names were furnished to me through other hands ; I cannot recollect the names. I was 
paid $8; I cannot say who paid it to me. 

Gbarles McCarthy testifies at page G31: 

6971. I voted at the last presidential election in this city between seven and eight times; 
I voted the republican ticket. There were as many as a dozen with me; they all voted the 
same ticket; I voted in the 4th district of the 8th ward, in the 1st distrrct, and in fact in 
pretty nearly all the districts of the ward. I voted once on my own name, once in the name 
of Jeremiah Sullivan, once in the name of Charles O’Conner; the other names I do not 
recollect. 

Jacob Rome testifies at page G25: 

6943. I voted at the last presidential election nine or ten times, in the 8th and 15th wards ; 
I voted the republican ticket; I voted on ditferent names ; they were furnished on slips of 
paper; 1 do not know who gave them tome. There were some 15 or 20 in the party. I 
cannot say how many times they voted. I suppose they voted as often as I did; perhaps 
more. It was the republican party that we were trying to help. 

Paul Volmer testifies at page 631: 

6973. I voted four times at the last presidential election, in the 15th ward; I do not recol¬ 
lect the places I voted the republican ticket; I got $10 for it; I was intoxicated at the 
time. There were about ten of us in company; they all voted the republican ticket; the 
others voted as often as I did, and perhaps oftener. 

This concludes a review of the testimony of 40 witnesses, aZ?, or nearly 
all who testified on the subjects of “repeaters’’ and “repeating,” and the 
minority of the committee feel that they can confidently apfieal to the 
calm and deliberate judgment of the House in snpfiort of the position 
assumed by them at tlie outset, that no considerable number of fraudulent 
votes are proven to have been actually cast at the election in New York 
city last November, and that there was nothing extraordinary in the 
number that were in fact cast at that election. 

H. Rep. Com. 31-10 



146 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


GOVERNOR HOFFMAN AND MAYOR HALL. 

These distingiiislied gentlemen do not escape the criticism of tlie 
majority. But they are so well known in their personal and official 
characters to the citizens of New York, and their official conduct during 
the late elections were so entirely free from fault, that avo shall allude to 
them but briefly. During the canvass prior to the November election, 
Governor Hoftinan was mayor of New York. The contest Avas exceed¬ 
ingly earnest and attended with unusual excitement. Under date of 
October 31,1868, upon knowledge and information concerning the pur¬ 
poses of certain republican leaders in connection AAuth the election to 
take place three days afterAvards, which gave him great apprehensions 
for the peace and order of the city, he issued an official proclamation, 
designed to secure and preserve the public peace, and to deter unscrupu¬ 
lous men from its disturbance or the violation of the election laws. That 
proclamation had no other purpose, and it tended very greatly to pro¬ 
mote the end in view. The circumstances and information upon Avhich 
it was issued are A^ery fully stated by Mr. Hoffman in his testi 1110113 ', at 
page 99. That testimon 3 ' is too length 3 ^ for quotation in this report, and 
any attempt to abbreAuate it would impair its force and completeness. 
It is therefore merely referred to. The high character and jiersonal 
purity of Mr. Hoffman, both as a citizen and magistrate, are in no degree 
affected by anything elicited in this investigation. 

The majorit}^, in their report, assail the conduct of Hon. A. Oake 3 ' 
Hall, at present mayor of New York, and secietary of the democratic 
State committee of Ncav York during the recent presidential campaign. 
The tAA'o prominent allegations against Mr. Hall, are predicated iiiion the 
fact that he was one of a committee avIio signed a call for a meeting of the 
democratic canvassers of the city of New York, on the Sunday preceding 
the election in Noa' ember, at Tammany Hall. And that he AA^as the author 
of a certain circular purporting to emanate from the chaii’inan of the dem¬ 
ocratic State committee, (Hon. Samuel J. Tilden,) calling upon democrats 
throughout the State to forward the result of the election in their seA^eral 
districts to Tamnian 3 ' Hall as soon as possible after it aa^s made knoAvn in 
said districts. This circular Avas marked ‘‘ confldential,” and that word, in 
the opinion of the majorit 3 ", was of dreadful imi)ort in such a connection. 
It is assumed first, by the majority, that the meeting of canvassers at 
‘‘Tammany” was for an illegal object, and that the suggestions, or rather 
recommendations, of that “mysterious” circular explain that object, 
which, according to the partisan construction gHen it by the majority, 
was none other than this: That the aforesaid canvassers were fully ad¬ 
vised of the alleged design of the author of said circular, and that in 
pursuance of said design they (the canvassers) should count the ballots 
as sloAvly as possible, in order that time might be afforded to ascertain 
how the State (outside the city) had voted ; and if the result Avas unfa¬ 
vorable to the democrac 3 ', a sufficient number of republican votes cast 
in the city might be throAvn out, or else changed to democratic votes. 

That this assumption is not true in point of iact, we need only refer 
to other portions of the report of the majority, wherein it is substan¬ 
tially alleged that the democrats, by a well-organized system of “repeat¬ 
ing” in the city, had taken care beforehand not to be defeated, and tes¬ 
timony is quoted by the majority to show that this system Avas generally 
carried out. 

Mr. Hall, howeA^er, (page 327,) explains the real objects of the meeting 
at “ Tammany,” the Sunday preceding the election, as follows : 

The maiTi object of the meeting- was to consult as to the effect of naturalization certificates. 
The meeting occupied, I should think, about an hour. Another reason of the meeting was 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


147 


to say that instructions would be prepared for tlie inspectors and sent to them. The year 
beh)re a pamphlet instructing them as to their duties was distributed by the board of police 
to each inspector and canvasser, by order of the board, and was prepared by one of the com¬ 
missioners, one of the clerks, and myself, who am counsel to the pidice board. This year 
the board, in its discretion, agreed not to distribute tliem. The republican party reprinted 
the same thitjg in substance, with some amendments taking ditfereut views on some matters, 
and we reprinted it exactly without changing it, and with a preface. We thought to have 
got it in time to have distributed it at that meeting, but it was not ready and had to be sent 
through the post office. 

And now in regard to that “circular’^ of awful import. 

At page 335 Mr. Hall swears: 

3557. Q. Your object, then, was to get the returns from the country before they got the 
returns from New Yoik?—A. No; our object was to prevent their getting the New York 
vote; it was nothing to us to get their vote, except as we opened the wires and made them 
send their vote. 

3.558. Q. 'Phe effect of it, then, was that you would get the vote from the country before 
they could get the vote from the city?—A. That would be one effect. 

3559 Q. Was there a change in that respect from the practice of former years ?—A. No, 
sir; no change in the practice, except to some extent. I have been an inspector myself; 
and a great niatiy inpectors would always canvass each name on the electoral ticket. Some 
would do so because there are always bets as to who shall run highest on the ticket, and who 
shall run the lowest. We had another object in this, and that was we thought the vote 
would be rather close, and that we might elect some of our electors and migtit not elect 
others. The tickets are not always correctly printed. It often happens that two or three 
names are left off the ticket, and it would not do, therefore, to count each ticket as having 
upon it 33 names, when it might only have 30 or 31. 

The discussions in other parts of this report of other questions arising 
in this investigation and of the evidence in connection therewith, con¬ 
clusively show that tlie assumptions of the majority in reference to the 
intentions of Mr. Hall, are utterly baseless and visionary. In order to 
accomplish any such fraud as that alleged to have been contemplated by 
Mr. Hall, each and every canvasser in amajority of the districts of the city 
would have had to acquiesce therein, and when we recall the fact which 
appears in a dozen places in the testimony, that these canvassers are 
appointed by the police authorities, with especial reference to the equal 
representation of both parties on these boards in every district, it is 
impossible to see how any such fraud could be consummated unless the 
majority of the committee are willing to admit that the members of 
the republican party are as corrupt as they represent those of the demo- 
cra‘ic party in New York to be. 

The attempt of a majority to create a suspicion that the object of the 
State committee in thus seeking to obtain an early report from the country 
distriids was an improiier one, by introducing in that connection the 
name of Colonel Samuel North, who they say, during the war had 
been arrested and tried by the military authorities for making false votes 
under the soldiers’ voting law,” is an unwarrantable and unjustifiable 
assault upon that gentleman. 

There is no record of his conviction for any such offence, and without 
it he stands as guiltless before tlie law and the country as any member 
of the committee or of tlie House. Besides, every member of the com¬ 
mittee, and every intelligent man in the country, is well aware that the 
history of the political and personal outrages committed by the republi¬ 
can party during the war furnishes no example ot a more cruel, unjustifi¬ 
able, or tyrannical arrest and imprisonment of a private citizen without 
the slightest regard to personal liberty or the forms of law, than that of 
Colonel North. 


148 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


^ conclusion;. 

There are many other questions of minor importance which arise out 
of this investigation, which it would he proper for us briefly to consider, 
but the time allowed us for the preparation of any report was so short 
and insuflicient that we were compelled to omit further reference to them. 

The majority in their report devote a great deal of space to the con¬ 
sideration of certain proposed remedies for the defects’ in existing natur¬ 
alization laws, and the prevention of the evils complained of. These 
propositions are radical and complicated in their nature. The minority 
are unable to concur in any of them as single and distinct propositions. 
The extent to which we do concur in any of them is sufficient!}^ indicated 
in former parts of this report. We therefore defer their further consid¬ 
eration until they shall have been proposed for enactment by Congress. 

It is eminently due to the cause of truth, and justice to ourselves de¬ 
mands that we shall state in conclusion, that the minority, during the 
entire investigation, possessed extremely unequal facilities for either the 
procurement of witnesses or the taking of testimony before the commit¬ 
tee. Otherwise, we say with profound conviction of its truth, that we 
could, by proper rebutting and contradicting testimony, have triumph¬ 
antly answered and destroyed the material basis upon which the majority 
rest their grave assumptions of a democratic conspiracy to perpetrate 
frauds and carry elections. Indeed, these assumptions, after the most ex 
parte investigation, find no decent or substantial support in our record. 

M. 0. KEEE. 

L. W. EOSS. 


40th Congress, ) HOUSE OF EEPRESEKTATIVES. 
3d Session. j 


( Eeport 
\ No. 41. 


NEW YOEK ELECTION FEAUDS. 


March 1, 1869.—Laid on the table and ordered to be printed. 


Mr. William Lawrence, from the Select Committee on Alleged New 
York Election Frauds, submitted the following 

SUPPLEMENTAL EEPORT.' 

[The numbers in this report refer to the numbers of questions and answers in the volume of 

evidence. ] 

The Select Committee on Alleged JSfeic Yorh Election Frauds report: 

That it is deemed proper to present the conclusions of the committee 
on some topics not considered in the former report, and to state some 
additional facts pertinent to the investigations ordered by the House. 
So far as remedial legislation by Congress is concerned, it can make but 
little difference what political i)arty may have been guilty of frauds, for 
the fact of their existence and their character more especially i^oints out 
the necessity of appropriate remedies. 

It is nevertheless due to the truth of history that great public wrongs 
should be traced to the proper source, and that has already been done 
as to the New York election frauds. 

NO REPUBLICAN FRAUDS. 

There is certainly no evidence to imi^licate any republican organiza 
tioii in fraud, nor to show any general or systematic plan by the repub¬ 
lican party, or by members of it, to violate the election laws. 

Frauds upon a great and extended scale could not be accomplished by 
any political party through its party machinery without the knowledge, 
sanction, or connivance of some of its i)rominent leaders. 

As against the republican party there is not only no evidence of such 
frauds, but the meagre efforts to show complicity in isolated cases has 
not risen to the dignity'of proof. 

It may be proper to notice some of the evidence on this subject. 

NATURALIZATION. 

But a single witness attempted to make any charge deserving notice 
as to naturalization frauds by any republican in New York city. It is 
quite evident he was engaged in naturalization frauds for the democratic 
politicians, for he says he signed his ^^narne as a witness in all these cases 
at No. 1 Centre street, and in the basement of the old City Hall, where 
the sheriff’s office was.” Both of these effaces were notoriously man aged 
in the interest of the democratic party. He only attempts to impli- 

1 Tbe evidence recently printed shows facts on several subjects, as follows: 

Registering illegally and '‘‘^repeating." —Evidence, 9133, 9166, 9167, 9169, 9185, 9186. 

Illegal riaturalizations. —Evidence, 9136, 9137, 9153, 9156, 9i60, 9162, 9165, 9167, 9169, 
9172, proves 4,000 illegal certificates—9174, 9198, 9313. 

Immunity for election frauds—Discharge of parties arrested .— Evidence, 9136, 9150, 9165. 

Obstructions thrown in the way of investigation. —Evidence, pages 842, 847. 

Delay in canvassing —Evidence. 9158; 9246. 

Ballot-box stuffing .— Evidence, 9184. 

Number of naturalizations in supreme court. —Confirmation of tbe original count, as sworn 
to by Webster, Gillespie, and Meeks, 9186. 

Terrorism. —Evidence, 9189. 








150 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


cate a single republican, and as to him the witness says he never got 

acquainted with him well enough to speak to him until three or four 
days before the election for governor, (November 3,) and is certain of the 
fact that he never had any conversation with him until two or three days 
before the election.^ Tlie evidence shows that in consequence of the 
requirement in the constitution of New York that men must be citizens 
for ten days before they can vote, the courts ceased naturalizing Octo¬ 
ber 23. 

There was but a single republican naturalization office in New York, 
and it is creditable to the integrity of its managers that they kept a record 
of the names of all persons naturalized, with the names of witnesses, all 
produced before the committee, yet no fraud on the naturalization laws 
as to these has been shown in any single instance. 

THE CHARACTER OF THE DEMOCRATIC EVIDENCE. 

The enormous democratic election frauds stood so strangely in contrast 
with the integrity of xmrpose which marked the conduct of the repub¬ 
licans of New York city that it is x^erhaps not strange that unscrux)ulous 
men would attempt to impose on the committee witnesses willing to com¬ 
mit x)eriury in an eftbrt to injure those who aided in exx^osing frauds. 
A feeble effort of this sort is found in the introduction of George B. Gif¬ 
ford and Henry Darling,^ the x)urx)ort of whose statements is that John 
H. White sent a messenger to them to meet him at the Union League 
Club, in xRn’suance of which they met him on the sidewalk, when he 
offered to pay them liberally for swearing to an affidavit to be drawn by 
him charging frauds of which they had no knowledge on the democratic 
party. 

The character of these witnesses may be inferred from the evidence of 
Gifford, as follows; 

5703. Q. Did you intimate to your friend. Darling, that there was any money in it?—A. 
No, sir. I did not know whether there was or not. 

5704 Q. Was there nothing said about money?—A. Noton the first evening. I told him, 
after I came away from there, that if they wanted anybody to commit a fraud we might as 
well make something out of it as not. 

5704. Q. How were you to make anything out of it?—A. I thought we might come down 
here and make some statement that would not amount to an} thing, and then get them to 
pay us for it. 

Gifford had been in a republican organization in the 21st ward, and 
his name had been struck from the and ready for revenge, he had a 

conversation with Banker,'* dexmty of the notorious sheriff, O’Brien, and 
then he was ready to testify. 

The x)retended messenger” is a myth, who is not x^roduced. Gifford 
is contradicted as to a statement of fact by Christopher rulman.® Judge 
White, himself a citizen of long standing,® one of the most honorable of 
the legal x^rofession in the city, pronounces the whole story a fabrication 
without any show of truth, and he was not at the xdace at the time when 
the alleged interview is said to have occurred. 

A still mbre feeble movement is made by the evidence of a man pass¬ 
ing under different assumed names, Lawrence Farrell alias William 
Pearce, to show not that testimony was imxn^operly x)rocured, but that an 
effort was made to do so. The evidence itself" tails to prove any such 
effort, and it is otherwise abundantly shown that none such was made.® 

* Evidence, 73C4. ^x^videuce, 5139—5J6*2. ^ Evidence, 5149. ‘‘Evidence, 5161. 

^Evidence, 6719. ® Evidence. 4779. Evidence, 653? ®Evidence, 6629—6648. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


151 


Yet, ill ^HJic views of the minority f in the absence of any more reliable 
means of attack, this is (li«^nifie(l into an important topic of considera¬ 
tion as “attenipted bribery by Union League officers,” when it only proves 
the perjury of democratic witnesses, and gives the means of estimating 
the value of other evidence, of which this is a fair specimen. 

NO REPUBLICAN “REPEATING.” 

Some evidence was taken, it would seem, for the purpose of proving 
repeating in the interest of the republican party.^ There were but a 
few witnesses, all of a class,^ who appeared at one time, and who seem 
to have been a gang somehow imposed on the committee, whose demeanor 
on the witness’ stand and whose character could inspire neither credence 
nor respect. It is a fact that there is no evidenee of any hind that any repub 
lican teas engaged in false registering in the interest of the repuhUeaii party^ 
and without false registering there eould he no repeating. This itself would 
be an almost conclusive answer to any charges made on evidence so 
destitute of credit, and so unreliable as that adduced. 

The evidence of “ repeating” in the interest of the democratic party 
is established by proof of the seizure of the books of some of the repeat¬ 
ers and by numerous witnesses who are entirely reliable, including elec¬ 
tion officers and others. 


STANLEY AND WILKES. 

Evidence has been taken with a view to draw from it an inference that 
Florence Scannel, who was a democrat, had a conversation witli Marcus 
Cicero Stanley, in company with George AVilkes, at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel, a Aveek before the ^loA^ember election, in Avhich it Avas agreed that 
Scannel should register a number of names and leawe them unvoted for 
republicans to Amte on in consideration that Scannel should haA^e two 
republican caiiAmssers for the purpose of making a fraudulent caiiAmssor 
count of Azotes against the republicans^ at the December election. 

It is sufficiently proved that Scannel procured false registration in 
the interest of the democratic party, but there is no evidenee of a single 
republican vote being cast on any one of his falsely-registered names.^ 


^ O’Brien, 5486; contradicted by Murray, 5510. 

2 Fox, 6969; contradicted, 9171. McCarthy, 6971; see evidence, 7246, to impeach. 
Vo]mer,i6973. Loftns, 697S ; see evidence, 7246 and 9171, to impeach. Allen, 6980; con¬ 
tradicted evidence, page 657 and 9171. Doherty, 6981 ; contradic ed evidence, page 657, 
9171. Costello. 6937. Clark, 6939. Glennon, 6941 ; see 6942, 6944, 9171, 9184 and 9198. 
Roone, 6943 ; see 6942, 6944 and 6982. Glennon and Roone contradict each other, 6942 
and 6944. 

3 Scannel, 5754; contradicted, 7055, 5595. 

Scannel. 8472 ; but see 9196, 5595. 

Gorrey, 6168 ; see 5595, 7055,5595. 

Fej guson, 6097 ; contradicted, 6163 ; see 3196, 3258. Ferguson is a clerk to one of Sheriff 
O’Brien’s deputies. 

McGowan, 5576 ; see 5595. McGowan is another clerk in the sheriff’s office, and re-regis¬ 
tered under a false name—6092, 6091. 

O’Biien, 5486; contradicted, 5510, 5595. 

Jones, 5867 ; contradicted, 5915; see 6093, 5595. 

Hogan, 5648; contradicted, 5689. 

Stanley contradicts these witnesses, 7055; see 6089. 

Wilkes was in Europe and his evidenee could not be procured, 6846, 7062, 

It is not probable that Stanley would engage in republican frauds when he voted in Novera - 
her for the democratic candidate for governor and mayor, 7066. 

Evidence, 5767, 68. 

® And it is abundantly shown that there was no purpose to have republican votes cast on 
any of these false registries. Stanley testifies— 

7078. Q. State if Scannel made any request about, getting canvassers appointed in his interest? 

A. Ue handed me two names upon a paper, one of which, I believe, was Gorrey. 1 took the names and 
went to Mr. Mannierre, one of the police commissioners. These men were not appointed. Scannel gave me 



152 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The story is incredible that re[)ublicans would agree to procure the 
api)oiutiueut of canvassers to make a fraudulent canvass for democrats. 
And the alleged interview and arrangement is effectually disproved by 
its inherent improbability, the contradictory character of the evidence 
in support of it, and by direct i)roof of its falsity.^ 

There is no ])retence that this evidence in any way implicates any 
republican organization, officer, candidate or citizen having its interests 
specially in charge. 

These charges are of a character similar to others which signally failed, 
were utterly incredible, or were completely disproved.^ 

COLONEL WILLIAM P. WOOD. 


The minority of the committee, referring to certain gentlemen of high 
character for integrity, and their services in ferreting out the democratic 
frauds, say: 

Besides these gentlemen, it also appears in evidence that Howard T. Marston and George 
Bliss, jr., attorneys, William P. Wood, a United States detective, and other members of the 
League, were employed in the same business. 

Howard T. Marston is not a member of the League, is a democrat, 
who made speeches for his party during the last presidential election, 
but he is a gentleman upon whose integrity there rests no taint or sus¬ 
picion. William P. Wood is not a member of the League, and had no em¬ 
ployment from it, nor did the officers of the League, or the committee, 
know that he had discovered material witnesses until they were pro¬ 
duced. He is a detective, who has so far shared the confidence of the 
administration of Andrew Johnson as to be retained in its service. 

The minority of the committee criticise his mode of obtaining testi¬ 
mony. The minority, as well as the majority, were furnished, in many 
instances, with memoranda of what witnesses knew, and this could only 
be procured from the witnesses themselves. 

The memoranda furnished to the majority were always open to the 
inspection of the loliole committee when desired, while the minority did 
not always deem it advisable to extend the same privilege to the majority.^ 

these two names upon a paper, and requested that I would have them appointed as canvassers, with the prom¬ 
ise that if I did so a number of men whom he had registered should not rote. I asked him his object. He said 
he wanted the canvassers for his election in December as assistant aldermen. He wanted the Tammany Hall 
nomination, which had been refused him, and then he wanted to run on an independent ticket. I presented 
those names to Mr. Mannierre. He declined to appoint them, upon the ground that they were indicted in 
Philadelphia, having been carried there by Scannel to vote at the October election. I returned to Scannel 
with that message from Mr. Mannierre, and he said, in his familiar way : “ Boss, you must get me out of this 
thing, because I have got to go to Philadelphia every-spring to buy horses.” 

By Mr. BOSS: 

7079. Q. What benefit was to accrue to the republican party from this arrangement? 

A. He was to vote for the republican assemblyman in that district, to beat Jim Irwin, whom he had pre¬ 
viously shot in a bar-room fight. 

The object seeuis to have been to prevent Scannel from voting on all the false registries be 
had made. 5561, 5792-97. 

^ McGowan, 5575: “It is utterly incredible that republicans would go to clerk’s in Sheriff 
O’Brien’s office.” See 5510. 

Donohue, 5628; contradicted, 5645. 

. Sullivan’s, 5603 ; contradicted, 5626. 

2 The evidence, page 625, shows the testimony of John Glenuon, w'ho was called by Mr. 
Ross, as follows: 

I was not summoned to come here. I was asked to come hero by a man named Greene, who owns the 
bar-room in the opera-house on Fourteenth street; I do not know his politics. The paper now produced to 
me, containing niy statement, was written in a little office across the street, close by the sheriff’s office. It 
was written about two hours ago. 'Jacob Boone was there. I do not know anything about Cook. I got 
nothing for going there, and no promise of anything. 

The chairman offered to prove the handwriting of the memorandum. _ 

Mr. Boss objected, and withdrew the memorandum, saying that it was his private per and that he had 
only shown it through courtesy. 

See 6942-6944. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


153 


If Colonel Wood deserves critieisin for producing Avitnesses, the censure 
slionld extend to those whose industry i)rociired some of the numerous 
witnesses called by the minority. 

That some ol the Avitnesses produced by Colonel Wood Avere men of 
bad character is indisputable/ but they are, in many respects, corrobo¬ 
rated, and the i)roof of fraud does not rest alone nor mainly on their eAU- 
dence, but is established fully, index)endently of it.^ 

AVHO RESPONSIBLE FOR FRAUDS. 

The minority of the committee in their ‘‘Auews’’ say: 

We invite especial attention to the important fact, which we desire to emphasize, that it is 
not, in our entire, record, satisfactorily shown by credible or unimpeached testimony, that anyone 
or more clerks, judges, or other officers of any of the courts, was, icith knowledge, directly or 
indirectly a, party to or participimt in a single one of these frauds. 

Hoav far this may be a correct deduction from the evidence Avill appear 
from its examination and from the report already made. 

On this subject the folloAAdng evidence may be approi^riate 

H. M. Clapp sworn : 

I am a police officer attached to the 5th precinct of the 5th ward. I knew James Murphy. 
I had occasion to arrest him on the 14th of October, at 6^ o’clock p. m., for attempting’ to 
reg’ister illeg'ally at the 8th election district, 5th ward ; I took him to the station-hou'^e before 
the captain, who detained him until the morning, and then took him before .Judge Dowling, 
who ordered me to take the prisoner to the superior court before Judge McCunn, where the 
prisoner had received his papers. I stated the circumstances to the judge. He ordered me 
to take the prisoner into an adjoining room. He shortly followed, and swore the prisoner. 
The judge said to him, “What is your name?” Said he, “James Murphy.” “Where do 
you live?” “68 Watt street.” “ Where did you get this paper?” It was a full naturali¬ 
zation paper. He had never declared his intention He said, “I got it at the Vanderbilt 
House.” “ Who gave it to you?” “One Marshal Murphy.” “What did you do with the 
paper then?” said the judge. “I took it down to the court the next day.” Who went with 
you?” “Nobody.” “ How did you get the paper, then ?” “ I got it in this room, I believe.” 
The judge then turned to me, and said, “Officer', this man is under the influence of liquor.” 
I told the judge it was not so; that the man had been locked up all night, and had had nothing 
to drink since I arrested him. “ Well, then.” says he, “ he must be insane. You will take 
the prisoner back to Judge Dowling, and the paper with my compliments, and tell the judge 
to discharge him, and keep the paper.” I returned to the Tombs police court before Justice 
Dowling, and delivered the message of Judge McCunn. I will state that after I got out of 
the superior court room, I was called back by a messenger, who stated that Judge McCunn 
wanted to see me. He said, “ I undei’stand you are in the habit of questioning parties who 
come to register.” I said, “Yes, sir.” He then remarked, “Don’t you do it any more.” I 
said “I will under orders.” He replied, “If you do I will punish you.” Said I, “Very 
well, I will suffer the consequences.” He then said, “ I will give you consequences.” I 
then left the superior court room and went to the Tombs.^ 

PROPRIETY OF THIS INVESTIOATION AND ITS SCOPE. 

Any attempt to divert public attention from the real facts and frauds 
jiroredy by a discussion of collateral and immaterial issues, must ahvays 
betray the Aveakness and failure of a bad defence. And tliis Avill be 
especially so if the discussion of collateral issues is full of errors of fact 
and erroneous deductions. The minority in their AueAvs say : 

This committee was called into being by this house, in compliance with a memorial from 
the Union League of New York. There was no contQst pending to render it proper or 
necessary. 

The ^‘memorial” A\ms not from the Union League of New York,but 

the Union League Club,” a totally distinct organization. Then again 
there Avas, and is, a contest pending over the election of one or more rep- 


1 See evidence, 6271, 6313, 6170, 6228, 5954, 4285, 7274. 

2 See report of committee, xlv; see Evidence, 7274. 

3 See evidence, 9292. 



154 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


resentatives in Congress, if that is deemed of any importance. Again 
the ‘‘ views” say: 

It is not coufiried in its scope or purposes to investigations into the conduct of congres¬ 
sional elections, or elections for electors for President and Vice-President, bur, extends to all 
elections for all kinds of officers of the State of New York at the November election in 1868. 
This involves an assertion of jurisdiction that does not rightfully exist in this house. 

The minority, nevertheless, discuss the Avisdom of the State laws of 
New York, election frauds in other States, and the policy of congres¬ 
sional legislation on other subjects. 

But the resolution under Avhich the committee was appointed, and the 
investigation by it, is confined in Us scope and purpose to ‘‘irregularities 
and frauds alleged to have occurred in the city and State of New York 
aftecting the recent election for representatives to Congress and electors 
of President and Vice-President,” and it does NOT “extend to all elec¬ 
tions for all kinds of officers of the State.” 

These grave errors in the outset are not calculated to inspire confi¬ 
dence in the accuracy of other portions of the “ vicAvs.” 

THE FACILITIES FOR INVESTIGATION. 

The minority proceed to say: 

In addition to all these, the League placed at the service of the majority of the committee 
an indefinite number of messengers to serve their process and do the bidding of the officers 
of tlie committee and of the other attorneys and agents of the League. 

Even this cannot change the facts proA^ed, or remedy the failure of a 
defence. Messengers residing in the city seiw^ed process AAuthout 
expense to the gOA^ernment, and the minority had the benefit of their 
serAuces and of messengers furnished in like manner by their political 
friends. 

The minority had every advantage of the official poAver and influence 
of the city to aid them. 

The minority proceed: 

The country, the House, and all impartial and just-minded men may readily infer from 
these facts the spiiit, intent, interested and partisan motives which have served the majority 
of tlie committee, and have presided over the preparation of this case for the League. 

The motives Avhich served the majority are no more important than 
those Avhich seiA^ed the minority, and cannot change inexorable facts or 
convert vice into virtue or fraud into duty. The motive to expose fraud 
is much more credible than that Avhich commits it or serenes it from 
exposure. It is due to the Union League Club to say there is no evidence 
to impugn the motives of any member of it, unless an honest purpose to 
detect and prevent fraud deserves censure. 


THE REMEDIES. 

The minority of the committee say, in reference to election frauds— 

It appears to be the judgment of the majority that the remedy for these great evils can 
only fame fro7u. Congress, and need not be expected to originate in or be provided by the 
States of the Union. 

The minority have evidently prepared their “Auews” without mature 
consideration, for this assertion that “it appears to be the judgment of 
the majority” “ lhat the remedy for these great evils ean only come from Con¬ 
gress"’ is made Avith a printed copy of the majority report in their hands, 
declaring that it is the duty of Congress to ascertain— 

// Aew. irregularities or fraud exist in Ihe election of its members, so that tlio people, 
apprii-ed of evils, may avert them in the future by personal vigilance, hy making and enforcing 
proper legislative provisions in the STATES, and, above all, so that Congress shall apply 
remedies by adequate laws efficiently enforced. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


155 


PERSONS OF FOREIGN BIRTH. 


The minority say: 

It is undoubtedly fair to assume that a spirit of ho=<tiIity to persons of foreiji^u birth, and 
of opposition to their free admission to the enjoyment of citizenship and suffnige, had much 
to do in the origin and conduct of this investigation. 

It is unjust to the committee to assume’’'’ that which is unsustained 
by tact, reascHi, or evidence, but is contradicted by the opinions expressed 
in the report. 

THE CENSUS OF 1865. 

The minority attack the correctness of the census of 1865 by a com¬ 
parison with the census of 1860. The census of 1860 was notoriously 
too great, as it is liable to be where officers are paid by the number of 
persons reported, while the loss of population by the war justihes the 
integrity of the officers who made and of the evidence which shows the 
census of 1865 to be correct. But the deductions of the committee do 
not rest alone nor mainly on that census. 

FRAUDS IN PHILADELPHIA. 


The minority say: 

As Philadelphia gave a majority for Grant we have no outcry about its large vote. Per¬ 
haps it would be well to have a committee of investigation, as tins committee would not 
allow the minority to introduce evidence that republican “ repeaters ” were sent from New 
York to Philadelphia. 

The committee might well be satisfied to limit their duties to the State 
required by the resolution under Avhich they were acting. Since it has 
been stated in Congress by a responsible member^ that one of the lead¬ 
ing democrats of New York, now under arrest by authority of this house, 
is indicted for illegal voting in Philadelphia, the suggestion of the mi¬ 
nority in favor of a committee is entitled to the most respecful considera¬ 
tion. 


THE LEAGUE AGAIN. 

The minority are pleased to refer to the numerous and vigilant scav¬ 
engers of the League,” though no mention is made of Sherilf O’Brien’s 
dei)uties Avho hovered around the door of the committee-room and in the 
building where its sessions were held, arresting some of the witnesses 
soon alter released for want of evidence to justify the arrest, and thus 
intimidating witnesses, until, with the approval of the whole committee, 
they were directed to retire from the building. 

WHY ILLEGAL VOTING NOT PUNISHED. 

The minority, referring to election frauds, say: 

The officers iu the practical government of the city of New York who could be most effect¬ 
ive to restiain or punish these wicked men are the < fficers of elections and of the police. If 
these were honest, vigilant, and faithful, and would co-operate to that end, these crimes 
could, in a very great degree, be prevented. Let it be remembered here that all theac officers 
arc appointed under republican auspices. 

And this is preceded in another ])ortion of these “views” by a cap¬ 
tion, “The republican party control New York.” 

As a question of law neither officers of election nor of the police have 
power “ to imnisli these wicked men.” 


‘Judge Kelly, iu House of Reprcseutatives. And see evidence of Stanley, 7076. • 




156 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The Metropolitan Police board is equally divided politically at least 
half the election officers are democrats and a majority of the police force.^ 
Tlie officer whose duty it is to prei)are indictments, and the courts 
whose judges try, or whose duty it is to try offenders, are all of the dem¬ 
ocratic faith. How perfectly secure from all punishment are the men 
guilty of election frauds has already been shown. 

THE FACILITIES FOR INVESTIOATION AOAIIi. 

The minority, in concluding their views, say: 

That pie minority, during the entire investigation, possessed extremely unequal facilities 
for either the procurement of ■witnesses or the taking of testimony before'the committee. 

This cannot affect the force of the material facts proved, and the com¬ 
mittee will not assume that it is offered as an apology for any failure to 
prove frauds as against republicans, or to vindicate democrats whose 
guilt is so palpable. The committee sat in New York from December 
21 to January 14, inclusive, and evidence was subsequently taken in 
Washington. During all that time the minority had process for every 
witness they asked, the means of its serAuce either by their own chosen 
messengers or those of the committee, and the right to examine their 
witnesses fu\\j has never been denied. A sub-committee met on the Cth 
of February in New York city, and at other times elsewhere in the State, 
it is believed with equal facilities for the production of witnesses alike 
for the majority and minority 5 and evidence taken February 2, by Mr. 
Poss alone, with no one to cross-examine, was permitted to go on record. 

In New York city, in the nature of things, every advantage would be 
on the side of the democratic minority.^ 

For the great purpose of devising some means to prevent frauds, it is 
comparatively of little importance what men or what parties are respon¬ 
sible for them. Every just government is bound to ascertain their 
existence and apply the proper remedy. While the minority do not 
unite in any of tlie measures recommended in the hope of effecting a 
reform, they do not present any which would seem to remedy acknowl¬ 
edged evils. The evidence is submitted to the House with the deduc¬ 
tions which have been drawn from it all, and the remedial measures 
suggested to prevent frauds and irregularities in the election of repre¬ 
sentation to Congress and electors of President and Vice-President. If 
these shall contribute to secure a free, full, fair, and honest exercise of 
the elective franchise, the anxious and arduous labors of the committee 
will aid in accomplishing the purposes of the founders of the republic, 
and lasting benelits will accrue to mankind. 

1 Evidence, 317, 562, 568, 1236, 2739, 6675. ~ 

2 See chapter V, former report, p. 53. 

3 The original report of the committee was made to the House February 23. Part II of 

the report was printed and furnished to all the members of the committee, including Messrs. 
Kerr and Ross, February 13, and Part I was printed and furnished in like manner Feb¬ 
ruary 20, The “views of the minority ” Avere not furnished to the chairman, or any mem¬ 
ber of the majority of the committee, and Avere only seen some days after they had been 
presented in the House and printed. » 

This and the original report Avere Avritten in the press of business, currcnte calamo, Avith- 
out any opportunity for revision. 




JOURNAL 


Of the Select Committee of the House of Eepresentatives to investigate alleged 
frauds in the election in the State of Neiv York. 

This committee was appointed by the House of Eeiiresentatives on the 
i4th of December, 18G8, as appears from the following official report of 
tlie proceedings published in the Globe of December 15th: 

FRAUDULENT VOTING IN NEW YORK, 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I present under the rule a memorial of the Union League club 
of New York, in reference to fraudulent voting in the city and State of New York; and I 
ask consent to offer the following resolution: 

Resolved, That the memorial from the Union League club of New York be printed, and 
that a select committee of seven be appointed to investigate the irregularities and frauds 
therein alleged to have occurred in the city and State of New York affecting the recent elec¬ 
tion for representatives to Congress and electors for President and Vice-President, and report 
thereon to this house; and that the said committee may hold sessions in the State of New 
York and elsewhere by a quorum or by sub-committees of such number as the committee 
shall delegate; and that they have power to send for persons and papers, to administer 
oaths to witnesses, and to employ a clerk and messenger, with such stenographic assistance 
as they shall find necessary. 

Mr. Wood. I object to the introduction of the resolution. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I move to suspend the rules, that the resolution may be intro¬ 
duced and agreed to at this time. 

Mr. Wood. If the gentleman from Ohio will give us an opportunity to have a few words' 
of discussion upon this resolution I will withdraw all objection so far as I am concerned. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I insist on my motion. 

Mr. Farnsworth. I would inquire of the gentleman from Ohio whether the election 
referred to is not now being investigated under the authority of the people of New York ? 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. A respectable portion of the people of New York have sent 
here a memorial asking the adoption of this resolution. If the gentleman will examine the 
memorial he will find in it abundant evidence that it is presented in good faith. 

The Speaker. The motion to suspend the rules is not debatable except by unanimous 
consent. 

Mr. Chanler. I object to debate. 

Mr. Brooks. Does the memorial of the Union League Club accompany this resolution? 

The Speaker. It does. 

Mr. Brooks. Let us hear it read. 

Mr. Washburne, of Illinois. I should like to have it read. Let it be read by unanimous 
consent. 

The Speaker. In order that the memorial may be read the gentleman from Ohio must 
first w'aive his motion to suspend the rules. The gentleman from New York has the right 
under the rule to have this memorial read, but the motion to suspend the rules covers that 
and all other rules. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I do not object to the reading of the memorial, and I will 
waive the motion to suspend the rules for the present so that the memorial may be read, 
provided that at the conclusion of the reading the motion can be resumed. 

Mr. Brook.S. What I wish to suggest to the gentleman from Ohio is this : that when a 
partisan bodj makes an ex parte representation it is but fair that the representatives of the 
city and State of Nerv York upon this floor should have an opportunity to reply to this 
memorial. I do not think there should be any objection to that. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. The reading of the memorial w'as* called for by gentlemen on 
the other side of the house. If this investigation be had there will be abundant opportunity 
afforded to gentlemen for reply to this memorial. Both sides of the question can be exam¬ 
ined into. 

Mr. Brooks. What I wnsh to suggest further is, that the Union League of New York city 
contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to carry the States of Ohio and Indiana. I 
would like to know w'hether the whole country is to be investigated, and wdiether w'e are to 
know the amount of money given by the Union League of New' York to carry Ohio and 
Indiana. 

Mr. Benjamin. I object to the reading of the memorial. 

Mr. Washburne, of Illinois. I should like to have the gentleman from New York tell 
us what has become of Helmbold’s subscription. 

Mr. Robinson. I rise to a parliamentary question. I ask, if it be in order, for a divis¬ 
ion of the resolution. The last resolution provides for one man to have the run of the hotels, 
subjecting the government to heavy expenses. 


158 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Tlie Spcakf.ii The motion to suspend the rales suspends that rule with all others. 
Under the rule the {Gentleman can ask for a division of tfie resolution, but if two-thirds vote 
to suspend the rules that rule is suspended with all others. 

Mr. Rwdall. The gentleman from Illinois [Mr. Washburne] at the last session pro¬ 
posed that none of these special committees should be allowed to run the government into 
debt. This resolution does the very thing he then protested against. 

The Spicakku. If that resolution had been adopted a two-thirds vote would suspend that 
with all other rules. 

Mr. Randall. Then, this committee can run the government into any amount of indebt¬ 
edness. 

Mr. R,OBiNsroN They are all doing it now. 

The House divided on the motion to suspend the rules; and there were—ayes 104, noes 42. 

Mr. ScHENCK. There seems to be a good many gentlemen opposed to this resolution, and 
I demand the yeas and nays. 

Tlie yeas and nays were ordered. 

The question was taken ; and it was decided in the affirmative—yeas 134, nays 3.', not 
voting 52 ; as follows : 

Yeas —Messrs. Allison, Ames, Arnell, James M. Ashley, Bailey, Baker. Baldwin, Banks, Beaman, Beatty, 
Benjamin, Benton, Biugliam, Blair, Bontwell, Bowen, Boyden, Brornwell, Brooks, Broomall, Buckley, Roderick 
R. Butler, Calli-i, .Clianler, Chiircltill, Sidney Clarke, Clitt, Cobb, Coburn, Cook, Corley, Covode, Dawes, 
Deweese, Dickey, Dixmi, Donnelly, Drisg.s, Eckley, Edwards, Eggleston, Ela. Eliot, Perriss, Perry, Pields, 
Garfield, Goss. Gove, Graveley, Griswold, Ilaughey, Hawkins, Higby, Hooper, Hopkins, Chester D. Hubbard, 
Hunter, Jenckes, Ale.xander H. Jones, Judd, Julian, Kelley, Kellogg, Kelsey, Ketcham, Ki chen, Koontz, 
Lash, George V. Lawrence, William Lawrence, Lincoln. Loan, Lynch. Mallory, Marvin, Mayi ard, McCarthy, 
McKee, Mercur, Miller, Moore, Moorhead, Morrell, Morriss-y, Mullins, Myers, Newsham, Norris, O’Neill, 
Orth, Paine, Perham, Peters, Pettis, Pike, Pile. Plants, Poland, Polsley. Price, Prince, Raum, Robertson, 
Scbenck, .Scofield, Shanks. Spalding, Starkweather, Stevens, .Stewart, .Stokes, Stover. Taylor, Thomas, Trow¬ 
bridge, Twicliell, Upson, Van Aernam, Burt Van Horn, Van W.yck. Vidal, Ward, Cadwalader C. Washburn, 
Elihu B. Washburne. Henry D. Washburn, William B. Washburn, Welker, Whittemore, William Williams, 
James P. Wilson, John T. Wilson, .Stephen P AVilson, and Woodbridge—IJ4. 

Nays —Messrs. Adams. Archer, Axtell, Beck, Boyer, Burr, Cary. Eldridge, Getz, Glossbrenuer, Golladay, 
Grover, Holman, Hotchkiss. Huinphny, Tliomas L Jones, Kerr, Marshall, McCormick, McCullough, Mun- 
gen, Nibhick, Plndps, Pruyn, Randall, Robinson, Sitgreaves, Stone, Taber, Tift, Lawrence S. Trimble, Van 
Trump, Wo>>d, Woodward, and Young—-35 

Not Voting. —Messrs. Anderson, Delos R. Ashley, Barnes, Barnnm, Bl.ackbnrn, Blaine, Boles, Buckland, 
Benjamin P. Butler, Cake, Reader W. Clarke, Cornell, Cullom, Delano, Dockery, Dodge, Parnsworth, Pox, 
Frencli, Haiglit, Halsey, Hamilton, Harding, Heaton, Hiil, Asalud W Hubbard, Richard D. Hubbard, Hul- 
burd, Ingersoll, .iobnson, Knott, Lafliii, Logan, Longhridge, Newcomb, Nicholson, Nunn, Pierce, Pomeroy, 
Roots, Ross, Sawyer, Selye, Shellabarger. Smith, Sypher, Taffe, John Trimble, Van Auken, Robert T. Van 
Horn, Thomas Williams, and Windom—.52, 

So (two-thirds voting in favor thereof) the rules were suspended, and the resolution was 
agreed to. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio, moved to reconsider the vote by which the resolution was 
adopted ; and also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid on the table. 

The latter motion was agreed to. 

The following is the offieial copy of the resolution and appointment ol 
the committee: 


In the House of Representatives op the United States, 

December 14, 1868 , 


On motion of IMr. Lawrence of Ohio, 

Resolved^ That the memorial from the Union League club of New York he printed, and 
that a select committee of seven be appointed to investigate the irregularities and frauds 
therein alleged to have occnred in the city and State of New York affecting the recent elec¬ 
tion for representatives to Congress and electors for President and Vice-President, and re¬ 
port thereon to this house, and that the said committee may hold sessions in the State of 
New York and elsewhere by a quorum or by sub-committee of such members as the com¬ 
mittee shall delegate, and that they have power to send for persons and papers, to adminis¬ 
ter oaths to witnesses, and to employ a clerk and messenger, with such stenographic assis 
tance as they shall find necessary. 

The Speaker appointed the following members as such committee: 

William Lawrence, of Ohio ; Henry L. Dawes, of Massachusetts : Austin Blair, of Michi¬ 
gan ; Oliver J. Dickey, of Penn.sylvauia ; Benjamin F. Hopkins, of Wisconsin ; Samuel S. 
Marshall,^ of Illinois ; Richard D. Hubbard, of Connecticut. 


Attest: 


EDWARD McPherson, cierk. 


Washington, D. 0., December 18, 18G8. 

The committee met pursuant to call of the chairman, IMr. AVilliam 
Lawrence, of Ohio, at 10 o’clock a. m., in the room of the Committee on 
Foreign Affairs of the House of Kepresentatives. 


1 MesHVB. Miirshall and Hubbard declining to serve, the Speaker appointed in their place M. C. Kerr, of 
Indiana, and Lewis W. Ross, of Illinois. 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


159 


There were present: The Chairman; Mr. Dawes, of Massachusetts; 
Mr. Blair, of Michigan; Mr. Dickey, of Pennsylvania; Mr. Hopkins, of 
Wisconsin; Mr. M. 0. Kerr, of Indiana; and Mr. L. W. Boss, of Illinois. 

On motion, it was 

Ordered^ That this committee proceed to New York city this evening 
at 8.40 1 ). m., there to enter upon the discharge of its duties. 

New York, December 19, 1868. 

The committee met at 10 o’clock a. m., this day at the Astor House. 
All the members i)resent. 

On motion, it was 

Ordered^ That this committee proceed to the United States circuit 
court building. No. 41 Chambers street, in this city, and there examine 
the rooms tendered it by United States Marshal Murray for the use of 
its sessions. 


10.30 o’clock a. m., same day. 

The committee met in the grand-jury room in the United States circuit 
court building. No. 41 Chambers street. All j^resent. 

On motion, it was 

Ordered^ That this committee accept the rooms in the United States 
circuit court building, tendered by Marshal Murray, for the i)urpose of 
holding therein its sessions. 

Adjourned to meet at the Astor House, in this city, at 6 o’clock this 
evening. 

6 o’clock, p. m., same day. 

The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, at the Astor House. 
All the members present. 

Mr. Boss moved that the question of the employment of a clerk to the 
committee be postponed for future decision. Mr. Dickey moved as 
an amendment that the chairman of this committee be authorized to 
employ a clerk for the committee, which amendment being accepted by 
Mr. Boss was adopted. 

On motion of Mr. Dawes, it was 

Orderedj That counsel shall not be admitted to appear before this 
committee. 

On motion, it was 

Ordered^ That the sessions of this committee shall begin at 10 o’clock 
a. m. each day until otherwise ordered. 

On motion of Mr. Boss, it was 

Ordered, That in taking testimony this committee will be governed by 
the general i)rinciples of law applicable injudicial i^roceedings. 

On motion of Mr. Dawes, it was 

Ordered, That the proceedings of this committee shall not be made 
public until otherwise directed. 

Adjourned to 10 o’clock a. m. on Monday next. 

New York, December 21, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment in the United States 
circuit court room, No. 41 Chambers street, in this city. All the members 
present. 

William Hayes one of the assistants to the stenographer of^ the 
House of Bepresentatives, selected as the stenographer of the committee 
appeared and was duly sworn. 

The following witnesses were examined: Bobert Murray, Samuel 


160 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G. Courtney, William T. Simms, Henry Butts, Samuel Reynolds, 
Logan McDonald, Charles W. Burton. 

Adjourned at 4.30 o’clock p. m. to meet to-morrow at 10 o’clock a. m. 
at the same place. 

Hew York, December 22, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. All the members pres¬ 
ent. 

John I. Davenport of Hew York, selected as the clerk, appeared. 

The following witnesses were examined: Edward Mitchell, Albert 
Bogart, George G. Hewitt, George P. Barrett, Henry Beeny, John H. 
Springer, Gabriel A. Arnoux, William W. Young, Walter Shirley, John 
McArthur, jr., Charles C. Reed, Thomas Surridge, R. H. Daly, Theodore 
Block, Robert Murray, (re-called,) Henry Kruger, John Ey. 

At 4.30 o’clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet at the same 
place to-morrow at 10 o’clock a. m. 

Hew York, Decemher 23, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. All the members pres¬ 
ent. 

The folloAving witnesses were examined: Charles Barnegat, Andrew 
B. Liegner, Michael Kerwin, William J. McMurray, Daniel Sullivan, 
Patrick Burke, Dougal Stewart, Joseph A. Miller, Charles Fox, Charles 

H. Siep, Thomas Gould, Melchoir Heimburch, Matthias Wolf, Timothy 
Hurrelle, Patrick McLaughlin, Emanuel S. Goldstein, Porter G. Sherman, 
John Osborne, Charles H. Siep, (re-called,) Patrick T. Feeny, Peter Pohl. 

At 4.30 o’clock p. m. adjourned to meet to-morrow at same place at 
10 o’clock a. m. 


Hew York, Decemher 24, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Dickey, Hopkins, Kerr, and 
Ross. 

The following witnesses were examined: Maximilian Boeck, Charles 
E. Loew, M. R. Leverson, John T. Holfman, Samuel J. Glassey, John A. 
Foster. 

At 4 o’clock, p. m., adjourned to meet on Saturday next, December 26, 
at 10 o’clock, a. m., at the office of Charles E. Loew, esq., county clerk 
of the county of Hew York. 

Hew York, Decemher 26, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment at 10 o’clock, a. m., at 
the office of Charles E. Loew, esq., clerk of the county of Hew York. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Hopkins, Kerr, and Ross. 

The examination of Mr. Charles E. Loew, county clerk, was resumed, 
and a cursory examination of some of the records of the supreme court of 
the State of Hew York pertaining to naturalization matters, in said 
court in the month of October, 1868, had. 

On motion of Mr. Blair, seconded by Mr. Hopkins, it was. 

Ordered, That the chairman of this committe be, and he hereby is, 
authorized to cause the records and papers in the possession of the 
county clerk of Hew York, referring to naturalization in the supreme 
court, to be examined, and a list to be made of the name of each person 
so naturalized, his age and residence, and the name and place of resi¬ 
dence of the witnesses, and the day of the month on which such persons 
were naturalized during the month of October. 

By direction of the chairman, and with the approval of the committee, 
the clerk served upon Mr. Loew an attested copy of the above order. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


161 


At 11.30, a. m., the committee adjourned to resume its session at once 
in the grand jury room of the United States circuit coiwt building, No. 
41 Ghambers street. New York city. 

11.35, A. M., SAME DAY. 

The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, in the gTand jury room 
of the United States circuit court building, No. 41 Chambers street. New 
York city. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Hopkins, Kerr and Ross. 

The following witnesses were examined: Robert G. Adams, James M. 
Sweeney, Anson Willis, Samuel S. Urmy, Timothy Lynch, David Crowley. 

The committee adjourned, to meet in the United States court room on 
Monday morning at 10 o’clock a. m. 


New York, Beceniber 28, 1868. 

The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, in the United States 
circuit court room. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Hopkins, Kerr, and Ross. 

The further examination of Chas. E. Loew, clerk of the county of New 
York, was resumed. At its close the following witnesses were examined: 
John Jay, George Bliss, jr., Samuel A. Roberts, Wm. D. Sloan, Owen E. 
Westlake, Henry J. Chapman, Richard G. Hunt, Benj. Van Buren, 
Stephen M. Crandall, Michael Quinlan, Nathaniel Jarvis, jr. 

The chairman laid before the committee the following communication 
addressed by him to James M. Sweeny, clerk of the superior court for 
the county of New York: 

New York, December 28,1868. 


Sir : You will please permit such persons as shall be selected by S. J. Glassey and John 
I. Davenport, esqs., both of whom are attorneys and counsellors at law in this city, and the 
latter the clerk of this committee, to examine and make a list of the names and residences of 
persons naturalized, their age, and the names and residences of their witnesses as contained 
in your office, during the months of August, September, and October. These clerks, selected 
as above mentioned, are to be under the instructions of the gentlemen named ; but all inves¬ 
tigation shall be prosecuted in your presence, or that of any deputy whom you may appoint, 
if you so desire. 

Respectfully yours, 

WM. LAWRENCE, 

Chairman Congressional Committee on Election Frauds. 

James M. Sweeny, Esq., 

Clerk of the Superior Court of New York. 

At 4.30 p. m. adjourned, to meet at the* same place to-morrow, at 10 
o’clock a. m. 


New York, December 29, 1868. 
The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dickey, Hopkins, Kerr, and Ross. 
The following witnesses were examined: Patrick Dufty, James E. 
Clifford, John Robertson, T. J. Gilmore, Andrew J. Bross, David Crow¬ 
ley, R. W. McAlpine, Wm. Joralemon, Chas. E. Wilbour, Wm. H. 
Hendrick, Hugh Ward, John Donnelly, Solomon Seixas, James J. 
Brophy, Richard Day, Hugh F. Dolan, Owen E. Westlake, (recalled,) 
David Crowley, (recalled,) John A. Foster, (recalled,) James F. Hall, 
Samuel J. Glassey, (recalled,) W. H. Springsteiu, Henry Woltman, 
Joseph Reinhart, Alex. Ostrander. 

At 4.20 o’clock p. m. adjourned, to meet at same place to-morrow, at 
10 o’clock a. m. 


New York, December 30, 1868. 

The committee met iiursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dickey, Hopkins, Kerr, and Ross. 
The following witnesses were examined: Clarence K. Teller, William 


H. Rep. Com. 31-11 


162 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


H. Bridgemaii, Joseph E. Paine, Butler H. Bixby, William 0. Barrett, 
John D. Perrine, James J. i^eelis, John McMahon, William M. Tweed, 
Abraham DeVonrsney, John J. Mulligan, Morris Livingston, Thomas 
Flynn, Charles E. Loew, (recalled,) T. J. Gilmore, (recalled,) Samuel J. 
Tilden, Lorenzo Carey, A. Oakey Hall, James Moran. 

At 5.20 p. m., adjourned to meet at the same place at 10 o’clock a. m., 
to-morrow. 


New York, Becemher 31, 1868. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dickey, Hopkins, Kerr, and Boss. 

The chairman laid before the committee the following communication 
addressed by him to Charles E. Loew, clerk of the county of New York: 

New York, December 31, 1868. 

Sir: I have the honor to inform you that I have selected S. J. Glassey, esq., General 
John A. Foster, and John I. Davenport, esq., all of whom are attorneys and counsellors at 
law in this city, and the latter the clerk of this committee, as the persons under whose 
charge and superintendence the work of making the lists required by this committee will be 
carried on. Of course the work done by the clerks under the superintendence of the gen¬ 
tlemen above named will be performed under the eye of yourself or such deputies as you may 
appoint. 

Respectfully yours, 

WILLIAM LAWRENCE. Chairman Committee. 

Charles E. Loew, Esq., County Clerk, Neic York. 

The following witnesses were examined: Joseph E. Paine, (recalled,) 
S. C. Hawley, Martin B. Austin, Patrick H. Keenan, Hugh F. Dolan, 
(recalled,) Mathew O. Hallenbeck, Lewis C. Phillips, Hugh F. Dolan, 
(recalled,) John Dunn. 

At 5.10 o’clock p. m., the committee adjourned to meet on Saturday 
morning January 2, 1869, in the grand jury room in the United States 
circuit court building, at 10 o’clock a, m. 

New York, Jamtary 2, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, and Messrs. Kerr and Boss. 

By mutual consent the examination of witnesses Avas proceeded with. 

The first witness called was Moses D. Gale. During the progress of 
his examination Messrs. Dickey and Hopkins appeared, when the follow¬ 
ing additional witnesses were examined: David Crowley, Wm. H. Green, 
Joseph Meeks, A. Oakey Hall, (recalled.) 

The chairman moved that the following order be made: 

Ordered: That Mr. Dickey and Mr. Boss be, and hereby are, consti¬ 
tuted a sub-committee of this committee, having the same power with 
this committee to sit elsewhere than in the city of New York. 

That Mr. Lawrence, Mr. Hopkins, and Mr. Kerr be, and hereby are, 
constituted a sub-committee of this committee, having the same power 
with this committee to sit in the city of New York. 

Mr. Boss moved as an amendment that the consideration of this sub¬ 
ject be postponed until Monday next, at 11 a. m. A vote being taken, 
the chairman declared the amendment lost. The question being then 
on the original motion, a vote was taken, and it was declared lost. 

Mr. Kerr then moved that for the present this committee defer the 
making of a sub-committee. 

The ayes and nays being called for, the following was the vote: Ayes— 
Mr. Dickey, Mr. Hopkins, Mr. Kerr, and Mr. Boss. Nay—Mr. Lawrence. 

Mr. Dickey then moved that the chairman of this committee be, and 
hereby is, directed to transmit the testimony taken by it to Washington 
in 3udh order as he may deem best, for the purpose of having it printed. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


163 


By nnaiiimoiis vote it was so ordered. 

At 4.30 p. m. the committee adjourned to meet on Monday, January 4, 
at the same place, at 10 o’clock a. m. 

Kew York, January 4, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman and Mr. Kerr. 

By mutual consent the examination of Henry Donovan was proceeded 
with, and during said examination Messrs. Dickey, Hox)kins, and Boss 
entered. 

The following witnesses were subsequently examined: John B. Mc¬ 
Kean, James Irving, James Coit, Kathaniel B. Mills, Isaac Heman, 
James O’Brien, E. H. Kent, Henry Yandervoort, Dennis Shea, Edwin 
B. Heath, John M. Lawrence, Arthur McKenna. 

At 5 o’clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow, at the 
same place, at 10 o’clock a. m. 

Kew York, January 5, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, and Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, Hopkins, and Boss. 

The examination of the following witnesses was proceeded with: 
Colonel Henry Beeny, (recalled,) Patrick Mack, Louis Jonassohn, John 
Lee, John Bogers, David Welsh, Patrick Fitzgerald, and Charles E. 
Wilbour. 

During the examination of Mr. Wilbour, Mr. Dawes questioned him in 
reference to the names of the stockholders of the Kew York Printing 
Company. Mr. Wilbour declined to answer the question. Mr. Dawe^vS 
appealed to the chairman to compel the witness to answer. The chair¬ 
man thereupon repeated the question and directed the witness to answer. 
Mr. Wilbour, still declining, desired to know if the committee meant to 
compel him to answer that question. The chairman submitted the mat¬ 
ter to the committee: ‘‘Shall the witness be compelled to answer the 
question put him by Mr. Dawes,” and desired a vote thereon. Mr. Boss 
called for the ayes and nays. The vote being then taken, resulted as fol¬ 
lows: Yeas—The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, and Hopkins. 
Kay—Mr. Boss. The question being then repeated by Mr. Dawes, the 
witness desired until 1 o’clock to-morrow to reflect upon the matter and 
consult his rights in the premises. The committee unanimously con¬ 
sented thereto. The examination of the following witnesses was then 
X)roceeded with: AYilliam Lawlor, Thomas, Smith, John Carberry, Ed- 
Avard J.^Shandley, D. E. Bennett, and Michael Costello. 

On motion of the chairman it was unanimously ordered that Mr. Law¬ 
rence, Mr. Hopkins, and Mr. Boss, or a majority of them, be, and hereby 
are, constituted a sub-committee of this committee, having the same 
power with this committee to sit in the city of New York. By mutual 
agreement of the members it Avas understood and consented to that at 
any time when the committee or any sub committee thereof should for a, 
time consist of but tAvo members i)resent, the vote of the republican 
member thereof should, in consequence of the large majority of that- 
])arty in the house and ipAon the committee, count as two Amtes againsL 
the single Amte of the democratic member. 

On further motion of the chairman it was unanimously ordered that- 
Mr. Dickey and Mr. Boss be, and hereby are, constituted a sub-commit- 
tee of this committee, haAflng the same power Avflth this committee to 
hold sessions in the State of Koav York outside of the city of Kew York,, 
on and after Monday, January 11th. 


164 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The chairman laid before the committee a telegram from the Speaker 
of the House in reference to the printing of the evidence taken by the 
committee. Tlie chairman was unanimously instructed to reply thereto 
and say that the testimony forwarded by him to Washington was to be 
printed, but, until otherwise ordered, for the use solely of the members of 
the committee. 

At 5.15 the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow at the same place 
at 10 o’clock a. m. 


New York, January 6, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: Tlie Chairman and Mr. Kerr. 

By mutual consent the examination of the following witnesses was 
proceeded with : August Thakphous, William Haviland, eTaines O’Brien, 
(recalled,) [during examination of Mr. O’Brien Mr. Hopkins, a member 
of the committee, appeared,] James A. Cohin, Sylvester E. Nolan, [during 
examination of Mr. Nolan Mr. Hickey and Mr. Boss, of the committee, 
entered,] W. W. Woodward, John Cummings, and Morgan Jones. 

An objection being made to certain statements of Mr. Jones respect¬ 
ing one Costello, a former witness, and a motion being made by Mr. 
Hopkins to strike from the record such statements, and a vote demanded, 
Mr. Kerr called for the yeas and nays, which were ordered, and foimd as 
follows: Yeas—The Chairman, Mr. Dickey, and Mr. Hopkins. Nays, Mr. 
Kerr, and Mr. Boss. 

The examination of witnesses was resumed, and the following persons 
(Called and examined: Thomas Byan, George Hopcroft, William J. Lou- 
trell, M. T. Brennan, George H. Hoffman, Samuel B. Garvin, Charles 
K. Wilbour, Thomas Potter, George Harris, Henry E. Sweetser, James 
Melville, Joseph Benson, Charles Grant, John P. Thurston, William Do¬ 
rans. At the close of the re-direct examination of this witness (William 
Dorans) he was informed that he was required to remain in the witness- 
room, or the hall entering thereto, until otherwise directed, as his presence 
for further examination would be required. The next witness called was 
■ George Mabee. After the close of Mr. Mabee’s examination William 
Dorans was recalled and further examined, and directed to report to-mor¬ 
row, and remain in attendance in the witness-room, or hall, until such 
time as his presence should again be required before the committee. 

The following witnesses were then examined: William H. Bogert, 
George Mabee, (recalled,) T. W. Greig, Bartholomew Cronin, Jules Ma- 
llay, and John Gilmore. 

The following communication was ordered to be sent to the clerk of 
Westchester county: 


United States Court Building, No. 41 Chambers Street, 

New York, January 6, 1869. 


Sir: The congressional committee appointed to examine into alleged frauds committed at 
•the late election in the State of New York, desire from you a statement, made from the records 
of your office, of the number of persons naturalized in the county of \V>stchester in the year 
1856, and every year since. This statement they require to be made in tabular form, and for 
the year 1868, to show the number on each day in the month of October. They wish a clerk 
; sent.here on Salurday with this list, who will be able to swear to its accuracy. 

Respectfully yours, 

WILLIAM LAWRENCE, 

Chairman Committee. 


. J. Malcom Smith, Esq., 

County Clerk Westchester County , N. Y. 


A letter similar throughout was also sent to the clerk of the county of 
Kings, State of New York. 

At 5.20 o’clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet at the same 
place at 10 o’clock a. m. to-morrow. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


165 


Kew York, January 7, 1869. 
The committee met pursuant to adjourument. 

Present: The Chairman; Messrs. Hopkins, Kerr, and Eoss. 

The following witnesses were examined: Henry Lyle, John H. White, 
Charles Eeilly, Eobert Utley, Peter Cook, George Johnson, George Hill, 
Cfark Bell, James Nichols, Janies Eininot, and William Wood. 

The following communication was addressed to Charles E. Loew, esq., 
county clerk: 


U. S. Circuit Court Building, No. 41 Chambers Street, 

New York, January 7, 1869. 

Dear Sir : The congressional committee desires you should furnish it this day with a 
certified copy of ihe appointment of your deputy^clerk. 

Respectfully yours, 

WM. LAWRENCE, 
Chairman Committee. 

Chas. E. Loew, Esq., County Clerk. 


At 5 o’clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow at same 
place at 10 o’clock a. m. 

New York, January 8, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The chairman, Mr. Hopkins, Mr. Kerr, and Mr. Eoss. 

The following witnesses were examined: Joseph Dumble, Thomas H. 
Y"ork, Edwin M. Plumb, Austin V. Pettit, George B. Gilford, Henry 
Darling, John H. McCunn, (recalled,) James A. Lucas, George Melville, 
James M. Clark, James Green, James O’Brien, (recalled,) Edward Sand- 
ford. 

During the examination of Sandford the proceedings of the com¬ 
mittee were interrupted by the arrest of several witnesses, as reported 
to the committee by Mr. Le Barnes, the sergeant-at-arms, as follows: 

Mr. Chairman : I have a report to make upon which I de.sire the instructions of the com¬ 
mittee. Several of the witnesses summoned befoi-e this committee, including some who have 
been examined and were directed to remain for further examination, and others who have 
not yet been called, have just been arrested in the hall of this building by the sherift'of this 
county and his deputies. I have reason to believe that these arrests were made without 
warrant or other lawful authority, and for some ulterior purpose connected with this inves¬ 
tigation. I desire to be informed if I have any power, or this committee has any power, to 
protect from arrest the witnesses summoned before it. 

Mr. Kerr stated that the arrests were made at his instance, and that 
he Avould take the responsibility of the act. The following witnesses 
were then examined pending the reappearance of Sheriff O’Brien, who 
was sent for: William Wilson, Louis A. Jonassohn, Adam Gillespie, 
Edward H. Burger. 

James O’Brien being in attendance was recalled and examined as to 
the circumstances attending the arrest of Aptnesses, as reported by the 
sergeant-at-arms. 

At the close of his examination, the sergeant-at-arms again called 
the attention of the committee to an interference by the deputies of this 
officer, as follows: 

Mr. Le Barnes. Mr. Chairman; I have to report that I find three of the deputies of 
the sheriff of this county stationed at the door of this room. I respectfully ask to be in* 
formed if these officers are so stationed by the direction of this committee. And I desire 
further to state that I have already experienced great difficulty in retaining the witnes.ses 
summoned before this committee, on account of the intimidation exercised by the presence in 
this building of sheriff’s officers and other persons who watch, follow, attempt to manipu¬ 
late, and, in some instances, maltreat them. 

The committee ordered the sergeaut-at-arms to bring before it the 
three deputy sheriffs complained of, Avliich being done, the committee, 
tlirough the chairman, directed them to leave the Adcinity of the com¬ 
mittee room and the building. The folioAving additional Avitnesses Avere 


166 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


then examined: Eobert Murray, Samuel S. Acker, Thomas Eyan, Charles 

A. Grant, James Gorman, George Merritt, Geo. W. Mabee. 

At 5.25 o’clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow at 
same place at 10 o’clock a. m. 

New York, January 9,1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman, Mr. Hopkins, Mr. Kerr and Mr. Eoss. 

The clerk of the committee, who to this date, to facilitate matters 
before the committee, had permitted some three or four messengers and 
clerks—very kindly placed at his disposal by the sub committee of the 
Hnion League Club, on whose memorial the investigation had been 
ordered—to serve nearlj^ all of the subpoenas for witnesses required by 
the minority, as well as render them other service, having informed the 
sergeant-at arms that, in consequence of what had taken place yester¬ 
day, in the illegal and unwaiTantable arrest, at the instance of Mr. Kerr, 
of witnesses subpoenaed by the majority, he should for the future refuse 
to permit any one connected with or subject to his orders to serve any 
process, or jierform any errand or service of any kind for the minority of 
the committee, Mr. LeBarnes, the sergeant-at-arms, informed the com¬ 
mittee of his inability to serve, Avith anything like the desired haste, the 
subpoenas called for by the minority, as he was alone, and, of course, 
during the day required to be in immediate attendance upon the com¬ 
mittee. 

Mr. Kerr thereupon asked leave, Avhich was unanimously given, to 
have the assistance of such iiersons as should be tendered the minority 
by its political friends. 

The following witnesses were examined: John E. McGowan, Eobert 
Murray, (recalled,) Thomas Sullivan, John Donahoe, David Hogan, Geo. 

B. Gifford, (recalled,) John H. White, (recalled,) C. Pullman, J. Malcolm 
Smith, Florence Scannell, Michael Brady, and Eobert Murray, (recalled.) 

At the close of Marshal Murray’s examination Mr. Kerr moved that 
the chairman of this committee, on behalf of the committee, request 
Marshal Murray to cause the police force now in this building, number¬ 
ing 24, to be at once withdrawn from it. 

Mr. Hopkins moved as a substitute: That if the police force now 
[present remain here to-day the future sessions of this committee shall be 
held at such place as the committee shall designate. 

Mr. Eoss objected to the substitute on the ground that it was not ger- 
main. Objection overruled. 

The ayes and nays were then called for by Mr. Eoss on the adoption 
of the substitute, and a vote being taken resulted as follows: Yeas—The 
Ghairman and Mr. Hopkins. Kays—Mr. Kerr and Mr. Eoss. 

By mutual consent the Azotes of the republican members were counted 
as a majority, and the substitute declared carried. 

The following witnesses were then examined: J.W. LeBarnes, Thos. 
A. McGlade, John Jones, Eobert Murray, (recalled,) J. W. LeBarnes, 
(recalled,) Geo. Mabee, Geo. Johnson, John A. Kennedy, Florence Scan¬ 
nell, Edward Sanford, Philip Koob, General John A. Foster. 

At 5.30 p. m. the committee adjourned to meet at the same ifface on 
Monday, January 11, at 10 o’clock a. m. 

Keav York, January 11,1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Chairman and Mr. Eoss. 

Mr. Eoss moA^ed that the sessions of this committee be held for the 
futui’e at the Fifth Aa enue Hotel. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


167 


The chairman moved as a substitute: That Mr. LeBariies, the mes¬ 
senger of this committee, and sergeant-at-arms, be directed to call to his 
aid such assistance as may be necessary to preserve order and protect 
witnesses, and that the sessions of this committee be continued at this 
room (United States grand jiuy room) until otherwise ordered. 

The question being upon the adoption of the substitute, the chairman 
voted, aye j Mr. Boss, no. Under the agreement of January 5, the sub¬ 
stitute was declared to be carried, and to be an order of the committee. 

The following communications from the messenger and sergeant-at-arms 
of the committee were then i)resented and ordered to go upon the journal: 

United States Court-House, 

New York, January 11, 1869. 


Sir: I have the honor to report that a man named Ward, an oflScer of Judge McCunn’s 
court, presented himself to-day as a substitute for Sandford, a messenger, hitherto authorized 
by me to act as an assistant. 

Not desiring to have any officer attached to any of the courts of this city, nor any sheriff’s 
deputy, nor other official of this city as an assistant to me in the discharge of my duties, I 
have notified Ward that I had no use for him, and that he could retire. I also informed 
Mr. McGowan, the associate of Sandford, that if he wanted any assistance in the discharge 
of the duties required of him, in the absence of Sandford, he might present to me any friend 
of his, who was not an officer, nor attached to any court of this city, nor to the sheriff’s 
office, and I would authorize him to act. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

J. W. LeBARNES, 
Messenger to Committee. 

Hon. Wm. Lawrence, 

Chairman Committee on Election Frauds. 


The action of Mr. Le Barnes, as stated in liis report, was approved. 


United States Court-House, 

New York, January 11,1869. 


Sir : I have to report that a w-itness by the name of Wm. Dorans, who was duly sum¬ 
moned and has been examined before this committee, and directed by it to remain in attend¬ 
ance foi further examination, was arrested in the hall of this building on Saturday last, by 
an officer named Moore, a deputy sheriff under Sheriff O’Brien. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

J. W. LeBARNES, 

Messenger to Committee. 

Hon. Wm. Lawrence, 

Chairman Committee on Election Frauds. 


The above report of Mr. LeBarnes being read, the committee directed 
that a summons issue, returnable forthwith, requiring Deputy Sheriff 
Moore to appear before the committee as a witness. 

The following witnesses were then examined: Louis Campbell, Wm. 
H. Bogart, (recalled,) Hiram B. Ferguson, Kobert Murray, (recalled,) 
David Hogan, James Gorrey, John Norton, Michael Edwards, James 
Straiime, James Ward, Nathaniel Jarvis, jr., (recalled,) Jolm Keating, 
Howard T. Marston, (recalled,) Abraham Yoorhees, John Wood, John 
Gregory, Lawrence Farrell, Samuel J. Glassey, Gen. John A. Foster, 
John I. Davenport, Wm. H. Cook, Francis Murray, and John McCabe. 

The sergeant-at-arms, at 5.15, reported that in accordance with the 
instructions of the committee he had subpoenaed Deputy Sheriff Moore, 
in person, shortly before 12 o’clock; but that at this hour he had failed 
and refused to appear before the committee. 

On motion of Mr. Boss the committee adjourned until to-morrow, to 
meet at the same jilace at 10 o’clock a. m. 


New York, January 12, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjoiu'nment. 

Present: The Chairman and Mr. Boss. 

On motion of Mr. Boss, it was ordered that Mr. Dickey, of the 


168 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


sub-committee appointed to take testimony out of the city of New York 
be directed to admit to appear before him such counsel as shall be 
designated by the minority of this committee, for the purpose of repre¬ 
senting before him said minority, Mr. Boss, of said sub-committee, desir¬ 
ing to remain in New York. 

The following witnesses were then examined: John Gunn, Joseph 
Gaillard, James Dennis, John H. McCunn, (recalled,) Abraham Yoor- 
hees, (recalled,) YYight Banks, John M. Kowell, Samuel Watson, James 
Smith, Charles Ferguson, John Hughes, and John Kagle. 

Mr. LeBarnes, the messenger and sergeant-at-arms of the committee, 
here made the following written report, which was received and ordered 
to be placed on the journal: 


United States Court-House, Grand Jury Room, 

New York, January 12, 1869. 

Sir: I respectfully report that being recently informed that a party of thieves and pick¬ 
pockets under charge of deputy sheriffs were in the witness room, I asked the persons indi¬ 
cated to me as being deputy sheriffs if they were witnesses, and upon being informed by 
them that they were not I directed them to retire. Finding, also, that the remaining per¬ 
sons had not been summoned before the committee, I gave them the same direction. I would 
also state that, as a matter of convenience in the discharge of my duties as messenger and 
sergeant-at-arms of the committee, and also for the purpose of preventing improper influ¬ 
ences beiug brought to bear upon the witnesses, I have given directions that no persons be 
permitted to enter the witness room except witnesses summoned before the committee by 
myself or my duly authorized assistants. 

Very respectfully yours, 

J. W. LeBARNES, 


Messenger and serseant-at-arvis to Committee. 


Hon. Wm, Lawrence, 

Chairman Committee on Election Frauds. 


The following witnesses were then examined: Eobert Costello, H. K. 
Murray, John Clark, John Glennon, Jacob Eoome, Edward Clark, John 
Horner, M. S. Eoberts, Edward Cobb. 

At 5 o’clock the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow at the same 
place at 10 o’clock a. m. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: Tlie Chairman and Mr. Eoss. 

The following witnesses were examined : Miss Cornelia A. Lyle, John 
Mullaly, Jacob Y^. Cooper, John Fox, Charles McCarty, Paid" Yolmer, 
Peter Loftus, James Allen, Cornelius Doherty, Henry A. Gumbleton, 
John Kennell, Charles H. Eogers, Adam Gillespie, (recalled,) John Heath, 
William E. VV. Chambers and William Ward. 

The chairman received a communication from John Jay, esq., presi- 
ident of the Union League club of New York, relative to certain matters 
of common notoriety connected with the investigations of the committee, 
which communication, together with his reply, is hereinbelow set forth: 

Union League Club, New York, January 8, 1869. 

Sir: I have this evening been advised that severahpersons summoned by your authority 
as witnesses to testify before your body were arrested by the sheriff of this city and county 
this afternoon, while attending in the United States court-house, where your committee hold 
their sittings. 

It is also reported me that of the men so arrested some had testified and were expecting 
to be recalled, and that the rest were M-aiting to testify; that they were arrested without 
warrant and were afterwards released, no charge having been preferred against them. 

Having reason to believe that the facts thus reported are true, I beg leave very respect¬ 
fully to address you upon the subject. ^ 

It was upon the memorial of the Union League club that your committee was appointed 
to inquire into the matters therein alleged, and we w^ere advised after your arrival in the 
city that you regarded the club iu the light of a complainant and looked to them for the 
proofs of their allegations. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 169 

This position we accepted, with its responsibilities, and, so far as the investigation has 
proceeded, we have more than proven the cliarges of the memorial. 

Other witnesses than those summoned at our instance have been produced and examined, 
in regard to the repeating frauds, in which they had themselves been engaged, as the 
employes of those by whom the frauds were planned, and it is more than probable that the 
past lives of persons selected for such a purpose have not been blameless. 

But the arrest of any witnesses upon any pretence, by the sheriff and his deputies, is a 
move which we did not anticipate, and in whicll we cannot acquiesce. No argument can be 
necessary to satisfy your committee that it will be impossible for us to proceed with the 
proofs, and to furnish wifnesses whose evidence may convict of complicity with the fraudu¬ 
lent conspiracy to change the vote of the State persons occupying official positions, if the 
men thus charged are to be allowed, with the connivance of the sheriff and his deputies, 
to avenge themselves upon the spot by arresting the witnesses and dragging them to prison. 

I do not, of course, suppose for a moment that your committee have the slightest idea of 
acquiescing in such an insult to your own body, or to the branch of Congress which you 
represent. I take it for granted that the House of Representatives, on your report of the 
facts, will properly vindicate ygur dignity and their own, and will punish as such a crime 
should be punished, this daring outrage by a local officer upon the national authority—this 
bold attempt to arrest and render futile a congressional investigation, by overawing, insult¬ 
ing, and maltreating the witnesses. 

But you will readily see, sir, that until such action is had by Congress, and the country 
is advised that in this grave investigation, involving the exposure of a gigantic crime, and 
perhaps the validity of the returns of our State election, the national government will pro¬ 
tect the committee and their witnesses from officious interference, the effect of to-day’s 
arrests may naturally indispose our citizens from volunteering their testimony, however 
important, with the prospect of being dragged from the court to a prison, should their evi¬ 
dence be displeasing to the political friends of Mr. Sheriff O’Brien. 

I beg leave, therefore, very respectfully, and with the view of enabling the club commit¬ 
tee to proceed efficiently with the evidence, to ask from you an assurance, with permission 
to make it public, that the facts of this matter will be reported by your committee, Avith a 
view to prompt action on the part of the House of Repieseutatives in proceeding against the 
sheriff for contempt in violating the privileges of witnesses summoned by its mandate, and 
attending under its protection; and with the view also to the enactment of a proper law, if 
additional legislation be indeed necessary, to protect all whom you may summon from the 
vengeance of the felons whose frauds may be developed by their evidence. 

Such an assurance will, I believe, enable us to proceed with the proofs as rapidly and 
effectually as we have thus far done, and relieve the witnesses from all anxiety in regard to 
the threats, personal or official, of those whose crimes may be exposed. 

I have the honor to be, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

JOHN JAY, 

President Union League Club, and member of Special Committee on Election Frauds. 

Hon. William Lawrence, 

Chairman of the Congressional Committee 

to investigate the alleged frauds in the New York election. 

Rooms of the Congressional Committee on Alleged Election Frauds 

IN New York, No. 41 Chambf.rs street. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

Dear Sir : Your communication of the 8th inst. was duly’received, and I at once addressed a 
note to Mr. Dawes, a member of this committee then in Washington, calling his attention to the 
facts in your letter contained. I did not indicate what action should be taken by the House 
on the subject, as I had no doubt Mr. Dawes Avould deem it advisable to present the matter 
to the House, which would take such notice thereof as to it should seem right and proper. 
I did, however, take occasion to contradict some of the statements published in the World, 
of Sunday last, especially those purporting to be made by Sheriff O’Brien; and have since 
taken testimony before the committee respecting the arrests made by that officer of persons 
summoned to testify before our committee, which evidence will show the facts more fully 
than they could otherwise be ascertained. 

I have since directed a summons to issue from this committee requiring Deputy Sheriff 
Moore to appear and testify, it having been alleged that he had arrested a witness summoned 
to testify before this committee. This summons our messenger reports as served upon Moore 
in person, but as yet that individual has failed to respond to the process. Having waited 
thus long for him to obey the summons of the committee, I have directed Mr. Davenport, 
our clerk, to forward to the Hon. Henry L. Dawes a copy of the letter I had the^ honor to 
receive Irom you, and to bring to Mr. DaAves attention the testimony taken relative to the 
matter. 

Very respectfully yours, WILLIAM LAWRENCE, 

Chairman Committee. 

Hon. John Jay. President Union League Club, N. Y. 

Oil motion the committee adjourned to meet to-morrow at the same 
place at 10 o’clock, a. m. 


170 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 14.18G9. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. 

Present: The Oliairman and Mr. Koss. 

The following witnesses were examined: Marcus C. Stanley, Henry 
E. Sweetzer, (recalled,) John J. Mullen, John H. White, (recalled,) 
John R. Brady, Wm. Ward, (ifecalled,) John Morton, jr., Meyer J. 
Newmark, M. R. Leverson, (recalled,) Wm. Davidson, John H. McCunn, 
(recalled,) Geo. F. Hallum, Victor Bishop, Terrence Foley, Wm. H 
Bogert, (recalled,) T. P. Tapper, James Collins, and Edward Hogan. 

By agreement the committee at 5.30 p. m., adjourned to meet on the 
call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. 0, January 25,18C9. 

The committee met, pursuant to a call of the chairman, in the room 
of the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives, at 10 
o’clock this day. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Hopkins, Kerr, and Ross. 

The following witnesses were examined: Christopher Callan, (recalled;) 
HoAvard T. Marston, (recalled j) John I. Daveniiort, (recalled j) and Sami. 
J. Glassey, (recalled.) 

The question as to Avhat action should he taken by the committee in 
the cases of Deputy Sheriff* Moore, Henry Johnson, and John McClusky, 
guilty of a contempt in refusing to appear before the committee in NeAV 
York, as required by the respective subpoenas, duly served upon each, 
being brought uj) by the chairman for decision; together with the case 
of Florence Scanned, who refused to answer questions put to him when 
under examination, it was moved and seconded that the chairman be, 
and hereby is, directed to report each of said cases to the House of Rep¬ 
resentatives and ask the order of the House for their arrest. The motion 
being before the committee, Mr. Ross demaded the yeas and nays, and 
the roll being called, the vote was reported by the clerk, as follows: 
Yeas—The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, and Hopkins. Nays—Messrs. Kerr 
and Ross. 

The motion was declared to be carried, and the committee adjourned 
to meet at the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. C., January 27, 1869. 

The committee met, pursuant to the call of the chairman, in the 
library of the House of Representatives, at 3.30 p. m. this day. 

Present: The Chairman and Mr. Ross. 

By agreement, the examination of Abraham Yoorhees (recalled) was 
proceeded vdth, at the close of which the committee adjourned, subject 
to the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. C., January 29, 1869. 

The committee met, pursuant to a call of the chairman, in the room 
of the Judiciary Committee of the House of Representatives, at 4.40 p. 
m. this day. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Blair, Kerr, and Ross. 

On motion of the chairman, it Avas ordered that Messrs. Blair and 
Ross be, and hereby are, constituted a sub-committee of this committee, 
having the same power with this committee, to hold sessions in the 
counties of New York and Orange, in the State of Noav York. By 
agreement, the same understanding Avas had in reference to the vote ol 
Mr. Blair counting as two against the A^ote of Mr. Ross as Avas arrived 
at in New York January 5. 

John McClusky, of New York, Avns examined as a Avitness, after which 
the committee adjourned, subject to the call of the chairman. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


171 


Washington, D. C., February 1 , 1869 . 

Tlie committee, iiursuant to a call of tlie cliairman, met iu tlie room of 
tlie Judiciary Committee of tlie House of Eeiiresentatives, at 4.30 p. m. 
this day. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, and Kerr. 

The following named witnesses wete recalled and examined: Joseph 
Meeks and Adam Gillespie. The committee then adjourned at the call 
of the chairman. 


Washington, D. C., February 3, 1869. 

The committee met, pursuant to a call of the chairman, at 4.30 p. m. 
this day in the room of the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
House of Representatives. 

Present: The Chaiiinan and Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, Hopkins, and Kerr. 

The Sergeant-at-arms of the House of Representatives presented him¬ 
self with the witness, Henry Johnson, arrested by him upon the order 
of the House for a contempt in refusing to appear before the committee 
when in Kew York. 

The examination of Mr. Johnson was proceeded with, and at its close 
the following resolution, ottered by Mr. Dawes, was unanimously 
adopted: 

Kesolved, That the chairman of this committee be, and hereby is, in¬ 
structed to report to the House of Representatives in the case of the 
witness Henry Johnson, that said Johnson has appeared before this com¬ 
mittee and testified; that there seems to have existed in the mind of 
the witness a misunderstanding, arising from a conversation between 
himself and the ofticer as to the time and place of meeting; that it does 
not appear that the witness intended to be guilty of any contemiit to 
this committee or the House of Representatives, and therefore that he 
be discharged from custody and paid his fees as a witness. 

John B. McKean was then recalled and examined, after which the 
committee adjourned until to-morrow morning (February 4th) at 10 
o’clock a. m. 


Washington, D. C., February^ 4, 1869. 

The committee met, pursuant to adjournment, in the room of the 
Committee on Public Lands of the House of Representatives. 

Present; The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, Hopkins, and Kerr. 

The following witnesses were recalled and examined : John A. Thomp¬ 
son, E. B. Heath, Florence Scannell, [this witness appeared in the 
custody of the Sergeant at-arms of the House of Representatives, hav¬ 
ing been arrested by him upon the order of the House for refusing, when 
before the committee in Kew York, to answer certain questions pro¬ 
pounded to him,] and John I. Davenport. 

A resolution, given below, was oftered by Mr. Dawes relative to the 
witness Florence Scannell, and was adopted by the following vote: 
Yeas—The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, and Hopkins. Kay—Mr. 
Kerr. 

Resolved., That the chairman of this committee be, and hereby is. 
instructed to report to the House of Representatives in the matter of the 
witness Florence Scannell, that said Scannell has again appeared before 
this committee this morning, but has in no sense given any good or sat¬ 
isfactory reasons for his refusal to answer the questions propounded to 
him by "this committee, and therefore, in the opinion of this committee, 
said Florence Scannell should be obliged to pay the costs of his arrest, 
and upon such payment be discharged from arrest. 

The committee then adjoiumed, subject to the call of the chairman. 


172 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Washington, D. 0., February 5, 18G9. 

The committee met, pursuant to a call of the chairman, in the cloak¬ 
room of the House of Representatives. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Da^yes, Dickey, Hopkins, and Kerr. 

On motion, it was ordered that the chairman have authority to appoint, 
under the resolution of the House of February 1, such additional clerical 
force as he may deem necessary to make, prepare, and complete a per¬ 
fect and accurate list of the names and residences of the applicants for 
naturalization in the supreme and superior courts of New York city, 
together with the names and residences of the witnesses and the date 
of the applications. The chairman thereupon addressed a note to John 
I. Davenport, clerk of the committee, then in Kew York city, directing 
him to proceed at once to have the lists required by the above resolution 
made, and, as he was on the spot, to select such persons as he deemed 
most competent to perform the requisite duties, giving preference to 
attorneys and counsellors at law—officers of the courts. 

The committee adjourned, subject to the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. 0:, February 9, 1869. 

The committee met, pursuant to a call of the chairman, in the room of 
the Committee on Indian Affairs of the House of Representatives. 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Blair, Hoi>kins, Kerr, and 
Ross. 

Mr. Blair stated to the committee certain facts which had transpired 
before the sub committee, of which he and Mr. Ross were members, at a 
session held by them at the Astor House in New York, on the Gth of 
February, in connection with a contempt of Charles E. Loew, county 
clerk, of New York, in refusing to bring before the said sub-committee, 
in accordance with the terms of a subpoena duces tecuni^ duly served 
upon him, the applications for naturalization made to the supreme court 
in the first judicial district in New York, for the 21st and 23d days of 
October, 1868, which applications were desired to enable John McClusky 
and Theodore Taylor to select therefrom some fifty wdiich they had pre¬ 
pared in the names of fictitious apidicants and witnesses, and upon 
wffiich McClusky obtained from John B. McKean, clerk of Part 1 supreme 
court, an equal number of certificates of naturalization in the names of 
said fictitious applicants and unthout the presence in court of a single person 
represeniing either applicant or tvitness. 

On motion of Mr. Dawes, seconded by Mr. Kerr, it was unanimously 

Resolved^ That the chairman of this committee write a letter at once to 
Charles E. Loew, directing him to appear in Washington before this 
committee, and bring with him said applications for the said 21st and 23d 
days of October, 1868. 

The chairman then laid before the committee the bills of the official 
reporter of the House' of Representatives for expenses of iihonograph- 
ers while in attendance uiion the committee and its several sub-commit¬ 
tees. On motion of Mr. Kerr, seconded by Mr. Dawes, it was unani¬ 
mously agreed and ordered that the reporters should be paid a per diem 
of six dollars for their expenses, and 10 cents per mile mileage. 

The committee then adjourned subject to the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. C., February 13, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to a call of the chairman in the room of 
the Committee on Indian Affairs of the House of Representatives, at 11 
o’clock a. m. All the members present. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


173 


Jolm I. Davenport was recalled, and i^iit in evidence tlie correspond¬ 
ence by mail and telegraph between the chairman and Charles E. Loew 
of New York. Howard T. Marstoa was recalled and examined as to the 
condition of the applications for naturalization in the supreme court at 
the time of his inspection and examination thereof. Mr. Davenport 
was again recalled, after which Mr. Kerr moved that the minority of the 
committee have a clerk allowed them to assist in the preparation of their 
views. Carried unanimously. 

Mr. Kerr moved that the sub-committee of this committee return to 
New York and make the examination there of the applications for natu¬ 
ralization desired, and take such testimony as may be offered and sub¬ 
mitted to it. 

Mr. Dawes offered the following as an amendment: That the chairman 
of this committee write to Mr. Loew that the committee has again had 
under consideration the matter of his refusal to bring before it the 
papers desired, and while it desires no conflict of authority, it deems it 
to be its duty after all that has transpired to require him to appear here 
with the papers on or before Tuesday next, February 16. 

At the request of Messrs. Kerr and Koss, Mr. Dawes subsequently 
withdrew his amendment to the motion of Mr. Kerr until the question 
as to whether any further testimony should be taken in New York 
should be decided, and Mr.Eoss offered the following as a substitute for 
the motion of Mr. Kerr: that this committee or a sub committee thereof 
hold a session in New York city on Tuesday next. A vote being taken 
upon the substitute of Mr. Ross, it was lost. Yeas, 2 ; nays, 5. 

Mr. Dawes then renewed the motion previously offered by him,., 
and given above, and a vote being taken the same was declared to be 
carried. Yeas, 5; nays, 2. 

On motion of Mr. Hopkins the chairman was also instructed, for the 
purpose of avoiding any semblance of irregularity or question of au¬ 
thority, to have Mr. Loew served with another subpoena duces tecum^ 
requiring his presence with the papers before the committee in this city. 
The chairman, thereupon, prepared and sent to Mr. Loew by mail the 
following; 


Fortieth Congress, U. S., 
Washington, D. C., February J3, J869. 

Sir : I am directed by the select committee of this house appointed, to examine into alleged 
frauds committed at the late presidential election in the State of New York, to address you 
this note, and say, that said committee have this day had again under consideration the 
matter of your non-appearance before it with the naturalization applications of the 21st and 
23d days of October last, as required by the subpoena served upon you in New York last Satur¬ 
day, and its subsequent request as made to you by me both by letter and telegram during 
this week, and that while it desires no conflict of authority should arise, it must and does 
require and insist that you shall appear before it in this city by or before 12 m. (noon) of 
Tuesday next, February 16, and that you bring with you the papers aforementioned. 

Respectfully yours, 

WM. LAWRENCE, 

Chairman of Committee. 


CiiAS. E. Loew, Esq., 

County Clerk, New York. 


The clerk also sent to New York a properly prepared subpoena with 
instructions that the same be served upon Mr. Loew in person. He was 
not found in New York, however, and therefore no service was obtained 
there. 

The chairman presented each member of the committee a copy of his 
report, so far as the same was in type, whereupon the committee, on mo¬ 
tion, adjourned to meet at the call of the chairman. 


174 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Washington D. 0., February 17, 1809. 

The committee met pursuant to a call of the chair in the room of the 
Committee on Indian Affairs of the House of Kepresentatives, at 10 
o’clock a. m., this day. All the members present. 

Charles E. Loew and Edwin M. Plumb were recalled and examined. 
Mr. Loew was directed to remain in the city and await the action of the 
committee in his case, he having refused to bring before the committee 
the papers required. 

On motion the committee adjourned to to-morrow, February 18,1869, to 
meet in the cloak-room of the House of Representatives, on call of the 
chairman. 


Washington, D. C., February 18, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to the order of adjournment at 3.30 p. m. 
All the members present but Mr. Ross. John I. Davenport testified as 
to certain despatches sent by the chairman and himself as the clerk of 
the committee to Mr. Loew or his deputy, which despatches will be found 
in his testimony. Mr. Charles E. Loew then certified to the handwriting 
of a communication i:>ut in evidence by Mr. Davenport and signed Henry 
A. Gumbleton, assistant deputy clerk, whereupon the chairman, by 
instruction of the committee, handed to Mr. Loew the following commu¬ 
nication : 


House of Representatives, Washington, D. C., February IS, 1869. ^ 
Sir: The committee on alleged New York election frauds directs me to say that it insists 
upon the production by you of the papers required by its subpoena; but that for any 
purpose other than this, your presence is not now required. The future action of the com¬ 
mittee, if you persist in refusing to obey its summons, will depend upon the business before 
the house. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

WM. LAWRENCE, Chairman Committee. 


Charles E. Loew, Esq. 


The committee then adjouimed, subject to the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. C., February 20, 1869. 

A meeting of the committee was held in the cloak-room of the House of 
Representatives pursuant to a call of the chairman at 4.30 o’clock p. m. 
All the members present. Additional copies of the report of the com¬ 
mittee were furnished the members by the chairman, and the recom¬ 
mendations and remedies proposed were discussed. The chairman 
requested leave to report on Monday, the 22d. Mr. Kerr moved that 
the report of the committee be not made to the House until Wednesday, 
the 24th. After much discussion, it was unanimously agreed to defer s 
decision upon this subject until Monday, February 22, at 10.30 a. m., 
until which hour, at the same place, the meeting adjourned. 


Washington, D. C., February 22, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to adjournment. All the members 
present but Mr. Ross. Mr. Dawes moved that the chairman have leave 
to submit his report at such time after to-day as he should desire. Mr. 
Kerr moved to amend by striking out all after the word “report” and 
inserting the words “on Wednesday next.” The amendment of Mr. 
Kerr being submitted, was lost. The motion of Mr. Dawes was then 
put and carried. Mr. Hopkins moved that tlie chairman be at liberty, 
from and after this hour, to deliver to the press copies of the report 
with the pledge, and upon the understanding that it should not be pub- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 175 

lislied until submitted to the House, and that the minority have the 
same privilege in the matter of their views. Carried. 

John I. Davenport was recalled and examined. 

On motion the committee adjourned subject to the call of the chairman. 

Washington, D. 0., February 24, 1869. 

The committee met pursuant to a call of the chairman, in the room of 
the Committee on Indian Affairs of the House of Eepresentatives, at 10 
o’clock a. 111 . 

Present: The Chairman, Messrs. Blair, Hopkins, and Boss. 

Mr. John H. Bell appeared in the custody of the Sergeant-at-arms, 
having been arrested by order of the House for contempt in refusing to 
answer questions put him by the sub-committee when in Orange county. 

During his cross-examination by Mr. Boss, the following question was 
propounded: 

Q. State whether you are satisfied that you could then or can now furnish evidence to the 
committee showing the republican party guilty of frauds in the election of last November in 
New York. 

Mr. Blair objected to the form of the question, in that it did not ask 
the witness to state any fact or facts within his personal knowledge. 

The chairman submitted the question to the committee for its decision, 
and Mr. Boss demanded the yeas and nays. The roll being called by 
the clerk, Messrs. Boss and Hopkins voted that the question be put, and 
the Chairman and Mr. Blair opposed. Before the result of the vote was 
announced Mr. Dawes entered, and the question being read to him by 
the reporter he voted no, suggesting the iiropounding of the question in 
the following manner: 

Q. If you know of any fact within your knowledge that will go to show that the repub¬ 
lican party in the State of New York was engaged in or guilty of any fraud in the election 
of last November, state it. 

Mr. Boss objected to the question proposed by Mr. Dawes being put 
to the witness. The question being submitted, it was decided unani¬ 
mously to allow Mr. Dawes to ask it. 

Mr. Kerr and Mr. Dickey appeared; and the examination of Mr. Bell 
being concluded, Mr. David W.Beeve was brought before the committee by 
the Sergeant-at-arms and examined as a Avitness. At the close of his 
examination the question of the admission of certain testimony, taken 
by Mr. Boss in Orange county without the authority of the committee 
or the i 3 reseuce of a member of the majority, was brought up by Mr. 
Boss for decision, the same having been put in type. Mr. Dawes there¬ 
upon read certain portions of the testimony so take®, which he consid¬ 
ered utterly worthless, being entirely hearsay. 

Mr. Kerr moved that all this testimony be incorporated in the testi¬ 
mony taken by this committee. 

Mr. Dawes moved to amend as follows: That the testimony taken 
in this manner by Mr. Boss and desired by him to be incorporated in 
the evidence taken by the committee shall be presented to the chair¬ 
man of this committee, and such thereof as shall in the opinion of the 
chairman be legal testimony shall be incorporated with the testimony 
taken by this committee. 

A vote being taken by yeas and nays on the demand of Mr. Boss, the 
amendment of Mr. Dawes and the resolution as so amended were 
adopted: Yeas—The Chairman, Messrs. Dawes, Dickey, Blair, and 
Hopkins. Kays—Messrs. Kerr and Boss. 

Mr. Boss then presented all the testimony taken by him. 

Mr. Blair moved that the witness Bell be discharged from custody on 
the payment of the costs of his arrest. 


176 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Kerr moved to amend by striking out tbe words ^^on the i)ayment 
of tbe costs of bis arrest.” 

Tbe question being submitted tbe amendment of Mr. Kerr was lost- 
yeas, 2; nays, 5. Tbe motion of Mr. Blair was tben adopted. ^ 

Mr. Dawes moved that tbe witness David W. Eeeve be discharged from 
custody. Carried unanimously. 

Tbe chairman decided to permit tbe incorporation in tbe testimony of 
all tbe evidence taken by Mr. Boss. 

On motion, tbe committee adjourned subject to tbe call of tbe cbair- 
man. 


JOURNAL OF THE SEVERAL SUB-COMMITTEES OF THE SELECT COMMITTEE 
ON NEW YORK ELECTION FRAUDS. 

Mr. Dickey, of tbe sub-committee appointed and acting under the 
resolutions and orders of tbe committee of January 5 and 12, took tes¬ 
timony at tbe following named places and dates, and examined tbe 
witnesses below mentioned: 

FeeJcsMll, Westchester county^ January 12,1869.—Hugh McKee, Timothy 
Duyer, William Coul, Mitchell Laird, Charles Snyder, Adam Horsfelt, 
Bernard S. Kelly. ♦ 

Kingston^ Ulster county^ January VS^ 1869.—Andrew E.J. Ansen,Keuben 
Bernard, James L. Bostwick. 

Rondout^ Ulster county^ January 14, 1869.—Patrick M. Haggerty. 

Troy, New York, January 14, 1869.—George 11. Olney, Oliver Burke, 
Irwing Hayner, James P. Butler, John D. B. Smith, Thomas Keany. 

Rochester^ New York, January 15, 1869.—Joseph L. Lucky, Jerome 
Puller, Joseph L. Lucky, (recalled,) Calvin Knowles, Anthony Biser, 
James B. Adams, William S. Foster. 

Messrs. Blair and Boss, of tbe sub committee appointed and acting 
under the resolutions and orders of tbe committee of January 29, 1869, 
took testimony at tbe following named places and dates, and examined 
tbe witnesses below mentioned: 

Middletoum, Orange county, N Y., February 1, 1869.—John Flynn, 
William P. Clark, John J. Bradley, Michael Biordan, Christian Borcold, 
John Hanley, Patrick Hanley, Patrick Powers, Edmund Powers, Charles 
Hoyt, Pat. Cameron, George Smith, D. P. Quackenbusb, Daniel Driscoll, 
John O’Donovan, John H. Bell, Patrick Boland, Cornelius Gillespie, 
Luke Burns, Henry Bebme, Peter Ennis, D. B. Irwin, Lewis Clark, Pat¬ 
rick Bradley, Edward Hackett, Michael Mahoney, Katban J. Miller. 

Port Jervis, Orange county, N. Y., February 2, 1869.—Lewis E. Carr, 
Patrick Kelley, Owen Bouben, John McGuyen, James Gilmarton, Bicb- 
ard Tracy, Burton Bren, T. B. Broadbead, John Green, George Broad- 
bead, Solomon Van Elon, Mr. St. John, George W. Stuttle, Wilmot M. 
Vail, George F. Vinall. 

Montgomery, Orange county, N. Y., February 3, 1869.—John McKee, 
William Carroll, William McKeal, Anthony Donnegan, William Titus. 

Hamptonburg, Orange county, N Y., February 2, 1869.—Thomas Ellis, 
Bicbard Levi, Thomas Moore, Bobert Unswartb, James H. Jackson, Vir¬ 
gil Christ, James H. Lynn. 

Newburgh, Orange county, N Y, Fe&rwury 4,1869.—Josephs. Asbiirst, 
Charles Janicky, Patrick O’Brien, Charles Bepp, Samuel Kirk, Edmund 
Cartter, Kicbolas Wilson, Michael Farrar, Wenddelin Kneer, Bicbard 
Peele, Joseph Martin, Martin Smith, Patrick O’Brieii, John Asburst, 
Frank B. Dixon, Thomas Casey, Thomas Crook, John Meagher, Patrick 
O’Brien, John Coyle, John Cumberlarge, Edward S. Braidy. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 177 

Gofilien^ Orange county^ February 4, 18G9.—Theodore W. Ludlow, 
Thomas Kane. 

tSame lylace^ February 5, 1809.—Patrick Dunn, E. H. House, James 
Connell, Michael Bnrke, Patrick Ford, Dennis O’Brien, Nelson Owen, 
C. G. Elliott, H. Y. D. Hoyt, M. C. Stivers, Charles S. Deming, and Seth 
K. Kobinson. 

Mr. Boss, of the above sub-committee, without the presence of his col¬ 
league, and without any authority", employed a stenographer, and on Feb¬ 
ruary 2, 1809, the day following the adjournment of the sub-committee 
at Middletown, visited that place and examined the following named wit¬ 
nesses : John Hirst, Edward Southwell, Patrick Tyrsee, William J. South- 
well, George Egleston, Beuben C. Miller, Chauncey Garrison, Joseph 
John-son, (colored,) George Briggs, James Fitz Gibbon, Thomas Butcher, 
Walter L. McCord, Jarvis B. Wood, Joseph Eith. 

New Y^ork City, February 0, 1809. 

The sub-committee held a session at the Astor House, in this city, this 
day, meeting at 10 o’clock a. m. Present: Messrs. Blair and Boss. 

Tlie following witnesses were examined; Samuel B. Garvin, James 
Kealey, Charles Buddington, George Bliss, jr., James Golden, Peter 
Hussey, Charles Nettleton, Frederick Tichen, Terrence Mowney, H. M. 
Clapp, Jerry Murphy, John Black, Theodore Allen, Joseph F. Bussell, 
Joseiih Casey, John McClusky, Lawrence Bommer, A. Vorhees, Dennis 
McLaughlin, John Dillon, August Browning, Theodore Taylor, John 
McClusky, (recalled,) George H. Dunbar, David F. Crouley, Charles S. 
Strong, James Dunphy, John H. McCunn, (recalled.) 

The following is the action of the House of Bepresentatives on the 
several resolutions reported by the committee, and is inserted for infor¬ 
mation : 

[From the Globe, January 30, 1869.] 

In the House op Representatives of the United States, 

January 28, 1869. 

NEW YORK ELECTION FRAUDS. 

Mr. Lawrepce, of Ohio, from the Select Committee on New York Election Frauds, 
reported the following" resolution, on which he demanded the previous question: 

Resolved, That the Sergcant-at-arme of this House be, and the same is hereby, directed to arrest and bring 
before this house Henry Johnson, to answer as for a contempt in refusing to appear before the committee of 
this house appointed to investigate alleged frauds in the late election in the State of New York in pursuance 
of a subpoena duly issued and served on said Johnson on the 13th of January, requiring him to appear and 
testify before said committee on that day; and that a warrant be issued by the Speaker of this house to the 
Sergeant-at-arm.s, commanding him or his special messenger to arrest said Johnson and bring him before this 
house accordingly, and t(i abide the order and judgment of this house. 

Mr. Robinson. I rise to make a motion which takes precedence. I move that the House 
do now adjourn. 

The Speaker. The question will be upon taking a recess, as the House has ordered an 
evening session. 

The motion was agreed to. 

[Fi'om the Globe, January 30, 1869.] 

In the House of Representatives, 

January 29, 1869. 

RECUSANT WITNESS—HENRY JOHNSON. 

The House resumed the consideration of the following resolution, pending at the close of 
the afternoon session of yesterday : 

Resolved, That the Sergeant-at-arms of this house be, and the same is hereby directed to arrest and bring 
before thi.s house Henry Johnson, to answer as for a contempt in lefu-ing to appear before the committee of 
this house appointed to investigate alleged frauds in the late electiDn in the State of New York in pursuance 
of a subpoena duly issued and served on said Johnson on the 13th of January, requiring him to appear and 
testify before said committee on that day; and that a warrant be issued by the Speaker of this house to the 
Sergeant-at-arms, commanding him or his special messenger to arrest said Johnson and bring him before this 
house accordingly, and to abide the order and judgment of this house. 

The Speaker. The pending question is upon seconding the call for the previous question. 

Mr. Brooks. I do not know who this Johnson is. I wish the gentleman Irum Ohio (Mr. 
Lawrence) would state to the House some reasons for this resolution. 

H. Bep. Com. 31-12 



178 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I bold in my hand the original subpoena which was served upon 
Henrj^ Johnson on the J3th of January, 1869, requiring him to appear before the committee 
charged with the investigation of alleged election frauds in the State and city ot New York, 
at the rooms where they were sitting at the time in the city of bi'ew York. He failed and 
refused to attend. I am advised that he is a material witness ; so material that the com¬ 
mittee have deemed it proper to direct me to report this resolution, and in order that he may 
be brought before the House to answer tor contempt in refusing to appear and testify before 
that committee: 

Mr. Brooks. Is the gentleman from Ohio sure that there is such a person as Henry 
Johnson ? 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. Yes, sir. The Sergeant-at-arms has made a return that he 
served the subpoena upon that person. 

Mr. Brooks. There are so many “ tricks upon travellers” perpetrated in New York that 
sometimes persons assume names to w’hich they are not entitled. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. The witness is w'ell known in New York. He is not a myth 
or one of the political friends of the gentleman who vote under assumed names. 

Mr. Wood. I think the Hou.se ought to adopt this resolution unanimously, and grant the 
request of the committee. 

Mr. Ross. I would inquire of the gentleman why we should select this particular indi¬ 
vidual out of the great number who neglected to respond to the process of the committee ? 
There were, I think, fifteen or twenty witnesses subpoenaed upon my motion who did not 
attend, and among them was a telegraph operator by whom I proposed to show that Colonel 
Wood had sent word to a man named Noble, living at Elmira, to come down and work up 
the case for the committee. But I was notable to procure the attendance of those witnesses, 
and I should be glad if the chairman would furnish us with some process by which we may 
be able to prove these frauds which were perpetrated and attempted to be perpetrated by the 
republican party upon the elective franchise in the State of New York. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. The inquiry of my colleague on the committee [Mr. Ross] is 
perfectly proper. There were quite a number of witnesses who refused to obey the process 
issued requiring their attendance before the committee ; and the House of course understands 
very well that the committee, as such, had no power to compel their attendance. We have 
selected this case and one or two others because the witnesses are deemed very material; and 
we propose that they shall be brouglit to the bar of the House not only that they may answer 
for their contempt, but that we may procure their testimony. 

As to the particular case alluded to by my colleague on the committee, he ought, I think, 
in fairness to state that when this subject was before the committee I said to him, as did other 
members of the committee, that if he desired that the telegraph operator to whom he has 
referred should be brought before the House to answer for contempt the committee wonld 
make an order directing a resolution to be presented for that purpose. This operator who 
was served with process did not come before the committee, but made an answer that it was 
impossible for him to furnish the testimony desired by the gentleman from Illinois. We 
issued process for his attendance, and that was all the committee could do. If the gentle¬ 
man from Illinois will say now that he regards that witness as material I will call the com¬ 
mittee together, and I think I can assure liim and the House that the committee will agree to 
report a resolution requiring that this witness shall be brought before the House. But the gen¬ 
tleman did not ask that any such resolution should be reported in that particular case, and the 
committee have selected for the action now proposed the cases of those witnesses only whom 
they deem the most material, becau.se it would not be practicable during the brief period left 
for this Congress to deal with all the refractory witnesses—all the witnesses who refused to 
appear before the committee in answer to subpoenas sent out for them. 

Mr. Ross. I .should be very glad if the chairman of the committee would insert in this 
resolution the name of that telegraph operator, and require him to produce the telegram from 
Colonel Wood to Mr. Noble, of Elmira, asking him to come down and engage in working 
up the case. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I have no authority to agree to any amendment, because this 
resolution comes from the committee; but I say to the gentleman now that I will call the 
committee together at any time he desires to take into consideration the case of any refrac¬ 
tory witnesses whom he may wish to bring before us. 

I ought, perhaps, to make a single additional remark. The gentleman has said, as I 
understood him, that he desired to take some proof as to republican frauds in the city of 
New York. I am not surprised that he desires such proof. No such proof has yet been 
made before the committee. If there have been frauds of that character I should be glad to 
have them proved, because this committee was charged with the duty of investigating 
frauds irrespective of party; and the amplest opportunity has been given to the minority of 
the committee and to all interested to present proof of frauds of every description. 

Mr. Ross. I did not suppose my colleague on the committee would give a statement of 
all the testimony that we have had before us. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. No, sir; I state nothing as to the testimony before the committee. 

Mr. Ross. So far from it being the fact that no republican frauds have been proved, my 
recollection is that such frauds have been proved very largely, and that there were 20 or 30 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 179 

witnesses waiting? to prove that they had “ repeated ” for the republican party in New York, 
■when the committee decided to receive no more of that class of testimony. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I yield to the gentleman from Indiana, [Mr. Kerr.] 

Mr. Kerr. Mr. Speaker, I think it my duty, after the remarks of the gentleman from 
Ohio, [Mr. Lawrence,] my colleague on the committee, to say to the House that, according 
to my recollection, in which I am as clear as it is possible for a man to be, the statement 
which he has just made in reference to there being no proof of fraud practised in the late 
election in New York by the republican party, or any of their agents or friends, is not true. 
The very contrary is true—most emphatically true! I am surprised, Mr. Speaker, to have 
heard such a statement from my colleague, and I submit further that it was uncalled for by 
anything which has transpired in connection with his resolution. 

I make no objection to that resolution, provided only that it has for its object the eliciting 
of some evidence wdiich is material to the investigation entrusted to the committee. But 
if it is intended, as I believe it is, to develop some cumulative testimony on points upon 
which this committee have already spent weeks of investigation, but which will add no new 
material fact to anything already developed, then I do submit, Mr. Speaker, that it is uncalled 
for now ; that it is unnecessary ; that it is only creating additional expense by prolonging 
the examination ; and that the House ought not to make this order. I understand—I believe 
I violate no rule of propriety when I say it—that it is the desire of the majority of the com¬ 
mittee to send for this particular witness to testify on the subject of repeating at the late 
election. If I am wrong in that, I hope my colleague will correct me. 

Mr. La^vrence, of Ohio. The gentleman is wrong. 

Mr. Kerr. Then I have to withdraw what I have said on that point. I must say, then, I 
think it becomes the duty of the chairman of the committee to state to the House on what 
material part of this investigation it is that this witness is expected to testify, in order that we 
may know whether it is our duty to consent to the adoption of this resolution or not. I ask 
my colleague whether the testimony expected to be elicited from this witness relates to the 
irregularities in the business of naturalization, or what is called repeating, in connection 
with this investigation. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I will say to my colleague on the committee that this witness 
was not summoned to prove anything in relation to repeating at all. He was summoned, as 
I understand it, to prove that two democratic poll clerks put upon a poll-list a large number 
of names as voters who never appeared and voted at all. This testimony, therefore, is not 
cumulative, but it is independent. It is to furnish evidence of a new species of fraud 
entirely. 

I wish to say further that the*remark which I made in relation to frauds by the republican 
party was made in reply to my colleague on the committee, [Mr. Ross.] Whether I am 
correct or my colleague from Indiana [Mr. Kerr] is correct is a matter that will be ascertained 
from the proof when it is printed. I do not desire now to go into a discussion of that subject. 

Mr. Kerr. I desire to say just one word in reply to what my colleague has said. I 
heartily concur in his last remark, that that matter should be properly submitted to the 
House after all the evidence is reported. It is not a proper subject of wrangling between us 
now. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. Not at all. 

Mr. Kerr. But I want to say this, that the gentleman should do me the justice now to 
say that he has never hitherto stated to the minority of the committee why he desired to call 
this witness here at all, although on several occasions I asked him this very question in the 
committee-room. But now, since he has stated the reason why he w'ants to call the witness 
I make no objection at all to his being called. On the contrary, I shall vote that he be 
called here to testify upon that point. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. My colleague, I think, has forgotten what occurred in the 
committee-room. I do not remember precisely whether he was-present or not at the par¬ 
ticular time the case of this witness was considered, but I do know that the fact w'as stated 
in the committee that it was expected that he would prove precisely what I have stated. I 
apprehend my colleague from Illinois [Mr. Ross] will remember that. I know that both 
the gentlemen composing the minority of the commdttee will do me the justice to say that I 
have never withheld from them any fact connected with any witness or with the investiga¬ 
tion as to which fact they have made any inquiry, or which they could in any sense deem it 
proper for me to communicate to them. 

Mr. Kerr. I desire to say- 

The Speaker. The Chair suggests that it is not regular to debate what occurred in the 
committee-room except w'hen it is presented in the shape of a written report. Both sides 
have been heard, and the Chair doubts whether it is proper to continue the discussion. 

Mr. Kerr. I have no desire to do so, but we should be allowed to be heard on this side. 

The Speaker. The Chair was under the impression that both sides had been heard. If 
the gentleman thinks otherwise the Chair will not insist upon enforcing the rule. 

Mr. Kerr. I have been heard on all the points except the last one suggested by my col- 

T^he Speaker. The gentleman will proceed till some member arrests him by a point of 
order. 



180 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Kerr. I wish to say that I have not intended to impeacli the personal conduct of the 
chairman of the committee toward the minority. He has certainly been kind. But I must 
also say, in jast’ce to myself and to the truth, wliicli this record will disclose when it comes 
to be published, that we have not had fair and equal opportunities to elicit evidence in this 
case in behalf of that party that has been most attacked by the conduct of the majority. 
Further than that I do not desire now to say. 

Mr, Lawrence, of Ohio. Well, I am willing- to stand upon the record. I now yield to 
my colleague on the committee from Massachusetts. 

Mr. Dawes. My colleagues upon the committee will pardon me if I say that I think the 
question before the House is not what this witness would testify to, or whether this or that 
has transpired in the committee or not, but it is simply whether a witness shall be made to 
obey the subpoena of this house; and there is nothing further in the question than that. 

I regret exceedingly that this discussion has arisen about what has transpired in the com¬ 
mittee, or what has been the testimony produced before the committee, and what is proposed 
to be proved by a witness. It is not for the witness to judge himself whether the testimony 
is material or not. It is for the House to say whether its subpoena shall be obeyed when 
properly served on him as a witness, and it seems to me there is nothing further in the case. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I now ask the previous question. 

The previous question was seconded and the main question ordered ; and under the opera¬ 
tion thereof the resolution was agreed to. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I have another privileged resolution which I desire to report. 

The Speaker. The Chair cannot entertain it at this time, as the motion to reconsider, 
which is the unfinished business and doubly privileged, now comes up. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I will take another opportunity to present it. 

[From the Globe, February 2, 1869.] 

In the House op Representatives, 

February 1, 1869. 

COMMITTEE ON NEW YORK ELECTION. 

Mr. Dawes. I am instructed by the select committee on election frauds in New York to 
submit the following resolution, on which I demand the previous question: 

Resolved, That the select committee ou election frauds in the State of New York be authorized to employ 
such additional clerical force as in their judgment shall be deemed necessary, at such compensation as is now- 
aid for like service. 

Mr. Kerr. I would like to make an inquiry of my colleague on the committee, (Mr. Dawes.) 

Mr. D.awes. I yield for an inquiry. 

Mr. Kerr. I wish to ask the gentleman whether he cannot limit in the resolution the num¬ 
ber of clerks to be employed by the committee ? 

Mr. D.awes. I should be exceeding willing to limit the number if I could fix precisely at 
this time the amount of work to be done. 1 think the House will be willing to assume that 
the committee will not be extravagant in this matter, when the gentleman from Ohio, (Mr. 
Lawrence,) who has such a reputation for economy, is at the head of the committee. I can 
assure the House there will be no unnecessary employment of clerks. 

Mr. Kerr. I deem it my duty, under the circumstances, to move to lay this resolution on 
the table. I think no additional clerks are necessary. 

Mr. Spalding. I hope the resolution will be amended or modified so as to authorize the 
employment of not more than two or three additional clerks. 

Mr. Dawes. I should be willing to insert a limitation of that kind if I knew precisely the 
amount of work to be done. It is necessary that this work, which consists of making certain 
copies, &c., shall be done with despatch; and it Avill be less expensive to the government to 
employ several clerks for a short time than one or two for a long time. The committee 
deemed it best that no limitation should be included in the resolution. 

Mr. Brooks. I would like to know how much money the committee have already expended. 

Mr. Dawes. I am unable to answer that question ; but I assure the gentleman that no 
investigating committee of which I have any knowledge—and I am sorry that my knowledge 
of investigating committees is somewhat extensive—has ever been run so economically as 
this committee, of which the distinguished gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Lawrence] is chairman. 

I think this matter is understood by the House, and I may as well insist ou the demand for 
the previous question. 

Mr. Kerr. I wish to put an inquiry to my colleague on the committee. He says that 
this matter is understood by the House. I do not think it is or can have been, from what ho 
has said. ’ 

Mr. Dawes. I wondei, then, that the gentleman should have moved to lay the resolution 
on the table. 

Mr. Kerr. Will the gentleman state what it is these clerks are desired to do? After an 
explanation on that point I may be willing to withdraw the motion to lay on the table. 

Mr. Dawes. I can tell the gentleman, in brief, that these clerks are required in order to 
make copies of papers and to do other writing in connection with matters which the com¬ 
mittee deem it necessary to investigate and report upon. I insist upon the previous question. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 181 

M. Kerr. The House is not yet advised what these clerks are to do, and I submit that it 
ouo^ht to be in order to vote intelligently. 

Mr. Dawes. I am unable to give the gentleman the titles of all the papers that the com¬ 
mittee deem it necessary to copy. If the House think the committee at this stage of the 
proceedings ought to make a development of that kind they will insist upon it ; but I hardly 
think it worth while. 

Mr . Kerr. The truth is, the papers the gentleman wants will do this house and the coun¬ 
try no good at all if they have them here. I demand the yeas and nays on laying the resolu¬ 
tion on the table. 

The yeas and nays were ordered. 

The question was taken ; and it was decided in the negative—yeas 35, nays 121, not vot¬ 
ing 66 : as follows: 

Yeas —Messrs. Axtell, Baker, Beck, Boyer, Brooks, Burr, Cary, Chanter, Fox, Getz. Glossbrenner, Golla- 
day, Haight, Holman, Humphivy, Hunter, Johnson. Thomas L. Jones, Kerr. Knott, Marshall, McCormick, 
Mungen, Niblack, Nicholson, Pruyn, Randall, Robinson, Spalding, Tuber, Tift, Van Auken, Van Trump, 
Woodward, and Young—35. 

Nays— Messrs. Allison, Ames, A.nell, Bailey, Baldwin, Banks, Beaman, Benjamin, Benton, Bingham, 
Blaine, Boles, Boutwell, Bowen. Boyden, Broomall, Bncklaud, Buckley, Cake, Cobb, Cook, Corley, Covode, 
Cullora, Dawes, Delano, Dickey, Dockery, Dodge, Driggs, Eggleston, Ela, Thomas D. Eliot, James T. 
Elliott, Farnsworth, Ferriss, Ferry, Fields, French, Garfield, Goss, Gove, llamilton, Haughey. Hawkins, 
Higby, Hill, Hopkins, Chester D. Hubbard, Hulburd, Ingersoll, Jenckes, Alexander H. Jones, Julian, Kelley, 
Kellogg, Kelsey. Ketcham, Koontz, Laflin, Lash. George V. Lawrence, Wbliam Lawrence, Lincoln, Loan, 
Marvin, Maynard, McKee, Mercur, Miller, Moore, Moorhead, Mullins, Myers, Newcomb, Norris, Nunn, O’Neill, 
Orth, Paine, Perham, Peters, Pierce, Pile. Plants, Poland, Polsley, Price. Raum. Robertson, Sawyer, Schenck, 
Scofield, Selye, Shanks, S hel lab urge r. Starkweather, Stevens, Stewart, Stokes, Stover, Tatfe, Thomas, 
Trowbridge, Twichell, Upson, Van Aernain, Burt Van Horn, Robert T. Van Horn, Ward, Cadwallader C. 
Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, Wil iam B. Washburn. Welker, Whittomore, Thomas Williams, William 
Williams, James F. Wilson, John T. Wilson, Stephen F. Wilson, and Woodbridge—121, 

Not voting— Messrs. Adams, Anderson. Archer, Delos R. Ashley, James M. Ashley, Barnes, Barnum. 
Beatty, Blackburn, Blair, Bromwell, Benjamin F, Butler, Roderick R. Butler, Callis, Churchill. Retider W. 
Clarke, Sidney Clarke, Clift, Coburn, Cornell, Deweese, Dixon, Donnelly, Eckley, Edwards, Eldridge, 
Gravely, Griswold, Grover, Halsey, Harding, Heaton, Hooper, Hotchkiss, Asahel W. Hubbard. Richard D. 
Hubbard, Judd, Kitchen, Logan, Loughridge, Lynch, Mallory, McCarthy, .McCullough, Morrell, IMorrissey, 
Newsham, Pettis, Phelps, Pike, Pomeroy, Prince, Roots, Ross, Sitgreaves, Smith, Stone, Sypher, Taylor, 
John Trimble, Lawrence S. Ti’imble, Van Wyck, Vidal, Elhhu B. Washburne, Windom, and Wood—66. 

So the House refused to lay the resolution on the table. 

The previous question was then seconded and the main question ordered. 

Mr. Kerr. I demand the yeas and nays on agi'eeiug to the resolution. 

The yeas and nays were ordered, 

The question was taken; and it was decided in the affirmative—yeas 109, nays 30, not 
voting 83 ; as follows : 

Yeas— Messrs. Allison, Amell, James M. Ashley, Bailey, Baldwin, Beaman, Beatty, Benjamin, Benton, 
Bingham, Blaine, Boles, Boyden, Brornwell, Broomall, Buckland, Buckley, Cake, Clift, Cobb, Covode, Cul- 
lom, Dawes, Delano, Dickey, Dockery, Dodge, Donnelly, Driggs, Eggleston, Ela, Ferriss, Fields, Garfield, 
Goss, Gravely, Harding, Haughey, Hawkins, Higby, ilooper, Hopkins, Chester D. Hubbard, Hulburd, 
Hunter, Jenckes, Alexander H. Jones, Judd, Kelley, Kellogg, Ketcham, Koontz, Laflin, Lash, William Law¬ 
rence, Loan, Logan, Loughridge, Marvin, Maynard, McKee, Mercur, Miller, Moore, Morrell, Mullins, Myers, 
Newcomb, Newsham, Norris, O’Neill, Orth, Paine, Perham, Peters, Pierce, Polsley, Price, Prince, Raum, 
Robertson, Roots, Sawyer, Schenck, Scofleld, Selye, Shellabarger, Smith, Starkweather, Stevens, Stokes, 
Stover, Tafife, Trowbridge, Twichell, Van Aernam, Burt Van Horn. Robert T. Van Horn. Ward, Cadwala- 
der C. Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, William B. Washburn, Welker, Whittemore, Thomas Williams, 
William Williams, James F. Wilson, John T, Wilson, and Stephen F. Wilson—109. 

NayJ— Messrs. Axtell, Baker, Beck, Boyer, Brooks, Burr, Chanler. Fox, Getz, Golladay, Grover, Haight, 
Holman, Humphrey, Johnson, Kerr, Knott, Marshall, McCormick, Mungen. Niblack, Nicholson, Pruyn, 
Randall. Robinson, Stone, Van Auken, Van Trump, Woodward, and Young—30. 

Not voting — Messrs. Adams, Ames, Anderson, Archer, Delos R. Ashley. Banks, Barnes, B.arnum, 
Blackburn Blair, Boutwell, Bowen, Benjamin F. Butler, Roderick H. Butler. Callis. Cary, Churchill, Reader 
W. Clarke, Sidney Clarke, Coburn, Cook. Corley, Cornell, Deweese. Dixon,Eckley, Edwards, Eldridge, 
Thomas D. Eliot, James T. Elliott, Farnsworth. Ferry, French, Glossbrenner, Gove, Griswold, Halsey, 
Hamilton Heaton, Hill, Hotchkiss, Asahel W. Hubbard, Richard D. Hubbard, Ingersoll, Thomas L. Jones, 
Julian Kelsey, Kitchen, George V. Lawrence. Lincoln, Lynch. Mallory. McCarthy, McCullough. Moorhead, 
Morrissey Nunn, Pettis, Phelps, Pike, Pile, Plants, Poland. Pomeroy, Ross, Shanks, Sitgreav^-s, Spalding, 
Stewart Sypher, Taber, Taylor, Thomas. Tift, John Trimble, Law'rence S. Trimble, Upson, Van Wyck, 
Vidal, Ellihu B. Washburne, Windham, Wood, and Woodbridge—83, 

So the resolution was agreed to. ^ j i ;> 

Mr. Dawes moved to reconsider the vote by which the resolution was adopted; and 
also moved that the motion to reconsider be laid on the table. 

The latter motion was agreed to. 


recusant WITNESS. 


Mr. Dawes. I am also instructed by the same committe to report the following resolution: 

Resolved, That the Sergeant-at-arms of this house be, and is hereby, directed to arrest and bring before this 
house Florence Scannell, to answer questions put to him by the committee of this house appointed to investi- 
eate alleged frauds in the late election in the State of New York ; and that a warrant be issued by the Speaker 
of this house to the Sergeant-at-arms commanding him or his special messenger to arrest said t loience Scan¬ 
nell and bring him before this house accordingly to answer for this his contempt and abide the order and 
judgment of this house in the premises. 


182 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Kerr. I desire to say in reference to this fellow that I have no objection to his being 
brought here to testify; but when he refused to answer questions in New York no objection 
was made by the chairman of the committee, and he was not notified that he was in contempt 
or would be sent for by (he House, and he was discharged. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I did not quite understand the remark of my colleague from 
Indiana in regard to this man being discharged. 

Mr Kerr. My remark was this: that when this witness was on the stand in New York, 
and was being examined by the committee, he did refuse to answer some questions, and the 
committee did not then insist on his answering those questions, but discharged him without 
any further objection being made or any notice to him that if he did not answer he would be 
brought here to answer. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I think my colleague is not quite accurate in saying that the 
committee did not insist on his answering. They undoubtedly did insist on his answering. 
We did not give him any notice that he would be brought here, because the committee 
could not undertake to speak for the House of Representatives ; we could not say in advance 
whether the House would or would not pass a resolution to bring him here; but the com¬ 
mittee did insist on his answering the questions, and he refused positively. We had. no 
power to detain him ; he was necessarily discharged. 

Mr. Dawej^. I suppose the gentleman from Indiana means that he was not held in custody. 
He was in no other sense discharged. The committee did not hold him in custody for the 
very good reason that they had no power to hold him in custody. Nor did the committee 
intimate to him that tliey would not insist on answers to the questions. The record shows a 
very gross contempt of the authority of the House, and I think no gentleman would under¬ 
take to justify it. 

Mr. Kerr. I do not object to his being brought here, but the gentlemen tiave discovered, 
or think they have, since we left New York, that it is worth while to examine him further, 
by way of further prospecting in partisan interests. 

Mr. Robinson. Is there not an understanding that this gentleman wants to attend the 
inauguration ball, and is not this an after consideration that he may come here free of 
expense ? (Laughter.) 

Mr Dawes. 1 should judge from what I saw of the character of the witness that he 
would be the last man that would enioy himself at the inauguration. I move the previous 
question. 

The previous question was seconded and the main question ordered; and under the opera¬ 
tion thereof the resolution was agreed to. 

Mr. Dawes moved to reconsider the vote hy which the resolution was adopted; and also 
moved that the motion to reconsider be laid on the table. 

The latter motion was agreed to. 


report of committee on election frauds in new YORK, 

When the report of the committee was presented in the House of Representatives by the 
chairman, the Hon. William Lawrence, the following debate ensued: 

[From the Globe, February 24, 1869.] 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I now yield for two minutes to my colleague, [Mr. Lawrence.] 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I am instructed by the Joint Committee on Alleged Election 
Frauds in New York to make a report in part on the subject committed to them, which I 
now do, accompanied by certain bills and joint resolutions, which I ask to have read a first 
and second time and recommitted to the committee, and, with the report, ordered to be printed. 

naturalization in new YORK CITY. 

The first bill was a bill (H. R. No. 2002) withdrawing jurisdiction of naturalization from 
certain courts in New York city. 

Mr. Eldridge. I call for the reading of the hill. 

The bill was read. It provides that the supreme court, the circuit courts, and the courts 
of oyer and terminer in the city and county of New York, and the superior court of the city 
of New York, shall not hereafter have power to admit any alien to be a citizen. 

Mr. Eldridge. Does it require unanimous consent to have this bill reported from the 
committee at this time ? 

The Speaker. The committee are authorized to report at any time. 

Mr. Eldridge. I insist upon the regular order of business, which I understand is some 
matter which the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Ashley] has in charge. 

The Speaker. The gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Ashley] yielded to his colleague, [Mr. 
Lawrence, ] who reports this bill from a committee authorized to report at any time. The 
gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Eldridge] or any other gentleman has a right to object to 
tlie first reading of the bill, in which case the question will be, “Shall this bill be rejected ?” 
as will be seen by reference to the Digest. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


183 


Mr. Eldiudge. This is not exactly what I desire. My object in calling for the readino- 
of this bill was to see what it was, and to object to it if upon its reading I found I was 
opposed to it. 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I hope the gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Eldridge] will let this 
bill be printed and recommitted. 

Mr. Eldkiij<je. I propose to oppose this bill upon every occasion and in every form, 
shape, and manner. 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. If we are brought to a direct vote upon the bill we may be com¬ 
pelled to pass it without having it printed. I would prefer myself to see it in print. 

Mr. Eldridge. I must object to the reception of this bill. 

Mr. Boutwell. Will it be in order upon this reading to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill at this time. 

The Speaker. It will. 

Mr. Boutwell. I do not know but what that would be the best course for us to pursue 
if objection is made by the gentlemen on the other side to printing and recommitting this bill. 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I hope the gentleman from Wisconsin will permit this bill to be 
printed and recommitted. I had no expectation when I yielded that more than three or four 
minutes of time would be consumed in this matter. 

Mr. Eldridge. I would be very glad to oblige the gentleman, but I am opposed to this 
bill in every form and shape. I am not opposed to the gentleman, but to the passage of this 
bill. 

The question was, “ Shall the bill be rejected ?” 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. On that question I call for the previous question. 

The previous question was seconded and the main question ordered. 

Mr. Ross. I call for the yeas and nays. 

The question was taken upon ordering the yeas and nays, and there were, upon a divis¬ 
ion, ayes 23, noes 94 ; not one-fifth in the affirmative. 

Before the result of the vote was announced, Mr. Fox called for tellers. 

The question was taken upon ordering tellers; and there were, yeas 26. 

So (the affirmative being one-fifth of a quorum) tellers were ordered; and Mr. Lawrence, 
of Ohio, and Mr. Fox were appointed. 

The House again divided; and the tellers reported that there were—ayes 30. 

So (the affirmative being one-fifth of the last vote) the yeas and nays were ordered. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. Will it be in order now to move to suspend the rules for the 
purpose of putting this bill on its passage ? 

The Speaker. It will not, because the House has ordered the main question to be put, 
which is, “ Shall this bill be rejected,” upon which the yeas and nays have been ordered. 

The question was taken ; and it was decided in the negative; yeas 34, nays 120, not 
voting 68 ; as follows : 

Yeas —Messrs. Archer, Axtell, Barnes, Bamum, Beck, Brooks, Burr, Cary, Chanter, Eldridge, Fox, Getz, 
Golladay, Grover, Haight, Hawkins, Holman, Humphrey, Johnson, Thomas L. Jones, Kerr, Knott, Marshall, 
McCormick, McCullough, Mungen, Niblack, Nicholson, Phelps, Pruyn Robinson, Ross, Tift, and Young—34. 

Nays— Messrs. Allison, Ames, Arnell, James M. Ashley, Beaman, Beatty, Benjamin, Benton, Blackburn, 
Blair, Boutwell, Boyden. Broomall, Buckley, Churchill, Reader W. Clarke, Clift, Cobb, Coburn, Cook, Cor¬ 
ley, Cornell, Cullom, Dawes, Deweese, Dickey, Dockery, Driggs, Eckley, Edwards, Eggleston, Thomas D. 
Eliot, James T. Elliott, Farnsworth, Ferriss, Ferry, Fields, French, Garfield, Goss, Gove, Gravely, Griswold, 
Hamilton, Harding, Haughey, Heaton, Higby, Hill, Hopkins, Chester D. Hubbard, Hunter, Ingersoil, Jenckes, 
Alexander H. Jones, Judd, Julian, Kelley, Kellogg, Ketcham, Kitchen. Kooutz, Lafliu, George V. Lawrence, 
William Lawrence, Loan, Logan, Loughridge, Lynch, Marvin, Maynard, McKee, Mercur, Miller, Moore, 
Morrell, Mullins, Myers, Newcomb, Newsham, Norris. O’Neill, Paine, Perham, Peters, Pettis, Pierce, Plants, 
Pomeroy Price, Prince, Raum, Robertson, Roots, Sawyer, Schenck, Scofield, Shanks, Shellabarger, Spalding, 
Stevens, Stover, T'affe, Taylor, Thomas, John Trimble, Trowbridge, Twitchell,Van Aernam, Burt Van Horn, 
RobertT. Van Horn, Ward, Cadwalader C. Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, William B. Washburn, Welker, 
Whittemore, William Williams, John T. Wilson, and Windom—120. 

Not voting.— Messrs. Adara.s, Anderson, Delos R. Ashley, Bailey, Baker, Baldwin, Bank.s, Bingham, 
Blaine, Boles, Bowen, Boyer. Bromwell, Buckland, Benjamin F. Butler, Roderick R. Butler, Cake, Callis, 
Sidney Clarke, Covode, Delano, Dixon, Dodge, Donnelly, Ela, Glossbrenner, Halsey, Hooper, Hotchkiss, 
Asahel W. Hubbard, Richard D, Hubbard, Hulburd, Kelsey, Lash, Lincoln, Mallory, McCarthy, Moorhead, 
Morrissey, Nunn, Orth, Pike, Pile, Poland, Polssley, Randall, Selye, Sitgreaves, Smith, Starkweather, 
Stewart, Stokes, Stone, Sypher. Taber, Lawrence S. Trimble, Upson, Van Auken, Van Trump, Van Wyck, 
Vidal, Ellihu B. Washburne, Thomas Williams, James F. Wilson, Stephen F. Wilson, Wood, Woodbridge, 
and Woodward—68. 

So the bill was not rejected. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I move to reconsider the vote just taken, and also move that 
the motion to reconsider be laid on the table. 

Mr. Brooks. I call for the yeas and nays. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I withdraw the motion. I ask that the remaining bills which 
I have reported be read a first and second time. 

The Speaker. If the House passes from the consideration of this bill it will go to the 
Speaker’s table, where it probably will not be reached. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I propose then to^make a motion to suspend the rules. 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I did not yield to my colleague with any expectation that his 
business was to take up the whole morning. 

The Speaker. That may be; but this bill is now in the possession of the House. It cap 
be considered and acted on or the House may pass from its consideration, in which case it 
will go to the Speaker’s table. 


184 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Ashley, of Ohio.* I move that the bill be printed and recommitted. 

Mr. Lavvrfnce, of Ohio. I believe I have the floor. 

The Speaker. If there be no objection the bill will be read the second time, recommitted, 
and ordered to be printed. 

Mr. Fox. I object. 

Mr. Lawrence, ot Ohio. I move that the rules be suspended and that the House pro¬ 
ceed to vote on the passage of the pending bill without dilatory motions. 

On agreeing to the motion, there were—ayes 78, noes 36. 

Mr. Eldridge. I call for tellers. 

♦ Tellers were ordered. 

Mr. Boutwell. We might as well have the yeas and nays at once. I call for the yeas 
and nays 

The yeas and nays w'ere ordered. 

The question was taken; and there %vere—yeas 108, nays 44, not voting 70; as follows: 

Yeas—M essrs. Ames, Arnell, James M. Ashley, Beaman, Beatty, Benjamin, Benton, Blackburn, Blair, 
Boutwell, Boyden, Broomall, Buckland, Buckley, Roderick R. Butler, Callis, Churchill, Reader W. Clarke, 
Sidney Clarke, Clift, Cobb, Coburn, Cook, Corley, Cornell, Cullom, Dawes, Delano, Deweese, Dickey, Dodge, 
Donnelly, Driggs, Eckley, Eggleston, Thomas D. Eliot, James T. Elliott, Farnsworth, Ferriss, Ferry, Fields, 
Goes, Gove, Gravely, Hamilton, Haughey, Heaton, Higby, Chester D. Hubbard, Hulburd, Hunter, Alexander 
H. Jones, Judd, Julian, Kelley, Kellogg, Ketcham, Kitchen, Koontz, Laflin, William Lawrence, Logan, 
Loughridge, Mallory, Marvin, Maynard, Miller, Moore, Moorhead, Morrell, Mullins, Myers, Newcomb, New- 
sham, Norris, Nunn, O’Neill, Paine, Perham, Pettis, Pierce, Price, Raum, Robertson, Roots, Sawyer Scofield, 
Shanks, Shellubarger, Stevens, Stokes, Stover, Taylor, Thomas, John Trimble, Trowbridge, Twitchell, Upson, 
Van Aernan, Robert T. Van Horn, Ward, Cadawalader C. Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, William B. 
Washhuin, Welker, Whittemore, William Williams, and Windom—lOS. 

Nays—M essrs. Archer, Axtell, Baker, Barnes, Barnum, Beck, Burr, Cary, Chanler, Edwards, Eldridge, 
Fox, Getz, Haight, Hawkins, Holman, Richard D. Hubbard, Humphrey, Jenckes, Johnson, Thomas L. Jones, 
Kerr, Knott, Marshall, McCormick, McCullough, McKee, Mercur, Mungen, Niblack, Nicholson, Phelps, Plants, 
Poland. Pruyn. Robinson, Ross, Smith, Spalding, Stone, Taber, Tift, \ an Trump, and Young—44. 

Not voting —Messrs. Adams, Allison, Anderson, Delos R. Ashley, Bailey, Baldwin, Banks, Binghinm, 
Blaine, Boles. Bowen, Boyer, Bromwell, Brooks, Benjamin F. Butler, Cake, Covode, Dixon, Dockery, Ela, 
French, Garfield, Glo>sbrenser, Golladay, Griswold, Grover, Halsey, Hardinc, Hill, Hooper, Hopkins 
Hotchkiss, Asahel W. Hubbard, Ingersoll, Kelseys, Lash, George V. Lawrence, Lincoln, Loan, Lynch, 
McCarthy, Morrissey, Orth, Peters, Pike, Pile, Pol.-ley, Pomeroy, Prince, Randall, Schenck, Selye, Sitgreaves, 
Starkweather, Stewart, Sypher, Taflfe, Lawrence S. Trimble, Van Auken, Burt Van Horn, Van Wyek, Vidal, 
Ellihu B. Wushbnrne, Thomas Williams, James F. Wilson, John T. Wdson, Stephen F. Wilson, Wood, 
Woodbridge, and Woodward—70. 

So (two-thirds voting in favor thereof) the rules were suspended; and the motion of Mr. 
Lawrence, of Ohio, was agreed to. 

Mr. C'HANl.ER. I desire to ask the Chair whether there is not some way in which the gen¬ 
tleman from Ohio [Mr. Lawrence] can bring before the House, prior to the passage of this 
bill, the report of the committee, which has not been printed or in any way brought to the 
knowledge of members? 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. When this bill was introduced I asked that it should be read 
a first and second time, recommitted, and ordered to be printed. Gentlemen on the other 
side objected, and we are driven to this course. 

The Speaker. Debate is not in order. It has been ordered, under a suspension of the 
rules, that the House shall immediately proceed to vote on this bill. 

Mr. Fox. Would a motion to adjourn be now in order? 

The Speaker. It would not be. While the motion to suspend the rules was pending one 
motion to adjourn could have been entertained; but the House has now ordered that the 
vote shall immediately be taken on this bill. 

Mr. Robinson. I rise to a privileged question. I move to reconsider the vote just taken ; 
and on that motion I have a lew words to say. 

The Speaker. The gentleman did not vote in the affirmative; and if he did the motion 
to reconsider would not be in order. 

The question recurred on the passage of the bill. 

The House divided ; and there were—ayes 71, noes 49. 

Mr Fox demanded the yeas and nays. 

The >tas and nays were ordered. 

Mr. Robinson. I ask unauimous consent that my friend from Vermont [Mr. Poland] 
shall be heard in opposition to this bill. 

Mr. Raum. I object. 

The question was taken; and it was decided in the affirmative—yeas 89, nays 54, not 
voting 79; as follows: 

Yeas—M essrs. Ames, Arnell, Beaman, Benton, Blackburn, Blair, Boutwell, Bowen, Bromwell, Brooks, 
Buckley. Roderick R Butler, Churchill, Reader W. Clarke, Sidney Clarke, Clift, Cobb, Cobum, Cook, Corley, 
Cornell. Dawes, Dickey, Dodge, Eckley, Edwards, Eggleston, Ela. Thomas D. Eliot, James T. Elliott, Fer¬ 
riss, Ferry, Fields, French, Gross, Grove, Hamilton, Harding, Haughey, Heaton, Higbee, Hopkins, Chester 
p. Hubbard. Hulburd, Elunter, Alexander H. Jones, Julian, Kelley, Kellogg, Kitchen, Koontz, Lafflin, Wil¬ 
liam Lawrence, Mallory, Marvin, Maynard, Miller, .Moorhead, Morrell. Mullins, Myers, Newsham, Norris, 
Nunn. G’Neill, Paine, Perham, Pettis, Pile, Pr nee, Raum, Sawyer, Scofield, Shanks, Shellabarger, Stevens, 
Stokes, John Trimble, Trt.wbridge, Van Aernam, Burt Van Horn, Robert T. Van Horn, Ward, Cadwallader 
C, Washburn, Henry D. Washburn, William B. Washburn, Thomas Williams, John T. WUson, and 
Wmdoni—89. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


185 


Nays—M essrs. Archer, James M. Ashley, Axtell, Baker, Barnes, Beafty, Beck, Benjamin, Broomall, Burr, 
Callis, Cary, Chanler, Cullom, Eldridge, Farnsworth, Fox, Getz, Golladay, Gravely, Grover, Haight, Hawkinsj 
Humphrey, Jenckes, Johnson, Thomas L. Jones, Judd, Kerr, Knott, Lynch, Marshall, McCormick, McCul¬ 
lough, McKee, Mercur, Mungen, Niblack, Nicholson, Phelps, Plants, Poland, Pomeroy, Pruyn, Robertson, 
Robinson, Ross, Smith, Spalding, Stover, Taber, Tift, Van Trump, and Young—54. 

Not voting —Messrs. Adams, Allison, Anderson, Delos R. Ashley, Bailey, Baldwin, Banks, Baruum, 
Bingham, Blaine, Boles, Boyden, Boyer, Buckland, Benjamin F. Butler, Cake, Covode, Delano, Deweese, 
Dixon, Dockery, Donnelly, Driggs, Garfield, Glossbrenner, Griswold, Halsey, Hill, Holman, Hooper, Hotch¬ 
kiss, Asahel W. Hubbard, Richard D. Hubbard, Ingersoll, Kelsey, Ketcham, Lash, George V. Lawrence, 
luncoln. Loan, Logan, Loughridge, McCarthy, Moore, Morrissey, Newcomb, Orth, Peters, Pierce, Pike, 
Polsley, Price, Randall, Roots, Schenck, Selye, Sitgreaves, Starkweather, Stewart, Stone, Sypher, TafFe, 
Taylor, Thomas, Lawrence S. Trimble, Twichell, Upson, Van Auken, Van Wyck, Vidal, Ellihu B.Washburne, 
Welker, Whittemore, William Williams, James F. Wilson, Stephen F. Wilson, Wood, Woodbridge, and 
Woodward—79. 

So the bill passed. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I move to reconsider the vote just taken ; and also move that 
the motion to reconsider be laid on the table. 

Mr. Brooks. I demand the yeas and nays. 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I hope my colleague -will -withdraw the motion. 

Mr. Lawrence, of Ohio. I withdraw it. 

Mr. Brooks. I renew it. 

The Speaker. Did the gentleman vote in the affirmative ? 

Mr. Brooks. I did.. * 

Mr. Ashley, of Ohio. I do not yield for that motion. 

The Speaker. It will be entered on the Journal. 

Mr. Kerr, by unanimous consent, presented a minority report on alleged election frauds 
in the State of New York; which was laid on the table and ordered to be printed. 

Mr. Dawes submitted the following resolution; which was read, and under the law 
referred to the Committee on Printing: 

Resolved, That ten thousand extra copies of the report of the committee on alleged frauds committed at the 
late presidential election in the State of New York, and ten thousand extra copies of the testimony taken by 
said committee, be printed for the use of the House. 

H. Eep. Com. 31—12 







TESTIMONY, 


New York, Monday^ December 21, 1868. 

Robert Murray sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1. Question. State yoiir residence and official position. 

Answer. I reside in the city of New York. I am marshal for the 
United States, for the southern district of New York, and have occupied 
that position since the 20th of April, 1861. 

2. Q. State if you have any knowledge of the issuing and sale of fraud¬ 
ulent naturalization certificates in the month of October, 1868. 

A. In the early part of October there was a rumor in town that nat¬ 
uralization papers could be purchased at certain localities in this city, 
for two dollars apiece. I directed two of my deputies, named Jarvis 
and Dwyer, to ascertain if that rumor had any foundation in fact. They 
reiiorted to me, in a few days afterwards, that those papers could be 
purchased from a man named Rosenberg, at No. 6 Centre street, and 
also that they could be purchased at No. 13 Centre street. While these 
two deputies were making this report to me, Mr. Allen, the assistant 
United States district attorney, called in my office, and I inquired of 
him if the selling of false naturalization jiapers was a violation of any 
act of Congress. He replied to me that he would examine the question 
and let me know with as little delay as possible. The next morning, I 
think, he called my attention to the 13th section of the act of 1813. I 
then stated to him that I thought I could iiurchase naturalization papers 
by making 'out a list of fictitious names. He said that if I could he 
would apply to the commissioner for a warrant for the apprehension of 
the parties. I then directed my two deputies to purchase papers there. 
They replied to me that they could not, from the fact that they were 
too well known. The next evening 1 was up at the Fifth Avenue hotel 
and met Mr. E. D. Webster, assessor of internal revenue in the 32d dis¬ 
trict. I asked him if he could send me two or three reliable men the 
next morning, as I wanted to use them for a special purpose. I did not 
state at that time what business I wanted the men for. Mr. Webster, 
instead of sending me two or three men, as I desired, sent me but one, 
named Major Simms. I told Simms what I wanted. He and I set 
down and made out a list of four or five or half a dozen fictitious names. 
He went over to Rosenberg, at No. 6 Centre street, and stated to Rosen¬ 
berg—[Objected to by Mr. Ross. Objection overruled.] Major Simms 
reported to me that he called on Rosenberg and represented to him that 
he resided in Yonkers, Westchester county j that he had some four or 
five friends there who wanted to become citizens of the United States; 
that they were poor men and could not spare the time to come to the 
city to go through the courts of law, and he inquired of Rosenberg if 
there was not any way by which he could fix it for him. Rosenberg 
replied yes, give me the names, and I will have the papers for you 
to-morrow morning.” Simms replied that he might want quite a large 
number, but that the list was imperfect at that time, and that he would 



2 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


call and see him again. He called there the second time and handed 
him this list of six or eight names, and he was told to call in the morn¬ 
ing, and that the papers would he ready for him. He did call in the 
morning and the naturalization certificates were handed to him. Simms 
paid Eosenberg two dollars apiece for them. They were brought to me 
and I made Simms mark them with his initials, and I think I marked 
them myself. The next day I sent a young man by the name of Butts 
with a list of three or four names—fictitious names—and I directed him 
to go there, to No. 6 Centre street, and purchase naturalization papers 
there. He reported to me that he had had an interview with Eosenberg, 
and that Eosenberg agreed to furnish him the papers the next morning. 
The next morning Butts handed me the certificates j I compared them 
with the list of names which I had furnished to him the day previously, 
and I found that they corresponded. I made Butts put his initials on 
the certificates together with the date of them, and I put my initials on 
them also. The day after I made out another list of names of four or 
five, or perhaps more, and sent a man by the name of Livingston with 
instructions to go over and see Eosenberg and inquire if he could pur¬ 
chase naturalization papers. He reported back to me that the papers 
would be ready the following morning. The following morning Living¬ 
ston handed to me these naturalization certificates. I compared them 
with the list of names which I had handed to him the previous morning, 
and found that they corresponded. I made Livingston put his initials 
on them together with the date, and I think I also put my initials on 
them. The next day I sent a man by the name of Eeynolds over there 
to inquire whether he could purchase naturalization papers, and we 
made out a list of them together of fifteen or twenty names. I simply 
sent Eeynolds there to have corroborating proof, for I meant to arrest 
Eosenberg that day 5 and I directed Eeynolds to have no conversation 
with Eosenberg; to state to him that perhaps he might Avant four or 
five hundred of these certificates; that perhaps he could not furnish the 
list of names as time was very short, and to inquire whether he could 
have the certificates in blank. Eeynolds reported back to me that he 
had had an extended conversation with Eosenberg, and that Eosenberg 
agreed to furnish him with five hundred of these certificates the next 
morning, at a dollar and a half apiece j that by taking a large quan¬ 
tity of them, he would make a reduction of fifty cents j then he made a 
counter proposition, that anything else than one hundred would be 
charged two dollars apiece, and over one hundred a dollar and a half 
apiece. He had quite a long conversation with him and went into the 
details of the business. After Eeynolds came back and reported to me, 
I sent another man over there, by the name of McDonald, and directed 
him to do the same thing as Eeynolds. He reported back to me sub¬ 
stantially the same conversation that Eeynolds had reported—that these 
men would furnish any quantity of these papers, over one hundred, for 
a dollar and a half apiece; but any quantity less than one hundred, at 
two dollars apiece. I considered then that I had the whole case com¬ 
plete. I went to the district attorney and made the necessary af&davit 
and information, and then got out the warrant and arrested Eosenberg 
that afternoon at 3 o’clock. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

3. Q. What office did Eosenberg hold ? 

A. None at all, that I am aware of. ‘His office was in a lager-beer 
saloon, across the street, down in a cellar. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3 


By the Chairman : 

4. Q. You say Eosenherg’s office was in a lager-heer saloon ? 

A. Yes, sir; you go down steps eight or ten feet. On the left hand 
as you go down is the lager-beer counter. On the right, just inside 
of the bar, Eosenberg had a table, and I think had two or three persons 
writing there. 

5. Q. Were all the names which you furnished to be sent to Eosen¬ 
berg hctitious names? 

A. Every one of them. 

6. Q. Did the certificates of naturalization which were returned to you 
correspond with these names ? 

A. Precisely. 

7. Q. Where are these certificates of naturalization ? 

A. They are in the court as evidences against Eosenberg. 

8. Q. To whom did you furnish them? 

A. I gave them to the United States district attorney, Mr. Courtney. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

0. Q. Was Eosenberg the proprietor of the saloon? 

A. I think not. 

10. Q. Do you know what relations he sustained to it, if any? 

A. I do not know beyond the fact that he had a table there. 

By the Chairman: 

11. Q. Eosenberg was arrested? 

A. Yes, sir. 

12. Q. After the arrest of Eosenberg did you see fraudulent natural¬ 
ization papers other than those which you have named? 

A. Yes, sir; quite a number. After the examination of Eosenberg 
before the United States commissioner, and the publication of the testi¬ 
mony in the different newspapers of New York, quite a number of men who 
had similar fraudulent naturalization papers called on me to surrender 
them, stating that they were satisfied that they had been improperly 
procured, and that they did not want to get into any trouble. They 
inquired of me if they did surrender them to me whether I would hold 
them as evidence against them. My reply was “ No ; if you bring the 
papers here, make a statement of how you obtained them, I will destroy 
them in your presence.’^ I suppose that, to the best of my recollection, 
from 150 to 175 of these certificates were brought to my office in that way. 

13. Q. They were surrendered and destroyed ? 

A. They were surrendered and destroyed right in the presence of the 
parties. 

By Mr. Hopkins: ' 

14. Q. Did these persons tell you that they got the certificates from 
this same man, Eosenberg ? 

A. No, sir; those men who brought their certificates to me in my 
office told me generally, that is, remarked, that parties came to them 
and inquired whether they were citizens; and if the answer was in the 
negative then they inquired if they desired to become citizens, and if 
they said they did the parties would say, “ Give me your name, and I 
will furnish you with a paper to-morrow, and charge you $2 for it.” I 
inquired who were those parties; the answer was, they did not know; 
that they we]*e strangers to them; I never could get it from them who 
they were. They either concealed it from me designedly, or perhaps 
they did not know who the men were who they bought these papers 
from, but it was not Eosenberg. 


4 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr: 

15. Q. That they would answer affirmatively? 

A. Yes, sir j some of these men had been here three months, some 
four months, and so-on. Some had been here the requisite time and 
had never filed the declaration of intentions. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

16. Q. Did you take the names of these men? 

A. I did. 

17. Q. From what court did these papers purport to issue? 

A. From the supreme court of this State, sitting in this city. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

18. Q. Who was the judge of the court? 

A. There are three judges—Barnard, Ingraham, and Oardozo. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

19. Q. Did the certificates bear the name of any particular judge? 
A. No, sir 5 they bore the signature of the county clerk, and have 

got the seal of the court attached to them. 

20. Q. The certificates do not show before what judge they were made ? 
A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

21. Q. How are the judges of the supreme court elected ? 

A. They are elected at our general elections. 

22. Q. By the people of the State at large? 

A. No, sir; by the people of this judicial district. 

23. Q. What is this judicial district ? 

A. The city and county of New York. 

24. Q. Were any of these papers that were surrendered to you 
preserved, or were they all destroyed? 

A. I think I destroyed them all, because I was anxious to get as 
many back as possible j and I knew if I preserved any evidence against 
these parties they would not surrender the certificates. 

25. Q. Are you acquainted with the signature of the clerk of the 
supreme court? 

A. No, sir; not sufficient to testify to it. 

26. Q. Is this (handing witness paper) one of the certificates? 

A. It is one of them. 

27. Q. Can you tell, from an inspection of these papers, whether they 
are genuine or fraudulent? 

A. I cannot. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

28. Q. Did they attach to them the seal of the court? 

A. Yes, sir ; and the signature of the clerk. 

By Mr. Ej3RR: 

29. Q. They have attached to them what purports to be the seal 
of the court? 

A. Yes, sir. 

30. Q. You do not know that that impression was made with the 
original proper legal seal? 

A. I do not; but it appears to be the same impression. 

By the Chairman: 

31. Q. State whether the fraudulent naturalization papers had the 
same impression as if it was made with the genuine seal. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5 


A. Precisely. After tlie arrest of Eosenberg, I desired to know whether 
they were still carrying on the business at No. 6 Centre street, and I 
directed a man by the name of Kruger to go over there and see if he 
could purchase naturalization papers. He reported to me that he could 
not, but that there was a man who frequented that place, and he could 
get them for me. I made out a list of three names, and told Kruger to 
open negotiations with him, which he did. The papers were to be deliv¬ 
ered that evening at 8 o’clock. Kruger met the man at the corner of 
Centre street, and when the man came to hand him the papers, Kruger 
dropped something connected with this office. The man then tore the 
papers, threw them into the street, and ran away as fast as he could. 
Kruger i^icked the papers up as well as he could and brought them to 
my office, and they were pasted together. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

32^. Q. The negotiations were made in the same lager-beer saloon? 

A. Negotiations were made with a man who frequented there. The 
man whom I sent could not procure them himself, from the fact that the 
arrest of Eosenberg had frightened them, and they wanted to know who 
they were dealing with. 

33. Q. From what place did these papers come? 

A. From No. G Centre street. 

(Witness produces the three fraudulent certificates, which are annexed 
to his testimony and marked Exhibit A.) 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

34. Q. The names in these certificates corresponded with the names which 
you and Schattermade out? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

35. Q. The names are fictitious, are they? 

A. Yes, sir. 

36. Q. State whether the seal impressed on these certificates is the 
genuine seal of the supreme court, and whether the signature of the 
clerk is the genuine signature of the county clerk. 

A. I cannot state that, because I am not familiar with the signature 
of the county clerk. I am not sufficiently familiar with the seal of the 
court to testify about it. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

' 37. Q. It purports to be the seal of the court? 

A. It purports to be the seal of the court and the signature of the 
county clerk. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

38. Q. When you arrested Eosenberg the fact of his arrest was pub¬ 
lished in the papers, and you say immediately on the publication of that 
fact parties came to you and began to surrender fraudulent certificates? 

A. Yes, sir; two or three for days, I think, at a time. They got 
frightened, and were afraid to bold possession of these papers. 

30. Q. And they said to you they had been offered these papers by 
parties coming to them to sell them? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

40. Q. Is there any other fact within your knowledge that will throw 
light upon the subject or this investigation? 

A. None that I am acquainted with. 


6 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr: 

41. Q. Did you ever become personally acquainted with Mr. Eosenberg? 

A. I knew bim years ago. 

42. Q. Give us a general idea of his character hitherto, and what was 
his business. 

A. I knew him some 10 or 12 or 15 years ago. He resided in the same 
ward that I did, in the eastern part of the city. He was a policeman at 
that time. I did not know when I arrested him that he was the same 
man 5 neither should I have known had he not called my attention to it. 
When I knew him in the seventh ward, Kew York, I considered him a 
pretty respectable man—a man whom people generally thought well of. 
I knew but little about him up to this time. 

43. Q. You do not know what his business has been for several years 
past? 

A. Ko, sirj not of my own knowledge. 

44. Q. Do you know of your personal knowledge whether any of these 
fraudulent certificates have been voted upon ? 

A. I know it in this way, that parties were arrested and brought to 
me for voting on these fraudulent certificates. They were arrested on 
election day. 

45. Q. That is all you know about it ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

46. Q. State whether the certificates which you destroyed corresponded 
in form with these three which you present to-day. 

A. They were the fac simile of them, and I would be willing to swear 
that the handwriting and the names were all done by the same person. 

47. Q. How were the impressions of the seal and the siguature of the 
check ? 

A. I think they were the same. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

49. Q. Did you give special attention to the correspondence of the seal 
and of the signature of the clerk at the time this thing came to your 
observation? 

A. I cannot say that I did. 

51. Q. Then your answer is based upon your general observation as 
the things came along? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

52. Q. Do you know of any other frauds in election in the city of Kew 
York? 

A. I do. 

53. Q. You may state any within your own knoAvledge. 

A. Some four or five days before the election a man called at my office 
and stated to me that with a little help he could get the books of these 
repeaters. 

54. Q. What books? 

A. This thing is regularly systematized here. Eepeaters is what we 
call them here. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

55 Q. That means persons who vote more than once? 

A. Who vote early and vote often. They have got a book made in 
the form of a check book; a line is drawn through each page, leaving 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 7 

what is supposed to be a margin. There is a place for the date, for the 
name and residence that the repeater takes, and the election district in 
which he is going to register. The same thing is put down on the mar¬ 
gin. The captain of the division (for they have got the city divided into 
sections) cuts off the memoraodum and gives it to one of these repeaters 
registered, and when the election day comes he cuts off the correspond¬ 
ing memorandum in the margin and the fellow goes and votes upon it. 
It was a matter which I could not take cognizance of inasmuch as it did 
not involve any violation of any laAv of Congress. But I sent this man 
to a place Avhere he could get people to take cognizance of it. I had con¬ 
siderable to do with it until it became fully developed and we arrested 
the parties and got the books. I think these books disclose 1,000 repeat¬ 
ers. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

56. Q. How many times do these repeaters vote, each*? 

A. Twenty, or 30 or 40 times each, according to their nerve and their 
courage. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

57. Q. Where is this book now^ 

A. I think it is in the hands of Colonel Bliss, counsel of the police 
board. 

58. Q. Do you know of any money being raised in this city with a view 
of operating on the election or controlling it'! 

A. I have always been in the habit of contributing money myself for 
election purposes. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

59. Q. It is quite a practice among men who take an interest in 
elections? 

A. Yes, sir; and I suppose I shall always contribute. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

60. Q. Do you know how much was contributed here in the city of Kew 
York by yourself and furnished with a Anew of controlling the elections ? 

A. I did not contribute a dollar with the view of controlling the 
election. 

61. Q. With the view of aiding in the carrying of the election? 

A. There are certain legitimate expenses of an election, such as print¬ 
ing documents, advertising, room hire, circulating documents, and all 
that kind of thing. On one occasion I contributed $1,000, and on other 
occasions I contributed more or less. 

62. Q. How much did you contribute last fall? 

A. Perhaps $3,000 or $4,000. 

63. Q. Did you see any list of contributions made by your friends, so 
you can state Avith any degree of accuracy the amount of them ? 

A. I can only state for myself. 

By the Chairman: 

64. Q. State if there was any understanding Avith Eosenberg as to the 
political party for whose benefit these fraudulent naturalization certifi¬ 
cates Avere to be used. 

A. I cannot answer that question, only so far as I had an interview 
Avdth Eosenberg. After his arrest Eosenberg sent a German to me, 
whom I did know, to inquire if I had any objection to having an inter¬ 
view with Eosenberg; and I told him if he Avould come in the afternoon 
I w ould give him an ansAver. In the mean time I saw Mr. Courtney, 
the district attorney, and inquired of him if there was any objection to 


8 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


niy having this interview with Eosenberg. He said, no, but I must be 
very careful to make him no promises. 1 told Eosenberg’s friend that I 
would eee him the next day in our grand jury room, at 11 o’clock; and 
that if he desired it he could come the back way, and I would have the 
door left open. He did not come the next day, but he came the day 
after. He objected to having the interview in the grand jury room. I 
then took him into a baggage room, a dark room, where we put sailors’ 
luggage, and all the rubbish about the building. Eosenberg then told 
me who he was. Said he, ‘‘Where I used to live some 10 or 15 years 
ago, I used to know you pretty well; you and I were whigs together.” 
I then recognized the man. ‘‘Well,” said I, “Eosenberg, what do you 
want “ Why,” said he, “ I understood you wanted to see me.” Said I, 
“Eo, sir; I have not sent for you at all. These men who brought you in 
here stated that you wanted an interview with me.” Said he, “No.” 
Said I, “Very well; then this interview ends.” Said he, “No, I want 
to talk to you.” “ Well,” said I, “ What have you got to say *?” Said he, 
“You knew me in the seventh ward years ago; we were old whigs 
together.” Said I, “What has that got to do with this transactionf’ 
Said he, “You ought to let up on me.” Said I, “Eosenberg, what 
possessed you to go into this businessf’ Said he, “Mr. Murray, every 
certificate that you have purchased from me is genuine, and came out 
of the court-room. I am at work for the democratic party, and paid 
for this thing. I get but very little of the $2 that is paid for these cer¬ 
tificates.” AVell, he evidently wanted to catch me some way or other, 
and so the interview terminated. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

65. Q. When these men came to you to surrender their certificates, did 
they state why they supposed they had been furnished with them*? 

A. They stated the conversation they had had with the party who 
offered to get them their papers. 

66. Q. With a view to make them voters? 

A. Yes, sir. 

[Exhibit A.] 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc^ ss: 

Be it remembered, that on the twenty-third day of October, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, James E. 
Smith appeared in the supreme court of the State of New York, held 
in the city and county of New York, (a court of record, having common 
law jurisdiction, a clerk and seal,) and applied to the said court to be 
admitted to become a citizen of the United States of America, pursu¬ 
ant to the provisions of the several acts of the Congress of the United 
States of America for the purpose made and provided. And the said 
applicant, ha\ing produced to the said court such evidence, having made 
such declaration and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are 
by the said acts required— 

Thereupon, it was ordered by the court that the said applicant be 
admitted, and he was accordingly admitted, to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony whereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed, 
this twenty-third day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty- 
eight, and in the ninety-third year of the independence of tlie United 
States. 

Per curiam. 

[SEAL.] 


CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9 


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

State of N'ew York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss : 

Be it remembered, that ou the twenty-third day of October, in the 
year oi our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, Samuel 
Keynolds appeared in the supreme court of the United States, held in 
the city and county of Uew York, (a court of record, having common 
law jurisdiction, a clerk and seal,) and applied to the said court to be 
admitted to become a citizen of the United States of America, pursu¬ 
ant to the provisions of the several acts of the Congress of the United 
States of America, for that purpose made and provided. And the said 
applicant, haying produced to the said court such evidence, having made 
such declaration and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are 
by the said acts required— 

Thereupon, it was ordered by the court that the said applicant be 
admitted, and he was accordingly admitted, to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony whereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto afaxed, 
this twenty-third day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty- 
eight, and in the ninety-third year of the independence of the United 
States. 

Fer curiam: 

[SEAL.] CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlcj ss: 

Be it remembered, that on the twenty-third day of October, in the 
year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, Patrick 
Eafferty appeared in the supreme court of the State of New York, held 
in the city and county of New York, (a court of record, having common 
law jurisdiction, a clerk and seal,) and applied to the said court to be 
admitted to become a citizen of the United States of Ameri(‘a, pursu¬ 
ant to the provisions of the several acts of the Congress of the United 
States of America, for that purpose made and provided. And the said 
applicant, having produced to the said court such evidence, having made 
such declaration and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are 
by the said acts required— 

Thereu[)on, it was ordered by the court that the said applicant be 
admitted, and he was accordingly admitted, to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony whereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed, 
this twenty-third day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty- 
eight, and in the ninety-third year of the independence of the United 
States, 

Per curiam : 

[SEAL.] CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

Samuel G. Courtney^ sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

67. Question. State your residence and official position. 

Answer. I reside in the city of New York, and am United States attor¬ 
ney for the southern district of New York; I was appointed and con¬ 
firmed about the 17th of April, 1866. 



10 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


68. Q. State if you have any fraudulent naturalization certificates in 
your possession ; if so, where they were procured, and any i^roof within 
your knowledge connected with them. 

A. I have several so-called certificates of naturalization; I cannot say 
whether they are fraudulent or not, but from the evidence given before 
the United States commissioner on a charge against a man named Kosen- 
berg, I have not the slightest doubt about it. As to the material facts 
about them I know nothing except Avhat came before me officially. I 
have here, in my hand, five certificates bearing date October 20, 1868. 
They were brought to my office in the latter part of October, 1868, for 
the purx)ose of causing me to have a warrant issued for the arrest of a 
man by the name of Benjamin B. Eosenberg, from whom the party 
bringing them alleged he had iiurchased them. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

69. Q. Who produced them to you? 

A. A man named William T. Simms; 1 did not know him up to that 
time. I think he was accompanied by Marshal Murray. I gave instruc¬ 
tions to one of my deputies to prenaie an affidavit and submit it to the 
commissioner, which he did. On that a warrant was issued for the arrest 
of Eosenberg, and an examination was held for several days. The com¬ 
missioner held Eosenberg for trial and sent the case to the grand jury. 
An indictment was found; counsel for the defendant moved to quash 
the indictment, and the motion was argued elaborately in the United 
States circuit court before Judges Nelson and Blatchford. They granted 
a certificate of division of opinion, and the case is now^ in the Sui)reme 
Court of the United States. (Witness produces a copy of the record 
which is annexed to the testimony, marked Exhibit B.) 

By the Chairman : 

70. Q. State the names in the five certificates that you have. 

A. The names are John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alexr. N. McCann 
Adolph Slechelseine, and Patrick O’Brien. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

71. Q. Have you any means of answering, with absolute satisfaction to 
yourself, as to the identity of the seal attached to those papers, with the 
proper seal of the court ? 

A. I have not; I have no doubt in my own mind that it is the seal of 
the supreme court. 

72. Q. Are you any more familiar with the signature ? 

A. It is not Mr. Lowe’s own handwriting, but I think it is the hand¬ 
writing of a clerk in that office, Mr. John B. McKean. There is a clerk 
for each division of the supreme court. Whether he was a deputy or 
not I do not know. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

73. Q. Are all the clerks emifioyed in the office allowed to sign the 
name of the county clerk and to use the seal of the court? 

A. That I cannot say. There is a statute in reference to the power of 
deputy clerks in the offices of county clerks. Each clerk is to have a 
deputy, with power to issue papers and attach the signature of the clerk, 
but generally we have special acts for the city of New York. 

By the Chairman : 

74. Q. Are you an expert in distinguishing writing? 

A. I think I can distinguish handwriting very well. 

75. Q. I now present to you the three certificates which are annexed to 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 11 

the testimony of Marshal Murray; look at them and state what portion 
of them is in writing. 

A. ‘‘23d October, 1868, James E. Smith, 23d October, eight, third, 
Chas. E. Loew,” is in writing; all the rest is in print. 

76. Q. State how^ the seal on the five certificates that you have pre¬ 
sented compares with the seal on the three certificates annexed to Mar¬ 
shal Murray’s testimony. 

A. The seal on all appears to be the same; I have no doubt that it is 
the same seal. 

77. Q. State whether the signature “ Chas. E. Loew” is the same on the 
five certificates that you have presented as on the three certificates 
annexed to Marshal Murray’s testimony. 

A. In my opinion they are in the same handwriting. 

78. Q. State whether all those certificates have been printed on the 
same form. 

A. Yes, sir; they all appear to be on the same form, and I think it is 
the form used for certificates by the court. 

79. Q. State whether the filling in of the dates and of the names is the 
same handwriting. 

A. The filling in of the dates is, in my opinion, different from the fill¬ 
ing in of the names. 

80. Q. State whether the filling in of the dates, in the whole eight cer¬ 
tificates now before you, is in the same handwriting. 

A. I should say not. In the five that I presented the filling in of the 
dates appears to be in the same handwriting, and is different from the 
filling in of the other three. The filling in of the dates in the certifi¬ 
cates of Jas. E. Smith and Patrick Eafterty appears to be in the same 
handwriting. The filling in of the dates in the certificate of Samuel 
Eeynolds is in a very different handwriting. 

81. Q. State whether the filling in of the names of the persons purport¬ 
ing to be naturalized, in the three certificates annexed to Marshal Mur¬ 
ray’s testimony, is in the same handwriting. 

A. I should say it is. 

82. Q. How as to the names in the five certificates that you have 
I)resented ? 

A. I should say it is in the same handwriting. In my opinion the 
names of the whole eight were in the same handwriting. 

83. Q. Have you any other papers purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization ? 

A. I hold in my hand four more certificates which were given to me 
during the investigation of the Eosenberg case before the United States 
commissioner. They came from a man named Livingstone, who testified 
that he had purchased them from Eosenberg; I think they came from 
Marshal Murray’s olfice, and were handed to me as part of the testimony 
in the case. 

84. Q. Do they bear the saifie signature as the other certificates? 

A. Yes, sir; they are filled up in the names of James Brown, August 
Betzel, Henry Beaun, and William Honig. The names are, in my opin¬ 
ion, in the same handwriting as the names in the other eight certificates. 
In the certificate of James Brown the filling in of the dates is, in my 
opinion, in the same handwriting as the filling in of the dates in the cer¬ 
tificates of James E. Smith and Patrick Eafterty. The others appear to 
be difterent. The filling in of the dates in the certificates of August 
Betzel and Henry Beaun appears to be in the same handwritiug; but I 
think it is different from the others shown me. 

85. Q. State whether the printing in the last four certificates is the 
same as in the others. 


12 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir; tliey are all in the same form, and are evidently struck 
from the same plates. 

8G. Q. What other certificates have you I 

A. I hold in my hand three certificates issued on tlie 10th of October, 
1868, to Thomas Shmitt, Sebastian Shneider, and John Winkens. 

87. Q. From wliom did you obtain them ? 

A. They came to me in "the investigation of the case, through Marshal 
Murray’s office. They were x)urchased by a man named Henry Butts; 
the filling in of the dates of these three ax)pears to be in the same hand¬ 
writing, and the names are also in the same handwriting, though differ¬ 
ent from the filling in of the dates; the signature of the clerk is the 
same as in the others; the signature of all the certificates that I have 
seen is in the same handwriting. These are all the certificates that I 
have had anything to do with. There have been several other cases from 
the country round about, that have been before the grand jury. 

88. Q. What indictments have been found by the grand jury against 
persons for issuing or dealing in fraudulent naturalization certificates ? 

A. I think there are seven or eight indictments against Benjamin B. 
Eosenberg. There is an indictment against Abraham Hyatt, of Sing 
Sing. There are two indictments, I think, against the county clerk of 
Orange county, Lewis Cuddyback, and I think there are five against his 
clerks and deputies—one joint indictment against all of them, and, I 
think, five separate indictments, one against each. The grand jury has 
ordered bills in several other cases, which have not yet been presented. 
After the question took the course that it did before the circuit court, I 
did not think it very material to i)resent those cases until the question 
shoidd be disposed of. 

89. Q. After the Eosenberg case had been reserved for decision, you 
ceased to make investigations ? 

A. No; those cases that were i^resented had all been investigated, but 
since the Eosenberg case has gone uj) to the Supreme Court there has 
been a suspension, a sort of hiatus. 

90. Q. Is there any other fact occurring to you now that will throw 
light on the investigation before the committee ? 

A. I know of none. 

William Thomas Simms sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

91. Question. State your residence. 

Answer. I reside in the city of New York, and have lived here all my 
life, with the exception of five years that ! was in the army. 

92. Q. Examine the five papers purporting to be certificates of natu¬ 
ralization to Patrick O’Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alex. N. 
McCann, and Adolph Slechelseine, which are referred to in the testimony 
of ‘District Attorney Courtney, and state .what you know of them. 

A. On a Monday morning, at our office, 83 Cedar street—the office of 
Mr. E. D. Webster, assessor of the 32d district—Mr. Webster sent for 
me. I went into his office. He said, Major, there are a great many 
frauds committed by which naturalization papers are issued”- 

By Mr. Dickey : 

93. Q. In consequence of what Mr. Webster told you, did you go to Mr. 
Marshal Murray’s office ? 

A. He gave me a letter to Marshal Murray, and I went to his office. 
Marshal Murray said he wanted me to see a gentleman at 25 Chambers 
street who was at the head of a naturalization committee for the repub- 

/ 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


13 


lican party. I saw that gentleman, and he told me that at ISTo. 0 Centre 
street they were issuing naturalization papers for pay. I went to No. 6 
Centre street about half past 12 o’clock the same Monday, and asked 
for Mr. Kosenbanm. A person, whom I afterwards discovered to be 
Rosenberg, said there was no such person there. I left the place, and, 
on referring to the memorandum which I had in my pocket, I found that 
the name Avas Rosenberg. I went back to 6 Centre street and asked to 
see Mr. Rosenberg. A person responded to that name. I walked to the 
back part of the saloon, in which the naturalization office Avas. On one 
side Avas a lager-beer counter, and on the other side the naturalization 
committee had a desk or counter. Rosenberg asked me what I wanted 
of him. I told him that I was from Yonkers j that I had 20 or 30 friends 
at Yonkers avIio Avanted naturalization papers, and that I had no wit¬ 
nesses or principals. Said I, “Can you or can you not get me papers for 
those men'? If you cannot, say it, because I do not wish to begin it and 
then fail. If you cannot, I will seek elsewhere.” He asked me what 
party I was from, and I told him the democratic party. He said, “lean 
get them, AAithout fail. I have sold 7,000 of them.” I told him 1 would 
return later in the afternoon with the names, as they were then incom¬ 
plete. I did return in the afternoon, but Avithout the memorandum of 
names, telling him that I Avas still unable to complete the names, but 
that I Avould return in the morning. On Tuesday morning I Avent back 
with a list of these liA^e names; Patrick O’Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio 
Gomez, Alex. N. McCann, and Adolph Slechelseine. I handed him the 
memorandum, and asked him to let me have the i)apers that afternoon, 
if he cjuld. He said that Avas impossible, but that I could have them 
by G o’clock. I left the office and went about my business, and at G 
o’clock I returned. As 1 went into the saloon he immediately arose. I 
walked directly back to the rear i^art of the saloon, where there was a 
dark room, which I entered. Rosenberg followed me in. He handed me 
the five.papers which I now hold in my hand, and I handed him a ten- 
dollar bill. Either then or at a i)rior interAueAvhe said to me, “ I do not 
make this money, but you present me with $10, and I give you five 
lAapers.” That is, in substance, all I know about these li\"e papers. 

94. Q. Were the names which you furnished to him, and Avhich are 
filled into these papers, real or fictitious names"? 

A. They are fictitious names. 

95. Q. What did you do with the papers after you got them ? 

A. I brought them to Marshal Murray and gave them to him. I iden¬ 
tified them at the time with my initials. These are the same papers. 
Rosenberg showed me a list of over 5,000 names for Avhich he said he had 
got certificates. 

9G. Q'. In Avhat form was the list of names kept? 

A. I am inclined to think it Avas on sheets either of foolscap or of legal- 
cap. They folded OA'er similarly to legal-cap paper. To each name Avas 
a number, and the number exceeded 5,000. I looked over the list. He 
turned the sheets over rather rapidly. I saw the last number, which, I 
think, Avas 5,900 odd; certainly it Avas in excess of 5,000. 

97. Q. Was Rosenberg connected with any of the courts ? 

A. Not that 1 know of. 

By Mr. Daaves : 

98. Q. Did you present to him any applications for naturalization in 
the names of these men ? 

A. None at all. When I went back about 1 o’clock on Tuesday he 
showed me some papers which he had coiled up in his hand, and I saw 


14 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tlie uame of Adolpli Sleclielseine on one of them. I supposed them to 
he applications for certificates of naturalization. 

99. Q. Did you make any statement to him of what countries these 
men were from? 

A. None at all. 

100. Q. Of their ages? 

A. None whatever. 

101. Q. Of how long they were in the country ? 

A. None whatever. 

102. Q. Of whether they had filed their first papers ? 

A. None whatever. 

103. Q. Did yon make any other statement, either in writing or ver¬ 
bally, than you have testified to ? 

A. I stated to him that the men were too poor to go to White Plains, 
the county seat of the county where Yonkers is situated, or to come to 
New York to obtain their naturalization i>apers. 

101. Q. Did you make any other statement to him, either verbally or 
in writing, of the facts on which they were entitled to naturalization ? 

A. None Avhatever. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

105. Q. Did you name any vouchers for them ? 

A. None whatever. 

By the Chairman : 

lOG. Q. What papers were those you saw with the name of Slechel- 
seine on one of them? 

A. When I went back to Eosenberg’s office on Tuesday I asked him if 
he had the naturalization papers ready. He said he had not time to get 
them. He had in his hand papers coiled up, and he opened the coil and 
spread it out. I saw the name of Slechelseine, one of the five names that 
I had furnished him. I took the papers to be apiilications for natural¬ 
ization certificates. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

107. Q. Was that your own inference, or some statement of his ? 

A. It was my own inference. I am morally certain of it, but I could 
not swear to it. The i)aper was partly printed and iiartly written. I 
saw something in it about an application and citizenship. It was a jiaper 
similar to one which, I believe, foreigners fill up before they are granted 
certificates of naturalization. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

108. Q. Was anything said by Eosenberg in that interview as to where 
he was to get these papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

109. Q. Or as to whether they were genuine papers issued by the court 
or not ? 

A. No, sir. 

110. Q. He disclosed nothing of the kind ? 

A. He disclosed nothing of the kind. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

111. Q. Do you know what naturalization papers cost in the proper 
courts in this city? 

A. I believe only the notary fees. 

112. Q. When you went to the place where Eosenberg was, did you see 
any persons there who seemed to have anything to do with the busmess ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 15 

A. None wlio were concerned in the issue of such papers. There were 
20 persons in the saloon. 

113. Q. Did you count them ? 

A. No; but I know there were over 20. There were five sitting on the 
right-hand side of the saloon at a table at which applications were made 
out and at which Eosenberg was sitting. 

114. Q. Five others 

A. Four besides Rosenberg. 

115. Q. Were they drinking? 

A. No, sir. 

116. Q. Were they there each time you went in? 

A. That I cannot state; they were clerks to the committee. 

117. Q. How do you know they were ? 

A. Because I saw them writing. 

118. Q. What were they writing ? 

A. That I cannot state. 

119. Q. Did you see any blanks before them which they seemed to be 
filling up? 

A. I saw blanks; I did not see them filling them up. 

120. Q. Were they all writing at one time? 

A. I do not recollect that. 

121. Q. Were they young men or old men? 

A. They were middle-aged men. 

122. Q. Were they Americans or foreigners? 

A. They looked to be foreigners. 

123. Q. Did you talk with them ? 

A. Not at all. 

124. Q. You do not know whether they had any connection with 
Eosenberg? 

A. No; except that Eosenberg was chairman of the naturalization 
committee that met there. Is was the naturalization office. 

125. Q. How do you know that ? 

A. That was the sign over the door; it was in German, but I knew 
enough of German to know it was the office of the naturalization com¬ 
mittee. 

126. Q. Can you repeat the words ? 

A. I cannot. 

127. Q. And that is all that leads you to believe that what you call 
the naturalization committee met there ? 

A. No; Mr. Fred. Kromber, who was connected with the naturalization 
committee that met at 25 Chambers street, told me that Eosenberg was 
the chairman of the German naturalization committee that met at 6 
Centre street. The office had all the appearance of being an office, 
because there were papers on the table which you could see from the 
sidewalk. 

128. Q. As many papers as you see here now ? 

A. More. 

129. Q. You had not a word of conversation with these other men? 

A. None whatever. 

130. Q. Were they in the common room in which beer was sold? 

A. They were. 

' 131. Q. Persons were coming in and going out all the time ? 

A. All the time. 

132. Q. Of how many did the committee consist ? 

A. I do not know; I saw four persons besides Rosenberg sitting at 
that table. 

133. Q. How large was the table? 


16 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I suppose about 12 feet long. 

134. Q. How mauy could conveniently sit at it? 

A. Eight or nine at one side and seven or eight at the other. 

135. Q. Did you know any of the names of the men you supposed to 
be the committee? 

A. No, sir. 

136. Q. Did you inquire as to their names ? 

A. I did not. 

137. Q. Did you inquire Avhether anybody but Eosenberg had anything 
to do with the natm’alization business? 

A. No, sir. 

138. Q. Did you ask Eosenberg how he got the certificates ? 

A. No, sir. 

139. Q. Of what nationality is Eosenberg? 

A. I do not know; I am inclined to think he is a German. 

140. Q. Did he talk the English language pretty well? 

A. Very well indeed. 

141. Q. He seemed to be an intelligent man? 

A. Very intelligent indeed. 

142. Q. The persons that you saw sitting at the table, were they clerks 
or committee men? 

A. I do not know for certain. 

143. Q. Did they seem to be under the direction of Eosenberg ? 

A. I cannot say that. 

144. Q. Did you hear any orders given or see any executed? 

A. None at all. 

145. Q. How long were you there at any one time? 

A. I think about five minutes was the longest I was there at any one 
time. 

146. Q. What did you do with the certificates when you got them? 

A. I brought them to Marshal Murray’s ofhce. 

147. Q. Do you know whether any person voted on them or not ? 

A. I kuow^ that nobody did, for they were put in evidence in the court. 

148. Q. Do you know, of your own knowledge, that any of the certifi¬ 
cates issued from that office was used by any j)erson to vote ui)on? 

A. No, sir; I do not. 

Henry Butts sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

149. Question. What is your residence? 

Answer. I reside on Third avenue, in this city, and have lived here aU 
my life, with the exception of three years that I was in the army. 

150. Q. I present to you three papers, purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization, to James Schmitt, Sebastian Shneider, and John Winkens, 
which are dated the 19th of October, 1868, and which were referred to in 
the testimony of District Attorney Courtney. Examine them, and see if 
you have ever seen them before. 

A. Yes, sir; I believe I have. 

151. Q. Do you know where they were procured? 

A. I do; bouglit from a man at 6 Centre street. His name was Eosen¬ 
berg. I bouglit these three papers from him and jiaid him $5 for them. 

152. Q. When was that ? 

A. That was on the 19th of October, I think. 

153. Q. Are the names of the persons purporting to be naturalized 
genuine or fictitious ? 

A. They are fictitious. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


17 


By Mr. Dickey: 

154. Q. How did you get tlie names? 

A. I put them down myself on apiece of paper just as they hapiiened 
to come into my head. 

155. Q. Then they were fictitious ? 

A. YeSj sir. 

By the Chairman : 

15G. Q. At whose instance did you procure them ? 

A. At the instance of Marshal Murray. The marshal spoke to me and 
asked me if I knew of any frauds that were going on. I told him that I 
knew of none. He asked me if I thought I could find out any. I told 
him I would try. I had heard that there were parties somewhere in 
Centre street selling naturalization papers. I had seen Marshal Murray, 
and I went over there and went down in the office. I saw a man sitting 
behind the desk, and I called one of them over and asked him if he would 
take a drink. He said “ yes,” and I got into conversation with him, and 
told him there were three men for whom I would like to procure certifi¬ 
cates of citizenship. He asked me if they were all right, and if they 
could be relied upon not to say anything. I told him yes. He asked 
me wliether I would say anything. I told him that it was all right, and 
tliat he need not be afraid of me. I had noticed him once before that, 
going in there with politicians; one of those ward politicians of the name 
of Mc^N'aughten, I think, and I suppose that he considered me all right, 
and thought I could be trusted. He told me it would cost something, 
and that he was making nothing. He said it would cost $3 apiece, and 
that he Avould give me $4 50. I said I did not care to make anything 
out of it, “ but get me the papers as cheap as you can.” He said he 
would, and I told him I would give him $5 for the three. He said that 
would do, when he told me to come again at half-past five o’clock in the 
afternoon. I went again at half-past five and lianded him the $5. He 
went out and was gone about 15 minutes, when he came back and handed 
me these three papers. I brought them over to Marshal Murray, and 
Marshal Murray put them away. That is as much as I know about it. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

Q. Where is this place in Centre street, with reference to the supreme 
court ? 

A. It is right opposite to it, across the street. 

157. Q. Was Eosenberg gone long enough to go over to the court, and 
come back, while you were waiting for him ? 

A. Oh, yes, that gives you time to go over to the court. 

158. Q. In furnishing him with these three names did you tell him 
where the men lived ? 

A. I did. I marked their residence on a slip of paper. 

159. Q. Did you furnish him with the names of any one to vouch for 
them ? 

A. No, sir. 

160. Q. Did you state how long each of them had been in the country f. 

A. No, sir. 

161. Q. Did you state their ages? 

A. No, sir. 

162. Q. Or their nationality ? 

A. No, sir 5 I left him to infer from their names what their nationality 
was. 

2 T 


♦ 


18 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


163. Q. Did you furuisli Lim with a memorandum of the length of 
time they had been in the country ? 

A. KOj sir. 

By Mr. Blair : 

164. Q. Did you aim to furnish German names? 

A. I did, because Bosenberg is a German, and I can speak German 
myself. When I went over there Ave had our conversation in German. 

165. Q. Is there any sign over the door ? 

A. There was a sign over the door in German. It was, Deutsche 
Amerihanische Naturalizations Committe. It was printed in American let¬ 
ters Avith German spelling. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

166. Q. Does Bosenberg talk good English? 

A. Yes, sir; I believe he does. 

167. Q. How old is he ? 

A. I should judge about 45 years of age. 

168. Q. Did you know anything of him before this ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

169. Q. What sort of a room was that? 

A. It Avas a lager-beer saloon. 

170. Q. What is its size? 

A. I should judge it to be about 12 feet wide and from 25 to 30 feet 
long. The counter was about six to seA^en feet long—a small lager-beer 
counter. It Avas at the forward end of the saloon, just as you enter from 
the street. 

171. Q. What furniture was in the room? 

A. There were tables and chairs. I should think there were three or 
four tables in the room. 

172. Q. Such tables as are ordinarily in beer saloons for guests to sit 
doAvn at to drink their beer ? 

A. Yes, sir; I should judge three or four of these tables. There were 
two of them standing together. I cannot say for certain whether these 
two were round or square tables, but I think they Avere square tables. 

173. Q. How many times did you go there? 

A. I was in there three times. 

174. Q. Wliom did you see when you went in there on this business ? 

A. I saw Bosenberg. The first time I went in there I should think 

there were six or eight j)ersons in the room. There were two emxiloyed 
at the table at which these men were writing, and there were se\"eral 
standing up in different parts of the room, drinking, talking, and con¬ 
versing. 

175. Q. How many Avere in the next time you went there ? 

A. I don’t believe there were more than about four. 

Q. Were they engaged in drinking? 

A. Ko; there was one man sitting upon the table, and Bosenberg was 
there, and the barkeeper, and myself. The first time I was in, there were 
a number of people there, and it seemed as if they were doing a good 
deal of business. The place was much crowded. 

176. Q. At those tables that were standing together did you see any 
persons doing any writing ? 

A. Yes, sir; I saAV men sitting there writing. 

177. Q. Who were they? 

A. I supposed they were men who comprised the board of naturaliza¬ 
tion. 

178. Q. What do you mean by the board of naturalization ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


19 


A. It lias been usual, jiisfc before an election in this city, for both the 
republican party and the democratic party to have what they called a 
board of naturalization. 

179. Q. Is constituted how ? 

A. Appointed by the general committee of the party. They make 
their headquarters somewhere near the court, and aU "applicants who 
wish to obtain certificates of citizenship go there to have their blank 
applications filled, and to get information, &c. It is done in a legal way. 
Their applications are made out and handed to them and they go over 
to the court with their tickets and make the necessary oath. This board 
of naturalization is Avhat I speak of as the committee of naturalization. 

180. Q. Were there such committees constituted this year by both 
parties in this city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

181. Q. Where was the one representing the republican party I 

A. At 25 Chambers street. 

182. Q. At some distance from the other ? 

A. Only a few steps; both were convenient to the court. 

183. Q. Do yon know of any of this same kind of business being car¬ 
ried on at 25 Chambers street ? 

A. Ko, sir; I silent a good deal of time in this place and I could not 
understand anything of that kind, nor did I hear of anything. 

181. Q. Were yon not a member of that committee yourself ? 

A. No, sir. 

185. Q. Did Rosenberg seem to have a separate office from those other 
men who belonged to the committee ? 

A. No, sir; he was one of the committee and used to sit at the same 
table with the others. But it seemed as if he was doing this other 
business on his own hook, outside of these parties. 

186. Q. He would step aside and have private conversation ? 

A. Yes, sir; I saw him several times conversing with different par¬ 
ties. What the nature of the conversation was I do not know. 

187. Q. Can yon give the committee the names of those other men, 
who yon say seemed to constitute the balance of this naturalization 
committee? 

A. No, sir; because I had no dealings with them; I had not even a 
word of conversation with one of them. 

188. Q. Did you see other persons go in there who seemed to be in 
search of the same sort of aid that you professed to be in want of; and 
did yon see them have conversation with the men sitting at the table ? 

A. No, sir; that I can say. I never saw any one conversing with 
these men, except it was applicants on the other side of the table. I 
saw persons having their applications filled out. 

189. Q. Do you know whether these other men were parties in any 
way to the frauds that had been carried on by Rosenberg ? 

A. I do not. 

By the Chairman : 

190. Q. What were Rosenberg’s politics ? 

A. I do not know what his politics were. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

191. Q. What committee ? 

A. It was the democratic committee. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

192. Q. Wliat do yon understand by his asking yon if you were all 
Tight ? 


20 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I suppose he wanted to know if I was a man to be relied on. He 
asked me if these men were all right, too. Yes, sir,^^ said I, they are 
all right, and they are good follows, and I want to get their votes.’^ I 
spoke to him as if I was interested politically in the election, and wanted 
to get these votes. 

By the Chairman : 

193. Q. What party did yon represent to him % 

A. 1 did not make any mention of any party. I let him take that for 
granted, whichever way he liked. 

194. Q. Was the fact notorious that the committee with which Eosen- 
berg was acting was a democratic committee 

A. O, yes! Another way that a good many of these papers were pro¬ 
cured was by parties who used to hang round there just before election 
times. There are men in New York whom you can buy to make a false 
oath for a glass of beer. These men hang round such places, and a].*e 
always ready to go into court to represent parties ; one assuming such 
a name, the other assuming such a name. That is the modus operandi 
of the Avhole affair, I think. I investigated as well as I could, as the 
marshal instructed me particularly to find out all that I could about it. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

195. Q. Did Eosenberg represent to you that he wanted time to go to ' 
the court and get these papers I 

A. No. When I went in he said to me, “ Is it all right 'P and I said 

Yes.” He then put his hand over the table, in this way, indicating as 
if he did not want the other men to see. I handed him the $5 and he 
put it in his pocket. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

19G. Q. Are you in the service of Marshal Murray'? 

A. Yes, sir; I am one of Marshal Murray^s deputies. 

Samuel Eeynolds sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

197. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. I reside at 321 West Twentieth street, in this city. I have 
always lived in this city, pretty much. 

198. Q. State if you are acquainted with Eosenberg I 

A. What acquaintance I liad with him was the day I went to get sonie 
naturalization papers. I think it was about the 20th or 21st of October. 

199. Q. State what occurred. 

A. Some parties asked me if 1 could get some naturalization papers. 
As there were a good many frauds going on, and false naturalization 
papers issued, and they wanted me to go and get some, I came down 
town, made out a list of seven names, and went then to the El Dorado in 
Centre street. I inquired for Mr. Eosenberg, and I gave him a list of 
these seven names, and he was to get me the papers for them. 

200. Q. Were these the names of real or fictitious persons'? 

A. They were fictitious. He agreed to let me have them if I would 
wait a little while. I told him that 1 had business down town, and that 
1 had no money to pay for them then, but I only wanted to know whether 
he could get them, and would come and get them the next morning. He 
said that I could get them at any time j if I would come between 4 and 
5 o’clock I could have the papers. 

201. Q. What was the price you were to pay him I 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


21 


A. I was to pay him $2 apiece for anything under a hundred, and if I 
got over a liiindred I was to get them at $1 50 each. I was to pay $14 
for these seven. 

202. Q. Was anything said about which political party these men 
would vote for if they got naturalization papers ? 

A. It was a Tammany committee. I told them that these men were 
working at gas works, and could not come down; that I did not know 
whether he could get them, but thought if he could I would like to have 
them. 

203. Q. You say Eosenberg occupied a room “I 

A. He had a room down in a lager-beer saloon in G Centre street. 
There was a sign over the door; the sign was, Union Tammany Gen¬ 
eral Committee, ^Naturalization Papers.” 

204. Q. Is there a Tammany Society in this city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

205. Q. What is it? 

A. Democratic. 

20G. Q. Was the place of business of Eosenberg, and its object, gen¬ 
erally known through the city ? 

A. Yes, sir; his place of business was not, I suppose, always there ; it 
was only during the political canvass that he went there. 

207. Q. State if he had any clerks or assistants. 

A. He had some clerks there, men who appeared to be writing; I 
inquired for him, and he told me that was his name. 

208. Q. Did you procure the naturalization papers? 

A. No, sir; I did not i>rocure them; about an hour or two after I went 
there the marshal arrested Eosenberg. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

209. Q. Are you a deputy of Marshal Murray ? 

A. No, sir. 

210. Q. At the time you speak of, in what service were you acting ? 

A. I was a storekeeper. 

211. Q. With what political party were you identified? 

A. With the republicans. 

212. Q. Who procured you to go there ? 

A. I was at the Fifth Avenue Hotel the night before, and there some 
gentlemen spoke to me on the subject. Marshal Murray asked me to 
come to his office at 10 o’clock the next morning; and when I came he 
asked me to make out a list of names and get these papers. 

213. Q. Were you ever at that place except that one time ? 

A. That is all. 

214. Q. How many persons did you see there ? 

A. There were a good many in the bar-room, but I took no notice of 
them; I passed right through the bar-room to see Eosenberg. 

215. Q. With whom did you have your interview ? 

A. With Eosenberg alone. 

21G. Q. Did you show him the names of the persons for whom you 
wanted certificates? 

A. Yes, sir; I gave him the list, and he was to get the certificates for 
me that afternoon or the next morning. 

217. Q. Where was the naturalization committee-room of the repub¬ 
lican party during the last canvass? 

A. I believe it was somewhere in Chambers street. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

218. Q. Was this place in Centre street recognized as a kind of demo- 
'-cratic headquarters for procuring naturalization iiapers ? 


22 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. So far as I know, it was. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

219. Q. How do you know it was so recognized ? 

A. Only by the representations of others that these were the head¬ 
quarters of the Tammany general committee, where people might get 
naturalized without any trouble. 

220. Q. Do you not think Mr. Eoseuberg would have sold a repub¬ 
lican these papers as cheap as a democrat ? 

A. Ko; he wanted to know if these men were democrats before he 
would get the papers out, and I told him they were. 

Logan McDonald sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

221. Question. State your residence. 

Answer. My present residence is 256 West Seventh street, in this city; 
my home has been in this city for about 17 years. 

222. Q. State if you had an interview with Benjamin B. Eoseuberg, 
during this year, about certificates on naturabzation j and state what 
was said and done. 

A. I had an interview with him, I think, on or about the 21st of Octo¬ 
ber. I went over there and asked him if he could not furnish me with 
three or five naturalization certificates. I gave him a list of names and 
asked him if he could not furnish me naturalization papers for these parties. 
He wanted to know who sent me, and I gave him the name of a presi¬ 
dent of a campaign club up town-^the Twentieth-ward Empire Club. I 
named a man whom I knew to be president of a club of that kind. He 
said that he could get them for me, and wanted to know if I was going 
to sell them. I told him of course not. He then said that the papers 
would be ready for me about half-past 5 o’clock in the afternoon, and 
that I could get them by paying him two dollars for each certificate; 
and that if I needed 500 I could have them at the same rate by simi)ly 
telling the names of the men for whom I wanted them. 

223. Q. Did he require any witness to make proof as to the right of 
the applicants to be naturalized 

A. Ko, sir; he stated that the two dollars was to pay the persons who 
personated the principals and the witnesses; that he did not want to 
make anything, and he did not want me to make anything by the 
operation. 

224. Q. Then he had persons to personate the aiiplicants and the wit¬ 
nesses ? 

A. So he stated to me. 

225. Q. Were the names you gave him real or fictitious? 

A. I believe they were fictitious. I got them from Marshal Murray. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

226. Q. Was the residence of each person stated ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

227. Was his nationality ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

228. Q. Was any fact stated as to how long he had been in the coun¬ 
try, or his age ? 

A. Ko, sir; simply the name and residence. 

By the Chairman : 

229. Q. Did Eoseuberg make any inquiry as to which party these 
persons were to vote for f 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 23 

A. He did; lie wanted to know if they were democrats and if I was a 
democrat. I stated tliat I was. 

230. Q. What was said about the use that was to be made of the 
money paid for the certificates of naturalization ? 

A. Kosenberg said that one dollar would go to the person i)ersonating 
the principal, and the other dollar to the person personating the witness ; 
that he derived no benefit from it at all, and that he simply did this for 
the benefit of the party. 

231. Q. Do yon know whether he had any connection with any demo¬ 
cratic clubs of this city ? 

A. I do not. The committee was, as I understand, a committee ap¬ 
pointed in the interest of the democratic party for the purpose of issuing 
naturalization papers. It was at G Centre street, in a lager-beer saloon. 

232. Q. How far was it from the rooms of the supreme court? 

A. It was right across the street from the court-house. 

233. Q. Did you learn from Rosenberg whether the papers were actu¬ 
ally iirocured from the court, or whether he issued them himself? 

A. nothing further than his statement to me, that it was necessary 
for him to pay one dollar to the person personating the principal and 
another dollar to the person iiersonating the witness. 

234. Q. Did you understand that apifiication had to be made in court ? 

A. I so understood by that. 

235. Q. What persons were in that lager-beer saloon connected with 
the naturalization business ? 

A. Two or three clerks, I suppose, in his employ. 

23G. Q. Did you see any papers lying about on the table where these 
clerks were at work ? 

A. There were papers lying around the tables j I think they were 
blank applications for naturalization papers. 

237. Q. Do you know any other fact that will throw light upon the 
inquiry before the committee ? 

A. On one occasion a young man asked me to help him get out his 
naturalization papers. I went with him to the court-room, at No. 4 
City HaU, and I saw his friends come there at that time. They ran them 
through there in a hurry, so that I supposed it was the easiest matter in 
the world to run i)arties through without any effort or ceremony. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

238. Q. Did you have any conversation with Rosenberg as to the num¬ 
ber of that kind of papers which he furnished ? 

A. No, sir; nothing as to the number which he had furnished j but he 
said he would furnish me with 500 if I needed them, and with as many 
as I needed. 

By Mr. Ross: 

239. Q. Did you get any ? 

A. I did not get any, for the simple reason that Rosenberg was arrested 
previous to the time that I was to call for the papers. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

240. Q. You say you saw one man ground through ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

241. Q. And it was pretty rapidly done ? 

A. Yery rapidly. 

242. Q. It was done with about as much expedition for one party as 
for the other ? 

A. Well, I think notj this man that I went with went to the repub- 


24 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


licaii iiatiiralizatioii office, and they gave him a red ticket; while in the 
democratic naturalization office they gave white tickets; and in order 
to exx)edite the matter, their instructions were not to show their tickets 
till they were called for by the clerk of the court. The tickets were an 
equivalent for the fees, and the two parties had different colored tickets. 

243. Q. This presentation of the tickets must have come after the 
action of the court % 

A. I cannot say as to that. 

244. Q. Did they not first present these to the court for examination ? 

A. No question was asked at all. 

245. Q. How did you go in with your friend ? 

A. I went in and stood as a spectator, outside of the railing. I did not 
go as a witness; I merely went to see him go through, and to see the 
performance; he brought a witness himself. 

246. Q. Where did he bring him from? 

A. From where he resides. 

247. Q. Did he not bring him from that radical committee room ? 

A. No, sir, I think not; he was a member of a club of which I was 
president, the Boys in Blue Club of the 16th ward. He came to me, as 
president of the club, to go with him and show him how to get his papers. 
I told him it was necessary for him to have a witness, and he i)rovided 
a witness himself; his name was Billingham. 

248. Q. Were you familiar with the mode of doing business in the 
republican naturalization office % 

A. No, sir; I had never been there before. 

249. Q. How many of this kind of committees were organized in this 
city by each party 

A. I cannot say; I think one or two by each i)arty. The object is to 
fiU ui) blanks and exi)edite matters. 

By Mr. Boss: 

250. Q. AY ere not the same fees charged in the republican naturalization 
committee for preparing i:)apers, and putting these men through, as were 
charged in the democratic committee room I 

A. No, sir; and I will state further, that they were not charged by the 
democratic committee either, when a person went in the regular way, 
producing his witness, and asking to get his papers regularly. 

251. Q. Then this seemed to be a little thing fixed up by this fellow 
Kosenberg % 

A. I suppose it was fixed up by him and the clerk of the court. 

252. Q. You say that no such arrangement was made at the other com¬ 
mittee room? 

A. Not to my knowledge. I never was there but once, with this man 
BiUingham, and they did not charge him anything. 

253. Q. And he went on the ticket, which you understood to be for the 
fees of the court? 

A. Simply for the fees of the court. 

By the Chairman : 

254. Q. Do you know the names of any of the other parties who were 
writing at 6 Centre street ? 

A. No, sir. 

255. Q. AYhat sign was there over the door at that place ? 

A. I think it was a German sign, and most of the clerks were German. 
I believe the democratic party always has a German office for the purpose 
of issuing papers to German voters. 

256. Q. And another office for other foreigners? 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


25 


A. Yes, sir. 

257. Q. Was there a democratic committee whose business it was to 
procure naturalization papers for Irish voters ? 

A. I think there were two offices. This one at Centre street made 
papers for Germans a specialty. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

258. Q. Do you know of any prosecution or indictment being found 
against any of the other parties that you saw in that room, except 
Eosenberg ? 

A. I have not heard of any. 

Charles W. Burton sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

259. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. In the city of New York. 

(Witness produces a paper purporting to be a certificate of naturali¬ 
zation issued by the supreme court of New York to Walter Shirley, dated 
9th October, 1868, and which is annexed to his testimony, marked Exhibit 
O.) 

260. Q. Where did you obtain this paper ? 

A. It was shown to me by the person whose name is inserted on it. 
I knew he was not a citizen, and I asked him how he had obtained it. 
He handed it to me, and I put it in my pocket and have retained pos¬ 
session of it ever since j he did not vote on it. 

261. Q. Do you know- any other fact that would throw light on the 
matter of the inquiry before this committee ? 

A. Only that I attended the election in one of the wards of this city, 
(the 3d district of the 19th ward,) where some three votes were received 
which were not on the registry. They had been registered in an adj oining 
district. I objected to their being received, and they were not received ; 
but I was informed by an officer that they were received afterwards. I 
was at the iiolls when they were closed, and one of the canvassers refused 
to go on with the count while I was there. One of the canvassers was 
anxious to go on, but the other refused. 

262. Q. Do you know the politics of AYalter Shirley? 

A. He told me he should vote for Mr. Seymour if he had a vote. He 
is about 30 years of age and an Englishman. He has been in this country 
about 20 months. He has been in my employment ever since he came. 
He told me that he had never been in the court-house and had never 
declared his intentions. 


[Exhibit C.] 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

State of New York, City and County of Neio Yorlc, ss: 

Be it remembered, that on the 9th day of October, in the year of our 
Lord 1868, Walter Shirley appeared in the supreme court of the State of 
New York, held in the city and county of New York, (a court of record, 
huffing common-law jurisdiction, a clerk, and seal,) and applied to the 
said court to be admitted to become a citizen of the United States of 
America, pursuant to the provisions of the several acts of the Congress 
of the United States of America, for that purpose made and provided. 
And the said applicant having produced to the said court such evidence, 
having made such declaration and renunciation, and having taken snch 
oaths as are by the said courts required— 

Thereupon it was ordered by the court that the said ai)i)licant be 


26 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


admitted, and he was accordingly admitted to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony whereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed 
this 0th day of October, 1868, and in the 93d year of the independence 
of the United States. 

Fer cur iam: 

[SEAL.] CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

Uew York, Tuesday, December 22, 1868. 

Walter Shirley sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

263. Question. Of what country are you a native ? 

Answer. England. 

264. Q. How long have you resided in the United States ? 

A. Two years and a half. 

265. Q. 1 present to you a paper imriiorting to be a certificate of natu¬ 
ralization issued to you, and which is referred to in the testimony of 
Mr. Burton j state if you ever had it in your possession. 

A. I had. 

266. Q. From whom did you obtain it ? 

A. It was left at the house where I resided in Astoria. 

267. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. It was sent to me into the dining-room by one of the servants. I 
did not see the person who left it, except his back as he was going down 
the garden. 

268. .Q. Did you have any previous conversation with any jierson 
about procuring a certificate of naturalization for you ? 

A. None whatever. 

269. Q. Had you any previous knowledge that such a paiier woidd be 
lirocured for you ? 

A. I had not. 

270. Q. Have you any means of knowing who left the paper for you? 

A. None whatever. 

271. Q. Did you state to any one that you saw a gentleman have a 
large bundle or package of similar papers ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

272. Q. Did you see any one have a large bundle of such pa^iers ? 

A. Only the man who left this paper. He had a bundle of papers in 
his hand as he went down the garden from the house. They were, to all 
appearances, similar. 

273. Q. Was more than one left at your house? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

274. Q. Did you have any iirevious conversation with any person which 
led you to suppose that a paper like this would be furnished to you, dr 
that such papers were being furnished to others ? 

A. Yes. 

275. Q. Who were the persons? 

A. Various persons, in casual conversation. The thing was notorious 
at the time. 

276. Q. What was notorious ? 

A. The fact of naturalization papers being given to parties not quali¬ 
fied, and to others, to influence them or to increase the vote. 

277. Q. With what political party have you been acting? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


27 


A. With neither. 

278. Q. With what party would you have voted if you had been 
entitled to vote % 

A. I do not think I should have voted at all. I had no sympathy with 
either party, and would not have voted at all. 

279. Q. ibid you tell Mr. Burton that you would vote for Seymour if 
you had a vote 

A. Not since I got that paper; I do not know but I may have said so 
before. I may have said, four or five months ago, that my sympathies 
were with Mr. Seymour. 

280. Q. Did the persons with whom you talked about these fraudulent 
naturalization papers act with the democratic party or with the repub¬ 
lican ? 

A. I presume that they acted principally with the democratic party. 
I have spoken with men on both sides. 

281. Q. From what person did you learn that fraudulent naturaliza¬ 
tion papers were being issued ? 

A. I cannot say that I learned it from any person; I learned it from 
the papers. The only persons I conversed with on the subject have been 
casual acquaintances. 

282. Q. I understood you to say that you had conversations with per¬ 
sons who induced you to suppose that you would be furnished with 
papers of that sort and that others had been ? 

A. No, sir; I think not. I never was induced to believe that in any 
way, and it occasioned great surprise to me when the paper was handed 
in to me. 

283. Q. Did you have any conversation with any i:>oliticians, or persons 
acting Avith political clubs or societies, on the subject ? 

A. None whatever, that I know of. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

284. Q. Where were you registered as a voter ? 

A. I never was registered as a voter. 

285. Q. You do not knoAV whether your name was registered as a voter? 

A. I should say not. I ncA^er attempted in any way to register, or 

make myself a citizen. 

By the Chairman : 

286. Q. Have you any suspicion who the person was who left this 
paper for you ? 

A. I have not the least suspicion. I tried at the time to find out who 
it was, and I could not, and I gave up the effort. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

287. Q. Did you CA^er make any application to any person or court for 
citizenship"? 

A. No, sir; never. 

288. Q. Did you eA^er sign any Avritten paper for the purpose ? 

A. No, sir. 

289. Q. Did you eA^er make any statement to any person before obtain¬ 
ing the paper as to where you Avere born, and where you lived when you 
came to this country ? 

A. Never. 

290. Q. What did you do with the paper ? 

A. I put it in my pocket and showed it to Mr. Burton. He asked me 
to let him haA^e it, and I did so. 

292. Q. What is the date of the paper ? 


28 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I suppose it was dated in October^ for it was^ I tbink, towards tbe 
end of that month that I got it. 

293. Q. Did any person, previous to your getting possession of that 
paper, ask you whom you would vote for if you were entitled to vote ? 

A. No; I don’t think so. 

294. Q. What is your business % 

A. I am secretary for oil comjmnies. 

By the Chairman : 

295. Q. Can you state what person you have talked with about the 
issuing of fraudulent papers, or about the fact that such pa^iers were 
being issued?' 

A. I have spoken in ordinary conversation with at least a dozen on 
the subject. 

296. Q. You say the fact was notorious that fraudident naturalization 
papers were being issued j how did you learn that ? 

A. I learned it from the newspapers and from general conversation. 
It was a matter on every one’s lii)s. It was spoken of in the office at 
least twenty times a day to any one who came. 

By Mr. Ross: 

297. Q. You say it was notorious that papers were being issued fraud¬ 
ulently ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

298. Q. Was it notorious that both parties were furnishing their 
friends with fraudulent naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir 5 it was iiarticularly the democratic party. 

299. Q. There was talk of the other party also ? 

A. To a slight degree; but as the majority was so strong against it, 
the frauds were on the other side. 

300. Q. For the reason that they had more persons to naturalize ? 

A. That they had more opportunity to use these naturalization papers, 
having democratic people in charge who would do it. I guess both 
parties did it as much as they could under the circumstances. 

By the Chairman : 

301. Q. Do you know of any fraudulent naturalization papers having 
been procured or used by the republican party ? 

A. Not one. I do not know of any other on either side. 

By Mr. Boss: 

302. Q. You do not know whether this papier was left for you by a 
democrat or a republican ? 

A. I have not the slightest idea j I cannot say on what grounds it was 
given me then. 

John McArthur, Jr., sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

303. Question. With what iiolitical party have you acted ? 

Answer. The democratic jiarty. 

304. Q. Have you occupied any official position in this city ? 

A. Yes, sir; I am connected with the police board. 

305. Q. Look at the two iiapers which I now present—one purporting 
to be a certificate of naturalization, issued to Dennis Fitzpatrick, dated 
the 9th of October, 1868, and the other a certificate of naturalization, 
issued to Dennis Lynch, dated the 12th of October, 1868, both signed by 
Charles E. Loew, as clerk—and state if you ever saw them before, and 
under what circumstances. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


29 


A. Yes, sir; Dennis Fitzpatrick came to the 27tli election district 
of the 19th ward, situated on Third avenue, between Eighty-third 
and Eighty-fourth streets, and wanted his name registered; one of the 
inspectors, Mr. Eeed, asked him how long he had had that paper; 
he said about two weeks; I then asked him if he had appeared in any 
court to get that paper; he said he had not; I asked him if he had 
made any oath or affidavit or form to get it; he said he had not; I asked 
him where he got it, and he said that he got it at McGinnis’s porter 
house, in Eighty-seventh street, in Sixth avenue; I asked him if he had 
paid anything for it, and he said he had not; I asked him who gave it 
to him, and he said he did not know; that it was a little fellow, about 
my size; I then took him to the station-house; Deimis Lynch was arrested 
by officer Barker and brought to the station-house; I was in the station- 
house at the time, and Captain Hutchings asked me to take that matter; 
I then said to Dennis Lyncli that he was at liberty to answer all or any 
of the questions that I put to him touching the paper, and said it might 
be used in evidence against him; I asked him if he had had the paper, 
showdng it to him; he said he had; I asked him if he had attempted to 
register upon it; he said he had; I asked him if he had appeared in 
any court to get a paper, and he said he had not; I asked him if he had 
made any oath or affidavit to get it; he said he had not; I asked him 
if he had paid anything for it; he said no; I asked him who had got it 
for him; he said Joe Moore; I asked if he could identify Joe Moore; 
he hemmed and hawed and grumbled a good deal, and said he didn’t 
think he could. 

306. Q. Do you know Joe Moore? 

A. Yes, sir; I arrested Joe Moore, and he is now under $10,000 bail 
in these two cases. 

307. Q. Has he been indicted ? 

A. 1 do not knoAV. 

Q. What were the charges against him ? 

A. Procuring these fraiulnlent naturalization papers. I arrested him 
and took him before the United States commissioner, Osborne. Mr. 
Osborne sent the case up stairs to Commissioner Betts, and he was 
admitted to $5,000 bail in each case. 

308. Q. How many wards are there in the city of New York? 

A. Twenty-two, I believe. 

309. Q. Hoav many places of registry? 

A. I do not knoAV. 

310. Q. How many Acting places? 

A. I believe there are the same number of voting places that there 
are of registers’ offices. There are quite a large number of them; there 
are 31 districts in the 19th ward, I beUcA^e. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

311. Q. Of what party was Joe Moore a member? 

A. He is a democrat, I believe. 

By Mr. Daaves : 

312. Q. Do you know Dennis Fitzpatrick yourself? 

A. Yes, sir. 

313. Q. Do you know hoAV long he was in the country ? 

A. He said to me, I think, that he had been some fifteen or sixteen 
years in the country. He said to me that he had got his first papers 
and had lost them, but that he had iieA^er appeared in any court or made 
any affidavit or application to get this last paper. 


30 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr : 

314. Q. How was the police force in this city organized at the last elec¬ 
tion? Hid the board of police commissioners organize it, or any part 
of it? 

A. The board issues orders to the superintendent of police, and he 
issues orders to the different captains of precincts, and they regulate 
the men according to these orders. There are generally two men—one 
of each party—sent to each election district to act as i)olicemen; I know 
this was so in our district. The captains select, as nearly as they can, 
one republican and one democrat; that is what they call two men inside; 
the men outside are not selected in that way, but according to whether 
there is any trouble or not. 

315. Q. How is the board of election officers organized, registers, and 
the persons who receive the votes ? 

A. I believe they are two and two. 

316. Q. Who selects the clerks of election? 

A. The police commissioners, I believe. 

317. Q. They were, therefore, ordinarily all republicans, were they not? 

A. I presume there was one democrat and one republican, on account 

of the board being situated in that way. 

318. Q. Ho you know what was the conduct of the other election officers 
with reference to these alleged false certificates; was it the same as 
these so far as you know? 

A. Yes, sir; I suppose so. 

319. Q. You conducted the investigation in reference to these two and 
had the men arrested ? 

A. I arrested Hennis Fitzpatrick, and then, according to instructions, 
I took hold of Hennis Lynch also; and then there were warrants issued 
for Joseph Moore and Michael Kennedy. 

320. Q. Hid you ever know of any vote being cast on one of these 
fraudulent certificates ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

321. Q. Hid you do all in your power to prevent casting any such votes? 

A. I acted fairly and just as an officer, irrespective of any party what¬ 
ever. 

By the Chairman: 

322. Q. I present to you three papers, purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization of James E. Smith, Samuel Eeynolds, and Patrick Eaf- 
ferty, annexed to the testimony of Marshal Murray; state whether the 
seal affixed to these papers corresponds with the seal affixed to the 
naturalization papers to which you have referred in your testimony. 

A. I believe they are alike. 

323. Q. How does the signature of Charles E. Loew correspond? 

A. I would rather not pass an opinion upon that. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

324. Q. In the discharge of your duties as an officer did you learn of 
any of these papers being procured by republican infiuence or by 
republicans? 

A. I have heard so. 

325. Q. Hid you learn the fact ? 

A. Ko, sir, further than that I was down at the City Hall one day, when 
a man said, There is a republican come in; they are both into it.’' 

326. Q. You learned nothing of the kind as an officer ? 

A. Ko, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 31 

327. Q. Those papers you liave no doubt were x)rocured under demo¬ 
cratic influence ? 

A. The men said they got them from Joe Moore, and the i)olitics of 
the two men were democratic. 

328. Q. You have no doubt tliat they would have voted the democratic 
ticket if tliey had voted at all ? 

A. I think it very likely. 

Charles C. Eeed sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

329. Question. What official position did you hold at the last election 
in New York ! 

Answer. I was inspector of the 27th district, 19th ward. 

330. Q. I present to you a paper, purporting to be a certificate of 
naturalization to Dennis Fitzpatrick, and which is referred to in the tes¬ 
timony of John McArthur, jr.; state what you know about it. 

A. There was such a x)ai)er presented to him by Mr. Stephenson, the 
other inspector, and passed over to me. I asked the person who pre¬ 
sented it when he had been last in court, and he told me he had never 
been there. I said, “ I suppose you got this at the court on the corner 
of Eighty-ninth street and Fourth avenue”—a police station which they 
call a court. He said he had not; that he had got it at the corner of 
Eighty-seventh street and Third avenue, at McGinnis’s liquor store. He 
said there were three or four others given out at the same time. I asked 
him did he know the names of the i)ersons who got them. He said he 
did not, nor could he tell the name of the person who handed it to him. 

331. Q. Did Fitzpatrick attempt to have his name registered on that 
paper ? 

A. Yes, sir; I advised him not to attempt it, as the paper was fraudu¬ 
lent; and not having appeared in court, and not having complied with 
the law, I advised him to go home, and McArthur, the policeman, fol¬ 
lowed him and arrested him. The inspectors, seeing that the man was 
ignorant, were willing to let him go. 

332. Q. Are you a rex)ublican or democrat 

A. I am a republican. 

333. Q. Do you know of any fraudulent naturalization papers having 
been issued or used, or attempted to be used, for the purpose of regis¬ 
tering or voting ? 

A. Not to my own knowledge; I have been informed by other regis¬ 
ters, in districts of the 19th ward, that some attemx)t was made to reg¬ 
ister upon similar papers. 

Thomas Surridge sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

334. Question. What country are you a native of? 

Answer. Ireland. 

335. Q. How long have you lived in the United States ? 

A. I first came here about 18 years ago, and went back three months 
before the war broke out, and returned to this county about October, 
1867. 

336. Q. Did you ever make any declaration of intention to become a 
citizen ? 

A. No, sir. 

337. Q. Did you ever make an application in court to be naturalized ? 

A. No, sir. 

338. Q. Did you ever take an oath to support the Constitution of the 
United States ? 


32 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. No, sir. 

339. Q. Have you ever voted in tliis country ? 

A. No, sir. 

340. Q. I present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate of nat¬ 
uralization, dated the 19th of October, 1868, issued to Thomas Surridge, 
and signed Charles E. Loew, clerk of the cityhave you ever seen that 
paper before? 

A. Yes, sir; I did. 

341. Q. From whom did you get it ? 

A. I do not know the name of the person who gave it to me, but I 
identified him to the United States deputy marshal. 

242. Q. What did lie say when he gave you the paper ? 

A. He told me that it was all right. 

343. Q. Where did lie get the paper ? 

A. At the corner of Twenty-first street and Tenth avenue, Gibson’s 
liquor store. I was there about some paper-hanging that I was doing; 
there were a number of persons there, and some of them asked me if I 
had ever voted. I said 1 had not j that I had no papers. One of them 
said that he could get me papers, and he referred to a young man who 
gave me that iiaper. 

344. Q. Hid you pay anything for it ? 

A. I paid $1. 

345. Q. Hid he ask you what party you would vote with ? 

A. No, sir ; he did not. 

346. Q. Hid you express any opinion ? 

A. No, sir. 

347. Q. Hid you say how you would vote ? 

A. No, sir. 

348. Q. What party have you been in favor of ? 

A. I have not been in favor of any party particularly. I did not 
interfere with politics at all. 

349. Q. Ho you know whether this young man has ever been arrested? 

A. I asked the deputy marshal, and he said he had not arrested him 

yet. 

350. Q. Hid you attempt to have your name registered as a voter 
11 X 1011 this paiier ? 

A. I xiresented the paxier ; my object was just to test the thing to see 
if it was a legal iiaxier or not. 

By Mr. Hickey : 

351. Q. Where did you xireseiit it ? 

A. At the board of registers, in Ninth avenue. 

352. Q. Were you then arrested ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 and brought to the xiolice office. 

353. Q. After attempting to register without being entitled to do so ? 

A. I siiiipose that was the ground of my arrest. 

By the Chairman : 

354. Q. I iiresent to you three iiapers purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization, annexed to the testimony of Marshal Murray j state 
whether the printing and the seal of the court annexed to these three 
papers are similar to the printing and the seal of the court of this paper 
which was given to you. 

A. Yes, sir; they axipear to be the same, 

355. Q. State if the signature of Charles E. Loew, clerk, on all the 
Iiapers, is similar. 

A. Yes, sir j it is similar on all of them. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


33 


li. II. Daly sworn and examined. 

By tlie Chairman : 

35G. Question. State your residence, and wliat official position yon 
have held in New York. 

Answer. I live in Lamartine place. At the last two elections I was 
inspector in the 21st district of the 17th ward, in this city. 

357. Q. What are the duties of inspectors 

A. To register the names of (iiialitied voters belonging* to the district, 
and to receive their votes on election day. 

358. Q. I present to yon hve i)apers j)nrporting to be certificates of 
naturalization issued by the supreme court of the State of New York held 
in and for the city and county of New York, one to Charles Fieling, 
dated October 17, one to AVilliam Schmidt, dated October 19, one to John 
Lehmar, dated the 22d of October, one to Jacob Schaffer, dated the 9th 
of October, and one to John Moelsch, dated the 22d of October, and all 
signed by Charles E. Loew, clerk ; examine these papers and state what 
you know of them. 

A. At the first meeting of the board of inspectors, on the second day, 
I went from onr place where we were holding the board to the next board 
in the same ward, and while there one of the inspectors asked me if Ave 
had any fraudulent naturalization papers ; I told him that Ave had not 
any that I could say. He picked up one similar to these, and said these 
are all fraudulent papers. Said I, “ If they are we liaA^e taken a good 
many of them in our district.” I immediately returned to our board, 
and the only one of these papers that I could recollect having taken was this 
one of Charles Fieling. I knew we had such a paper the day before. I 
told the balance of the board that I thought AA^e had been taking some 
fraudulent papers, and they Avanted to know if I could identify any of 
them. I told them that I thought this one of Fieling’s Avas one of them; so 
Avitli the consent of the other members of the board I despatched a 
policeman for Fieling, and told him to bring his paper with him. He is 
a German avIio keeps a grocery store. I asked him A\*here he got it. 
He said it Avas sent to him in an envelope. I asked about how long he 
had been in this country; he said he had been here 13 years. I asked 
him if he had declared his intentions to become a citizen; he said he 
iieA^er had. I asked him if he kneAV anything about AAdiere the i)aper 
came from; he said he did not; that it wms sent to him ; that he thought 
it all right to come to register in it. He appeared to be an innocent sort 
of a man, who Avould not be likely to do anything contrary to laAA^ We 
erased his name from the register, and told him the proper course to pur¬ 
sue in order to take out the legal paper of naturalization. The four 
other papers were papers Avhich were presented to us subsequently, and 
AA hich Ave retained. I have no doubt that there were 50 of these papers 
registered at our district and voted on. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

359. Q. Did the other parties avIio presented these papers make any 
statement as to where they got them ! 

A. Yes, sir. They did not tell correctly how they got them. One of 
them brought a witness with him to swear that he was with him in the 
court and saw him get the paper and pay the fee j but on closer ques¬ 
tioning he said he saw a good many people get their papers, but he 
could not say exactly that he saAV this paper got. One jAcrson on the 
board, on the democratic side, Avas in favor, inasmuch >we had.taken 

3 T 


34 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


a number of tliese paiiers, of going on and taking tberest of tbem; but 
I and my republican friend could not see it in that light. 

300. Q. How many inspectors are there ? 

A. Four, two republicans and two democrats. 

301. Q. Were both the democrats in favor of continuing to take these 
papers? 

A. One of them was drunk pretty much all of the time; he did not 
have much to say either way. We had him removed. I went to one of 
the commissioners and refused to serve with him any longer, and had 
him removed. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

302. Q. How do these fraudulent papers differ from the genuine ones ? 

A. They appear to be of a different form. The others are printed upon 

blue paper, and the seal is ditterent. The others are much larger than 
these, and the seal is a wafer one, with a piece of tissue i)aper or ribbon 
upon it. Some are printed in quite an elaborate manner, and some are 
framed. One of these papers we Avere afterwards obliged to take. Coun¬ 
cilman Hartman came and swore that he Avent with the man to the 
supreme court and swore that he saw the paper issued by the court and 
signed by the clerk. Under these circumstances Ave could not refuse 
him registration. 1 do not recollect the name of that case. 

By the Chairman : 

3G3. Q. I now present to you three papers, purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization, Avhich are annexed to the testimoii}^ of Marshal Mur¬ 
ray ; state Avhether the printing or signature of the clerk and the seal of 
the court of these three certificates are similar in all respects to the print¬ 
ing, seal, and signature of the fiA^e papers to which you have testified. 

A. I think the printed form is the same, and the seal is the same. I 
cannot see any difference in the signature, and I should judge that it is 
the same. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

304. Q. You say you think that at least 50 of a certain kind of fraud¬ 
ulent certificates Avere received at your register\s poll ? 

A. I should think that was a low estimate. The first day we did not 
do much business during the daytime. We kept open that evening, and 
then there was a great rush ; so much so that two policemen had to make 
the men take their turns in the line, and there was a long queue. I know 
that a great many of these papers AV'ere registered on. That night there 
AA^ere 175 names registered, and I know that a majority, or a large pro¬ 
portion of them, were on these papers. 

365. Q. Ho you mean to say that a majority of them were registered 
on this kind of papers ? 

A. I do not knoAv that a majority of them were. A great many of them 
Avere. 

300. Q. Ho you mean to say that all of this particular seal are fraudulent. 

A. That I did not say. 

367. Q. How do you know how many were fraudulent that w^ere taken 
that night—or hoAV can you approximate satisfactorily to any conclusion ? 

A. I Avould not say there Avere 49 of these papers taken, or that there 
AA^ere 51 taken, but I say that there were at least 50. 

308. Q. How do you know? 

A. From Inwing handled them that night. Thenext day we registered 
probably 50 persons. Out of that number we threw out*some 10 or 12 
of these i)apers. Take that same proportion on the 175 of the night pre¬ 
vious, and it will not make much short of 50. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


35 


369. Q. You say you registered 10 or 12 out of tlie 50 tlie next day; 
tliat was oiie-fiftli the number there. On the previous night you took 
175. What would one-fifth of that number be? 

A. About 35. 

370. Q. Then do you think you took only about 35 of those fraudulent 
papers ? 

A. No, sir; I will not come down one. 

371. Q. How many officers did that board consist of ? 

A. Three, besides myself. Two republicans and two democrats. 

372. Q. Who were the republicans ? 

A. One was Theodore Block, and one was E. H. Daly. The democrats 
were John Fitzj)atrick and S. Grill, jr. Fitzpatrick voted the republican 
ticket, however. 

373. Q. Please explain how he came to do that. Is that the way men 
usually give evidence of their democracy ? 

A. My associate on the board told me that he gave Fitzpatrick a 
republican ticket, and that he went and voted on it. He said he gave 
him a drink and a republican ticket, and he went and voted it. 

374. Q. I suppose Fitzpatrick, being a democrat, was induced to vote 
your ticket by that drink of liquor ? 

A. I cannot tell you his motive. 

375. Q. Do you suppose he would have voted it if he had been sober? 

A. I think that any man in his sober senses would have done so at the 

last election. I know a great many democrats who voted our ticket. 

376. Q. Did your associate on the board bribe this man to vote your 
ticket by giving him a drink of liquor ? 

A. I did not say that he bribed him. They went out and took a driidv, 
and he gave him a republican ticket, and Fitzpatrick went and voted on it.» 

377. Q. Was he drunk when he voted? 

A. He was pretty drunk. 

378. Q. Did your partner, or some other political friend of yoiu\s, give 
him the liquor? 

A. O, no, sir; he came there drunk in the morning, at 8 o’clock. My 
partner was complaining because Fitzpatrick was not there to attend to 
his official duties. 

Theodore Block sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

379. Question. What position did you hold in the last election ? 

Answer. I was an inspector of elections in the 21st district of the 17th 

ward. 

380. Q. I present to you five papers, purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization, referred to in the testimony of Eichard H. Daily; state if 
they were presented to you by the persons whose names are inserted in 
them, and if so, all that was done. 

A. I refused to register their names. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

381. Q. Why? 

A. On account of their own testimony. I asked them how they came 
into possession of these certificates. They said they were sent to them 
at home, or that they got them at some xdace; and that they had never 
seen any judge or court in order to get naturalized. On their o\vn evi¬ 
dence I took the papers and kept them. Fieling showed me his first 
jiapers, which he still had in his x)ocket. He showed me his declaration 
of intention, filed about ten years before. 


36 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


382. Q. Do I uiKlerstand you that they all admitted that they had not 
been in the court to take the oath of allegiance^ and that they got the 
papers at their own house and elsewliere ? 

A. Yes, sir; on paying $1 50, or different prices. If I had knowu it 
the day before, I could have got over 100 of them. 

By the Chairman : 

383. Q. What do you mean by saying that? 

A. I mean that 100 i)ersons presented fraudulent naturalization papers 
to which they are not entitled. 

384. Q. Were they registered on them? 

A. They were. 

385. Q. Did they vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. They did. 

380. Q. In the ward where you were inspector ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have every doubtful one marked in the register's book. 

387. Q. Do you know to what political party the men holding these 
naturalization papers belong ? 

A. I am pretty certain of it. I know it in regard to Fieling and 
Schmidt, because they were recommended to me by an assemblyman who 
wanted to make an affidavit that he was present as a witness when they 
got their papers. I said I would not take his affidavit, or President 
Johnson’s; they are all democrats. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

388. Q. How do you know that they are all democrats ? 

A. I have been living 15 years in the 7th Avard, and know eveiy A^oter 
in the ward, or nearly every one. I do not think there are 20 A^oters in 
the ward A\ hom I do not knoAv. I used to be a clerk in the fourth district 
court; in that way I came to knoAv every one in the ward. I ceased to 
be clerk in 18G0, and am iioav holding a situation in the navy yard, as 
clerk in the engineer’s department. 

389. Q. Where did you meet all these Alters to get so well acquainted 
with them ? 

A. I may say I met them in the lager-beer places. A great deal of 
them are Germans; we liaA^e not got five American A^oters in the elec¬ 
tion district. It is a German district, and I do not think you Avill find 
five Irish or American voters in the district. 

390. Q. Were these chaps who came to Amte on these certificates all 
Germans ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

391. Q. Did they live in the district? 

A. They said they did. I did not know them; I took their statements. 

392. Q. Who were the other officers with you on that board ? 

A. Mr. Daly, an Irishman named Fitzpatrick, and S. Gill, jr. 

393. Q. What sort of a man is Fitzpatrick ? 

A. He was an Irishman, but he did not belong to the district. He could 
not have Amted in that district, neither could I Amte in the district in 
AA hich I AA as an inspector. 

394. Q. How much of the time was Fitzpatrick drunk ? 

A. He was drunk all the time, and I had him removed myself. I had 
to make out his books myself, because he could not write. 

395. Q. Do you know how he voted ? 

A. I know he Amted for Griswold; I made him vote for Griswold, We 
went to the polls at the corner of EleA^enth street and Avenue A, and he 
promised to Amte for GrisAVold, and did so. 

39G. Q. How did you make him do it ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


37 


A. As a matter of friendship. 

397. Q. Friendship to you, or to Griswold? 

A. I made out his hook because he could not write. 

398. Q. Did you treat him that day? 

A. No, sir. 

399. Q. Did you tell your associate on the board, Mr. Daly, that you 
gave Fitzpatrick a drink and made him vote your ticket ? 

A. No, sir; I never gave him a drink; he knew how to get drunk 
without me. 

400. Q. Did you tell Daly that you gave him a drink ? 

A. No, I did not; Mr. Daly complained himself about Fitzpatrick, 
and wanted me to make a complaint and have him removed; but I said 
he might be a poor man and might want his pay. 

401. Q. You bought his vote by making out his books ? 

A. He said that out of friendship for me for that he would do any¬ 
thing for me. ^AVell,” said I, “ go and vote for Grant and Griswold.” 

402. Q. Did you see him put in that ticket ? 

A. I would swear to it. 

403. You said, awhile ago, that if you had time you could have got a 
good many of that sort of papers; how do you know that ? 

A. I could make a list of over 20 men who registered in that district, 
and who voted at the November election, who were not one year in this 
country. They were Frenchmen and Germans; I know them personally. 

404. Q. Do you know how they got their papers? 

A. Certainly; they bought them; they were brought to their houses. 

405. Q. How do you know that? 

A. They told me so themselves. 

400. Q. Did you ever buy one of these papers yourself I 

A. No, sir. 

407. Q. Did you ever send any republican voters to buy any? 

A. No, sir. 

408. Q. Did ^mu ever see any republican voters come with that kind 
of a paper ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

409. Q. How do you know that there were so many other papers 
of that kind brought to your precinct; how do you know that the 
papers were fraudulent ? 

A. The papers may not have been fraudulent, but the parties were 
not entitled to vote. I could name you two or three dozen, at least, who 
had naturalization papers, and who voted, and were not entitled to vote. 

410. Q. Give us their names. 

A. I can mention Philip Yillaret, No. 05 Fourth avenue; Victor 
Eoger, a wine merchant, living in Third avenue, between Twelfth and 
Thirteenth streets ; Prosper Aubrey, living at No. 24 East Fourth street, 
near Lafayette place; Victor Godard, living at 238 East Ninth street, near 
Second avenue; that is all I can recollect now; but I have a memoran¬ 
dum of them in my book. These men do not belong to my ward, the 
17th; they belong to the 15th. How many must I know in the 17th, 
Avhen I know so many outside of the Avard. 

411. Q. These are all the names that you can gh^e me ? 

A. For to-day; but I Avill bring some more in my book. I will bring 
the list of names to-morroAV at 10 o’clock. 

Edavard Mitchell sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

412. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. Inspector of election, and chairman of the board, in the 4th 


38 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


election district of tlie lotli ward. My commission is dated October 0, 
18G8, and the law i:)rovides for the holding of the office one year from 
the time of appointment. 

413. Q. What do you Know of frandident naturalization papers having 
been issued^ or of attemi^ts having been made to register or to vote on 
them ? 

A. I know of the case of Francis Cragie, who presented a paper, and 
was registered by three other inspectors of that district in my absence. 
On my return to the place of registry, 129 Waverley place, they stated 
to me that they were suspicious of the man, and that his papers were 
not legally issued to him. A police officer was sent for him. tie came 
back, and I asked him some questions, which he hesitated to answer. 
On account of his hesitancy I swore him, and asked him where he got 
this paper. He told me the man gave it to him. I asked him in what 
place. He said in the bar-room corner of Eighth street and Sixth avenue, 
a bar-room kept by a man named Mulligan. I asked him the name 
of the man who gave him the paper. He said he Avould not tell that. 
I said he must tell, or that I would arrest him. He said he did not 
know the name of the man, but that he would find out, and come back 
at 7 o’clock in the evening and let me know; he never came back. He 
never ottered to A’ote, although he was on the registry. On his sworn 
statement to that effect, I put it to the board whether his name should 
be struck off from the list, and they decided to strike it oft. There were 
several other cases about which the board were suspicious, on account 
of the naturalization papers being dated some years before 18G8, while 
they looked as fresh as if they had been just issued. The name of the 
clerk, James M. Sweeney, a])peared as if written very recently, and Avas 
in the same blue ink and in the same handwriting precisely as those 
recently issued by him. All those facts were noted on my book 
of registry, Avhich is filed in the county clerk’s office. 

, By Mr. Dickey: 

414. Q. This case of Cragie’s, where he acknoAvledged that he got 
the paper in a bar-room, out of Avhat court did the paper api)ear to have 
been issued? 

A. I think from the court of common pleas, on the IGth October, 18G8. 

415. Q. Do you knoAv the political party to which this man belonged ? 

A. I do not. 

By the Chairman : 

41G. Q. AYhat is Cragie’s address? 

A. No. 125 Clinton place is the address that he gave. 

417. Q. Do you know of any other fraudulent naturalization papers 
liaAfing been issued ? 

A. I do not knoAv of any other. There were other papers offered 
of Avhich we were very suspicious. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

418. Q. Were they receiA^ed and registered on? 

x\. They Avere received and the persons registered on them, because 
there Avas no proof that they Avere not legal. Where there Avas any sus¬ 
picion, the persons Avho offered them Avere diligently questioned, and, in 
case they ansAYered all the questions satisfactorily, they Avere alloAA^ed to 
register. There was one other case of a man Avho stated that he had 
never taken out his first papers, and that he had not come to the country 
under age; but Ave were afterAYards satisfied that he had misunderstood 
the questions that ayo asked him about having taken out his first papers. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


39 


By Mr. Dickey' : 

419. (^. In tlie case Avliere tlie man admitted that lie had got the paper 
at Mulligan’s, did he admit that he had never been in court I 

A. I asked him if he had been in court, and he said he had never been 
in court at all for any xmrpose. I asked him also whether he had taken 
out his first papers, and he said he had not. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

420. Q. Did yon ask him how long he was a resident of this country ! 

A. I do not recollect having asked him that; I think it very likely that 

I did. I believe he was imposed upon by others, and was ignorant of the 
requirements of the law, being induced to believe that it was proper tor 
him to take the paper and vote upon it. At the last election a great 
number of persons offered to register who, we were satisfied, were 

repeaters.” They were registered, and Ave intended to airest them on 
election day, but they never came to A'ote; they Avere frightened off. 
We had one of them arrested. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

421. Q. How many of these “ repeaters ” AA'ere registered ? 

A. There may have been six Avho offered themselA^es and Avere regis¬ 
tered. We did not knoAV that they aa ere not entitled until after they had 
registered and we questioned them. We Avere suspicious of them Avhen 
tliey^ presented themselves, but inasmuch as they stated their residences 
Ave took them doAvn, as Ave Av^ere bound to do; and after that we questioned 
them, and, on questioning them, we AAPre satisfied that, altliongh they 
answered the questions correctly, they Avere lying. They’" did not vote. 
That’ was at the mayoralty' election. 

Albert Bogert sworn and examined: 

By' the Chairman : 

422. Question. What official position did you hold at the last election in 
this city I 

AnsAver. I Avas one of the inspectors of registry’ at the 4th district of 
the 19th Avard. 

423. Q. How many’ wards are there in the city ? 

A. Twenty’-two. 

424. Q. lloAV many election districts ? 

A. I forget. There are 32 in our ward. 

425. Q. I present to y’on four papers, purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization issued; one to Joseph Bush, dated October 8,1868, one to 
John Wallace, dated October 27,1867, one to AVilliam Malia, dateil Octo¬ 
ber 25, 1867, and one to James Montgomery, dated October 25, 1867, all 
purporting to be issued by the superior court of the city of Ncav York, 
all signed ‘‘James M. Sweeney, clerk,” and all filled on printed blanks; 
examine them, and state AA’hat you knoAV as to each of them. 

A. Joseph Bush presented his paper and desired to be registered. I 
examined the paper and questioned him on oath. He stated lie had been 
in the country’ only’ two y^ears; that his parents were in the old country' 
y’et; that the paiier A\’as handed to him by a friend, Avho told him it Avas 
all right; that he had neA erbeen in court. I retained the paper and let 
him go. Here is a memorandum of another paper that Avas offered to me 
by’ a man named Daniel Healy’. I did not retain the certificate, as my’ 
associate Avas absent at breakfast, and the tAA’o democratic ins])ectors 
insisted that he should retain his paper. He AAms not registered. Healy’s 
statement AA’as that he Avas not a citizen, Avas not in court, and had his 
naturalization iiaper giA’en to him by’ Michael Fay', at the corner of 


40 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Thirty-nintli street and First avenue. John Wallace ])resented his natu¬ 
ralization i^aper, and desired to be registered. His paper Avas issued on 
October 22, 18G7, and he had voted on it in the election of 1867. He 
stated that he Av^as 50 years of age; that he had been in the country 10 
years ; that he had A^oted at the last election in 1867, and that he had 
neA^er got out his first papers. He refused to SAA^ear to his right to be 
registered, by the advice of the tAvo democratic registers, aaJio told him 
he ought not to saa ear and must not SAvear. He voluntarily gave up his 
paper. William Alalia presented his paper, and Are retained it. He stated 
that lie had ner^er declared his intentions, and had ncA^er taken out his 
first papers. 

By Air. Hickey : 

426. Q. Hid he state hoAA^ he got that paper ? 

A. I do not recollect. This other paper AAms presented by James Alont- 
gomery, Avho desired to be registered. AVhen AA’^e examined him Avith 
reference to his right to be registered. Are found that he had neA^er got 
out his first papers and had never declared his intentions. At the time 
that Are Arere examining Bush there A\"ere eight or nine persons in line 
Arith papers in their hands, Araiting to be registered, and I made the 
remark, ‘AA^e are acting altogether too lenient in this matter; the next 
man Arho offers a fraudulent paper I shall order his arrest.*’ And the 
Arhole nine men A\ ho came to be registered Arith their papers in their 
hands AAmlked out, Arent aAv ay, and did not offer their papers. They 
never returned to be registered in that district. 

By Air. Hopkins : 

427. Q. AA^ere you in the habit, af your board of inspectors, of cross- 
examining all the applicants aaIio presented naturalization lAapers ? 

A. Yes; AA^e did it in our district, and I am satisfied that if all the dis- . 
tricts had acted in the sameAvay there AAmuld not liaAX been 20,000 fraud¬ 
ulent Amtes cast in the city. 

By Air. Boss: 

428. Q. You think there Arere no fraudulent Amtes giA^en at your rmting 
place ? 

A. I do not think there were. There may xAossibly liar’^e been. 

By Air. Hopkins : 

429. Q. Hid you haA^e any repeaters ” try to register in your precinct! 

A. Not to ni}^ knowledge. There Arere eight or nine “ repeaters” Arho 

registered in our ward, but they did not vote. They were put upon the 
challenge list, and did not offer to Amte. 

George G. Hewett sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

430. Question. AAdiat office did you hold at the last election in this city 1 

AnsAver. I Aras register and inspector of the election for the 19th dis¬ 
trict of the 20th ward. 

431. Q. AATiat do you knoAv of persons A’oting who had fraudulent 
naturalization certificates ? 

A. I cannot SArear that I know of any one who Amted, but there were 
a good many Arho appeared there with papers which I believed to be 
fraudulent. AAllliam J. Huttenbocher had his name registered Arithout 
iny knoAAiedge. His paper Avas filled up in very indifferent writing. In 
filling up the date “thirteenth October,” the thirteenth AAms commenced 
AA ith a small “ t,” and October Avas commenced with a small “ o.” 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 41 

432. Q. Did Huttenboclier state where he got his certificate of natu¬ 
ralization ? 

A. He said he did not get it from any court, but that he got it in Car¬ 
mine street, one block below Bleecker. 

433. Q. Who were the inspectors in your district? 

A. A man named Fredericks was my republican associate; and a rum- 
seller named Shields, and a cartman named Murphy, were the two demo¬ 
cratic insi)ectors. • 

434. Q. Were all present when Huttenboclier offered to register? 

A. They were all present. 

435. Q. And he was registered? 

A. Yes; but it was the general remark that he would not apiiear to 
vote. 


By Mr. Boss: 

436. Q. Did he vote ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

437. Q. Do you know of any other fraudulent naturalization jiapers 
being ])resented ? 

A. There was an Italian or a Jew who appeared there with a paper, 
and he found that he was questioned so close that he left. He said that 
he had got it in Tammany Hall. There was another one, a Greek, who, 
I supxiose, had not been three weeks in the country. He had on his 
corduroy i)autaloons and jacket; I think he had no vest on, although it 
was cold. He was put under oath, and he said he got his paper from 
Tammany Hall. Finally one of the democratic inspectors, afraid that one 
of his friends would get into trouble, threw his iiaper back to him and 
tx)ld him he had better go away. 

438. Q. Did he state how long he had been in the country ? 

A. I cannot say that he did. 

439. Q. You refused to register him and he took his papers away? 

A. Yes, sir; the inspectors appeared to be unanimous in that case, 

although at first the two democratic inspectors were disposed to register 
him without any question. They took the ground that we had no right 
to go behind a certificate of jiatnralization properly signed and bearing 
the seal of the court. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

440. Q. When you speak of the democratic inspectors fearing that 
their friends would get into trouble, you do not speak from your personal 
knowledge, but from the impression made on your mind by surrounding 
circumstances ? 

A. Oh, certainly; that was only my impression. We all feel anxious 
about our friends. 

George P. Barrett sworn and examined. 

By the CnAiRMAN: 

441. Question. What official position do you hold? 

Answer. I am a clerk employed by the United States government in 
the New York post office, since 1862. At the last election I was chair¬ 
man of the board of inspectors in the 7th election district of the 12th ward. 

442. Q. I present to you a jiaper purporting to be a certificate of nafu- 
ralization issued from the supreme court of the State of New York, 
held in the city and county of New York, dated October 20, 1868, signed 


42 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


^^Clias. E. Loew, clerk/^ to Joliii Doolan; state wlietlier you saw that 
paper before, and for Ayliat purpose it was presented to you. 

A. I have been in possession of this paper before. It was given to me 
by a man who represented himself as John Doolan, for the purpose ol 
registration. There were several other papers of the same character. 
This one I believe I gave to Judge AVhite ; the others 1 gave to the super¬ 
intendent of police. I made a memorandum at the time in relation to 
those matters. 

443. Q. AVhat was done when Doolan presented his paper ? 

A. He swore to his right to register, his father being a citizen. He 
said he came here under age; that his father Avas naturalized, and that 
he had a right to vote and register by virtue of his father’s naturaliza¬ 
tion, but that the committee had told him he might as well have a paper. 

444. Q. What committee ? 

A. Some committee of the 121ii Avard. John Harolan, aaTio keeps a 
porter-house at One-hundred-and-fourteenth street and Third avenue, 
Avas the man Avho gaA^e the papers to me. He runs Avhat Ave call the 
democratic ‘Anachine” up there. John Doolan swore to that, and fur¬ 
thermore told me that he agreed to pay. 

44o. Q. Did he state whether he had CA^er made application in court? 

A. That I do not remember. I took this to the superintendent of 
police. He told me if he came to A'ote to cause his arrest. 

440. Q. Was the man registered ? 

A. Yes, sir; he registered and A^oted. He registered on his father’s 
citizen shii); but my colleagues would not allow me to arrest him because 
he said he AAns a citizen on account of his father’s naturalization. 

447. Q. I present to you papers purporting to be naturalization papers, 
annexed to the testimony of Marshal Murray; state Avhether the signa¬ 
ture of Charles E. LoeAv, on the naturalization paper of John Doolan, is 
the same as the signature to the papers marked ‘‘ Exhibit A.” 

A. There is a similarity betAveen the signatures. 

448. Q. Is the seal the same attached to all the papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

449. Q. Is the printed form on which Doolan’s paper is filled the same 
as the printed form in the other iiapers ? 

A. It is. 

450. Q. Hoav is the tilling in of the dates on Doolan’s paper, compared 
AAdth the filling in on the other papers? 

A. I noticed in all the papers that I handled that there Avere, as a 
general thing, three different kinds of haiulAAnlting—the date, the name 
of the party, and the county clerk’s signature; these Avere different in 
nearly all the new papers; the old papers were Idled out very differently. 

451. Q. Are the dates on Doolan’s paper filled in in a different haud- 
Avriting to the dates on “ Exhibit A?” 

A. They are decidedly different. 

452. Q. Is the name of Doolan filled in in a different handwriting from 
the names of persons on those other papers ? 

A. There is a similarity in all of them. There is a memorandum I 
made this morning from a copy of one Avhich I happened to find in my 
pocket. John Doolan resides in Fourth avenue, between One-hundred- 
and-twenty-second and One-hundred-and-twenty-third streets. 

453. Q. 'state if you knoAV of any other fraudulent naturalization papers 
being presented by parties asking to be registered as voters upon them, 
at or before the last presidential election in this city. 

A. During the registration a man representing himself as Philip 
Brady, of 933 Third avenue, presented one of those papers. He stated 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


43 


under oatli tliat Mr. Burke was liis witness when lie was naturalized, 
but that he had not known Burke five years ; he believed he knew him 
two or three years. I returned the paper to him, and he did not vote 
in this district. 

By Mr. Boss: 

454. Q. Did he testify that he was entitled to vote ? 

A. No, sir; I questioned him as to how long he had known his wit¬ 
ness, the person who must have sworn he knew him five years j he had 
known Burke for the prescribed time. 

455. Q. Did the man himself say that he had been in the country five 
years ? 

A. I don’t recollect whether he did or not. I retained his paper 
because he swore he had not known the iierson five years who vouched 
for him. He went away and left his paper, and I sent it to the superin¬ 
tendent of police. Dennis McCabe, One-hundred-and-twenty-first street, 
between First and Second avenues, declined to take the oath, and on 
examination he said he could not tell whether he had known his witness 
over a year or not. I challenged his right to register, and he declined to 
be sworn. Philip Ling, One-hundred-and-twenty-first street, between 
Third and Fourth avenues, presented himself to register. I challenged 
his right, and he stated under oath that he had never declared his 
intentions to become a citizen. Jeremiah Buckley, One-hundred-and- 
twenty-fifth street, corner of Third avenue, desired to register, and swore 
that the naturalization paper was given him, but he Avould not divulge 
the name of the party who gave it j he paid two dollars for it. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

45G. Q. Did he admit that he had never been in court I 

A. Yes, sir; he said that the committee came and told him that it 
was not necessary for him to go to court. He is a pretty honest kind of 
a fellow—a plumber. He said he could not afibrd to lose his time going 
to become naturalized j they said it was not necessary, as they would 
get his ])aper for him. He was very honest about it, and paid them two 
dollars for it. 

457. Q. What committee ? 

A. Mr. Harolau is the principal man, and a person whom they call 
Counsellor Hart—a lawyer, I believe; this was the man,who got the 
paper. Brady came back to me in company with Hart, and I declined 
to give them "to him, and reported to the superintendent ^f police. He 
told ]ne to send the papers to his office, Avhich I did; I never have heard 
from Counsellor Hart since. 

458. Q. What committee do Counsellor Hart and Mr. Haroland belong 
to ? 

A. They were both candidates of the democratic party at the last 
election for members of the board of council. 

459. Q. Were they elected? 

A. No, sir; they were both defeated. 

By Mr. Boss: 

400. Q. None of those persons that you have been speaking of voted? 

A. None of them except the first—Doolan, who voted on the strength 

of his father being a citizen. 

401. Q. He made satisfactory proof of being a legal voter, and you let 
him vote without reference to his paper ? 

A. Yes, sir; although he admitted in his evidence that he did no 
come by the paper legally. 


44 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4G2. Q. There were uo illegal votes given at that voting place that you 
know off 

A. I think now of some. I think that Joseph Coburn, the i^rize- 
hghter, was an illegal voter, inasmuch as he had been a convict. He 
voted there, and I wanted to challenge his vote, but the people told me 
I had better keep still and allow him to vote. 

4G3. Q. Were there any other illegal votes that you know off 

A. Not of my own personal knowledge. 

4G4. Q. Who" had you a conversation with since the committee has 
been in session f 

A. With nobody. 

4G5. Q. With no lawyer about the court-house f 

A. No, sir. 

Henry Beeny sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4GG. Question. What office did you hold at the last election in New 
York f 

Answer. I have been for a number of years an inspector and register 
of elections, and was so at the last election in the 9tli district of the 
Gth ward. 

4G7. Q. State if you have any knowledge of persons presenting them¬ 
selves to be registered as voters, and having naturalization papers, who 
had not been in the United States live years. 

A. I cannot say of my own iiersonal knowledge that I know A, B, or 
C to have obtained his naturalization papers illegally or that lie was 
not entitled to them. On the day I registered, persons presented them¬ 
selves with naturalization papers. On questioning them as to how or 
where they obtained them, they gave no satisfactory answer. Some of 
them had received them at their houses. I administered the oath to 
them before questioning them. A number of these were rejected on the 
ground that they could not give satisfactory answers to the questions. 
In one case I retained the paper. I think I would have retained a num¬ 
ber of them, but there was such objection that I retained only one jiaper. 
The person presenting himself with that paper made no objection to our 
retaining it, because, as he said, the paper had been sent to him. In 
quite a number of instances they were refused on the ground that they 
could not make any satisfactory explanation of how or where they 
obtained the papers. 

4G8. Q. Wlilit number of persons were denied the right to register, so 
far as you know, on that ground f 

A. I can clearly recollect about 10 or 12 in our district who could not 
answer the question as to where they got the papers, and they were 
rejected on the ground that they did not know where or how they got 
them. 

4G9. Q. Hid you swear all who presented certificates of naturalization f 

A. No, sir; I don’t think we swore half of them. 

470. Q. What number of those papers were there in your district f 

A. I should think that about Inilf or perhaps a little more than half 
were naturalized voters. There were registered in the district 381 voters, 
I think. 

471. Q. How long have you lived in this city ? 

A. Ever since I was a child. 

472. Q. Have you sufficient knowledge of the nationality of the people 
of this city to know wliat proportion of the male citizens over 21 years 
of age are native-born ciflzens, and what proportion are foreigners ! 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


45 


A. Tlie foreign-born element so i)redominates and preponderates over 
the native, that it is hard to risk a calculation. I should think that two- 
thirds at least are of foreign birth. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

473. Q. Those parties whose names were excluded from the registra¬ 
tion because they could give no account of how they came by the papers, 
did they, in any case, establish the fact that they had been in the court 
to get their papers “? 

A. No, sir. In some cases they said they had been in court, but in 
cross-questioning them they told difterent stories, and hnally we came 
to the conclusion that they had no right to the i)apers, and we rejected 
them as voters. 

By Mr. Boss: 

474. Q. If a man could not recollect when and where he got his papers 
you rejected him ? 

A. Yes, sir; if he could not answer clearly how he came into posses¬ 
sion of his papers, we rejected them as illegal. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

475. Q. Did any of them admit that they had never been in courts 

A. Some of them admitted that they never were in court, and some 

admitted that Mr. so-and-so got them for them. 

47(1. Q. Were any of them fresh arrivals? 

A. I cannot say that. 

By Mr. Boss: 

477. Q. Have you sent any communication to any person here with 
reference to your testimony ? 

A. I drew up an affidavit, sworn to by myself and by my republican 
colleague, and handed it to the Loyal League Club. I never heard any- 
thmg of it since. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

478. Q. How long have you lived in this city? 

A. Since 1824. I served my apprenticeship as a shoemaker for 10 
years. 1 followed the business for 10 years. I afterwards went to Cali¬ 
fornia. For seven years I had charge of a factory for manufacturing 
fire-arms, then I went into the Union army. After I came back I was 
offered a political situation, and hold one now, as deputy tax commis¬ 
sioner for the city and county of New York. 

479. Q. By whom appointed? 

A. By Commissioners Brown and Allen. I have held my present posi¬ 
tion for two years. 

480. Q. What is the district covered by your collection ? 

A. The 9th and 15th wards. 

481. Q. In all your experience, covering 20 years or more, what has 
there been to familiarize you in any special way with the population of 
the city as to its component parts ? 

A. I am hardly prepared to answer that question; there was a time 
when I could have answered it. In 1844, myself and a few others asso¬ 
ciated ourselves together and called ourselves a land reform association. 
We went for the homestead bill, and worked for it till it was passed. 
At the time I was working for that movement I could have aiisw^ered 
this question much more satisfactorily to myself and to the committee. 
I have almost lost my interest in reformatory measures, having spent 
most of my life and all the money I could spare in advocating some 


46 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


measure of reform, and I liave ceased almost to think about the people. 
I can answer the ciiiestion with no satisfaction to myself. 

482. Q. Then yon have not answered with any satishiction to yonrself ? 

A. I have said that two-thirds were foreigners. I think the foreign 

population of New York is more than two-thirds. 

By Mr. Boss: 

483. Q. AVhen you speak of two-tliirds, do you mean i^opulation, or 
voters ? 

A. 1 speak of population. 

484. Q. What proportion of the foreign population are voters? 

A. There are undoubtedly a good many of foreign birth who are not 
voters. 

485. Q. Are there one-third or one-fourth of the males 21 years of age 
who are not voters ? 

A. I should think there are not so many as that; there are not more 
than one-eighth, I should think, who would be entitled to vote by natu¬ 
ralization, who are not so naturalized and entitled to vote. There is 
onl}^ one class of foreign population that does not desire to become 
voters. 

486. Q. What class is that ? 

A. The English ^predominate in that. 

New York, Tuesday^ December 22, 1868. 

John Henry Springer sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

487. Question. AYhat office did you hold at the last election in this city? 

Answer. I was register and inspector in the 6th district of the 19th 

ward. 

488. Q. State whether you know of any persons seeking to be regis¬ 
tered as voters in this district who were refused registration because 
they presented fraudulent naturalization papers. 

A. There was one man by the name of Kupert who had his citizen’s 
papers. AYe registered his name and he voted at the presidential elec¬ 
tion. I understood from the statement of two men who came to this 
country with him, that he was only a year and a half in the country. 

480. Q. l)o you know of any persons who voted who had not been in 
the country five years ? 

A. No, sir. 

490. Q. I)o you know how Eupert voted ? 

A. Yes, sir; he voted for Seymour and Blair. I was an inspector, 
and we knew almost every ticket that came in. I knew them by the size 
and the printing of the endorsement. The Grant and Colfax tickets had 
the largest print. 

Gabriel A. Arnoux sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

491. Question. What office did you hold in the city at the last election ? 

Answer. I was an inspector of elections in the 3d district of the 17th 

ward. 

492. Q. Do you know August Mueller ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

493. Q. I present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate of natu¬ 
ralization issued to August Mueller, dated the 20th of October, 1868, 
signed by Charles E. Loew, the clerk of the city; state if you have ever 
seen it before, and what you know of it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


47 


A. I have. On the 31st of October, about 7 o’clock in the evening, 
Mueller came in to be registered as a voter in the 9th district. My col¬ 
league, Mr. Kust, talked to him in German, interpreting to me his 
answers under oath. Itnst asked him where he lived; he told him. 
The next question was, “ Where did you get this paper f ’ Mueller said, 
“ I got it in Avenue C.” Kust asked, “ Did you go to a court to get that 
paper f’ The ansAver was, “ No.” Kust then said, “ You cannot register 
here,” and he turned around to me: Mr. Arnoux, what do you think f” 
Said I, “ That paper I Avant; it Avill be useful to us.” Mr. AVhite had 
been particular to tell us to stop any fraudulent naturalization. 

494. Q. Was the man registered 

A. He Avas not. 

495. Q. Hid he say whether he had ever made an application to 
naturalize himself ? 

A. He did not say whether he had or not. 

49G. Q. I present to you three papers annexed to the testimony of Mar¬ 
shal Murray ; compare the signature of the clerk, the seal, and the 
printed form with the paper presented by Mueller, and state Avhether 
they appear to be similar ? 

A. I should say they Avere alike in all particulars. 

497. Q. State hoAV the name of August Mueller in the body of his cer¬ 
tificate compares Avith the names in those other certificates ? 

A. I should think the Avriting A\'as the same. 

498. Q. State whether the filling in of dates corresponds ? - 

A. They are in different handwriting. 


By Mr. Boss: 

499. Q. This man did not pay ? 

A, No. 

500. Q. He was not registered? 

A. No, sir ; I would not alloAV him to register. 

501. Q. What was the reason? 

A. On accountof his not getting his certificate by going to the court 
and swearing in court. 

502. Q. Hid he say that he had not been to court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

503. Q. Were there any illegal Azotes given at your voting ifiace ? 

A. I guess not. 

504. Q. It AA as all kept pure and right ? 

A. We tried to keep it pure and right. 

505. Q. And you think you did ? 

A. We think we did, 

500. Q. What proportion of the foreigners registered on the certificates 
of naturalization Avere sworn in your district ? 

A. Nearly every one. We made every man SAA^ear before he was regis¬ 
tered, unless he Avas personally knoAvn to the registrar. 

507. Q. What was the complexion of the board? 

A. Two republicans and tAvo democrats, and Avere in session together. 

William W. YounGt sworn and examined. 


By the Chairman : 

508. Question. What office did you hold in the last election in New 
" Answer. I was one of the insiiectors in the 4th election district of the 

509. Q. I noAv present to you four papers purporting to be certificates 


48 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


of naturalization issned by the su])reme court of this city, each signed 
‘‘ Charles E. Loew, clerk,and dated October, 1808: one to Henry Stein,^ 
dated the 21st of October; one to Charles Warneck, dated the 19th of 
October; one to William Lucas, dated the 15th of October; one to Gott¬ 
lieb Kalfenberger, dated the 23d of October; state if these papers were 
each presented by the person in whose favor it purports to have been 
issued for the purpose of being registered as a voter*? 

A. Yes, sir. The paper of Henry Stein was presented at the meeting 
of the board of registrars in October. We asked him where he had 
obtained it. His answer was not satisfactory to us, and we did not regis¬ 
ter him. I asked him whether he had been live years in this country, 
and he said he had not been. Charles Warneck x^resented his paper, 
and said he had obtained it in court. I asked him what court, and he 
said he could nob say, as it was dark. I asked him where the court was 
sitting—down town or u}^ town. He said that he could not tell exactly, 
but that he thought it was down town. I asked him if it was in the 
City Hall. He said he thought it was. I asked him if he went u]) stairs 
in the City Hall. He could not recollect whether he did or not. Said 
I, Hid you get it in Centre street ?’’ He did not know where Centre 
street was. We rejected his paper. The other two men I cannot exactly 
remember. One of them stated that he obtained his papers at the Essex 
market police court, but he said afterwards that he got it from a man 
by the name of Frederick Itupper. Kaffenberger said he got his paper 
from a fiiend of his. I asked him who the friend was. I onty recollect 
that his ]iame was Fred. The other name I cannot recollect. He said 

Fred” had gone with him as a witness. I asked him how long “ Fred” 
had known him—for a year, and he was pretty positive he had known 
him for two years. I asked him how long he had known Fred.” He 
said he had known him i^retty nearly the same length of time. There 
was a little difference in their knowledge of each other. We rejected 
his paper. Afterwards we came to find out that he got it from a man 
in Houston street. In all of these cases we could not get the names 
of witnesses except “ Fred,” or John,” or some Christian name. 

By Mr. Boss: 

510. Q. And where a man could not recollect the name of the witness 
you rejected his paper? 

A. Yes, sir; being satisfied that the papers were not issued in a regu¬ 
lar way. 

511. Q. N’one of these men registered or voted? 

A. NTo, sir. 

512. Q. Were there any illegal votes given at your precinct ? 

A. I think not. 

513. Q. You kept them all out ? 

A. We were very cautious. I have been an inspector for six or seven 
years, and I had made up my mind that we might as well have the thing 
go on straight. Everything we thought illegal was thrown out. 

514. Q. If any man could not recollect where he got his papers, or who 
his witness was, you threw out his vote ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

William A. Jenner sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

515. Question. What office did you hold at the last election in iS'ew 
York ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 49 

Ans^Yer. I Avas cliairman of tlie board of registers and inspection, in 
tlie otli election district of the IStli Avard. 

516. Q. State AAiiether any persons presented theinselA^es claiming 
registration on certificates of naturalization Avliicli yon ascertained to 
be fraudulent. 

A. Tlie first one presented himself the Saturday preceding election. 
The certificate AA^as of recent date, and I snpiiosecl it to IniA’^e been ille¬ 
gally obtained. I challenged him and administered the oath, lie gave 
his name as James Eonrke, residing at 142 East Twenty-fourth street. 
He exhibited, at the time of presenting himself for registration, a certifi¬ 
cate of naturalization. The certificate Avas dated the 10th of October, 
1868, and purported to be issued from the supreme court; Avas sealed Avitli 
the seal of the court, and Avas signed by the signature of the county 
clerk, Charles E. Locav ; and in reply to my questions he said he had 
been in the country only three years, and no longer; that he had ncA^er 
been in the army, liad ncA^er taken any oath of aUegiance, and had ncA^er 
appeared in any court in any country; that he had been directed by 
one Florence Scannel, or one of his agents, to apply at a place in Sec¬ 
ond aA^enue, near Thirty-second street, Avhere he could get his certifi¬ 
cate; that he AA cnt there, and they told him to come again in a few days 
and obtain the certificate. He went through no ceremony whatCA^er to 
obtain it—that is, he took no oath of allegiance, and was asked no ques¬ 
tions. He Avas in the room and saAva number of men gathered together 
at one or tAvo tables and engaged in writing. On the same day, or on a 
subsequent day, another man offered a certificate of naturalization, resem¬ 
bling the preAfious one which had been rejected. Having ►been chal¬ 
lenged he said, under oath, that he had been in the country but tAvo 
years; that he had never taken any oath of allegiance; that he had 
iieA^er been in any court-house; had neAW been to the City Hall; that 
his certificate Avas brought to him; that his application Avas sim^fiy 
handed to him, and he Avas directed to A’ote upon it. His name and resi¬ 
dence I took down at the time, but the memorandum of it Avas put in 
with the other papers of the board, and Avhat has become of it 1 do not 
knoAv. 

517. Q. Are you a lawyer! 

A. I am. 

518. Q. Hoav long liaA^e you been practicing law in this city! 

A. Nearly tAvo years. 

519. Q. What courts in this city and county are authorized to grant 
certificates of naturalization! 

A. The United States court, the supreme court, the superior court, and 
the court of common pleas. 

520. Q. Is there any court in Second avenue, near Thirty-second street, 
that is entitled to grant them! 

A. There is no court of record in Second avenue, and no court 
authorized to grant certificates of naturalization. 

521. Q. Ho you knoAV anything of the character of this place in Second 
avenue and Thirty-second street! 

A. No, except by rumor. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

522. Q. What party did these men who presented these papers 
belong to! 

A. 1 think they belonged to the democratic party. The ground of 
my knoAvledge is this: in each case they Avere brought in by some person 
who Avas of some political notoriety in the Avard. And they Avere brought 
4 T 


50 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ill to register mider liis auspices; brougiit in by a member of tbe demo¬ 
cratic committee. I believe Florence Scannel brought in the first one. 

523. Q. Who brought in the second? 

A. I cannot recollect. 

524. Q. How do you know he was a democrat? 

A. Simply from the expressions he used at the time, and the persons 
with him used. 

525. Q. What expressions did he use? 

A. That I cannot recollect; but I remember that at the time he was 
there, there were comments made by the board, by which we judged 
that he was a democrat. 

52G. Q. Is it not true that you did not know a single thing about it? 

A. No, sir. 

527. Q. How do you know? 

A. From the exjiressions used at the time. 

528. Q. What were they? 

A. 1 cannot recollect? but the impressions they made I do recollect. 
I can testify to the impressions made on my mind at the time, though I 
cannot testify to the thing which created them. 

By the Chairman : 

529. Q. What iiolitical phrties existed in New York at the last election ? 

A. Republican and democrats. 

530. Q. And who were the candidates for governor ? 

A. John T. Hoffman was the candidate of the democratic party and 
John A. Griswold was the candidate of the republican i>arty. 

By Mr. Ross: 

531. Q. How was the board of inspectors constituted politically? 

A. Two republicans and two democrats. 

532. Q. Hid you permit any illegal votes to be given there? 

A. Not to our knowledge. 

533. Q. You think there were none given? 

A. I think there was one. 

534. Q. Whose was that? 

A. His name I do not recollect, but I think he was what is called a 
repeater. 

535. Q. What made you think he was a repeater? 

A. For two reasons. At the elections in November there were from 
130 to 150 persons registered from the Compton House. Most of them 
were young men, ranging from 21 to 25 years of age. The^ used to come 
in late in the evening, in groups of four or five. With most groups 
Florence Scannel came. Each of these young men was challenged by 
me, and the oath administered. On each occasion Scannel prompted 
them to answer correctly the questions. Each of them said that he lived 
at the Compton House, and on my attempting to inquire what they under¬ 
stood as a residence at the Compton House, they would in some cases 
say that they paid their board by the day; in some cases by the week. 
That they slept there two or three nights out of the week, and the rest 
of the time they sle^it Avith their mistresses. 

By Mr. Ross: 

536. Q. And Scannel used to come all the time? 

A. Not all the time; I think about half the time. 

537. Q. How many of these groups told you that they slept with their 
mistresses ? 

A. I think they told that in about a dozen instances. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


51 


538. Q. Did you ever see these repeating books ? 

A. We did have a ehallenge book fnriiished to us, I believe by the 
Union League eominittee, or by the police coinniissioners. It contained 
the names of most of those parties. The names were also published in 
the Tribune the day of election, which w^as, I believe, the 3d day of 
November. The same edition of the Tribune furnished an item of news 
to the effect that Florence Scanuel had been indicted before the grand 
jury in Pliiladelphia ; that a requisition had been forwarded to Governor 
Fenton for his rendition in Philadelphia. During election day Florence 
Scannel was not present at the polls. I was informed he was nowhere to 
be found in the city. None of those whom we had on the list as repeaters 
appeared to vote, though they were all registered except perhaps four or 
five; and I think that only one or two of those did vote. I thought at 
the time they were entitled to vote. One also did vote; but he answered 
the questions so extremely vague that I did not think he was entitled to. 

539. Q. Those 25 or 30 men that you suspected of being repeaters, 
were they registered ? 

A. They were registered; they are the men I refer to. 

540. Q. Where does this man Scannel live now 

A. He is one of the proprietors of the Comx)ton House, corner of 
Twenty-third street and Fourth avenue. 

541. Q. You do not know of any illegal vote except that one or two; 
you do not know of any illegal vote, unless it was that one ? 

A. That was the only one I detected; there were some whom I sus¬ 
pected, but the suspicion I did not venture to act upon. 

542. Q. Did you swear all the persons having certificates of naturali¬ 
zation when they presented them for registration 

A. I did swear every one while I was there. It was not the custom 
of the board to swear them all, but 1 did so Avhile I was there. 

Egbert Murray, United States marshal, recalled and examination 
continued. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

543. Question. State how many election precincts or districts there 
are in the city of New York. 

Answer. Three hundred and forty. 

544. Q. How are the officers by whom the elections in these several 
districts are to be held appointed I 

A. We have a board of registrars in each election district. Two of 
these registrars are supposed to represent one party, and the other two 
to represent the other party. Their duties are to take the registration’ 
of voters and to receive the ballots on the day of election. At sundown,, 
when the poll closes, two canvassers make their appearance j one is sup¬ 
posed to represent one party, and the other is supposed to represent the 
other x>arty. They count the votes and report the results. The meir 
who take the votes have nothing to do with the counting. Those regis¬ 
trars and canvassers are appointed by the board of police commissioners 
in New York. 

545. Q. By reason of what law is it that they are made to represent 
the respective parties in that way"^ 

A. 1 cannot tell yoiL about that; the fact is, however, that they are’ 
supposed to represent each party. 

540. Q. How is the peace preserved at the respective polling places f 

A. There are two policemen at each polling place. 

547. Q. By whom are they appointed ? 

A. By the police commissioners. 


52 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


548. Q. In the same way ^ 

A. Yes, sir. 

549. Q. On the same principle as to politics ? 

A. No; I don’t think ])olitics have anything to do with that. 

550. Q. As a general thing in the last election, were those policemen 
all of one party, or of both parties j and if all of one party, what party 
was it ? 

A. The police force of New York amonnts to 2,200 or 2,300 men. 
About 80 per cent, of these men are democrats; the balance are repub¬ 
licans ; that is a general estimate which I have heard made, and it is 
my own calcnlation. 

551. Q. Have yon that information from the board of police commission¬ 
ers or from the chief of police, or is it simply yonr general impression ? 

A. I have talked with the sni)erintendent of police, I have talked with 
the president of the board of police, and I think that is about their idea. 

552. Q. As to the persons Avho act as policemen at the polling jdaces, 
hoAv are they constituted as to their politics ? 

A. I don’t think there is any reference made to their politics. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

553. Q. They are not special police, but detailed police ? 

A. They are detailed. The police is dMded into precincts; each pre¬ 
cinct has so many men—perhaps GO; perhaps 80. Half of these men 
are on duty and the other half are in the house or at home. On election 
day they are all on duty; tAvo men are detailed to each polliiig place, 
and then there is a resei'A^e kept in the house in case of disturbance. 

544. Q. Who makes the details f 

A. The captain of the precinct. This police force is organized, as to 
the mode or manner of discharging its duties, by the chief of police, Mr. 
Kennedy; but in these specific cases the captain orders. 

555. Q. In the organization, as a general system throughout the city, 
it is controlled b^- the superintendent ? 

A. To a certain extent it is. In the matter of details, that matter is 
in the poAver of the president of the board, Mr. Acton. 

55G. Q. What is he politically'? 

A. He is a republican. The superintendent simj)ly carries out the 
orders of the president. Perhaps he has power to some extent, but to 
what extent I do not knoAv; but in the general detail of the Avhole estab¬ 
lishment I am xery contident that the poAA'er is in the president. 

557. Q. In A ieAV of the general organization of the police force of the 
city, is it not difficult for any party, or any number of men belonging to 
either party, successfully to practice many frauds upon election day ^ 

A. No, sir. 

558. Q. Why not ? 

A. It depends altogether upon the man whom they haA^e got to deal 
with. If I Avere superintendent of this polite there"Avould not be any 
election frauds committed in New York. I think I understand the busi¬ 
ness, and I think I have got the courage to carry it out. I take for 
granted that the stuffing of ballot-boxes is as great a crime against the 
hiAV as the commission of burglary or highway robbery. It "is just as 
much the duty of the police to prevent the one as to prevent the other. 

To take this Gtli Avard : there are from 1,500 to 1,G00 legal voters in it_ 

no more; they repeat in this ward to the amount of 3,000 or 4,000 beyond 
the legal votes. If I were the superintendent of police, I Avould send for 
the cai)tain and his sergeants four or live days before the day of regis¬ 
tration, and AA ould say to the captain, Sir, there are about i,G00 legal 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


53 


voters 111 your ward; it is just as luucli your duty to prevent illegal 
votes going into the ballot-box as it is to prevent a man’s going into a 
man’s house foriably; and I expect yon to do it; if yon don’t, 1 will dis¬ 
miss yon and every man of yonand I would do it. 

559. Q. Froin all that, are we to infer that Snxierintendent Kennedy 
does not act with sufficient vigor or courage*? 

A. I have given yon my idea. 

560. Q. And yon also have perplexed ns by saying that these frauds 
are committed; do yon mean us to infer that other officers do not do 
their duty *? 

A. According to my idea of it, they do not. 

By Mr„ Dickey: 

561. Q. As I understand yon, the police do not regard ballot-box stuff¬ 
ing as one of the offences for which they are to arrest parties, as they 
would arrest for robbery or other offences ? 

A. It is quite evident they do not. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

562. Q. In the organization of this board of police commissioners two 
were democrats and two were republicans! 

A. Yes, sir. 

563. Q. The superintendent of iiolice is a republican ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

564. Q. How is he appointed ! 

A. By the board. 

565. Q. So one democrat had to vote for him as superintendent! 

A. Originally there were three republicans on the board to one demo¬ 
crat. 

566. Q. And it was during that constitution of the board that he was 
elected! 

A. Yes, sir. * 

567. Q. And he has continued in the place ever since! 

A. Yes, sir. 

568. Q. At present the board is a tie! 

A. Yes, sir; and they cannot remove the superintendent nor change 
him. 

569. Q. Is it a practice or not that Superintendent Kennedy is at any 
time, or under any circumstances, a memher of the board, so as to give 
or cast a vote ! 

A. He controls nothing, except to execute the orders of the board. 

570. Q. And the board, therefore, can only make orders by a majority 
of the four ! 

A. Yes, sir; there are some facts in respect to the appointment of 
inspectors and canvassers which I had occasion to interfere with during 
last fall. I will state them to the committee if they desire. It does 
not make any difference here in Kew York how many ballots you have 
got in the ballot-box. 

571. Q. We are advised here that certain officers receive ballots, and 
that at a certain hour of the day they turn over the ballot-boxes to two 
other officers called the canvassers ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

572. Q. And that the canvassers are constituted in the same way! 

A. They are supposed to be so constituted; I was going to explain 

that to you. I discovered in September last that some forty or more of 
these canvassers, who were the most noisy men in the republican party 
in this city, invariably turned ux) as canvassers; and that they were at 


54 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tlie same time holding sinecure positions in the street commissioner’s 
office at a day; and that the only duties that they performed was to 
act as canvassers, and to get this appointment with a view to counting 
the votes; I knew what that meant, and I called the attention of onr 
State central committee to the fact. I know all about this counting a 
man out and counting a man in ; I knew it was done for money j I knew 
that if you and I were canvassers in a certain election district in l^ew 
York, and that if there were 1,000 votes i)olled in that district, that if 
John Doe got 550 and Kichard Eoe 450, Jolin Doe had a majority of 
100; but I could not understand that John Doe would get 950 and Eich: 
ard Eoe only 50, unless you and I understood each other. I probed the 
thing pretty fully, and Avent before our State central committee and 
made a statement of the facts; they api)ointed a committee, of Avhich I 
was chairman, to A^entilate these facts, and we did it pretty thoroughly. 
Instead of 40 men being in that position I found three times the num¬ 
ber—scaly fellows who were in the market j I struck out myself 225 
names from this entire list. They held the office of registrars and can- 
Amssers. 

573. Q. Professing to be republicans ? 

A. They were, in point of fact. 

574. Q. And Avere bought over and were acting in the interest of the 
democratic i)arty ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

575. Q. Does the laAv require that the votes shall be cauAvassed in the 
presence of other parties than the caiiAmssers ? 

A. The law requires that they shall be cauAmssed pnbli(4y, but during 
the iiiA^estigation Avhich I had occasion to make, I found some cases 
where they had locked themseh^es up in a room, taken the ballot-box in 
there, and can Amassed it to suit themseHes. 

57G. Q. Violating the laAV entirely ? * 

A. Violating the law; the poll-list shows that so many votes were 
polled, and that the candidates liaA^e run i)retty even, but the cauAmss- 
ers took so many from A to give them to B, and the total tallies. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

577. Q. You say that these fellows* aaTio were thus in the market are 
allowed to hold sinecure placet^; about Avhat office ? 

A. In the street commissioner’s office. 

578. Q. Yon mean by sinecure offices, places AAffiere they haA^e no ser¬ 
vice to perform for the public ? 

A. None at all. 

579. Q. And their only service is to indiAuduals and to those in whose 
interest they are acting and avIio emi^loy them ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

580. Q. And they draw for that $3 a day for the whole year? 

A. Yes, sir. 

581. Q. Who is the street commissioner ? 

A. A democrat, George W. McLane. William M. TAveed is his 
ideputy. 

582. Q. Is his deimty a democrat, too ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

583. Q. Is the street commissioner elected by the people, or appointed ? 

A. He is appointed. 

584. Q. By Avhoni ? 

A. By the mayor and the common council, I think. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


55 


585. Q. The police board has no jurisdiction over the streets ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

58G. Q. Who employs Mr. Whiting to clean the streets ? 

A. He has got a contract from the city. Other parties got the con¬ 
tract originally, and I believe he purchased it from them. 

587. Q. I want to know how you ascertained that this condition existed 
to such an alarming extent; this condition of fraud and infidelity on the 
part of your political friends, to their duty ? 

A. By a most searching examination. 

588. Q. Give us an illustration. 

A. It would be impossible for me to give you one cdse in detail at present. 

589. Q. Did you make this investigation yourself? 

A. I got the information through other parties, and then I made the 
investigation. 

590. Q. Were these other parties in your employment? 

A. Some of them were and some were not. 

591. Q. Did you employ any person to seek this kind of service ? 

A. After I had been appointed on the committee, I sent for different 
men in the city and con-suited with them as to their opinion in regard to 
this man, and that man, and the other man, what his fidelity and integ¬ 
rity was. 

592. Q. I asked you whether you employed persons to represent such 
characters, and thus to seek emifioymeut and then to sell out ? 

A. I did not. 

593. Q. Your opinion you obtained by your own inquiries and by those 
of others, in such a general way as you coidd command ? 

A. I am entirely satisfied with it that I am correct. 

5ff4. Q. The whole impression you haA^e is based upon inquiries made 
in that general way ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

595. Q. You could get at nothing more specific than what you men¬ 
tioned ? 

A. In some cases it was very specific. 

590. Q. Give us an example. 

A. In relation to the 7th ward, where I formerly resided, it was very 
specific. It was represented to me by citizens living up there, that these 
men were on the pay-roll at the street commissionei’s office, and that they 
were acting in the interest of the democratic party, although professing 
to be republicans. There are perhaps 500 or 000, or perhaps 800 repub¬ 
lican votes polled in tliat section of the city on any local ticket that we 
run there, and sometimes upon the general ticket you find it mixed up, 
as if it was a democratic ticket, and as if it Avas entirely in tliat interest. 
I took all the means in my poAver to investigate this thing till I satisfied 
myself that the statement Avas correct. In the 7th ward I think there 
are 11 districts. Perhaps 7 or 8 of the 11 were Avrong, while the other 3 
or 4 were ri ght. 

597. Q. By Avrong and right what do you mean ? 

A. I mean that these men were selling out. 

598. Q. The men Avho pretended to represent you ? 

A. Yes, sir; but if you desire to go into that question you can send for 
the men and examine them. 

Mr. Kerr. I request you now, at a convenient time, to furnish the 
chairman of the committee with the names of the men from whom you 
got this information. 


56 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


590. Q. So far as you know, and as your investigation deA^eloped tlie 
fact, were all of tliese frauds and deceptions on tlie part of your political 
friends, or were not both parties bought and sold for inouey ? In other 
words, do you say that that mode of fraud was conliiied to men profess¬ 
ing to act with you, and who were purchased by the democratic party f 

A. Yes, sir. 

GOO. Q. Were they also practiced by your friends towards the demo¬ 
crats ? 

A. No, sir; I think not. I never heard of a case of tliat kind. 

GOl. Q. You do not think the republicans have bought up any demo¬ 
crats 

A. No, sir; I think they could not. 

G02. Q. Almost all the patronage of the street commissioner’s office is 
entirely democratic, I believe? 

A. Entirely democratic. 

G03. Q. Do they emi)loy men of the republican party in that office? 

A. Not, except for a i)uri)ose. Here are five naturalization i)apers 
which Kruger obtained in the supreme court from one of the clerks who 
handed them to him. They have not been out of my hand since. I 
have written on them “Clerk Court.” I desire to put them in here, and 
Kruger will identify them when you send for him. These certificates 
oidy cost a dollar apiece. 

G()4. Q. Describe the papers purporting to be certificates of naturali¬ 
zation, so that they may be hereafter identified if necessary. 

A. I wrote out the list of these names myself and handed to this man 
Kruger. They are all fictitious. I have written on each of the certifi¬ 
cates, “ Clerk Court.” They are each dated the 2()th of October, 1868, 
signed Charles E. Loew, clerk, and are filled in with the names of Patrick 
Henney, Joseph Herbert, Michael Dunn, James McCarty, and Hugh 
Smith. 

By Mr. DioioeY: 

G05. Q. I understand you that these fictitious names were furnished {o 
Kruger and that he brought back these pai^ers? 

A. Yes, sir. 

GOG. Q. And these were the same papers that were returned to you by 
Kruger ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Henry Kruger sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

GOT. Question. State your residence. 

Answer. I reside in 272 Mulberry street. I have been a resident of 
this city for IG years. • 

G08. Q. I now present to you five papers, purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization referred to in the testimony of Marshal Murray and 
which he has identified by writing thereon “Clerk Court.” Please state 
where they were procured, and how. 

A. A mail named Kromberg, in the marshal’s office, handed me a five- 
dollar bill and told me to get naturalization papers for a certain list of 
names. I gave the five-dollar bill to John Ey, and he handed it to a man 
in the supreme court who went into the court to get the papers. He 
handed Ey the five papers and Ey handed him the money. I saw them 
handed out from the supreme court by a little, small man with a black 
moustache to John Ey. The five papers were then handed to Kromberg, 
who had given me the five dollars. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 57 

C09. Q. Wlio furnislied tlie names in the five i)apers? 

A. I do not know. 

By Mr. Dicicey: 

GIO. Q. If I understand yon Kroinberg gave yon five dollars, yon gave 
it to Ey, Ey gave it to the little man with the black moustache, and the 
little man went into the court and brought out these papers to Ey? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Gil. Q. How long was it then after Ey went into the court-room 
before the little man with a black moustache came out and gave the 
l)apers to Ey? 

A. About a quarter of an hour. 

G12. Q. Were any witnesses sworn in this case? 

A. I was not in the court room j neither was Ey. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

G13. (^. Do you know that these pai)ers were the same that were 
handed to Ey ? 

A. 1 cannot swear they were the same papers as the little man 
handed to Ey. 

G14. Q. You only know some paioers were handed to him? 

A. Yes, sirj five. 

By the Chairman: 

G15. Q. Here are three papers (marked Exhibit A’’) purporting to 
be certificates of naturalization annexed to the testimony of Marshal 
Murray. They have been torn and i)asted together. State what you 
know about them. 

A. I thought to catch that little man, and 1 met him in the park the 
next day, and gave him six iiames—fictitious names which I had written 
on a piece of paper. I met him the same night, and he told me to wait 
for him in Chambers street, and he woifid be back in half an hour and 
give me the six certificates. He came back with three papers and 
asked me for three tlollars. I told him I would give him no money 
until he gave me the six papers. So he took the three papers and tore 
them into pieces before my eyes, and then threw them on the saloon 
floor. Another man came down and picked the pieces up and took 
them to the marshal’s ofiice and he pasted them together. These are 
the same papers. The names are fictitious. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

GIG. Q. Who was the little man who brought them to you in Cham¬ 
bers street? 

A. At that time I used to meet him every day, and he gave me 
several false names. 

John Ey sworn and examined. 

By the Ch^kmAN: 

G17. Question. How long have you resided in the city of Kew York ? 

Answer. Over 11 years. 

G18. Q. I present to you five papers purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization, referred to in the testimony of Kruger and Marshal 
Murray; state if you ever saw these papers before. 

A. I had these five papers once. 

G19. Q. Where did you get them? 

A. JMr. Kruger handed me five dollars one night and asked me to go 
over to the court and see the man who has got a stand there selling 


58 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


apples and sandwiclies. So I went over tliere and the man was not 
there. There was one hoy there. Another yonng- fellow at the same 
stand asked me what I wanted. I told him I was looking tor that man, 
and that he was not there, and that I was willing to wait. Said he. 

Give me that money and I will get you the citizen papers; I can do 
it just as well as he can.” I gave him the names, and he came hack in 
five or six minutes with the papers. I looked at the five papers and 
handed him the five-dollar hill. I took the five papers and gave them 
to Kromherg, and these are they. 

620. Q. Who gave you the papers? 

A. A young man. I saw him a couple of times in the court. I do 
not know his name. If I should see him again 1 would know him. 

621. Q. What hnsiness is he engaged in ? 

A. He is rimning a naturalization office. 

622. Q. What court-room was it that you got these papers in? 

A. The supreme court. I gave him the names and waited in the hall 
outside while he went in, and in five minutes he returned with the 
papers complete. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

623. Q. You went to see one man, and you got the papers from another ? 

A. Yes, sir; the man 1 went to see I could not find. This other fel¬ 
low said he could get them, and he went into the court-room and 
brought them right out. He said he could do it just as well as any 
other man. 

624. Q. I present to you three papers purporting to he certificates of 
naturalization annexed to the testimony of Marshal Murray, and marked 
“Exhibit A;” look at the seal, the printing, and the signature, and state 
whether they are in all respects similar to those which you i)rocured. 

A. Yes, sir; they are all the same. 

Joseph Cottrell sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

625. Question. What is your official position? 

Answer. I am a metropolitan iiolice officer, and have been for the last 
eleven years. 

626. Q. Are you acquainted with Charles Edward Yorton ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

627. Q. In what business has he been engaged during this*year? 

A. I do not know of any, except doing naturalization business. 

628. Q. With Avhat political party does he act? 

A. He styles himself president of the Young Men’s Democratic Club 
of the 22d ward. 

629. Q. State whether you arrested him; and if so, for what? 

A. Between the 2()th and 26th of October I was informed by a German 
that Charles E. Norton Avas getting naturalization pa^iers out for Ger 
mans in the upper part of our Avard, without their going to court—merely 
taking their names, getting their naturalization papers, and delivering 
them to them at two dollars apiece. He has been indicted for it in 
the United States court. 

630. Q. I now iiresent to you fi\^e papers purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization issued by the supreme court of the State of New York, 
held in the city and county of New York, all dated 19th October, 1868— 
one to Melchoir Heimburch, one to Mathias Wolf, one to Peter Pohl, 
one to Charles Fox, and one to Timothy Hurrelle; state what you know 
of them. 

A. This German told me that he knew of Mathias Wolf obtaining a 
naturalization xiaper. I went to Wolf. He could not speak English. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


59 


I then went to his employer, Mr. Michael Gran, who keeps a brewery, 
corner of Sixtieth street and Ninth avenue, and asked him if he knew any- 
thino’ of one of his men, Mathias Wolf, obtaining a naturalization paper. 
He said he did 5 that he had just told him about it, and that he (Gran) 
had told him not to use it under any circumstances, or he would 
get himself into trouble. He brought Wolf before me and acted as 
interpreter. Wolf handed me the paper and said that Charles E. Norton 
had given it to him for two dollars. He said lie knew of several others 
whom he had got iiapers for; that he knew him to get 30 in a day. I 
then looked for Norton for a couple of days and failed to find him. 

631. Q. State whether all of those papers were surrendered to you by 
the persons whcse names appear in them? 

A. They were. 

By Mr. Dickey^ : 

632. Q. Did they all allege that they got them from Norton ? 

A. Yes. 

633. Q. Did they state whether or not they had been in a court? 

A. They said they had not been, and had not left their places of busi¬ 
ness. They told me of four others who had procured papers. I went 
to them. They said they had heard of those fellows getting into trouble 
and had destroyed their jiapers. 

By the Chairman: 

634. Q. Where is Norton now ? 

A. In Ludlow street jail, in this city, for the offence. 

[Witness identifies the five papers as corresponding in seal, signature, 
and form with those of Exhibit A.] 

By Mr. Kerr : 

635. Q. State with what political party you acted in the last canvass ? 

A. I am a republican, but I sometimes vote for democrats too. 

By the Chairman : 

636. Q. Do you know what political party those men belonged to or 
acted with whose names api)ear in these certificates? 

A. Only from their own words. They are democrats. Norton told 
me himself that he was president of a democratic club. 

New York, December 23, 1868. 

Charles Fox sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

637. Question. Where have you resided during the present year? 

Answer. In this State. 

638. Q. I present to you a paper, purporting to be a certificate of natu¬ 
ralization, referred to in the testimony of Joseph Cottrell, dated Octo¬ 
ber 10 , 1868, to Charles Fox, signed ‘^Charles E. Loew, Clerkstate if 
you ever saw it before ? 

A. I did. It was given to me by Charles Edward Norton. 

639. Q. Did you apply to the court for this certificate of naturalization ? 

A. No, sir; 1 had a certificate in 1856, and lost it in the battle of 

Fredericksburg. Parties in my neighborhood asked me if I was going 
to vote. 1 told them I could not vote on account of my not being long 
enough in the State, and because I had lost my citizen papers, but that 
I intended to go down town and get out new papers whenever I had 
time. 


60 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKK. 


By Mr. Dickey: 

040. Q. This paper you got from Norton ? 

A. Yes. 

041. Q. Y^on never were in the court to be sworn to get it? 

A. No, sir. After the paper was brought to me I knew it to be what 
I call a counterfeit, and I did not use it; I threw it away,but my wile 
picked it up and put it on the mantelpiece. 

042. Q. Did you pay Norton anything for it ? 

A. Yes, sir; 75 cents. 

By Mr. Kere : 

043. Q. What are your politics ? 

A. 1 do not know. I did not go into politics since the war broke out. 

044. Q. How did you vote before that time? 

A. I voted once for President Lincoln and the republican ticket, and 
I voted for some democrats who I thought were good men. I did not 
know Norton before he got me the paper. I have seen him two or 
three times since. I told him he should look out, as he had made some 
false papers. He said they were not false, and for me to look out for 
myselL He asked me whether I was not going to register. I told him 
I was not, as I had no right to register. I live at 338 Pifty-third street, 
between Eighth and Ninth avenues. Norton came with two papers— 
one for me and one for my workman (Peter Pohl)—and said he wanted 
$2 for his time. I gave him $1 50, and said I did not give it to him for 
the papers, but only for his time and to prevent trouble between me and 
the neighbors—a lot of loafers that Avere around Norton. I said the 
papers Avere not good for anything. I knew it at the time he handed 
them to me. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

645. Q. Did you see Norton when he was arrested and brought before 
the grand jury ? 

A. I did. 

646. Q. You identified him as the same man ? 

A. Yes. 

647. Q. Did your workman go to the court to get his naturalization 
paper ? 

A. No, sir; Norton furnished it. 

648. Q. What regiment AA^ere you in during the war ? 

A. I beg your pardon—in the 1st South Carolina. I lAed in Charles¬ 
ton Avhen the Avar broke out, and I was impressed into the rebel army. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

649. Q. Did you testify before Commissioner Osborn on the trial of 
Eosenberg ? 

A. No, sir ; I was here six or seven times, but I was iieA^er called as 
a witness. 

Charles Henry Siep sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

650. Question. Where do you reside ? 

AnsAver. I reside up town. My business is at No. 6 Centre street, in 
the basement. I keep a lager-beer saloon, and have kept it since last 
July. 

651. Q. Hoav near is your place of business to the rooms of the supreme 
court in this city ? 

A. It is just opposite, across the street. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


61 


G52. Q. Do yon own the building where yon do business? 

A. No, sir; I rent it. 

G53. Q. Do yon know Benjamin B. Eosenberg ? 

A. Yes. 

G54. Q. Did he occupy the same premises for business purposes? 

A. He did not occupy the place at all. The naturalization committee 
of the German general committee made arrangements with me for so many 
clerks for six week^. The chairman of the naturalization committee was 
Supervisor Hermann—supervisor of the county. He appointed Eosen¬ 
berg chief clerk. 

G55. Q. Did anybody except Hermann speak to yon about renting the 
room? 

A. The whole committee. 

G5G. Q. Who is the whole committee? 

A. Supervisor Hermann, Colonel Levi, Jacob Kohler, C. Weitschel, 
and Angnst Tanfner. 

G57. Q. How much were they to pay for the room ? 

A. Fifty dollars. I got my money from the Tammany Hall board by 
a check of Supervisor Hermann on the Broadway Bank. 

G58. Q. Who were the other clerks besides Eosenberg? 

A. Angnstns Hennet, Emannel S. Goldstein, Major Bromson, Mr. 
Kemmerer, Lndwig Stnmpf, and L. A. Jonassohn. 

G59. Q. Do yon know of any of^hem furnishing naturalization papers 
to persons without their having to go to the court? 

A. No, sir. 

GGO. Q. Did yon see naturalization papers delivered to persons who 
came there for them ? 

A. I did see them after they went to the court with their witnesses and 
got examined. They wonld come over and have refreshments. 

GGl. Q. Did yon see the witnesses examined in court? 

A. No. 

GG2. Q. Did yon see naturalization papers delivered to persons at that 
table ? 

A. No. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

GG3. Q. What ticket did yon vote at the last election in this State? 

A. The full democratic ticket. 

GGL. Q. Had Eosenberg anything to do with the renting of the room? 

A. He had nothing to do with it. He had charge over the other 
clerks. Eosenberg was sitting there the whole day. 

6G5. Q. Who wonld go to the court and get the naturalization papers? 

A. The men who applied for them, with their witnesses, went to the 
supreme court. 

GGG. Q. Did not somebody generally go with them to the conrt-room? 

A. No, sir. The men came there with their witnesses, got the infor¬ 
mation they wanted, and went oft to the judge. If found correct the 
jndge signed the papers; if not, he tore them np. 

GG7. Q. Did yon take any part in fixing np these papers? 

A. No. 

GG8. Q. How long did they occniiy yonr room? 

A. About six weeks. 

GGO. Q. Have yon any means of telling ns how many persons came 
there for information about naturalization papers? 

A. It is impossible for me to tell yon. 

G70. Q. Did yon know Eosenberg before he came there? 

A. Yes; I knew him many years. 


62 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


G71. Q. Wliat lias been his business? 

A. He has been doing a little law business. 

672. Q. Is he a lawyer? 

A. He is not exactly a lawyer. He gave a little information and went 
with persons to lawyers. 

673. Q. Hid he have any office? 

A. No, sir. 

674. Q. Hid any of these members of the naturalization committee go 
in there to direct the business ? 

A. Yes, sir; they came almost every day once or twice to inspect and 
see if everything was going on right. Hermann has been there several 
times; Levi has been there almost every day. The men were all engaged 
in honest and fair business. If anything wrong was done there was no 
authority for it and there was nothing known about it. 

675. Q. These committee-meu came there to see that the business was 
honestly done? 

A. Yes, sir. 

676. Q. State whether the German democrats had another naturaliza¬ 
tion office where thus kind of information could be had during these six 
weeks. 

A. The only regular place was this place at No. 6 Centre street. It 
was said that they did a little business in No. 13 Centre street, but I 
cduld not say. I do not know how uii^ph business was done there. I do 
not know who gave them power or authority there. 

677. Q. State generally whether during all these weeks you knew of 
any fraudulent uaturalization i^apers being made or sent to anybody. 

A. Not to the best of my knowledge. 

678. Q. Hid you see anything that excited your suspicion that this man 
Eosenbei-g acted dishonestly—selling these papers, or making money to 
put it in his pocket ? 

A. No, sir; no money at all was handled there. 

679. Q. Had he any right to take money from any of these persons? 

A. No; nobody was allowed to take money, and anybody reported for 

it T\"ould be discharged; that was the bargain. The expenses were all 
to be paid by the party generally. 

680. Q. Hid you know Major Simms, a deputy in the internal revenue 
department? 

A. 1 knew him since this fall. I did not know him before. 

681. Q. Ho you recollect ever seeing him at No. 6 Centre street ? 

A. I saw him there once. 

682. Q. Hid you see him i^aying any money to Eosenberg? 

A. I saw nobody paying money. If Eosenberg did such business he 
would not let it be known to me. 

By the Chaieman: 

683. Q. Was this naturalization committee elected by the German gen¬ 
eral committee, or was it api)ointed by the Tammany Society? 

A. It was elected by the Germans in our oAvn body. We haA^e our 
own headquarters. We organize ourselves every year, elect a chairman, 
treasurer, vice-president, secretary, &c., and appoint all the committees 
for the year. 

684. Q. What did people come to Eosenberg for? 

A. To get naturalized. 

685. Q. Hid he furnish to any that came there little red tickets? 

A. Yes, sir; for the fee of the clerk. That paid the costs. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


63 


By Mr. Dawes : \ 

680. Q. Wliat did you understand Eoseiiberg’s business to be tliere 

A. He Avas bead clerk over this naturalization business. 

687. Q. The naturalization is done in court, is it not % 

A. The blanks were to be made, and tlie applicant and Avitness bad to 
sign tbem, and they were to be sent over to court Avbere tbe judges 
examined tbem, and where tbe person got bis citizen papers. 

688 . Q. Was tbe Avitness sworn doAvn there at your place ? 

A. O, no; tbe witness Avent to tbe judge. Tbe blanks were only filled 
ui) there, and signed by tbe applicant and tbe witness. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

689. Q. In other Avords, persons went there for information bow to get 
naturalized ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Daaves : 

690. Q. Did Bosenberg fill up tbe blanks himself ? 

A. Ko ; be superintended and ordered. There AAere various blanks ; 
some for minors, some for soldiers, &c. 

691. Q. How many men bad be employed as clerks'? 

A. Sometimes two, sometimes three, sometimes tiAX. 

By tbe Chairman : 

692. Q. I present to you five naturalization papers referred to in tbe 
testimony of Joseph Cottrell. Can you tell in AA^bose bandwriting tbe 
names are filled up ? 

A. I cannot; but it is not Kosenberg’s. 

693. Q. Is it in the band writing of any of his clerks! 

A. It is in tbe liandAATiting of one of the clerks of tbe court. 

Thomas Gould sworn and examined: 

By tbe Chairman : 

694. Question. State your residence. 

Answer. 387 Cherry street, New York. 

695. Q. State Avbether you were present in tbe supreme court of this 
. city on tbe lOtli and 12tb of October last, and Avbetlier you saw natural¬ 
ization papers there. 

A. I was not in court. I saw po papers whatsoever. 

696. Q. Did you see Mr. McKean give anybody a bundle purporting 
to be naturalization papers'? 

A. I do not knoAv the gentleman at all. 

697. Q. Do you know of any naturalization x^apers baAung been sent to 
Staten island % 

A. No, sir. 

698. Q. Did you tell any person that you were present in tbe supreme 
court and saw naturalization xiaiiers deliA^ered in bundles, or in a bundle 
to anybody! 

A. No, sir. If I bad been aware that any x^M^ers were got out fraud¬ 
ulently I AA^ould liaA^e bunted tbem up myself. I Avas tbe rexmblican can¬ 
didate for the assembly in tbe 'Jtb ward. 

699. Q. Have you told any person that you Avere in tbe supreme court 
and saAV a bundle or bundles of naturalization papers delivered to any¬ 
body ! 

A. No; I did not tell anybody, but I am satisfied I could Avork ux) 
Xiarties Avbo have seen tbem come out of tbe court. 

700. Q. In AA'bat business are you engaged noAV ! 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G4 


A. None at all. f 

701. Q. Have you been employed in the office of the Croton board? 

A. No, sir. 

702. Q. Do you know Mr. S. J. Glassey and Mr. John A. Foster ? 

A. I do not know them by name ; I may know them by sight. 

703. Q. Did you tell these gentlemen, or either of them, that you saw 
naturalization papers in the supreme court of this city ? 

A. I do not know the gentlemen by name. 

704. Q. Did you tell any person that you saw a quantity of naturali 
zation papers, signed by the clerk of the sui)reme court, and with the 
seal of the court, but otherwise in blank ? 

A. I have seen them. 

705. Q. Where did you see them ? 

A. Circulating. 

706. Q. Where? 

A. In the court. 

707. Q. For what purpose were they in circidation ? 

A. For the purpose of naturalizing and making citizens of persons. 

708. Q. Did you see any such j^apers being used by i^ersons not being 
naturalized ? 

A. No, sir. 

709. Q. Did you vote the republican ticket at the last election ? 

A. I ought not to answer that question, but I will. Yes, sir; and I 
did more for the republican party in the district than any young man in it. 

710. Q. Did you vote the entire republican ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir; and I always did since ever I was entitled to vote. That 
is not a question, however, for you to ask me. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

711. Q. What was it you said you could work up ? 

A. I think that by a little ferreting I could hunt up the right parties 
who were interested in making fraudulent naturijlization papers. Papers 
were got out in this way: parties would come into court representing 
persons and witnesses, and swear each other to get out papers. The 
men were i^rofessional witnesses and principals. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

712. Q. You said you saw blank certificates circulating in court; did I 
understand you to say that the blanivs were tilled uii, and the seal 
attached before naturalization ? 

A. I am not aware of that. The question was whether I saw some 
liapers wnth the seal of the court and the signature of the clerk, and I 
say yes, I have seen them in blank. The court was full of persons wait¬ 
ing to be naturalized, and the papers were all signed and sealed and 
ready in advance, except writing in the name of the party. 

By the Chairman: 

713. Q. From whom did you learn that this mode of naturalization was 
adopted ? 

A. From nobody. 

714. Q. Did you know the fact that wav as you have described? 

A. No ; I have not seen it myself, but parties have told me. 

715. Q. Give us the names. 

A. I do not want to have anything to do with giving names; it would 
be an injury to me in my district if I did such a thing; not only in my 
district, but through the city. 

716. Q. In what way ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


65 


A. I do not want to be a stool-pigeon for anybody. 

717. Q. Would it create an intiiience against you that would be 
injurious ? 

A. Yes, sir; injurious to me and injurious to the party; they would 
put me down as an informer. I know numbers of men in the 7th ward 
who always voted the democratic ticket, and who now, through me, vote 
the republican ticket. I would be regarded as a “ sucker,” as they call 
it, vulgarly. 

By Mr. Boss: 

718. Q. Did the republicans furnish you with any money to do this 
thing? 

A. No, sir; not a dollar. 

By the Chairman : 

719. Q. Give us the name of the person from whom you learned this 
thing. 

A. His name is James Clarke; his residence I do not know. 

720. Q. You say you know nothing of papers being sent to Staten 
island? 

A. 1 know nothing of it. 

721. Q. You were not in the supreme court during the time this natu¬ 
ralization business was being carried on? 

A. Yes, sir; I was down there one evening, and that is when I saw 
the papers. 

722. Q. How are i^arties sworn in the supreme court? Is each man 
called up separately to swear, or are they sworn in groups? 

A. Each man was called up separately, so far as I saw. 

723. Q. Were they examined by the judge? 

A. They were examined by the judge. 

724. Q. By himself personally ? 

A. By himself personally. 

725. Q. What court was this? 

A. The supreme court. 

72G. Q. Who was the judge? 

A. Judge Barnard. 

By the Chairman: 

727. Q. Did you ever have information that fraudulent naturalization 
papers were sent to Staten island ? 

A. No, sir. 

728. Q. At what time in the evening were you in Judge Barnard’s court? 

A. I think about 7 o’clock; 1 am not positive as to the time;. 

729. Q. Do you know how late the court sat? 

A. I do not know. 

730. Q. How long did you stay? 

A. About five minutes. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

731. Q. Did you know any republican naturalization, committee in 
existence during the last canvass? 

A. No, sir; I did not. 

732. Q. Did you know any room employed and set apart by the repub¬ 
lican party to be occupied by persons acting in their interest for the 
purpose of aiding those seeking naturalization ? 

A. No, sir. 

733 . Q. What ward were you running for the assembly in ? 

A. The 7th ward, on the east side of the city. 


66 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


734. Q. Were you ever in Ko. C Centre street? 

A. Yes, sir. 

735. Q. Were you ever in there during business hours? 

A. Yes, sir. 

736. Q. Did you know Eosenberg personally? 

A. NTot personally, but by sight and reputation. 

By the Chairman : 

737. Q. Is there any political society or organization in this city known 
as the Tammany Society? 

A. There is what we call the Tammany Hall organization. 

[Messrs. Glassey and Foster having come before the committee, the 
witness’s attention was called to them.] 

738. Q. Have you seen these gentlemen before ? 

A. I believe 1 saw them before. 

739. Q. Do you recollect telling either of these persons that you saw 
a bundle of naturalization papers in the supreme court. signed by the 
clerk, and having the seal of the court, but otherwise in blank; or have 
you told them that you heard the clerk say that there were 350 in one 
bundle, and that you knew or heard of 300, or any other number of cer¬ 
tificates being sent over to Staten island? 

A. Eo, sir. 

Melchoir Heimburch sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

740. Question. I present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate 
of natiHalization issued out of the supreme court and referred to in the 
testimony of Joseph Cottrell; state whether you ever saw it before. 

Answer. I did. I had that paper. 

741. Q. From whom did you get it? 

A. From Norton—I don’t know his first name; they call him Charley. 

742. Q. Did you pay him any money for it? 

A. I did not; I i)romised to pay him two dollars. 

743. Q. How long have you lived in the United States? 

A. Four years on the 3d of August last. 

744. Q. What was said between you and Norton when he gave you 
the paper? 

A. He gave me the paper and said: Melchoir, here is a citizen’s 
paper.” 

745. Q. Had anything been said about it between you and him before 
that? 

A. No, sir. 

746. Q. Did he say anything about your voting? 

A. No; he only gave me the paper. 

747. Q. Did he tell you to register? 

A. Yes, sir; he told me to register. 

By Mr. Dawes: 

748. Q. Where were you when he gave it to you? 

A. In the grocery store at the corner of Sixty-second street. I live in 
the same block; he had never said a word about it to me before. 

749. Q. Was this paper all ready for you then? 

A. It was just the same as it is now. 

750. Q. AYas that name written on it then? 

A. It was; but that is not my right name. It is not spelled right. 

751. Q. Did you ever give any pay for your papers? 

A. No. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


67 


752. Q. Did anybody ask you to go into court for your papers'? 

A. No. 

753. Q. Did you swear before anybody? 

A. No. 

754. Q. Did you know tins Norton before he gave you this paper? 

A. Yes, sir; I guess I knew him over a year. 

755. Q. Did he inquire of you who could jjrove how long you had been 
here? 

A. No. 

756. Q. Did you take any witness to him to tell him how long you had 
been in the country ? 

A. No. 

757. Q. How old are you now? 

A. Thirty-four. 

758. Q. Did you tell him how old you were? 

A. No. 

759. Q. Did he inquire? 

A. No. 

760. Q. You never made any application to be a citizen? 

A. No. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

761. Q. Do you know whether he was president of a democratic club 
in that ward? 

A. I do not know. 

762. Q. You do not belong to the club? 

A. No; I do not belong to any club. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

763. Q. Did you vote? 

A. No. 

764. Q. What did you do with the paper? 

A. I had it at home, and one morning a policeman came and took it 
away from me. He said that the man who gave it to me was arrested, 
and he told me to give him the paper; so I gave it to him. 

765. Q. What is your business? 

A. A butcher. 

766. Q. What is Norton’s business? 

A. That is more than I know. He used to keep house and have a 
woman. She has gone to California while he was house-keeping; he 
used to come into my shop once in a while, and so did the woman and 
the servant, and that is how I knew him. 

Mathias W^olfe sworn and examined through Melchoir Heimburch, 
who was sworn as interpreter. 

By the Chairman: 

767. Question. 1 present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate of 
naturalization to you, dated October 19,1868, referred to in the testimony 
of Joseph Cottrell; state if you ever had that paper. 

Answer. Yes, sir; I had the paper. 

768. Q. Who did you get it from ? 

A. I was in the grocery store, and Norton gave it to me there. 

769. Q. What did you pay him for it? 

A. I paid him two dollars. 

770. Q. Where were you born? 

A. In Germany. 


68 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


771. Q. How long have you been in the United States 1 

A. Twenty-two months. 

772. Q. Were yon ever naturalized ? 

A. No. 

773. Q. Wliat did Norton tell you to do when he gave you this paper? 

A. He said I was lit to be a citizen, and that I could go and vote if I 

liked. 

774. Q. What did you do with that paper? 

A. I gave it to my boss. 

Timothy Hurrelle sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

775. Question. I present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate 
of naturalization to you, dated October 10,18G8, referred to in the testi¬ 
mony of Joseph Cottrell; state if you ever saw it before. 

Answer. Yes, sir; that is my paper. 

77G. Q. Where did you get it? 

A. I got it from Charles Norton. 

777. Q. Did you i)ay him anything for it? 

A. I paid him two dollars. 

778. Q. Where were you born? 

A. In Germany. 

779. Q. How long were you in the United States? 

A. Tliree years and seven months. 

780. Q. Did you ever go into any court to be naturalized? 

A. No, sir. I liad been down once in the City Hall to look for my first 
paper. Norton told me that I need not go down, and he woidd bring me 
both papers. He said, ‘‘Do you want a paper?” 1 said, “Yes, I have 
been down looking for it.” “Oh,” said he, “I will fetch the paper; it is 
not necessary for you to go and fuss any more about it.” “Well,” said 
I, “fetch me the paper, and I will pay you for your trouble.” He said, 
“It is all right;” and two days after he brought me the paper. 

Patrick McLaughlin sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

781. Question. What country are you a native of? 

Answer. Ireland. 

782. Q. How long have you been in the United States? 

A. Since May, 1865. 

783. Q. Have you ever been in the army? 

A. No, sir. 

784. Q. I present to you a paper, signed “Charles E. Loew, clerk,” 
dated October 10, 1868, purporting to be a certificate of naturalization 
to you; state whether you ever had that paper. 

A. Yes, sir; John Cook gave it to me. He came to my brother’s house 
and asked me if I wanted my papers. I told him 1 did not care much 
about it. He told me that I would never get them with less trouble than 
at this election. I said, “Go ahead, then, and get them.” 

785. Q. Did you pay him anything for them ? 

A. No, sir ; not a cent. He took my name and got me the papers in 
five or six days afterwards; that is all I know about it. 

786. Q. Where does Cook live? 

A. He keeps a store at 18 Downing street, a little grocery store; he is 
a carpenter himself. 

787. Q. Do you know what political party he acts with? 

A. I guess he must be a democrat. 



ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


69 


By Mr. Dickey: 

788. Q. Were you ever sworn in any court? 

A. No, sir. 

789. Q. Were you registered as a voter on this paper? 

A. Yes, sir. 

790. Q. Where ? 

A. In Bleecker street, near Jones. 

791. Q. Did you show this naturalization paper? 

A. No ; they only asked me where I lived. 

792. Q. Did you vote? 

A. No, sir. 

793. Q. Were you arrested before the election came round? 

A. Yes, sir. 

794. Q. Did you register more than once? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Keee : 

795. Q. Did you ever vote? 

A. No, sir. 

Emanuel S. Goldstein sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

796. Question. State what business you are engaged in. 

Answer. I was clerk at 6 Centre street from the 13th to the 23d of 
October last. 

797. Q. Who employed you ? 

A. The Union general German committee. 

798. Q. Who paid you ? 

A. The chairman of the German naturalization committee. 

799. Q. Who was that? 

A. Supervisor Hermann. 

800. Q. What did you do there ? 

A. I made out applications for citizenship. 

801. Q. Did you use printed blanks ? 

A. Yes, sir. [Witness furnishes the committee with copies of the 
several blanks used in the office, which are annexed to his testimony.] 

802. Q. If persons went to the court to be naturalized, were they fur¬ 
nished with a ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir; with a red ticket. 

803. Q. Who was chief clerk. 

A. Mr. Bosenberg, and after Eosenberg was arrested I took charge. 

804. Q. I now present to you five papers purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization referred to in the testimony of Joseph Cottrell; can 
you state in whose handwriting the names of the persons purporting to 
be naturalized is; in whose handwriting is this name, Peter Pohl ? 

A. I cannot say very well; if 1 am not mistaken it is in the handwri¬ 
ting of Isaac Hey man. 

805. Q. In whose handwriting is this name, Charles Fox? 

A. That is the same. 

806. Q. And Timothy Hurrelle? 

A. That is the same. 

807. Q. Mathias Wolfe? 

A. That is the same. 

808. Q. Melchoir Heimburch? 

A. That is the same. 


70 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Boss: 

809. Q. Is Heyman one of the clerks ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

810. Q. Employed in Kosenherg’s office ? 

A. O, no. He is employed in the county clerk’s office in the supreme 
court. 

811. Q. Do you know whose handwriting that filling up is ? 

A. No, sir. 

812. Q. In whose handwriting is the signature “ Charles E. Loew?” 

A. I should say it is Mr. McKean’s handwriting. There are two clerks 

allowed to sign Mr. Loew’s name; one is Kent and the other is McKean. 

813. Q. I now present to you five certificates of naturalization referred 
to in the testimony of Marshal Murray, given yesterday, and in the tes¬ 
timony of Kruger: state in whose handwriting the names of the parties 
purporting to be naturalized are ? 

A. It is Isaac Heyman’s. 

814. Q. Can you state in whose handwriting the date is filled in'? 

A. I cannot. The dates are in the same handwriting, but they are 
not the same as the names. 

815. Q. I now present to you a certificate of naturalization purporting 
to be issued to Dennis Fitzpatrick; in whose handwriting is the name 
Dennis Fitzpatrick *? 

A. Isdac Heyman’s. 

816. Q. I now present to you a certificate of naturalization purporting 
to be issued to Dennis Lynch. In whose handwriting is the name Den¬ 
nis Lynch *? 

A. I do not know; that is in a different handwriting. 

817. Q. I now present to you four papers purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization issued to William Honig, James Brown, August Betsel, 
and Henry Baun; in whose handwriting are those names “? 

A. In Isaac Heyman’s. I wrote the applications for these very men, 
and the applications are to be found in the supreme court chambers. I 
know William Honig very well. [To Mr. Boss.] The application is a 
very different paper from this certificate. 

818. Q. Is the seal of the supreme court attached to these four papers 
the genuine seal*? 

A. Yes, sir. 

819. Q. Is this the printed blank that is generally used ? 

A. There are different blanks used, but this form costs nothing if a 
ticket is presented. If a party wants another form he has to pay for it, 
but this is one of the forms in general use. 

820. Q. Do you know who was the witness for Honig ? 

A. No, sir; but if you look at the record of the supreme court you can 
find it. 

821. Q. Do you recollect any of the others ? 

A. Yes, sir; I recollect Henry Blaune; I wrote the application for 
him. 

822. Q. I present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate of natu¬ 
ralization issued to John Doolan, and referred to in the testimony of 
George P. Barrett; in whose handwriting is the name John Doolan? 

A. Isaac Heyman’s. 

823. Q. I present to you a similar naturalization paper issued to Au¬ 
gust Muller, referred to in the testimony of Gabriel A. Arnoux; in whose 
handwriting is the name August Muller ! 

A. Issac Heyman’s. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


71 


824. Q. I present to yon four similar certificates, referred to in the 
testimony of William W. Young; in whose handwriting are the names 
of the persons Henry Stern, Charles Warneck, William Lukas, and Gott¬ 
lieb Kaftenberger? 

A. Isaac Hey man’s. 

825. Q. I now present to you five similar papers, referred to in the 

testimony of Theodore Block; in whose handwriting are the names 
Charles Fieling, William Smith, John Lehman, Jacob Schlafter, and John 
Noelsch? ’ 

A. Fieling’s name does not look to [be in Heyman’s handwriting, the 
other names are in his handwriting. 

82G. Q. Look at the filling in of the dates. 

A. They are filled in in three difterent handwritings. 

827. Q. Are you familiar with the handwriting of the clerk of the 
superior court ? 

A. There are two clerks there : Captain Thompson and Mr. Gillespie. 
This paper of Kerwin’s is in the handwriting of Gillespie, and the paper 
of Andrew Leigner is in the handwriting of Thompson. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

828. Q. You say you were employed by the general German naturali 
zation committee to aid, at No. 6 Centre street, in the ];)reparation of 
naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

829. Q. Who paid you for that service ? 

A. The general German committee. 

830. Q. Who is the chairman ? 

A. Supervisor Hermann. 

831. Q. When you were employed by him, what instructions did he 
give you as to your duties ? ' 

A. He told me Eosenberg would give me all instructions what to do ; 
that it was to make out applications for men coming there, and to give 
them all necessary instructions. 

832. Q. How many clerks were employed there at one time ? 

A. Four besides Eoshnberg. 

833. Q. Were-you there much of the time during the six weeks prior 
to election ? 

A. I was only there from the 13th to the 23d of October, inclusive. 
Some of the other clerks were there from the 28th of September to the 
23d of October; we had to stop ten days before election. 

834. Q. Tell the committee whether, at any time during the time you 
were about that room, you knew of any fraudulent naturalization papers 
having been made up and given or sold to anybody. 

A. No, sir; none in the least—not in our office. 

835. Q. Tell the committee -whether you know that Eosenberg, the 
chief clerk, was engaged in the sale of fraudulent certificates to anybody. 

A. No, sir. He was stricter than anybody I had ever seen in that 
business, because he asked more questions than the judge or any court 
would ask; and if they did not answer to his satisfactioil he sent them 
away. 

830. Q. Hid you ever know any persons to be rejected there by the 
clerks, of whom you were one, because they were not qualified to be 
naturalized ? 

A. Yes, sir; a great many of them. I can bring you proof of it. 
Eosenberg was arrested on a Wednesday, and we kept open until Friday 
night of the same week. 


72 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


837. Q. Did you ever see any of tliese committee-meu in the room 
during tlie days that you were there*? 

A. Yes, sir; there was always one there. 

838. Q. Was it always the same one ? 

A. No, sir ; they would take turns. 

830. Q. What was it your general duty to do; you and all the other 
clerks ? 

A. To make out applications. 

840. Q. Did you ever administer an oath to a man who desired to be 
naturalized ^ 

A. No, sir. 

841. Q. Did you ever tell him he could be naturalized in any way, 
except b}" going to the coui't-house and appearing before the court 1 

A. No, sir. 

842. Q. What did you do, except to give him instructions how to go 
there ? 

A. We gave him instructions. After he made the application he had 
to sign his name, and the Avitness had to sign his name. If the man had 
his tirst papers, there were two blanks where he had to sign his name. 
After that Ave gave him a ticket and told him Avhere to go and get his 
citizen i)apers, and to pay this ticket for it. 

843. Q. Was it the practice of persons Avdio wanted to be naturalized 
to bring along AAuth them their AAUtnesses; or was it the duty of your 
connnittee to furnivsh AYitnesses ? 

A. Every man aa4io came to us had to bring his witnesses along with 
him. We had nothing AAdiateA-er to do AAdtli AAutnesses. 

844. Q. Tell us AAdiether you knoAV of any hangers on or loafers about 
the courtdiouse AAdio Avere hired by you clerks or by Kosenberg in this 
committee-room to go in and swear these men through. 

A. None whatsoever, that I know. I took one man around to 25 
Chambers street before I Avas employed at Centre street. He said he 
Avas in the 7th regiment. I made out the application for him, and the 
clerk Avho had charge told me to take the man to the court. 

845. Q. What is your business *? 

A. I liaA^e been a clerk formerly. I haA^e been in the proAmst mar- 
shaTs office. 

846. Q. Are you extensHely acquainted AAuth Germans here *? 

A. Yes, sir. 

847. Q. How long have you IHed here ? 

A. Twelve years. 

848. Q. Are you naturalized? 

A. Yes, sir. 

849. Q. Do you kiioAA^ Major Simms ? 

A. I haA^e seen him here in this court-room. 

850. Q. Did you ever see him in No. 6 Centre street? 

A. Yes, sir. 

851. Q. How often? 

A. Three times. 

852. Q. With AAffiom was he in coiwersation there? 

A. Rosenberg. 

853. Q. Was it Rosenberg’s habit, while you were there, to sometimes 
take men aside and talk with them some distance from you, or in another 
part of the room ? 

A. No, sir. Rosenberg would get up from his chair and talk OA^er the 
table to them. I sat right near to him. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


73 


854 Q. Did you ever see money paid to Eosenberg? 

A. No, sir. 

855. Q. Did you see Simms or McDonald pay him any money'? 

A. This Simms came down one day about 12 o’clock- 

85G. Q. Were you examined in either of the prosecutions against 
Eosenberg, as a Avitness? 

A. No, sir. I remember that it Avas on Monday, the 19th of October, 
Mr. Simms came down about 12 o’clock. He inquired for Mr. Eosenberg. 
He asked the landlord, aaEo said to him, “ There sits Mr. Eosenberg.” 
He came there and said: “ Mr. Eosenberg, I Avantto see you.” Eosenberg 
got up from his chair. He said, “ Eosenberg, I am from the country—from 
Yonkers; I have about 30 or 40 laboring men whom I want to get citi¬ 
zen papers for if I can.” Eosenberg said: “ Bring these men here and 
I will get their citizens’ papers.” He said: They cannot very well get 
oh, but I AAdll see about it.” In the afternoon, about 5 o’clock, Simms 
came in again, and said : Eosenberg, here is a list of five men, and in 
case they come in to-day, get them up as fast as you can, for they live 
in the country and are laboring men.” They did not come that day. 
The next day, about half-past 5 o’clock, these fi ve came, and had a Avitness 
with them. One Avas a Spaniard—Antonio Gomez. Eosenberg spoke 
Spanish to them, and we made out the papers for them. They Avent 
OA^er to the court and were gone about half an hour. They came back 
and said : ‘‘We have been saa orn, and we cannot get our citizen papers 
yet.” Eosenberg said: “ You haA^e got to wait until your names 
are called.” They said: “ Eosenberg, aa^c can’t wait 5 we liA^e in the 
country.” Tliey gave their red tickets back to Eosenberg, and said to 
Eosenberg; “ Please to get these papers for us ; you can send any child 
for the papers after they are SAvorn; Mr. Simms will come in again, and 
please hand him the papers.” Eosenberg Avent to get the papers. About 
a quarter of an hour afterwards Simms came and inquired if the men had 
been there. Eosenberg said: “Yes; and here are the five papers.” 
Simms said to Eosenberg: “Here, take a drink,” and he handed him 
something. I do not know what it was. 

857. Q. Was any e\"er imid to him ? 

A. No, sir. 

858. Q. Was any CA^er paid to you clerks, that you know of? 

A. No, sir. 

859. Q. How was the cost of these applications in court paid by the 
democratic party? 

A. By the general committee. 

860. Q. How did they indicate that payment to the clerk of the court? 

A. Through one of these tickets. A man had to hand oA^er a ticket, 

and he got his paper for it. Every citizenship paper cost 50 cents, and 
if it is for an alien it costs 75 cents. 

861. Q. State whether Eosenberg himself was in the habit of filling 
up many of these naturalization pai)ers. 

A. He filled up none of them. We clerks filled up the applications. 
Eosenberg examined the men and we made out the applications. 

862. Q. Wlio paid you for your services? 

A. Supervisor Herman. 

863. Q. Do you know, Avhere the other clerks are to be found? 

A. One of them is outside waitingnow; Karmerer IHesat 154Delaney 
street; another of them lives up in Third aA^enue—I do not remember 
the number. 

864. Q. I understand you to say that the persons for whom Simms made 
applications for the papers came back afterAvards with their witnesses. 



74 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. With tlieir witnesses; and from our place we sent them over to 
the court room with their witnesses. 

865. Q. Or with somebody who pretended to be their witnesses ? 

A. Yes, sir. 1 only knew that one name of the five—Antonio Gomez 
—who wanted to be naturalized. I am the one who wrote the applica¬ 
tion for him. Nobody was there but myself and Eosenberg, and 1 wrote 
the application for him. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

866 . Q. Did I understand you that Simms brought five men there? 

A. No, sir; he brought a slip of paper with these names, and told 

Mr. Eosenberg when these men did come to hurry them up as fast as 
they could, aiid favor him, because they lived in the country. 

867. Q. Was that all he said ? 

A. At the same time he brought the slip of paper. 

868 . Q. Whereabouts did he say they lived ? 

A. Yonkers. 

860. Q. Did he say he had brought them down ? 

A. O, no; the first time he came in at 12 o’clock and applied to get 
papers for 3() or 40 men without bringing them before the court. 

870. Q. And the five men he said would come down? 

A. That is what he said in the afternoon, when he came the second 
time, about half-past 4 o’clock. 

871. Q. Then, when the men came, there were none of the clerks there 
but you and Eosenberg ? 

A. Yes, sir. The other clerks were gone to supper, and I went and 
wrote the applications. 

872. Q. Were there other parties in while they were there ? 

A. Yes, sir; a good many men. 

873. Q. But there were none of the other clerks there ? 

A. None of the other clerks. 

874. Q. Did you keep a list of the applications to the general commit¬ 
tee ? 

A. I did. 

875. Q. Who has got that list? 

A. I do not know. I gave it to the landlord, Mr. Siep, the proprietor 
of the house. 

876. Q. You gave that book to him ? 

A. Yes, sir. It is a book containing the list. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

877. Q. How many names were in that list ? 

A. I do not know. We numbered them. I do not recollect the num¬ 
ber—from 5,000 to 6,000. They commenced on the 21st of September 
and continued until the 23d of October. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

878. Q. There were from 5,000 to 6,000 naturalized from that office ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

879. Q. Was the list in the form of a book ? 

A. No, sir; in folio size, fastened together. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

880. Q. Were the names of these five persons put upon the list? 

A. That is what I do not know. Every name we put on that was natu¬ 
ralized. 


. ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 75 

881. Q. Were tlie names of these five persons who were brought by 
Simms put ui^on the list"? 

A. Every name naturalized through our office has been i)ut upon the 
list. 

882. Q. Did you put those names down*? 

A. They are certain to have been put down. 

883. Q. One of them was a Spaniard? 

A. Yes, sir. 

884. Q. They brought their vouchers with them ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

885. Q. Did you see Simms give Eosenberg money? 

A. 1 do not know wliat he gave him. He handed him something, and 
told him to take a drink for it. And Eosenberg called Simms ux), and 
Simms took a drink. He called me up and I took a cigar. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

886 . Q. AVas there a little dark room opening out of the bar saloon ? 

A. There is a wine cellar, where the landlord keeps h’s wine. 

887. Q. Did you see Eosenberg and Simms go into that room ? 

A. In the morning we sat in the front, because we had light; and in 
the evening there was but one gas-light, and that was right in the rear 
of the room; and we sat right in front of it. Mr. Simms passed me 
and ojiened that door and stood inside, and Mr. Eosenberg stood outside 
and near the door. 

888 . Q. Could you hear at that time, standing where they were, what 
they said ? 

A. I was closer to them than to you now, (about two feet,) and I heard 
one of them speak. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

889. Q. Simms came for these papers and they were given to him? 

A. Yes, sir. 

890. Q. Eosenberg had got them ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

891. Q. You say you were not a witness in Eosenberg’s case? 

A. I have not been on the stand yet. 

892. Q. Have you not been subpoenaed by Eosenberg ? 

A. I have not been subpoenaed by anybody, for there has been no 
trial. I made out an apxilication, and if there is any trial I shall be sub- 
Xioenaed. 

893. Q. Is Eosenberg at liberty ? 

A. I believe he is on bail. 

894. Q. Do you know where he is to be found ? 

A. Yes, sir j I saw him this morning, at G Centre street. 

895. Q. Eosenberg, you, and who else were there this morning ? 

A. There was another clerk there; when the officer handed me a sub¬ 
poena, a clerk came in. 

896. Q. How often do you meet Eosenberg there ? 

A. He occupies an office up-stairs; he is a real-estate agent. 

897. Q. And you are there every day? 

A. Almost every day. 

By Mr. Hopkins ; 

898. Q. Have you had any conversation with Eosenberg with relation 
to your testimony before this committee? 

A. No, sir; I did not know I would be called up before this committee. 


76 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


899. Q. You have not seen him to have a conversation with him about it? 

A. No, sir. 

900. Q. How many clerks were at 6 Centre street. 

A. Four with Kosenberg. 

901. Q. What Avere your office hours? 

A. From 8 o’clock till 9 o’clock at night. 

902. Q. Were you kept busy all the time ? 

A. Most of the clay. 

903. Q. Filling applications? 

A. Filling applications. 

904. Q. Kosenberg was the chief man, was he ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

905. Q. In the great number of applicants for naturalization, you and 
the other clerks of course i)ersonally did not knoAV all the men who ai)plied 
for naturalization ? 

A. No, sir. 

906. Q. You knew nothing about what they were, except as they came 
and gave you their names and told you themselves ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

907. Q. You did not personally know the witnesses, as a general rule 
there, did you ? 

A. No, sir. 

908. Q. You knew nothing about the character of the applicants or the 
witnesses ? 

A. No, sir. 

909. Q. Neither for honesty nor truth as a general rule? 

A. No, sir; I only asked how long they had been in the country; if 
they were aliens, and if they had made a declaration of intentions to 
become citizens. The court asked about their behavior—it was none of 
our business. 

910. Q. You could not recollect from day to day all the persons who 
had made application to you ? 

A. No, sir. 

911. Q. Did the witnesses, as a general rule, come into the office with 
the applicants, or did they go to the court ? 

A. They had to come first into the office and then to the court. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

912. Q. Who furnished you those blanks for filling up applications for 
naturalization papers ? 

A. They were furnished to the court. 

913. Q. You filled them up, and the party signed his application in 
that office, and his witness signed it ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

914. Q. Then you gave him a ticket to go to the court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

915. Q. What proportion of these naturalization iiajiers were used in 
the respective courts? 

A. There Avere tAvo courts in session during the day time—^the common 
ideas and the superior court. They were in session from 10 o’clock until 
4; and at 5 or half-past 5 the supreme court opened; and at last, about 
a week before they stopped naturalization, the supreme court kept open 
at night until 10 o’clock. 

916. Q. Then the supreme court did not meet for that purpose until 
half-past five ? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


77 


917. Q. How late did it sit for that purpose? 

A. Ten o’clock; sometimes it was later. 

918. Q. How late? 

A. I cannot tell; they only sat until 9 o’clock, and I went away. The 
court sat as lon^ as there were men there. 

919. Q. In what proportion were the naturalization papers in those 
courts you had the most? 

A. Sometimes one clerk made them for this court and then for that 
court; I cannot say which court had the most. [To Mr. Kerr.] Eosen- 
berg examined the men and said: first, second, or third clerk make out 
applications for these men. One clerk had the blanks for the sui^erior 
court, one for the court of common pleas, and another again had appli¬ 
cations for soldiers. 

920. Q. Which of the clerks had the applications for the supreme court? 

A. All of us, in the evenings? 

921. Q. You ran the supreme court in the evenings? 

A. Yes, sir; some evenings the supreme court was not in session, and 
the superior court was in session. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

922. Q. Did not most parties come iu the evening after their work was 
done ? 

A. The laboring men did. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

923. Q. Are not the great majority of the men who are naturalized 
laboring men ? 

A. There are a great many other men wanting to be naturalized, and 
there was a good many laboring men. 

924. Q. Do you know Charles Edward Korton? 

A. Ko, sir. 

New York Common Pleas. 

In the matter of the application of- 

-, to be admitted a citizen of the 

United States of America. 

State of NTew York, City and County of New YorJcj ss: 

-, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says, 

that he resides at-; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; 

that he has resided in the United States three years next preceding his 
arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present 
time; that lie has resided five years within the United States, including 
the three years of his minority, and one year at least, immediately pre¬ 
ceding this application, within the State of New York; and that for 
three years next preceding this application it has been, hona fide^ his 
intention to become a citizen of the United States. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 18C-. 

-, Cleric, 

State of New York, City and County of Neio YorJe^ ss: 

-, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant; and that the 
said applicant has resided in the United States for three years next pre¬ 
ceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he has continued to reside 
therein to the present time; that he has resided five years within the 


I E. L. G. 














78 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


United States, including the three years of his minority, and in the State 
of New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this application; 
and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good moral char¬ 
acter, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, 
and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same; and 
deponent verily believes that for three years next preceding this appli¬ 
cation it has been, bonajide^ the intention of the said applicant to become 
a citizen of the United States. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-^ Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of New YorlCy ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do declare, on oath, that 

it is, bona fide, my intention, and has been for three years next preced¬ 
ing this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to ever 3 ^ foreign prince, 

potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the-—, of 

whom I am now a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that 

I will support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do abso¬ 
lutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every 
foieign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and particularly 
to the-, of whom I was before a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this -day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 

At a special term of the court of common pleas for the city and county 

of New York, held at the City Hall of the city of New York, on the- 

day of-, 18G-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court, that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 


Superior Court of the City of New York. 

In the matter of-, on his 1 

application to become a citizen of > E. L. G. 
the United States. ) 

State of New York, City and County of New Yoric, ss: 

——;- ;—1 of -, being duly sworn, says, that he is well 

acquainted with the above-named applicant, and that the said applicant 
has resided within the United States for the continued term of fiv'^e years 


























ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


79 


at least next preceding the present time, and within the State of New 
York one year at least immediately preceding this application; and 
that during that time he has behaved as a man of good moral charac¬ 
ter, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United States, 
and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric, 

State of New York, City and County of N'ew Yorlcj ss: 

Ij- 7 of-, do solemnly swear that I will support the 

Constitution of the United States, and that I do absolutely and entirely 
renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, 
potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and particularly to the Queen 
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I was 
before a subject. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


Superior Court of the City of New York. 

In the matter of-, on his ) 

ai)plication to become a citizen of > Minor, B. L. G. 
the United States. ) 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

-, of-, being duly sworn, doth depose and say, that 

he is Avell acquainted with the above-named applicant; that the said 
applicant has resided in the United States for three years next pre¬ 
ceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he has continued to reside 
therein to the present time; that he has resided five years within the 
United States, including three years of his minority, and that he has 
resided in the State of New York one year at least immediately preced¬ 
ing this application; and that during that time he has behaved as a man 
of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution 
of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness 
of the same; and deponent verily believes, that for three years next 
preceding this application it has been the real and honest intention of 
the said applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 18G-. 

-, Cleric. 


State of New York, City and County of New Yorlcy ss: 

-, of-, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, 

says, that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; that he has resided in 
the United States three years next preceding his arrival at that age, and 
has continued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided 
five years within the United States, including the three years of his 
minority, and that he has resided one year at least, immediately preced¬ 
ing this application, within the State of New York, and that for three 
years next preceding this application it has been Ms real and honest 
intention to become a citizen of the United States. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


























80 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


I do declare on oatli, that it is my hona fide intention, and has been 
for the three years next preceding this api)lication, to become a citizen 
of the United States, and to renounce forever all allgiance and fidelity 
to any foreign princ6, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and par¬ 
ticularly to the-, of whom I Avas before a subject. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 18G-. 

-, Clerh, 

I,-, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitu¬ 

tion of the United States, and that I do absolutely and entirely renounce 
and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign jArince, potentate, 

state or sovereignty whatever, and particularly to the-, of whom 

I Avas before a subject. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


ISTeav York Co^oion Pleas. 

In the matter of the application of-^ 

-, to be admitted a citizen of the > E. L. G. 

United States of America. ) 

State of Neav York, City and County of N'eic YorJc^ ss : 

-, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at-, and 

that he is AA^ell acquainted Avith the above-named applicant, and that the 
said applicant has resided Avithin the United States for the continued 
term of five years, at least, next preceding the present time, and within 
the State of New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this 
application; and that during that time he has behaA^ed as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and Avell disposed to the good order and happiness of the 
same. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


State of Neav York, City and County of N'eic Yorlcj ss: 

I,-, residing at-, do solemnly swear that I will sup¬ 

port the Constitution of the United States, and that I do absolutely and 
entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to eA^ery foreign 
prince, potentate, state or soA^ereignty Avhatever, and particularly to the 
-, of Avhom I was before a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of<-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 

At a special term of the court of common pleas for the city and county 

of Ncav York, held at the City Hall of the city of New York, on the- 

day of-, 18G-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such decla- 






























ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


81 


ration and renunciation, and liaving taken sucb. oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 


Supreme Court, City and County of New Yorlz: 

Ill the matter of- -, on his I 

petition to becouie a citizen of the > E. L. G. 

United States. ) 

To the supreme court of the State of New YorJc : 

The petition of-, residing at-, respectfully shows: 

That he is of the age of 21 years and upwards, and has resided within 
the United States for the continued term of one year next preceding the 
present time; that your petitioner enlisted in the army of the United 

States, in the-regiment of New York volunteers, on the-^— 

day of-, 186-, at-, in the State of New York, and was hon¬ 
orably discharged therefrom on the-day of-, 186-, at-; 

your petitioner therefore asks to be admitted to become a citizen of the 
United States, pursuant to sec. 21 of the act of Congress passed July 17, 
1862, entitled An act to define the pay and emoluments of certain offi¬ 
cers of the army, and for other puriioses.” 


State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc: 

-, the within-named petitioner, being duly sworn, says 

that the matters contained in the foregoing petition are true. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerh. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorh, ss: 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted with the above-named petitioner, and that the 
said petitioner has resided within the United States for the continued 
term of one year, at least, next preceding the present time, and within 
the State of New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this 
application; and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the 
same; and that he knows the said applicant to be the identical person 
mentioned and described in the foregoing petition, and in the certificate 
of discharge from the service of the United States army, now produced 
to the court. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric, 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss : 

I,-, residing at-, do solemnly swear that I will 

support the Constitution of the United States; and that I do absolutely 
and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every for¬ 
eign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and particularly 
to the-, of whom I was before a subject. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

6 T 





























82 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


At a special term of tlie supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 
city of New York, on the-day of-, 186-. 

Present, Hon.-, justice. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing i)ersonally in court, and producing his 
certificate of discharge from the service of the United States army, and 
the evidence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such 
declaration and renunciation, and lia^ ing taken such oaths as are by the 
said acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant 
be admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 


[Exhibit E, in Goldstein’s testimony.] 

Supreme Court, City and County of New Yorlc: 

In the matter of the application of- 

-to be admitted a citizen of the 

United States of America. 

State of New York, City and County of New Torlt, ss: 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and that 

he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant, and that the said 
applicant has resided within the United States for the continued term 
of five years, at least, next preceding the i>resent time, and within the 
State of New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this appli¬ 
cation 5 and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the 
same. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


I E. L. U. 


State of New York, City and County of New Yoricj ss: 

I,-, residing at-, do solemnly swear that I will sup- 

X)ort the Constitution of the United States j and that I do absolutely and 
entirely renounce and abjime all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign 
prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and i^articularly to the 
-, of whom I was before a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 

city of New York, on the-day of-, 186-. 

Present, Hon.-^ justice. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant api)earing x)ersonally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 




















ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


83 


Supreme Court, City and County of ¥eiv Yorlc: 

Ill the matter of the applicatiou of-, 'i 

to be admitted a citizen of the United States of > E. L. G. 

America, ) 

State of Kew York, City and County of Keio Yorlc, ss: 

-^ the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says, 

that he resides at-; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; 

that he has resided in the United States three years next preceding his 
arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present 
time ; that he has resided live 3 ^ears within the United States, including 
the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately pre¬ 
ceding this application, within the State of New York; and that for 
three j^ears next preceding this application it has been, hona fide, his 
intention to become a citizen of the United States. 


Sworn in open court, this-day-, 18G- 

-, Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

-, being dul^^ sworn, saj^s, that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant; and that 
the said applicant has resided in the United States for three 3 ^ears next 
preceding his arrival at the age of 21 j^ears; that he has continued to 
reside therein to the iiresent time; that he has resided five years within 
the United States, including the three .years of his minority, and in the 
State of New York one year, at least, immediately iireceding this appli¬ 
cation ; and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the 
same; and deponent verily believes that for three years next preceding 
this application it has been, hona fide, the intention of the said applicant 
to become a citizen of the United States. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Cleric. 


State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

-, the aboveniamed applicant, do declare on oath that 

it is, hona fide, my intention, and has been for three years next preced¬ 
ing this application, to become a citizen of the United States; and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, 
potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the Queen of 
the United Kingdom of Great Britian and Ireland, of whom I am now a 
subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

- Cleric. 


State of New York, City and County of Neiv Yorlc, ss: 

-, the above-named applicant, do solemnl.y swear that 

1 will supi)ort the Constitution of the United States; and that! do abso¬ 
lutely^ and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to 
every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and par- 































84 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ticularly to the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and 
Ireland, of ^Yhom I was before a subject. 

Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerk. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 
city of New York, on the-day of-, 186-. 

Present, Hon.-, justice. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said acts 
required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Porter G. Sherman sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

92i5. Question. What position did you hold at the last election in New 
York? 

Answer. I was register and inspector in the 8th district and 17th 
ward. 

9!26. Q. I present to you four papers purj^orting to be naturalization cer¬ 
tificates, referred to in the testimony of William AY. Young, and signed 
‘‘Charles E. Loew, clerk,” and issued, one to Henry Sterne, one to 
Charles Warneck, one to William Lucas, one to Gottlieb Kaifenberger; 
state what you know of these papers. 

A. The paper of Sterne Avas brought by a man named Henry Sterne, 
who presented himself for registration. I inquired how he got the paper, 
or in what court; he said he got it in the City Hall. I inquired from 
him as to what room or what court in the City Hall, and he said he did 
not know. I asked him Avhether it Avas up stairs or down stairs, and he 
could not tell about that; he understood that it Avas in the City Hall. 
I asked him who were there ; he said the hall Avas croAvded. 1 asked 
him if it was croAvded up stairs and doAvn stairs; he said it Avas. I asked 
him if he Avas sworn ; he said he AAms. I asked him who swore him; he 
said he did not know. I asked him Avho AAms Avitli him; he said the whole 
croAvd were SAAmrn and he was sworn Avith them; and that after being 
SAVorn they got the papers; he did not know who gave him the paper, 
but he got it. I asked him if he had a AAdtness with him ; he said he had. 
I asked him Iioaa^ long he kncAv him ; he said about a year. I asked him 
if he knew him longer than that; he said no, about a year or nearly two 
years. I asked him his name ; he said his name was Cook. 

927. Q. Did Sterne say Avhether he himself had been in the country 
five years. 

A. No; he said he had been here about four years. As to Warneck’s 
papers, Cliarles AYarneck, of 2G3 East Houston street, presented himself 
with this paper to register, at the 4th election district, 17th ward. He 
said he got the paper in Centre street, he thong litNo. 6 ; it Avas in the 
basement; somebody there gave him this naturalization paper; he said 
he was not in court and did not get the paper in any court. [To Air. 
Boss.] The statement Avas not made under oath. AATlliam Lucas pre¬ 
sented this paper; he said he got it from Air. Eupert, of Essex market 
court. He said first, “I got it in court;” Ave then inquired from him 











ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


85 


what court, and then we found out it was the Essex market court; it 
was not any other court. There is no E^sex market court authorized to 
issue naturalization i)aj)ers. 

By Mr. Boss: 

928. Q. Was that testified to! 

A. It was his answer under oath. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

929. Q. It was a statement made when he presented the naturalization 
paper for registration ? 

A. Yes, sir. Gottlieb Katfenberger presented this paper; he said he 
got it in Centre street, in the basement, not in any court j that was his 
statement, not under oath. 

By the Chairman : 

930. Q. Did you refuse these parties registration ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

931. Q. About what proportion of voters in your district were foreign- 
born citizens? 

A. The great majority of them were foreign-born; it is rather a Ger¬ 
man district. 

932. Q. Did you generally swear them ? ^ 

A. ilo, sir; we found it no kind of use to swear them; they came up 
there to swear right through that they were citizens, or whatever it was. 

933. Q. What proportion of them were sworn ? 

A. We swore very few—iierhaps one in 20. When I came to question 
them as to how they got their papers, I found they got them in that way; 
there was the seal of the court and the signature of the clerk. One of my 
associates came back and said that we could not go behind the court; 
that the court held itself responsible for what it dicl. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

934. Q. In other words, when you examined them they told you the 
truth and you excluded their votes. Do you think it is hardly fair for 
you to say that they came prepared to swear the thing through ! 

A. I do not know; I believe these men told the truth; some told a 
pretty crooked story and I took away their papers from them. 

By Mr. Boss: 

935. Q. You kept out the illegal votes pretty Avell? 

A. We registered a good many of them which I think were spurious. 

936. Q. Did they vote ? 

A. We registered 414 and there were 386 votes polled. 

937. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes having been given at your 
precinct ? 

A. No, sir; I do not positively know of any; I know if I had it to do 
over again I would retain all of these papers instead of allowing any¬ 
body to vote upon them. 

John Osborne sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

938. Question. What office did you hold at the last election? 

Answer. I was chairman of the board of registers and inspectors of 

election. I have been so ever since there has been a registration law in 
tliis city, except the three years I was in the army. 

939. Q. What do jon know of fraudulent naturalization papers being 
presented to procure registration of voters on ? 


86 


ELECTION FEAUDS *IK NEW YORK. 


A. Last year I saw there was something of the sort coming, to have 
naturalization papers without the men going down to the court to pro¬ 
cure them themselves; that is, they were furnished hy committees any¬ 
where. I saAV it coming last year, and I used every opportunity to chal¬ 
lenge all those that were dated in the month of October, last year. I 
made them swear, and I found that several of them had got them fraud¬ 
ulently j and I found the same thing this year, and I seized four or live 
of these papers. One of them I was mistaken about, so that T had to 
withdraw it in order to hand it to the man to whom it belonged, but he 
never called for it afterwards j that is one of four or five. Myself and 
Mr. Bogart ceased taking the responsibility after this. 

940. Q. What proportion of the adult male citizens of your district are 
foreign-born, and what proportion are native-born? 

A. There are over 90 ])er cent, of foreign birth. 

941. Q. About what percentage of them Avere sworn when they were 
registered ? 

A. Quite a number of them. I swore eA^ery one whose paper was 
dated in October, 1867, and October, 1868. After they Avere SAvorn a 
memorandum was put on the paper by Mr. Bogart, so that the registra¬ 
tion could not be repeated in another district. 

942. Q. If you haA^e a i)aper in your j^ossession puriAorting to be a 
naturalizfitiou paper, present it and describe it. 

A. I present this paper, issued to Daniel O’Donohue, dated 18th of 
October, 1868, and signed, Charles E. Locaa^, clerk.” 

943. Q. State what O’Donohue said Avhen he presented it for registra¬ 
tion. 

A. I asked him if he went into court to get that paper from the judge; 
he said he did. I asked him if he Avas x>roi)erly SAvmrn; he said he was. 
I asked him if he had a Avitness with him; he said no, he had no witness. 
Said I, ‘‘Did you ever declare your intention to become a citizen, or 
get your first papers?” he said he did not. I asked him why; he said 
because he was told by seA^eral persons that it Avas no use to do anything 
of the kind, as the laAv had been altered in some way so that it did not 
require a man to declare his intentions to get out his first papers. Then 
there was a question brought up before the court AAdiether he should be 
arrested or not, as he was not entitled to the paper. Our associates 
decided that the man had been made a dupe of, and that we had better 
not punish him, but go a little further, and expose what the court Avas 
doing. We decided to do that; I kept this paper; but before he Avent 
out he stated he had served three years in the army, and had got an 
honorable discharge, which Avould entitle him to this paper, but A\^e still 
held it because the judge did not question him upon that. It Avould liaA^e 
been the same thing if he had not been in the army, and had not been 
honorably discharged. HoweA'er, I think the man was entitled to the 
paper, and I withdrew it so as to return it, but he never called for it. 
If he had applied to the judge and mentioned that he AAms a soldier, he 
would liaA^e got his paper, but in the other papers there was no such 
excuse at all. 

944. Q. Do you knoAv any other facts tending to show the existence of 
naturalization papers ? 

A. ]No more than that I had three or four such iiapers as this; I believe 
they are in the hands of some committee. 

By Mr. Boss: 

945. Q. There Avere no illegal votes polled at your place that you know 
of? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


87 


A. None that I know of. They were attempted hut they could not go 
through. There were three young men of whom I was doubtful whether 
they were of age or not. They swore they were of age, but they could 
not tell their birthday. We had to register them^ but they never came 
up to vote. 

946. Q. You think you protected your polls so that no illegal votes 
got in there? 

A. I think so. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

947. Q. What are your i)olitics ? 

A. Eepublican. 

Charles Henry Siep recalled. 

By Mr. Hickey : 

948. Question. Have you the list of naturalization papers which the 
clerk, Goldstein, says he left with you as a member of the general com¬ 
mittee ? 

Answer. He did not leave any list with me j if the list be there, Mr. 
Rosenberg must have it. 

949. Q. Goldstein says that after Rosenberg was arrested he acted as 
chief clerk, and that he left a list of naturalizations with you. 

A. He did not leave any list there at all. Rosenberg kept his papers 
in his private possession—in his iiocket. He left only the blanks and 
his pen and ink, &c., there in the evening. 

By Mr. ICerr: 

950. Q. Are you a member of the German naturalization committee ? 

A. No, sir; I am a member of the general committee, but not of the 

naturalization committee. 

951. Q. Are you a member of the committee that appointed the nat¬ 
uralization committee ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hickey: 

952. Q. You say that no list was left with you ? 

A. No, sir. 

953. Q. Ho you know where it is? 

A. No, sir. Rosenberg ought to know that. He had this list in his 
possession, and he must have it, or know all about it. Goldstein is 
mistaken about that. 

Patrick T. Feeny sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

954. Question. Are you a native of the United States: 

Answer. No, sir; I came here when I was about two-and-a-half years 
old. 

955. Q. Hid you ever go into any court to procure naturalization 
papers? 

A. I went over to 6 Centre street to get a paper there, and from there 
I was sent over to the chambers of the board of councilmen in the City 
Hall. 

956. Q. Hid you go into any court to be naturalized? 

A. Only that room in the City Hall. 


88 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Dickey: 

057. Q. Were you sworn in court? 

A. Yes, sir. 

058. Q. Did you have a witness with you ? 

A. Yes; Michael Denham. 

050. Q. How old are you ? 

A. Twenty-two next March. 

9G0. Q. Did you get a naturalization paper? 

A. Yes, sir. 

961. Q. Do you recollect the name of the clerk who signed your nat¬ 
uralization paper ? 

A. James M. Sweeney. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

062. Q. Were you examined in court, and had you a witness along 
with you to get your paper? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

063. Q. What did they ask you in court ? 

A. I don’t believe they asked me anything in that court. There were 
four of us sworn together, and they said it so fast that I could not 
exactly understand what was said. 

064. Q. What did the man say who went with you? 

A. When he got the papers at Centre street he said he knew me 10 
years. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

065. Q. When he went to the court what did he say? 

A. The gentleman spoke so fast that I could not exactly understand. 
066. Q. What did you say to the court in answer to the questions? 

A. I put my hand on the book. 

067. Q. Did you tell the court anything? 

A. No, sir. 

068. Q. Did the court ask you anything? 

A. No, sir. 

969. Q. Did he ask the witness anything ? 

A. How long he knew me. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

970. Q. Did any one ask you in the court-room how old you were when 
you came to this country ? 

A. No, sir. They asked me where the papers were made out; if I 
came under 18. 

971. Q. Did thej^ ask you that in the court room? 

A. I don’t recollect it. 

972. Q. Who administered the oath to you? 

A. Tliat I cannot say. I believe Dougal Stewart was there. 

973. Q. Who told you he was there? 

A. My witness. 

By the Chairman : 

974. Q. What rooip in the City Hall was this ? 

A. Boom No. 16, I believe. 

975. Q. Who was your witness ? 

A. Alichael Denham. 

976. Q. How long had he known you ? 

A. I guess he knew me over 10 years. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


89 


977. Q. You have been in the country that long ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have been here since I was a child. 

By Mr. Boss: 

978. Q. Did you vote % 

A. No, sir. 

979. Q. Did they take your paper away from you? 

A. No, sir. 

980. Q. But you did not vote ? 

A. This gentleman, Mr. Stewart, who reported me, said that my papers 
were fraudulent, and a deputy marshal came and looked at my papers 
and asked me if I would go before the commissioner. I said yes. I 
had my name registered, but I could not vote. I had an engagement 
that night—an engagement at Hooley’s Minstrels, and I thought I might 
be arrested and could not go there, and so I would lose my job. 

981. Q. So you were frightened away from the exercise of your right 
to vote by these marshals ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

982. Q. You were induced to stay away for fear you could not have a 
job the next day? 

A. Yes, sir. 

983. Q. How would you haA^e voted ? 

A. I was to vote for both parties. I was to vote for Griswold for 
governor, and for all the other candidates of the other party. 

984. Q. So far as you know you were lawfully entitled to A^ote ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

985. Q. You made the proper oath ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

986. Q. You got the i^roper certificate ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

987. Q. But for fear of being arrested you desisted from voting ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Charles Barnegat sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

988. Question. Did you vote at the presidential election in this city ? 
Answer. No, sir. 

989. Q. Have you a naturalization paper ? 

A. I got one. 

990. Q. Where did you get it ? 

A. In the supreme court. 

991. Q. Have you it with you ? 

A. No, sir. 

992. Q. How long haA^e you been in the United States ? 

A. Nine years. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

993. Q. Hoav old are you ? 

A. Thirty years. The first day I was in court to get my iiaj^ers there 
I saw in the newspapers that I could get the papers all at once. 

994. Q. Were you in the army? 

A. No, sir. 

995. Q. You did not get your first papers out ? 

A. No, sir j I got them all at once in the supreme court. 


90 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do not know that he had any papers. 

996. Q. Who was your witness"? 

A. Charles Jew. 

997. Q. How old were you when you came to the United States ? 

A. I was about 18. 

998. Q. You say you are 30 years of age and have been only nine years 
in this country 

A. Well, I was first in the south before I came here j I was six years 
in Uew York • I was three years in Uew Orleans, St. Louis, Memphis, 
and other places. 

By the Chairman : 

999. Q. Were you registered as a voter at the last election ? 

A. No, I did not register, and they said the paper was not good and I 
went home again. 

1000. Q. Did they swear you when you went to register ? 

A. No, sir. I said, “what is the matter?” He asked me where I got 
the paper. 1 told them that I got it in the supreme court, and that it 
must be good. They said no, and a policeman told me I had better go 
home, and I went home j and now I got a notice to come here. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1001. Q. What age were you when you came to this country ? 

A. Maybe 18. 

1002. Q. Were you under or over 18 ? 

A. I think it must be under 18. 

1003. Q. Did your witness testify that you came to this country before 
you were 18 ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1004. Q. And I think the court gave you a certificate of naturalization ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

1005. Q. You got your papers all at once in that way ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1006. Q. And they would not let you vote ? 

A. No, they would not let me vote. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1007. Q. What year were you born in ? 

A. I do not recollect. 

1008. Q. How long ago was it ? 

A. Well, I am 30 now. 

1009. Q. What year did you come to this country ? 

A. I do not recollect; some time before the war commenced. 

1010. Q. How long before the war commenced ? 

A. I do not know; maybe three or four years. 

1011. Q. How long did you know this man who was your witness ? 

A. I knew him just since I have been here j he was in New Orleans 

with me. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

Q. He went around with you ? 

A. Yes, he went with me. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1012. Q. When did he get his papers ? 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1013. Q. Did you pay anything for your papers ? 

A. No, sir j I had to i)ay nothing for them j there were about 500 put 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 91 

tlirongli at the same timej there was a whole lot of them j I was smashed 
lip, almost, to get iu. 

By Mr. Dicicey : 

1014. Q. Did you go up to court to take the oath, or did you all stand 
iu the room and hold up your hands 

A. Some had their hands on the back of the Bible, and some were 
pointing that way. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

1014. Q. Did you kiss the Bible ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

Q. How far were you from the Bible ? 

A. Six or eight feet. 

1015. Q. You say the court was full 1 
A. Yes, sir. 

lOlG. Q. Were they all naturalized at once ? 

A. Not at once; at several times. 

By Mr, Dickey: 

1017. Q. How many at a time ? 

A. 1 suxipose about eight or nine. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1018. Q. You are satisfied that when you came to this country you 
were under 18 years of age ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1019. Q. Whom would you have voted for if you had been xiermitted 
to vote ? 

A. I always voted for the republican party, because I respect Abraham 
Lincoln and Greneral Grant, and have got pictures of them in my room. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

1020. Q. And these fellows would not let you vote? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1021. Q. Do you know that policeman who told you to go home ? 

A. I do not know him. He said, ‘‘What is the matter; how is this?’^ 
and he said I had better go home. 

1022. Q. Did you tell him you wanted to vote the republican ticket ? 
A. No, I did not tell him that. 

1023. Q. Do you know whether he was a democrat or republican? 

A. No; but I know that the man at the registry was a republican; 
they did not say anything to democrats. 

1024. Q. You wanted to vote the republican ticket and the republican 
officers would not let you ? 

A. They did not know it. 

Andrew B. Leigner sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1025. Question. Where do you live ? 

Answer. 652 Washington street. 

1026. Q. What country are you a native of? 

A. Germany. 

1027. Q. Have you ever been before the court to iirocui’e naturalization 
Xiapers ? 

A. 1 got my first papers about five years ago. 


92 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1028. Q. Has any person ofiered to procure naturalization j)ai)ers for 
you without your going into court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1029. Q. Who? 

A. Kelly; I do not know his first name. 

1030. Q. When? 

A. Before election. 

1031. Q. What did he say to you ? 

A. He asked me if I got my papers yet. I said, I got my first papers; 
not my second.” So he said he could get them for me. I told him that 
if there was any trouble about it I did not want them. Said I, ‘‘Do you 
want me along?” He said, ‘‘ O no, we do not want you at allj all I want 
is your name.” Said I, “Do you want my first papers?” He said he did 
not want them, but give my name and he would give me the papers. 

1032. Q. Did you pay him anything for it ? 

A. I paid him $2. 

1033. Q. Is this the paper ? 

A. That is the paper. 

1034. Q. This appears to have been issued from the superior court of 
the city of Kew Yorkj did you ever appear in court to be sworn to get it? 

A. Ko, sir. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

1035. Q. Where were you when you were first spoken to about this 
l)aper ? 

A. I was hitching up my horse to go up West street. 

1036. Q. What is your business ? 

A. Driving a hay-cart. 

1037. Q. How long was that before you got the paper ? 

A. He spoke to me in the morning; in the afternoon, about 3 o’clock, 
he gave me tfie i)aper. He came and brought it to me on the West Tenth 
street dock. 

1038. Q. Did you tell him where he could find you ? 

A. Ko; but he knew the ifiace where he could find me. 

1039. Q. You never left your work from the time you were first spoken 
to about it until it was delivered to you ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1040. Q. Did you know Kelly before? 

A. 1 am not acquainted with him, but I sui)pose he knew me. 

1041. Q. Did you register on that paper ? 

A. I did. 

1042. Q. Did you vote on it ? 

A. I did; I asked if I would get into trouble on it, and he said “no.” 

1043. Q. What i)recinct and what ward did you vote in ? 

A. In the 9th ward, corner of West Tenth and Greenwich streets. 

1044. Q. You voted on it during the last congressional and presi¬ 
dential election ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1045. Q. Do you know what political party Kelly belonged to ? 

A. I do not. 

1046. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. I do not know exactly; I voted a ticket that was given me. 

1047. Q. Did you get it of a democratic distributor? 

A. No, I do not know him myself; he is a good friend of my boss. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


93 


By Mr. Kerr : 

1048. Q. What is your boss ? 

A. He is a republican. 

By Mr. DioivEY : 

1049. Q. Did you vote for Seymour or for Hoffman? 

A. I cannot tell. 

1050. Q. Have you been a democrat heretofore ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1051. Q. Are you still a democrat ? 

A. I never voted before. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

1052. Q. Are you conscious of having experienced any change of 
politics ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1053. Q. Did you vote the same way as your boss did ? 

A. I do not know how he voted. My boss did not give me the ticket. 

1054. Q. But the man who gave you the ticket was a great friend of 
you boss ? 

A. I think so. 

1055. Q. And your boss is a republican ? 

A. I believe he is. 

[The naturalization certificate referred to in the testimony of this wit¬ 
ness is annexed to his testimony and marked “Exhibit E.”] 


[Exhibit E.] 

United States of America, State of New York, 

City and County of Neic Yorh, ss : 

Be it remembered that, on the 19th day of October, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, Andrew B. Leigner 
appeared in the superior court of the city of New York, (the said court 
being a court of record, having common law jurisdiction, and a clerk and 
seal,) and applied to the said court to be admitted to become a citizen of 
the United States of America, pursuant to the provisions of the several 
acts of the Congress of the United States of America for that purpose 
made and provided. And the said applicant having thereupon iiroduced 
to the court such evidence, made such declaration and renunciation, and 
taken such oaths as are by the said acts recpiired: Thereupon, it was 
ordered by the said court that the said applicant be admitted, and he 
was accordingly admitted by the said court to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony whereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed, 
r T this 19th day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty- 
L ' ‘-I eight, and in the 93d year of our independence. 

By the court: 

JAMES M. SWEENY, Cleric. 

Michael Kerwin sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

105G. Question. In what country were you born ? 

Answer. Ireland. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


,94 

1057. Q. How long liave you been in tbe United States ? 

A. Over 11 years. 

1058. Q. Did you ever go into any court to be naturalized ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

1059. Q. Was any oatli ever administered to you ? 

A. No, sir. 

1000. (^. Did you vote at tbe last election for President in this city % 
A. Yes, sir. 

1001. Q. Where? 

A. In the 9th ward. 

1002. Q. Were you registered ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1003. Q. Did you present the naturalization certificate which I now 
hold in my hand for registration ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1004. Q. Were you sworn when you were registered? 

A. No, sir. 

1005. Q. Whom did you get this naturalization paper from ? 

A. From Thomas Kelly and Charles Malloy. 

1000. What did you pay for it ? 

A. Two dollars. 

1007. Q. What did they say to you about it when they gave it to you ? 
A. Kelly came to me and wanted me to get out my papers. I told 
him I did not want them. I said I would lose a couple of dollars by 
going down town to get them. He said he would go down town and get 
them if 1 would give him $2; so I consented to give it to him. 

1068. Q. How soon after that did he bring the paper back ? 

A. He brought it back about a quarter-past 5 o’clock. When he came 
to me in the morning it was between 8 and 9 o’clock. 

1069. Q. How long have you been in this country ? 

A. I am in the country 11 or 12 years. 

1070. Q. But you never have got any papers ? 

A. No, sir j I never wanted them, and 1 would not want them now, only 
they came to me. 

1071. Q. Where did you vote ? 

A. At the corner of Perry and Greenwich streets. 

1072. Q. Did anybody question you at the polls ? 

A. No, sir. 

1073. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. The republican ticket. The fellow gave me a ticket, and said it 
was a republican ticket. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1074. Q. What did Kelly say to you, at the time he gave you this 
paper, about the danger of using it ? 

A. Kelly said there was no danger about using it; that a great many 
had the same kind of paper, and there was no danger. 

1075. Q. What did he say about protecting you? 

A. He said that Pop Culkin would make 3iat aU right. He is one of 
the assistant aldermen of the 9th ward. 

1076. Q. Is he a democrat ? 

A. I guess so. 

1077. Q. When did you last see the man who gave you the ticket to 
vote? 

A. I did not see him ever since ) I would not know him if I met him. 
[The paper referred to in the testimony of this witness is signed 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 95 

“James M. Sweeny, clerk,and is in all respects similar to the paper 
marked “Exhibit E.”] 

William J. McMurray sworu and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1078. Question. What office do yon hold? 

Answer. Koundsman and policeman in the 22d precinct of the metro¬ 
politan police in this city. 

1079. Q. I present to yon a paper pnrporting to be a certificate of 
natnralization signed “Charles E. Loew,” dated the 15th of October, 
18G8, and issued to Angnst A. Sanger; what do yon know of that paper? 

A. I took a x)aper similar to this from a man named Sanger, and deliv¬ 
ered it to a clerk in the United States district attorney's office. 

1080. Q. What information have yon about the paj^er? 

A. I received information the morning of the 3d of November that 
this man Sanger had registered. I received information from a man 
named Speck, and I went and arrested him on the complaint of Speck, 
and brought him to the station-honse. He there admitted, so I am 
informed, that he arrived in this country last May; that he went down 
to No. G Centre street, and procured the certificate of natnralization for 
$3. I took him there to see if he could identify the parties, but he did 
not see them, so I brought him back. I got these facts through Speck 
as interpreter; he was sworn as interpreter. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1081. Q. What are your politics? 

A. As a general thing I vote the republican ticket lately. 

Daniel Sullivan sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

1082. Question. In what country were you born? 

Answer. Ireland. 

1083. Q. How long have you been in the United States? 

A. Seven years next May. 

1084. Q. Were you ever naturalized in any court? 

A. No, sir. 

1085. Q. I present to you a paper signed James M. Sweeny, clerk, 
imrportiug to be a certificate of naturalization made from the superior 
court of the city of New York, dated the 7th of October, 18G8; did you 
have that paper? 

A. I got a paper to vote and it was taken from me. 

108G. Q. Whom did you get the paper from ? 

A. It was left in the house where my boss was working. I do not 
know who put it there. It was left in the house where my boss was 
living. 

1087. Q. Did you vote at the last election? 

A. No, sir. 

1088. Q. Who took the paper from you? 

A. A person at the registry. 

1080. Q. Did they swear you? 

A. No; they only questioned me. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

1090. Q. Were there other papers of this kind left at the house of that 
man? 

A. No; only for myself. 


96 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1091. Q. Do you know of any otlier papers of this kind being given to 
men like you? 

A. I heard something about it, but I do not know the fact. 

1092. Q. Did you pay any money for it? 

A. I did not. 

By Mr. Dawes: 

1093. Q. Whom did you work for ? 

A. Paddy Burke. 

1094. Q. Did he give j'Ou the paper? 

A. I do not know who gave it to me; it was handed tome that night; 
it was put in the house 450 Cherry street. (The paper exhibited to wit¬ 
ness is the same in all respects as the paper marked “Exhibit E,” except 
it has got a iive-cent revenue staini) attached.) 

1095. Q. Did you ever talk with Burke about this paper? 

A. I did not. 

1096. Q. Didn’t you teU the man who took it from you that you got it 
from Paddy Burke? 

A. I do not know whether it was Paddy Burke or the children; some¬ 
body or other gave it to me. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1097. Q. You do not know who brought it to the house? 

A. I do not know who brought it to the house. 

1098. Q. Do you know who gave it to you ? 

A. Some girls or boys. 

Patrick Burke sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

1099. Question. Do you know Daniel Sullivan? 

Answer. I do; he worked for me four or five years. 

1100. Q. 'Did you give him a certificate of naturalization ? 

A. I did not; I had nothing to do with it. I know nothing about the 
l^aper at all; I took the paper oft* the table and handed it to John Sulli¬ 
van; said I, “Here is a paper for you.” “All right,” says he. 

1101. Q. Who left it at the house? 

A. I don’t know. 

1102. Q. Did you see the man who left it? 

A. I did not. 

By Mr. D AWES: 

1103. Q. How did you know it was a paper for him? 

A. The children told me it was for him. 

1104. Q. Did you ever tell anybody that you had a man in your employ¬ 
ment who was not naturalized? 

A. I did not. 

Dougal Stewart sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1105. Question. What office did you hold at the last election? 
Answer. Inspector of election and registration, in the 17th district, 

20th ward. 

1106. Q. State if you know of any person having registered on natural¬ 
ization papers who was not entitled to be registered. 

A. No, sir; I do not know of any in that district. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


97 


By Mr. Dickey: 

1106. Q. Do you know of any person being there with naturalization 
papers for the purpose of registering who were not entitled to do so? 

A. There was one man came there and tried to register, but we did 
not allow him. I did not know his name. 

1107. Q. Had he a paper? 

A. Yes, sir; but he would not swear to it; at least he would not swear 
that he was the age of 21. He said he swore once when he got it at the 
City Hall, and they told him there not to swear again. I believe his 
name was Mueller. 

1108. Q. Did he vote at the last election? 

A. That is more than I can say; to the best of my knowledge he did 
not. 

1109. Q. Do you know whether he had naturalization papers? 

A. Yes, sir ; I saw them. 

1110. Q. Did he tell you he was 21 years of age? 

A. Yes, sir; he told me so several times before; I think he looks 
younger than that now. He never told me what his age was, but he 
never said he was 21. 

1111. Q. Did he say he was not? 

A. I cannot say exactly that he said he was not; he never gave me 
any satisfaction. He always told me that he had a right to vote and he 
would vote. I told him I would try to stop him if I could. I believe he 
did not vote. 

1112. Q. You were one of the officers, and do you think you iirotected 
the polls pretty well? 

A. I think we did. 

New York, December 23, 1868. 

Joseph A. Miller sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1113. Question. State what you know about persons procuring or being 
able to procure naturalization papers without going into court to get them. 

Answer. I do not know anything about it. 

1114. Q. Did you have a conversation with Charles Fox about getting 
naturalization papers ? 

A. He came and spoke to me in relation to citizen papers. I did not 
have anything to do with them; I never got any. I keep a public 
house. I know there were citizen papers given out there, for I have 
seen them. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

1115. Q. Who gave them out? 

A. That I cannot say; 1 did not. I saw Norton give out papers, but 
I could not say that they were citizen papers. 

1116. Q. Did you hear him ask people if they wanted citizen papers? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1117. Q. Did you hear him tell them that they need not come down 
town; that he could get the papers for them? 

A. I am not positive about that. 

1118. Q. Did you see him give papers to the same persons that you 
heard him ask if they wanted citizen iiapers? 

A. I cannot say positively as to that. 1 have seen him have papers 
in my house. 

1119. Q. Do you know what price he charged for them? 

7 T 


98 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Two dollars. 

1120. Q. And he offered to get papers for persons at two dollars? 

A. Yes. 

1121. Q. And yon saw him have some papers there? 

A. Yes. 

By the Chairman : 

1122. Q. Many of them I 

A. I saw him have five or six in his hand. 

1123. Q. At different times? 

A. No; only at one time. I think about the 19th of October. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1124. Q. Do you know whether the papers that you saw with Norton 
were citizen i)ai)ers? 

A. No, sir. 

1125. Q. Did you ever know any of those men who had any of that 
kind of jiapers vote ux)on them ? 

A. No, sir; none of them voted on them. Officer Cottrell told me if I 
knew any of them to stop them from voting. 

1126. Q. Are you a democrat or a republican? 

A. A republican. 

1127. Q. And you helped to keep away the men who had these papers ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

1128. Q. Do you know whether they were republicans or democrats? 
A. I suppose they would have gone democratic. I never heard of any 

frauds being practiced except by democrats. 

1129. Q. Is not that because you associate mainly with republicans on 
subjects of a iiolitical nature ? 

A. That has been always my politics. 

1130. Q. And therefore all that you ever heard talk of frauds in this 
city would be republicans? 

A. Well, perhaps so. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

1131. Q. What position did Norton hold in your ward? 

A. He was president of a democratic club. 

1132. Q What did he say about the frauds that were being practiced 
before Judge Barnard? 

A. He said that men went before Judge Barnard and got their papers 
easy, without any trouble. 

New York, December 23,1868. 

Peter Pohl sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

1133. Question. Of what country are you a native? 

Answer. Baden, Germany. 

1134. Q. How long have you been in the United States ? 

A. Twenty years. 

1135. Q. Did you ever appear in any court to be naturalized? 

A. I got my first papers in 1852. 

1136. Q. How did you get your naturalization certificate? 

A. My boss, Charles Pox, ordered the paper, and I paid 75 cents for 
it. I did not go into any court to get it, and did not take any oath. I 
did not go to be registered. I put the paper in my trunk, and the officer 
came and took it away from me. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


99 


New York, Decemher 24,1868. 
John T. Hoffman sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1137. Question. State liow long you were mayor of New York city. 
Answer. A little less than three years. 

1138. Q. State if you issued a proclamation on the 31st of October, 
1868, as mayor. 

A. 1 issued a proclamation ; I do not recollect the date of it. 

1139. Q. Is this a correct copy of it I 

A. I think that is a correct copy; there may be some verbal discrep¬ 
ancies, but it is the substantial proclamation. 

1140. Q. It may be made a part of your testimony, I suppose ? 

A. Yes. 

The following is the proclamation : 


PROCLAMATION. 


Mayor’s Office, New York, October 31, 1868. 

To the people of the city of Neio York : 

We are on the eve of an important election. Intense excitement pervades the whole 
community. Unscrupulous, designing, and dangerous men, political partisans, are resorting 
to extraordinary means to increase it. Gross and unfounded charges of fraud are made by 
them against those high in authority. Threats are made against naturalized citizens, and the 
authority of the judges, and the seal of the supreme court is defied. A grand jury of the 
United States court, summoned through the agency of those who are in this scheme, has, as 
I have been informed, been induced, without that preliminary examination which is usual, 
and which is afforded by law for the protection of character, to find in great haste and secrecy 
bills of indictment against divers persons for the purpose, openly avowed, of intimidating 
them in the discharge of their public duties. The United States marshal, a violent political 
partisan, has assumed to himself the power and duty of appointing swarms of special depu¬ 
ties to take their place at the polls, and to threaten and awe the electors of the State of New 
York in the exercise of their high privilege of casting their votes for the chief officers of the 
nation and State. It is the first time in the history of the country that United States govern¬ 
ment officials have attempted to interfere with free elections in the Empire State, and the act 
is attended with danger. 

Evidence is accumulating that the combination of dangerous men who have set on foot and 
thus far carried into execution these unusual and unjustifiable movements have done so for 
two purposes: 

First. To conceal and cover their own schemes of fraud, which they hope to consummate 
by the aid of untried or pardoned criminals. 

Second. So to excite the masses of people in this city who are opposed to them as to lead 
them into acts of disorder and violent resistance. 

In the exercise of my duty as chief magistrate of this city, I call upon all good people to 
unite in preventing the consummation of this scheme. Let them watch carefully the move¬ 
ments of those who seek to perpetrate great frauds, while they charge frauds upon others, 
and above all things let them see to it that there shall be no scenes of violence or disorder on 
the day of election. Perfect peace and order are essential to the welfare of the city and pros¬ 
perity of the State, and the maintenance of the rights of the people. 

Nothing but evil and calamity can come from any disturbance of the public peace. Those 
in authority and those out of it alike find their protection in the maintenance of law and the 
preservation of order. , 

Let no citizen, however, be deterred by any threats or fears from the discharge of his duty 
at the polls or elsewhere, but let him as.sert his rights boldly, resolutely, and at the same time 
with calmness and dignity, and he will find his perfect protection under the laws and law¬ 
fully constituted authorities of the State of New York. 

By virtue of authority vested in me by law, I hereby offer a reward of $100, to be paid on 
the arrest and conviction of any person charged with a violation of the election laws of this 
State, and a like sum to be paid on the arrest and conviction of any person charged with 
intimidating, obstructing, or defrauding any voter in the exercise of his right as an elector. 

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and official seal, at the City Hall, in the 

city of New York, this 31st day of October, 1868. 

j ^ HOFFMAN, Mayor. 


100 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1141. Q. State what evidence yon had, at or prior to the time of issu¬ 
ing this proclamation, that threats were made against naturalized citizens. 

A. Before answering the question, I should like to know whether the , 
object of this inquiry is to question the policy or wisdom of my procla¬ 
mation, because I do not recognize the right of Congress to sit in judg¬ 
ment on my official action as mayor of the city of New York. 

The Chairman. The committee is charged simply with the duty of 
investigating alleged frauds in the recent election 5 I will show you the 
resolution under which the committee is acting. 

Witness. I do not wish to delay the committee by any undue objec¬ 
tion ; I am quite ready to answer every question relating to frauds or 
alleged frauds in the city of New York, or relating to naturalized voters, 
but if anything is asked relating to the mere wisdom or policy of my 
action as mayor, I do not propose to answer it. 

The Chairman. I have no purpose to inquire into the wisdom of any 
of those matters. 

Witness. I should like to have it entered on the minutes that the 
committee does not propose to inquire into the policy of my official acts 5 
and that the questions are simply imt to ascertain facts in relation to the 
naturalization of foreigners. 

The Chairman. There is no objection to that. 

WYtness. Then I will answer the question by saying that it was com¬ 
mon report, based on the statements of many individuals and on the 
reported proceedings of some committees, that an organized system of 
challenging all persons claiming to be citizens by naturalization would 
be carried out on the day of election, not only with a view of intimidat¬ 
ing them, but of delaying the receipt of votes at the polls. 

1142. Q. Can you state what i)ersons gave you information that there 
was such an organized purpose ? 

A. I cannot now give the names. 

1143. Q. Can you give any of them ? 

A. I think not. 

1144. Q. Can you furnish the committee with the proceedings of the 
committees to which you have referred ! 

A. 1 only read them in the daily journals as the proceedings of what 
I suppose may be called committees, organizations in political interest; 

I cannot now give even the dates at which they appeared. 

1145. Q. In your proclamation you say: the authority of the judges 
and the seal of the supreme court is defied; will you state to the com¬ 
mittee what evidence you had of that ? 

A. It was announced in many of the papers, and I think some legal 
opinions were also given, that the registers, whose duty it was to register 
persons claiming the right to vote, had the right to go behind the certi¬ 
ficates of naturalization issued by a court of record, to deny the validity 
of them, to examine into their genuineness or regularity, and to refuse 
to register, if in their judgment, they thought proper so to do; whereas 
the claim of those who agreed with me was that the registers had no 
right to go behind any certificate issued by a court of record, and that 
it was their duty, when the oath was offered to be taken, to receive it 
and leave the man, if he committed any offence, to be prosecuted under 
the laws of the State; it was in that way that the seal of the court was 
to be defied, and was defied—as was commonly understood—by some of 
the registers; it was very clear to us who understood the largeness of 
the population and vote of this city, that if the registers should under¬ 
take to try the genuineness of papers bearing the seal of the supreme 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


101 


court, a very large proportion of tlie vote would fail to be registered ; 
that the time allowed for registration was too short to get the vote of 
the city registered. 

1146. Q. Did you advise that the registers had no right to inquire into 
the genuineness of certificates of naturalization f 

A. I gave no advice on the subject, and was not consulted. 

1147. Q. State if that opinion was expressed in your presence and 
intercourse with citizens of Xew York, and whether you assented or 
objected to it. 

A. It was mentioned to me, I think, in conversation by the district 
attorney of the city, who was also • the counsel for the board of police 
commissioners who had charge of the appointment of registers. I have 
no doubt that I did assent to it though it was not stated to me in any 
official way. I also so understood Judge Davies’s opinion to read when 
it w as first published. 

1148. Q. Can you furnish the committee with references to the news- 
paiiers, and their dates, in which you allege there were articles the object 
of wliich was to deny the authority of the siiiireme court and to defy 
its seal I 

A. I have no file of them, and have no time to examine them. 

1149. Q. State if it was notorious, at and prior to the last presidential 
election, that fraudulent naturalization papers had been jirocured or used 
in this city. 

A. I have no knowledge of any such fact. I know that such charges 
were made in the papers. 

1150. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain the correctness of the 
charges ? 

A. No, sir; I was in the city very little during the six weeks preceding 
the election. 

1151. Q. You say in your proclamation, “A grand jury of the United 
States court, summoned through the agency of those who are in this 
scheme, has, as I have been informed, been induced, without that pre¬ 
liminary examination which is usual, and which is afforded by law for 
the protection of character, to find, in great haste and secrecy, bills of 
indictment against divers persons, for the purpose, openly avowed, of 
intimidating them in the discharge of their x)ublic duties.” State what 
evidence you had that such purpose was openly, or otherwise, avowed. 

A. I cannot give names, but it was generally understood in this city, 
at the time, that persons prominent in the organization of the republican 
party had declared that every means should be resorted to to break 
down the democratic majority in this city; that they had bet largely on 
it; that one of the persons who had made such declaration, and had 
either made or was interested in such wagers, was the marshal of this 
district, who, I believe, is the officer empowered by law to summon juries. 
I say I cannot giv^e the names of the persons who stated this, because 
it was common report, generally understood—no concealment about it. 
I do not give names because that would necessarily be followed by the 
question, What conversation had you with this particular i)erson f ’ and 
1 could not recollect. 

1152. Q. Can you give the name of any person ? 

A. No, I cannot now. And on this subject I would like to say here, 
(it is due to myself and due to the judge of the court, who, I am told, 
considered it might be some reflection upon liim,) that the whole burden 
of that cliarge in the proclamation was that indictments were found 
without the preliminary examinations which 1 understood to be usual in 
the United States criminal courts, as it is in our State criminal courts. 


102 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


It had no application to the case of Rosenberg, because Rosenberg had 
had his preliminary examination and an opportunity to defend himself. 
But other indictments were found (at least I was so informed and had 
no doubt about it) against men in the city, and against men out of the 
city, in adjoining counties, Avithout any notice to them or any complaint. 
One of them, a very respectable gentleman in the county of Westches¬ 
ter, told me that on coming to tliis city, after being notified that his 
presence was required, on asking who his accusers Avere, or what the 
charge A\ms, he was denied the information, and had ta remain over the 
election Avithout knowing it. 

1153. Q. In Avhat court Avas this grand jury summoned? 

A. I understood it to be in the United States district court. 

1154. Q. Had you any information that that grand jury was sum¬ 
moned through the agency of republicans ? 

A. I believe Marshal Murray is a republican, and that he summoned 
the grand jury. He Avas \"ery active as a republican, I knoAV, during the 
canvass. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1155. Q. I should like to know aa hether the marshal summons a grand 
jury Avhenever he wishes. Is he the agency by which grand juries are 
summoned, or is he the mere instrument to summon them ? 

A. I suppose he is the instrument to summon them. The A\mrd agency ” 
hardly expresses the idea. Therefore instrumentality’’ would be, prob¬ 
ably, the more accurate word. I am not familiar Avith the practice in 
the United States courts, but I suppose it is a pretty well understood 
fact that the marshal summons grand juries, and it is understood, also, 
that in relation to petit juries, at all eA^ents, he summons pretty much 
whom he pleases. 

115G. Q. I presume he summons by the order of the court ? 

A. O, I presume so; in the regular course of business. 

By the Chairman : 

1157. Q. Did you have information to induce you to suppose that that 
grand jury had been summoned, or iirocured to be summoned, in any 
other than the legal and usual way ? 

A. No, sir ; I do hot think my proclamation implies any such thing. 
The whole point of the matter, in my mind, was this: that, on the eA^e 
of an election, A\dth the great excitement preAmiling in the community, 
whatever might be the practice of the court in ordinary times, it Avas a 
great outrage to indict men of A\ell-known respectability without any 
preliminary charge and Avithout an opportunity to defend themselA^es 
before a commissioner ; and one effect of it was to produce Awy great 
excitement, not only here but elseAvhere. 

1158. Q. State Avhether it is not usual for grand juries to find indict¬ 
ments without any preliminary examination before a commissioner, and 
AA hether the law does not authorize it. 

A. I suppose the law authorizes it. Aly acquaintance Avith practice in 
the United States courts is such that I cannot say Avhether it is usual. 
I have always understood that the practice conformed to that of the 
State courts. During the five years that I Avas judge of a criminal court 
in this city, Avhose jurisdiction covered all cases, including capital ones, 
I do not think that half a dozen indictments Avere found against anybody 
without a preliminary examination, unless it Avas in cases where the 
accused persons aawc fugitives from the State, and where the indictments 
Avere found in order that they might be the basis of a requisition from 
the governor for the return of the accused. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


103 


1150. Q. About what time did the ^?rand jury sit? 

A. I do not know the duration of the session. I understood it was in 
session at the time my proclamation was issued, or that it had been a 
few days before. The fact that the practice of preliminary examinations 
was an ordinary one was to be inferred from the case of liosenberg, who 
was the first person charged with fraud under the naturalization laws, 
and who was permitted to have that opportunity of defending himself 
before a commissioner. 

1160. Q. Did you have any information that any person had avowed 
that the object in having the grand jury summoned was to intimidate 
any person or officer in the discharge of any duty ? 

A. I had heard no such specific declaration. I had no doubt, from all 
the signs of the times, that that was the object of many of those who 
instituted comidaints. 

1161. Q. 1 refer now to the summoning of the jury. 

A. O, no, sir; the expression about summoning the grand jury had 
reference solely to the connection of Marshal Murray with it, who was 
known to be an exceedingly bitter partisan in that contest. 

1162. Q. Did you have any information that Marshal Murray had any 
agency whatever in procuring the grand jury to be summoned; and if 
so, what was it ? 

A. No other than the usual agency. I did not understand that that 
grand jury was summoned for that specific purpose. There is no such 
charge. 

1163. Q. Did you have any information that Marshal Murray had any 
agency in procuring this grand jury to be summoned? If so, what was 
that information? 

A. The fact that the grand jury was assembled—summoned, as usual, 
by the marshal; that was all. 

1164. Q. Do you mean to say that the indictments found by that gvand 
jury were found without the examination that is usual by grand juries 
in that court; if so, what examination that is usual did that grand jury 
omit? 

A. I do not mean to say so, and have not said so in the i)roclamation. 

1165. Q. Did you have any evidence that that grand jury was sum¬ 
moned through the agency of any persons who had a scheme by means 
of which they sought to intimidate any person or officer in the discharge 
of his duty? 

A. I had this fact before me, that, as I understood, it was the usual 
custom of the United States courts, as it was in the State courts, to give 
to every person accused of crime an opportunity to defend himself before 
a committing magistrate, as he is called in the State courts, or before a 
commissioner in the United States court. I had also the fact stated to 
me that this grand jury, (who composed it I do not know,) on the eve of 
an election, surrounded by officers of the United States, the chief of 
whom was marshal of this district, devoted itself to inquire into election 
cases, and found a very considerable number of indictments against per¬ 
sons in and out of the city, without giving to any of them an opportu¬ 
nity to defend themselves on a preliminary examination. This was the 
evidence that satisfied my mind that it was part of the general scheme 
which, I believed, was then being carried on in this city, to intimidate 
voters and to break down what was known to be the large democratic 
majority vote. 

1166. Q. When you issued the proclamation did you know what per¬ 
sons had been indicted and for what oftences; or did you know anything 
in reference to the question of their guilt or innocence ? 


104 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I only knew that it was stated that a large batch of indictments 
had been found; the officers connected with the court refusing to declare 
the names of the persons against whom the indictments were found. 

11G7. Q. You did not know the persons! 

A. I heard, among others, that one gentleman residing in the county 
of Westchester (personally well-known to me as a highly respectable man) 
was included in the list 5 and it turned out afterwards to be so. I prefer 
not to mention his name, because I do not want any publicity to be given 
to it. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

1168. Q. This information about the number of persons indicted, &c., 
did you get it from iiersonal inquiry or from rumor! 

A. It was reported to me at my office by some official connected with 
my office; and it was stated in some papers next day. 

By the Chairman : 

1169. Q. Did you take any steps yourself to ascertain who were 
indicted, and whether they were, or were not, probably guilty of the 
offence with which they were charged! 

A. I did, as soon as 1 heard of the man in Westchester county; par¬ 
ticularly in reference to his case. 

1170. Q. Did you prior to issuing the proclamation! 

A. I cannot tell about that. 

1171. Q. Did you make any inquiry as to any except this one case! 

A. No, sir; for I was not informed of the names. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1172. Q. You do not recollect whether that was before or after the 
proclamation ! 

A. I think it was before, but I am not positive. 

By the Chairman : 

1173. Q. From whom did you make the inquiry in relation to him! 

A. From i^ersons in the village—from his counsel, in fact, and from 

himself. 

1174. Q. Did you make any inquiry of the proper officer of the court, 
charged with the duty of prosecuting him! 

A. No, sir. 

1175. Q. State whether the United States marshal appointed special 
deputies to take their places at the polls! 

A. I was so informed. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1176. Q. Do you know whether that was the fact or not! 

A. I have no doubt of it. I cannot swear to it. I know that on the 
Friday preceding the election, (I believe the proclamation was issued on 
Saturday,) on going to my native town in Westchester county to address 
a meeting in the evening, one man in that village reported himself as 
having been, that day, sworn in by the United States marshal to be a 
deputy at the polls. He was a man of the name of Sniffen. This was 
at Sing Sing, Westchester county. It was a matter of common notoriety 
that the marshal did appoint deputies, and that the sheriff* was going to 
appoint his. And it seemed to me that if things went on so there would 
be a collision. It was generally understood that in the city of New York 
the marshal had sworn in a large number of deputies. 

By the Chairman : 

1177. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain, from the marshal or any 
other official source, whether he had appointed such deputies! 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 105 

A. No, sir. I had no communication with Marshal Murray during 
the election or since. 

1178. Q. Did you have any evidence that such deputies were 
appointed by the marshal with instructions or with a purpose to threaten 
and awe the electors of the State ? If so, what was that evidence 1 

A. I had no evidence of any instructions that the marshal gave them. 
I inferred it from the appointments. When a United States officer 
appoints deputy marshals to attend an election in the State of New 
York I do not stop to inquire what instructions he gave them. I draw 
the inference from the fact of the appointment; and I found that that 
was the inference drawn by other people. 

1179. Q. Do you know any instance in which any deputy, appointed 
by the marshal, attempted to interfere with the free exercise of the 
elective franchise ? If so, state what that inference was f 

A. No, sir, I do not. I think the idea was abandoned after they were 
appointed. 

1180. Q. Can you furnish the committee with any evidence that any 
such purpose was entertained by the marshal or by any deputy appointed 
by him ? 

A. No, sir. Marshal Murray was not much disposed to convey to 
me any idea of what his intentions or purposes were. I could not get 
them from anybody except from him. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1181. Q. You had no information of any such intention except the 
inference that you drew ? 

A. And from those appointments. 

By the Chairman : 

1182. Q. Can you give us the names of any deputies appointed by 
him, so that they may be summoned before the committee to state 
whether they did attempt to interfere with men in the exercise of the 
elective franchise, or whether they were appointed for any such pur¬ 
pose, or entertained any such purpose ? 

A. I do not know the name of any of them except the one I men¬ 
tioned at Sing Sing j and very certainly he did not attempt to do any¬ 
thing. It seemed very clear, from the temper of the people, that it 
would not be very wise for him j and I have no doubt that the same 
temper prevailed here. 

1183. Q. Do you know that he was appointed recently, prior to that 
time, a deputy 

A. It was so stated by a gentleman in whom I had confidence, Avho 
stated that he had the information from himself. 

1184. Q. Did you have any evidence that there existed a combina¬ 
tion of dangerous men ? 

A. Before you go on to that 1 would like to state that there is one 
statement in that proclamation which I believe is not true—that is, that 
it was the first time in the history of the country for the United States 
government to interfere with an election in the State of New York. An 
old gentleman lately called my attention to the fact that De Witt Clin¬ 
ton, in one of his messages to the legislature, called its attention to a 
similar state of facts in 1820, and hoped that proceedings would be taken 
to prevent any repetition of it. 

1185. Q. State if, when you issued the proclamation, you had any 
information of the existence of a combination of men whose object was 
to consummate fraudulent schemes by the aid of untried or pardoned 
criminals, and if so, what untried or pardoned criminals ? 


106 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. 1 liacl information from the district attorney of this city, that he 
had issued bench warrants for the arrest of certain persons under indict¬ 
ment for crime ; that for some reason or other, which he could not explain, 
the police authorities would not execute the warrants. One of them I 
understood to be a man quite notorious in the 8th ward of this city, 
of the name of Theodore Allen; the names of the others he did not 
mention to me. It was reported to me on confidential authority that 
certain persons, whose names I would rather not mention, (because the 
election is over, and I do not desire to have personal collision with them,) 
but who are well known to this committee, were in the habit of holding 
frequent meetings with a view of affecting results at the election, and 
that this man Allen was one of the party w^ho joined the meetings. I 
would rather not mention the names of the parties unless insisted upon 
by the committee; some of them I have never had any personal differences 
with. They were known partisans in the contest, and very bitter ones; 
but I see no necessity of drawing them in unless to defend my i)rocla- 
mation, and I do not care whether it is defended or not, except to my 
constituents; if I give the names it will be under the pressure of the 
committee. 

1186. Q. State what purpose was to be accomplished by the aid of 
untried or pardoned criminals, and what evidence you have of such i)ur- 
pose ? 

A. I believe it to be the organization of a system of fraud in regis¬ 
tering and in voting, and possibly in canvassing; but that I cannot say. 

1187. Q. Will you furnish the evidence which you had of that ? 

A. No, sir. 

1188. Q. Or do you have any ? 

A. I had merely the statements made to me by confidential friends, of 
the meetings held in this city, at which this man Allen was one of the 
persons present—a man whose reputation is so notoriously bad that it 
required no legal evidence to satisfy any magistrate that whatever he is 
engaged in is wrong. I once sentenced his brother to State prison for 
five years for pocket-picking, (after being three times before me,) but 
Governor Fenton pardoned him after six months, on the eve of my elec¬ 
tion as mayor, and he was used in the party against me, although I do 
not suppose Governor Fenton intended it; iie says he did not. 

1189. Q. What other untried or pardoned criminals were to be used ? 

A. I have already said that I cannot give their names. The district 

attorney said he had issued bench warrants for several, and that the 
l^olice refused to execute the warrants. 

1190. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain the number of them ? 

A. No, sir. And here, perhaps, it may be well for me to say a word 

about this proclamation, because it comes in properly in connection with 
this question. I do not say it to defend the proclamation, for I do not 
think it necessary to do so; but I say it, as this testimony, I suppose, 
will be ultimately printed for the information of any gentleman who 
may take an interest in it. I had been absent from the city of New 
York a good deal; I came here just on the eve of the election, and I 
found a very excited state of feeling in the community. The city was 
filled with rumors, some of them very absurd, some of them very prob¬ 
able. In all my official life, excepting only about the time of the "riots in 
1863, I never had seen so much evidence of deep excitement in the com¬ 
munity as there was then. It looked to me very much as if it might end 
in very serious results, which I desired for many reasons to avoid. I 
felt assured that a word from me would quiet a great many elements in 
the city that were excited. 1 called my clerk in my office about half-past 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


107 


two on Saturday afternoon, and dictated this proclamation to him; sent 
it to the printers by 3 o’clock, and it was published on Saturday morn¬ 
ing*. I was very conscious that in certain quarters it would lose me a 
great deal of support from moderate men in the city who would be 
alarmed at its tenor; but I believe it tended to preserve the peace of the 
city of New York, and to allay the excitement; I think now that it did 
more towards it than the presence of all the National Guards in the city. 

1191. Q. At the time that you issued the proclamation did you have 
any evidence that any republicans were engaged in the contemplated 
schemes of fraud; and if so, can you furnish the committee with that evi¬ 
dence so that we may inquire into it ? 

A. I supposed I had. Besides these meetings to which I have referred, 
and the names of the parties to which I have asked leave not to mention, 
it was very well understood that immense sums of money were being 
contributed by very wealthy men, candidates for office and others; so 
large that it was hard to find any way that it could be expended unless 
it was to consummate some other measures than those contemplated by 
the statute. I am told that some of these gentlemen, and many of them, 
have since declined under oath to give any statement of their subscrip¬ 
tions. They were, however, very well understood at the time, and one of 
them, for $20,000, was pretty well published through the country. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1192. Q. To affect the election in the State of New York ? 

A. It was sent here ; I do not know how it was expended. 

By the Chairman : 

1193. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge of the use of money by 
republicans ? 

A. No, sir; nor by democrats either. 

1194. Q. Are you able to furnish the committee with evidence as to 
what was said or done at or by these meetings to which you have referred ? 

A. No, sir; they took very good care not to let me know. 

1195. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain the truth or falsity of 
what was alleged to have been said or done at these meetings *? 

A. I was satisfied officially by statements made to me, and by the 
character of the men who made them, that I was warranted in issuing 
my proclamation—all that I needed was to be satisfied officially what my 
duty Avas—not whether it Avas legal eAudence or not, but whether I was 
satisfied. 

1196. Q. Can you furnish the committee Avith any eAudence that any 
republicans were engaged in making false registrations or in the issue of 
false naturalization papers, or in procuring any A^oter or voters to A^ote 
more than once, or in any other frauds on the ballot ? 

A. I think you will ha\"e to apply to the other side of the house for 
this information. I cannot giA^e it. I Avas too busy about other matters 
to look after tlieir frauds. 

1197. Q. Did you have any information when you issued the procla¬ 
mation that any republican or republicans Avere engaged in any scheme, 
or had any purpose to excite the masses of the people of this city, or any 
l)ortion of them, to acts of disorder or violent resistance; if so, what evi- 
dence had you ? 

A. The acts of this committee to which I have referred, the aA^oAved 
purpose of an organized system of challenging at the polls, obstructing 
the registration, delaying the voting, finding indictments without iire- 
liminary examination, preAgenting the arrest of criminals on bench war¬ 
rants issued by the district attorney, violent denunciations of a parti- 


108 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


san press, and other things calculated to produce great excitement. Not 
an avowed purpose, of course, for no one would be foolish enough, I sup¬ 
pose, to declare it. 

1198. Q. Can you give the names of any republicans whose duty it 
was to make arrests and who refused to do so"? 

A. No, sir. 

1199. Q. Can you give the names of any criminals or others accused 
of crime who were not arrested and who should have been ? 

A. I can give you no other information on that subject than that I 
have already given. 

1200. Q. Can you give the names of any republicans who were engaged 
in procuring false registration of voters f 

A. No, sir. 

1201. Q. Can you give the names of any republicans who were falsely 
registered ? 

A. No, sir. 

1202. Can you give the names of any republicans who voted more 
than once ? 

A. No, sir. 

1203. Q. Can you furnish the means by which any evidence of any 
of those facts can be given to the committee ? 

A. I do not know whether I can or not. I have no knowledge on the 
subject one way or the other on either side. I paid no attention to it, 
and I know nothing about it. 

1204. Q. Did you have such evidence at the time the proclamation 
was issued ? 

A. None except what 1 stated in my testimony. 

1205. Q. Can you furnish any evidence that any republicans were 
engaged in acts of disorder affecting the free exercise of the elective 
franchise 

A. I never knew a more quiet election than it turned out to be, 
although we had Governor Fenton here, and although the National 
Guard turned out. I went to police headquarters the night before the 
election by invitation to meet the governor and the sheriff. The gover¬ 
nor did not come and the sheriff did not come. I found the police author¬ 
ities in a great state of excitement, and I told them I did not think there 
would be any trouble, it would be all pleasant. 

120G. Q. State whether you heard rumors or had information prior to 
the election that fraudulent naturalization papers were being issued ? 

A. I read of the charges in the Kosenberg case. I read the allega¬ 
tions made in the papers. 

1207. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain whether fraudulent nat¬ 
uralization papers were being issued ? 

A. I did not. I had no means of ascertaining. 

1208. Q. State if there were rumors or reports of fraudulent registra¬ 
tion. 

A. There were such rumors. 

1209. Q. Did you take any steps to ascertain the truth or falsity of 
these charges ? 

A. No, sir; it was no part of my business; it was the business of the 
police commissioners, who were supi)osed to appoint the registers—one- 
half from each political party—and who had all the facilities of determin¬ 
ing whether there were any frauds in the registration. I had not. I 
had no police force at my command or any machinery at my command. 
The mayor of the city has nothing to do with the police of the city; he 
has merely two policemen detailed at his office by the courtesy of the 
commissioners. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 109 

1210. Q. State if you ever saw a circular like the printed one which 
I now present to you ! 

The circular is as follows : 

[Private and strictly confidential.] 

Rooms of Democratic State Committee, 

October 27, 1868. 

My Dear Sir : Please at once to communicate with some reliable person in three, or four 
principal towns, and in each city of your county, and request him (expense duly arranged 
for this end) to telegraph to Wm. M. Tweed, Tammany Hall, at the minute of closing the 
poll—not waiting for a count—such person’s estimate of the vote. Let the telegraph be as 

follows: “This town will show a democratic gain (or loss) over last year of-Or 

this one, if sufficiently certain: “ This town will give a republican or democratic majority 

There is of course an important object to he attained. By a simultaneous transmission at 
the hour of closing the poll, but not longer waiting, opportunity can be taken of the usual 
half-hour lull in telegraphic communication over lines before actual results begin to be 
declared, and before the Associated Press absorb the telegraph with returns and interfere with 
individual messages; and give orders to watch carefully the count. 

Very truly, yours, 

SAMUEL J. TILDEN, Chairman. 

A. I have seen what seems to be like this, published in the newspapers 
after the election, but I never saw or heard anything of it before. 

1211. Q. Who is Mr. Tilden ? 

A. A leading lawyer in this city ) chairman of the Democratic State 
Central Committee. 

1212. Q. When did you first hear of that circular? 

A. Some time after the election. I read it in the newspapers—never 
before. ' 

1213. Q. State if you have any knowledge as to whether that was sent 
to various parts of the State ? 

A. I have no knowledge about it at all. 

1214. Q. J^or information ? 

A. Nor information j except that I have seen Mr. Tilden’s card in the 
papers stating that he did not sign it. I know nothing about it except 
what 1 have seen in the newspapers. 

1215. Q. Are you acquainted with James O’Brien? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1216. Q. What office did he hold during the year ? 

A. Sheriff. 

1217. Q. Do you know whether he apiiointed special deputies ? 

A. I was informed that he did. 

1218. Q. Do you know to what extent ? 

A. I do not. A large number, I heard. 

1219. Q. Can you state, from information or otherwise, whether many 
of the deputies that he appointed were men who had been guilty of 
crime ? 

A. I have no information on the subject. 

1220. Q. Can you furnish the committee with the names of republicans 
who resorted to unusual means to increase the excitement during the elec¬ 
tion, in any way aftecting, or designed to affect, the purity of the ballot? 

A. No; I should not undertake to do that. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1221. Q. You have stated that one of the reasons of your issuing the 
proclamation was an arrangement for universal challenge. Is challeng¬ 
ing unusual or improper ? 

A. A system of challenging, by which men were to stand at the iiolls 


110 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


and cliallenge every man who came up with his papers as a naturalized 
citizen, is unusual. 

1222. Q. Is there any impropriety in that ? 

A. Yes, sir j because it w ould destroy (if carried on as an organized 
system) the facilities for voting and prevent half the voters getting their 
votes in. If every man who came up as a naturalized citizen were chal¬ 
lenged, and if he were to stop and take the oath and answer the ques¬ 
tions put to him, the delay would be so great that the vote could not be 
got in in the city, with all the polling places that we have provided. 

By the Chairman : 

1223. Q. Unless that right of challenge is permitted to be freely exer¬ 
cised, is there not great danger of fraud being practiced ? 

A. No one ever objected to its being freely exercised, if exercised in 
good faith and for no other purpose but to get at the truth; but, if exer¬ 
cised in a iiartisan spirit, for the purpose of obstructing voting rather 
than of guarding against fraud, that is a very different thing. Police 
are stationed at each poll to guard every challenger in his right to chal¬ 
lenge everybody that may be objectionable. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1224. Q. What evidence had you that there was any combination to 
exercise this right of challenge in any way but in good faith *? 

A. My recollection of the proceedings of some committees that were 
published in some of the papers was that there were general assurances 
made in those meetings by some parties engaged in them that, by rea¬ 
son of what they said were the enormous and gross frauds in naturaliza¬ 
tion, it was their duty to scrutinize every man who came up with a 
naturalization i)aper, and to interpose this challenge without hesitation.' 
Of course it was not said in so many words that every man who came 
should be challenged, but the idea was that there should be such a free 
use of the challenge as would necessarily result in the obstruction of 
the polls. 

1225. Q. Then one of the purposes of this proclamation was to repress 
the exercise of the right of challenge beyond what you considered or 
what might be considered its usual exercise ? 

A. Not beyond what I considered its reasonable exercise, but beyond 
what would be its reasonable exercise. I was to indicate to men in this 
city who might imdertake to unduly obstruct electors in casting their 
votes that they had better avoid it. 

1226. Q. That they should be careful in exercising this right of chal¬ 
lenge ? 

A. Discreet. 

1227. Q. You have spoken of the reports of large sums of money raised 
for election purposes; do you speak of it from report or from a knowledge 
of the facts ? 

A. I have no knowledge of the facts—nothing that I can swear to as 
facts. 

1228. Q. Did not that report apply to both parties in the election? 

A. Yes; but hardly to ours as it did to yours. We would have spent 

it probably if we had it, but we did not have it. 

1229. Q. I suppose that money was raised by your party ? 

A. Yes ; I spent some myself. 

1230. Q. Is it anything unusual in New York to raise money for elec¬ 
tion purposes ? 

A. If half the stories are true of the large sums contributed in this 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. Ill 

city, then it is very unusual. It is only from rumor I know tliat tlie sums 
were unusually large. 

By the Chairman : 

1231. Q. Had you known, or did you hear of any assessment or assess¬ 
ments having been made on any railroad company or gas company f 

A. I heard something since the election about a requisition having 
been made upon a railroad comi>any by one of your people. 

1232. Q. Ho you know of any contribution by any of those companies? 

A. No, sir j I do not. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1233. Q. You alluded to one very large contribution on the republican 
side, which was largely published over the country. Was it not a fact 
that one of your party doubled that amount ? 

A. The fact was, I believe, that a patent medicine man advertised 
himself in that way, but I never heard of his having given any money. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1234. Q. You are mayor of the city something like three years ? 

A. Yes, sir; I resigned about the last of November. The month of 
Hecember would have made three years. 

1235. Q. Tell the committee how the j)olice board of this city is con¬ 
stituted, both in numbers and politics ? 

A. The police board is made up of four gentlemen. It is now equally 
divided politically. This year is the first time that it has been so for 
many years. 

1236. Q. Hitherto how has it been ? 

A. At first, when the board was organized, it was organized of a non¬ 
partisan character—half and half. Mr. Wm. McMurray, who was ap¬ 
pointed by Governor Seymour as one of the board, died j and then Mr. 
Manierre, an extreme republican, was appointed to succeed him. That 
made the board three republicans and one democrat. It continued so till 
last winter, when, one of the republicans having died, the legislature, 
being democratic on joint baUot, elected Mr. Brennan as a democrat to 
succeed him, so that the board is now equally divided. 

1237. Q. By whom are the registry boards of the city and county of 
New York appointed ? 

A. By the police commissioners. 

1238. Q. Is it a fact that they are appointed so that each board shall 
have an equal number of men of each party ? 

A. I am told by the commissioners that that is the design always j that 
they do it as nearly as they can now. 

1239. Q. Is that required by any law of the State of New York, or is 
it the result of a voluntary action of the board ? 

A. I think it is the result of voluntary action of the board, for I am 
certain there is nothing in the law that requires it. The law gives the 
commissioners thb power to make the appointments, but does not say 
how they shall exercise it. 

1240. Q. How are the boards of canvassers appointed? 

A. B 3 " the same authority. 

1241. Q. With the same division in politics ? 

A. Yes, sir j so it is understood to be. 

1242. Q. How are the police appointed ? 

A. By the same commissioners. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


112 

1243. Q. By whom are the police officers detailed whose duty it is to 

ffuard this registration of voters and the elections I . , . 

A. They are detailed either by general order of the superintendent, or 
by the captains of precincts—I presume it is by the captains of the 

different precincts. , n .i. 

1244. Q. Either on their own motion, or by the order of the superin¬ 
tendent ? ,. 

A. Yes. As I understand it each precinct has so many policemen. 
They are distributed through the precinct on election day, just as the 
officer in command of the precinct chooses to assign them. 

1245. Q. Do you know anything about alleged naturalization frauds 
in this city prior to the election ! 

A. No, sir. 

1246. Q. Were you, in the course of the last canvass, familiar with the 
committee organizations in the city ? 

A. No, sir; not at all. I do not know anything about the details of 
the canvass, hardly anything. I think I was in the State committee 
rooms only twice during the last canvass. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

1247. Q. How many voting places are there in the city of New Y^ork ? 

A. I tbink 340. 

New York, December 24, 1868. 

Samuel J. Glassey sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1248. Question. State if you are acquainted with Thomas Gould'? 

Answer. I am slightly acquainted with him. I had two or three inter¬ 
views with him in the month of November last. 

1249. Q. State if he was a candidate for any office. 

A. He was a candidate for member of assembly in the 4th assembly 
district of this city, the 7th ward, at the general election in Novem¬ 
ber. He is the person who was examined by the committee yesterday. 

1250. Q. If you had an interview with him, state what he*said in rela¬ 
tion to naturalization frauds. 

[Objected to by the minority of the committee, on the grounds, first, 
that the chairman had no right to contradict his own witness, and second, 
that the testimony was only hearsay. Objection overruled.] 

A. Gould called to see General Foster and myself about the 12th 
or 13th of November last. He told me that on the 10th or 12th of 
October, 1868, he was in the first part of the supreme court of this city 
wheu the business of naturalization was going on j that he saw a clerk 
who was attending to that business deliver to a person who came and 
asked for 350 certificates, a large bundle of certificates, which were signed 
and sealed, but otherwise in blank, the clerk saying to this man as he 
delivered them: “There are 300 in this package.” He also stated 
that he knew of 300 bogus certificates beiug sent to Staten Island 
to use there, and he could prove it. He was asked whether he was 
willing to swear to that, and he said he was. Quite a number of 
questions were asked him as to the details, some in the nature of a cross- 
examination, and he adhered to that statement. General Foster wrote 
down the statement of what he said at the time, in his presence and 
in my presence, which statement I saw here yesterday. He called once 
or twice afterwards and asked questions as to what we were doing, and 
whether we were willing to employ him to work up the case. We told 


ELECTIOI^ FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


113 


liim we saw no reason for doing that. We had some conversation at the 
same time as to the vote in the district in which he was a candidate. 
He stated that there had been .a great many illegal votes there, and that 
he believed tliat he had been cheated. 

[Mr. Ross moved that all this testimony be struck out, it being irrele¬ 
vant and hearsay. The motion was riyected.J 

1251. Q. State what office you held in connection with the election in 
Ne^ York at the last election. 

A. I was inspector of registrations and elections in the IGth district, 
20 th ward. 

1252. Q. State what you know of fraudulent naturalization x^apers 
being xwesented for the i3urx)ose of registering voters. 

A. Three fraudulent certificates were presented on the evening of the 
30th of October, 1808, and one on the evening of the 31st. About 7 
o’clock, on the evening of the 30th, a man came in who said his name 
was Richard Hargan, and wanted to be registered. He had been 
naturalized, and he i)resented a x^aper purporting to be a certificate of 
naturalization. I examined him as to how he got it. He said that he 
had never been in any court; did not know Avhat witness, if any, had 
testified to his residence in this country; he had never taken any oath, 
and said the x^aper was given him at a xdace which he x^ointed to, a liquor 
store, corner of Thirty-fourth street and Ninth avenue. He stated that 
the paper was given to him by the man in there. He was informed that 
he could not be registered or vote, and I took x^ossession of the pax^er and 
retained it. I subsequently made comx^laint against him and caused his 
arrest, and he was held to bail by the commissioner and the case sent 
before the grand jury. The certificate I delivered to the commissioner 
before whom I made comxfiaint, and I saw it subsequently in the posses¬ 
sion of the grand jury. 

1253. Q. What court did the certificate x>urx)ort to be issued from ? 

A. It was a certificate signed by “Charles E. Loew, Clerk,” bearing 

the same signature as that one you hold in your hand, and bearing the 
seal of the county. It was dated late in October, 1808. It was xn^ecisely 
like this x>aper, excex>t the date, which may have been difierent Com¬ 
missioner Osborne heard the comx)laint and committed him, and the case 
was sent to the grand juiy. A few minutes after that man had gone 
aAvay another man ax)X)eared and gave his name as Josex)h Reinhardt. 
He x>i*osented a certificate x>i'ocisely like the other, issued from the 
suxireme court and bearing the signature and seal of the court. He stated 
he had not been to court and got it; he did not know who was his witness; 
that he had never taken anj^ oath, and that the x)ax)er was given to him 
by a man by the name of John Perrine, who was a clerk in a shoe factory 
in Forty-second street. He had never made any declaration of intentions, 
and had never taken any oath. He knew nothing about the x^ax^er, excex^t. 
that Perrine got it for liim and gave it to him. I did not get possession 
of that X)aper. It was returned to Reinhardt by one of the other inspec¬ 
tors, and he left the xdace with it in his possession. I made a comxdaint 
against Reinhardt and Perrine, and a warrant was issued for their arrest, 
but I believe it was never served. During the evening of Saturday, 
the 31st of October, the last day of registration, a man came and, stating 
that his name was Pat. Dufley, asked to be registered. He brought 
as evidence of his naturalization this certificate, and stated on examina¬ 
tion that he had never declared his intentions and did not know any¬ 
thing about his witnesses; had never been in court, had never taken 
any oath, and that the paper was given him by Mr. Moore, who kept 
8 T 


114 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tlie liquor store across the way, on the southeast corner of Tliirty-lifth 
street and Nintli avenue. Eegistration was refused and I took j^osses- 
sion of the pa])er. Dnftey came back in a little time afterwards, beg¬ 
ging me to give it np to him, saying he Avonld make no nse of it. I 
declined, and Moore then called upon me and asked me to give it to him. 
I told him I would not; that I proposed to find out who it was issued it. 
I asked him what he knew about it. He said that he knew nothing 
about it except that it was left at his place for Dnftey, and that he gave 
it to Duffey. The name of Moore was Avritten in pencil, as it now appears 
on the back of the paper AAdien it came into my i)ossession, and there 
was pencil-writing in the same hand on the back of the Dargan paper, 
indicating that both i)apers passed through the hands of the same party. 
I made complaint against Duffey and Moore and both were arrested, and 
Moore, I believe, has been indicted. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

1255. Q. How many of these certificates were there ? 

A. There were three presented, two of which I took possession of, and 
the other was returned to the party by the other inspectors. 

125(). Q. Were yon one of the inspectors of election"? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1257. Q. Do yon know of any fraudulent Amtes being giA^eu in your 
Asotin g idace ? 

A. There were two or three as to which I had suspicion, but kncAV 
nothing. 

1258. Q. They were passed upon by a majority of the board as good, 
and Avere allowed to Amte 

A. There was no controversy in the board. There were 19 men regis¬ 
tered Avho did not Amte, some of Avhom I had marked to challenge. 

1259. Q. To Avliat political party do yon belong ? 

A. To the republican party. 

12G0. Q. Do yon belong to any secret organization of the party ? 

A. I hardly know whether I do or not. Some years ago I became a 
member of the Union League in the ward that I then liA^ed in, but I 
never attended a meeting. That is some four ;yYars ago. 

1261. Q. Were yon in any of these secret meetings before the election ? 

A. Eo, sir; I attended tAvo or three meetings of republican inspectors. 

1262. Q. Were they composed of republicans exclnsHely 

A. So 1 understood. 

• 1263. Q. Why did you hold those meetings ? 

A. I only know from the invitations addressed to me, Avhich were, to 
meet for consultation and to receAe adAuce as to the discharge of our 
duties. 

1264. Q. Whom did you get that iiiAutation from f 

A. I think the note sent to me was signed “John H. White.” 

1265. Q. Is that the attorney aaLo is looking after this case ? 

A. He is one of the counsel who is looking after the matter. 

1266. Q. Was he one of the board of inspectors'? 

A. I think not. l am not aAAmre that he was. I am under the impres¬ 
sion that he Avas not afL inspector. 

1267. Q. He sent a communication to you to meet the rest of the repub¬ 
lican inspectors at a particular place ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1268. Q. Where did you meet! 

A. At the Fifth AA^enue Hotel. 

1269. Q. Who were there besides the republican inspectors ? 


115 


ELECTION^ FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

I 

A. ^Nearly all the persons whom I remember meeting there were 
inspectors. There was quite a number of persons there whom I did not 
know, but I can’t tell whether they were inspectors or not. 

1270. Q. Is Mr. White the only man you knew there whom you did not 
know to be an inspector 

A. I saAV Colonel Bliss there; I do not know whether he was an 
inspector or not. I saw Isaac Dayton there ; I am under the impression 
that he was an inspector, but I do not know. 

1271. Q. Was Marshal Murray there, or any of his deputies? 

A. Kot to my knowledge; I didn’t see Marshal Murray there upon any 
occasion ; I was there two or three times. 

1272. Q. Did you sit with closed doors? 

A. Ho, sir ; they had three or four rooms on the‘first floor of the hotel; 
the rooms were all full, and the passages were full. There must have 
been two or three hundred iiersons there, and i)eople were running in 
and out all the time. 

1273. Q. Did you organize by calling any one to the chair ? 

A. Ho, sir; not while I was present; there was very little order or 
organization of any kind. 

1274. Q. state what instructions, if any, Mr. White gave you after you 
got there ? 

A. He did not give me any at all. 

1275. Q. Did he give any to the inspectors ? 

A. I heard Mr. White in conversation with a number of persons. I 
did not hear him give any definite instructions or directions to anybody. 

1276. Q. Was there anybody who gave general instructions as to what 
you should do ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

1277. Q. Was there any determination come to as to what you should 
do? 

A. There was not. I myself went there to get advice and to give 
advice on certain points, and I did not succeed in doing either. The 
invitation was to be there at a certain hour, and it was some time after 
that hour when I arrived. 

1278. Q. Do you know whether the others had come to any conclusion 
before you came ? 

A. I do not. 

1279. Q. Was it agreed there that night that all persons having natu¬ 
ralization papers should be challenged ? 

A. Ho, sir. • 

1280. Q. Was there anything said of any action taken with a view to 
l>revent democratic voters from depositing their votes ? 

A. Ho, sir; nor anything approaching to it. 

1281. Q. Was there anything done there in the way of raising funds 
with a vieAv to controlling elections ? 

A. Ho, sir; there was not a word said about money. 

1282. Q. You came to no conclusion on any i^oint for which you went? 

A. I am not aware of any definite conclusion being arrived at; the 

meeting was not called for the purpose of arriving at any definite con¬ 
clusion. Mr. White invited us for the purpose of receiving advice. 

1283. Q. From whom ? 

A. That was not stated. 

1284. Q. Did you get the advice ? 

A. I did not get any. 

1285. Q. Was there any advice given ? 

A. I heard a good many questions asked and answered. 


116 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


1286. Q. Was there any advice given? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1287. Q. By whom ? 

A. I heard Mr. Dayton answer questions that were put. 

1288. Q. What were the questions and answers ? 

A. 1 do not recollect. 

1289. Q. How long were you in session ? 

A. I don’t know how long other i^arties were there; I was there only 
15 or 20 minutes. 

1290. Q. Did you leave before the meeting broke up ? 

A. It was not an organized meeting; there was an assemblage of peo¬ 
ple there, all talking. I found a gxeat many engaged in that general 
conversation, and I left them there. 

1291. Q. Did you meet any democratic inspectors there ? 

A. No, sir j I did not see any person whom I recognized as democrats 
in the whole i^arty. 

1292. Q. It was exclusively a meeting of republican inspectors with a 
view to the coming election ? 

A. I understood so. 

1293. Q. How many persons did your board refuse to permit to be 
registered ? 

A. I think only these three. 

1294. Q. How many did you refuse to permit to vote ? 

A. Only two; and there was no dispute about them. 

1295. Q. I thought I understood you to say that quite a number were 
rejected ? 

A. No j I said there were 19 registered who did not vote, some of whom 
I had marked to challenge. They did not api^ear to vote. There were 
some half a dozen challenged who swore in their votes, and gave expla¬ 
nations satisfactory to the whole board. 

1296. Q. How many votes were given at your precinct ? 

A. Four hundred and eleven, I tliink. 

1297. Q. And you think the polls were kept substantially free there 
from illegal votes ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dicicey : 

1298. Q. This meeting of republican inspectors that was called, was 
there any secrecy about it ? 

A. No, sii;, 

1299. Q. Was there a doorkeeper, or anything of that kind ? 

A. I noticed nothing of the kind. 

1300. Q. What was the purpose of it—to consult as to what their 
legal duties were ? 

A. Yes, sir; the special purpose, as I understood it, and the matter 
which I heard discussed was, what action should be taken in the event 
of peremptory mandamus being issued on the last day of registration, 
directing them to register men whom they did not think entitled to reg¬ 
istration. It was rumored, and was believed by a good many inspectors, 
and many republicans, that application would be made to some judges 
for peremptory mandamus to compel inspectors to register names after 
rejection, and there were one or two cases of that kind. There was 
some consultation also as to the course to be adopted in regard to certili- 
cates of naturalization, it being believed that there were a great many 
irregular and improper ones issued; these matters were talked over, but 
whether there was any formal organization eftected before my arrival I 
do not know. I found Mr. Dayton at one end of the table and heard 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


117 


hiin addressed as cliairman, but there was a great deal more conversa¬ 
tion between the persons presentj among themselves, than there was 
addressed to him. There were more people in the room than it would 
comfortably accommodate. The only two subjects which I have any 
recollection of hearing discussed were, first, what should be done in the 
event of mandamus being served; and second, what was the proper 
course to be taken in cases of certificates of naturalization where fraud 
was suspected. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1301. Q. Who is Mr. Dayton % 

A. A lawyer of many years’ standing in this city, and one of the 
registrars in bankruptcy. 

1302. Q. He was not one of the board of inspectors^ 

A. I do not know whether he was or not. 

1303. Q. Do you know, or have you any reason to believe, tliat any 
republican organization, or any one or more republican citizens, were 
engaged in any imrpose to exclude any legal voters from the right to 
exercise the elective franchise % 

A. No, sir; I never heard such a suggestion except once in the news¬ 
papers, and I know it to be utterly without foundation. 

1304. Q. Did you know or hear of any ])urpose on the part of any 
republican to obstruct or intimidate voters in their right to vote? 

A. I did not. 

1305. Q. Did you know of any purpose of making challenges except in 
cases where fraud or illegal voting were suspected ? 

A. No, sir; and I know that precautions were taken to see that chal¬ 
lenges were made only in iiroper cases. 

1300. Q. State whether, in the registration districts generally, it was 
the practice to swear all persons presenting certificates of naturalization. 

A. A very small proportion of them were sworn. The general prac¬ 
tice was not to swear them. 

By the Chairman : 

1307. Q. Was not the register liable to be imiiosed upon by naturaliza¬ 
tion papers axiparently good upon their face, but which were illegally 
jirocured? 

A. Yes, sir; because the fraudulent certificates are precisely the same 
in appearance as the genuine ones, and it is only by the examination of 
the parties presenting them that any fact tending to impeach them can 
be ascertained. The democratic inspectors very generally stated that 
they had been advised by counsel that the certificate was conclusive evi¬ 
dence of all that it stated and of the right of the holder to be registered. 
That question was very often discussed in our own board, and the two 
democratic insi^ectors objected to my action very strenuously ou that 
ground, and informed me that Mr. A. Oakey Hall, and other x)rominent 
lawyers, had advised them, and had issued instructions to that effect. 

1308. Q. How many x)ersons voting on naturalization i)apers were 
challenged on the day of election in the district in which you acted ? 

A. Not more than 10 at most; I think not more than six. 

1309. Q. Who is Mr. A. Oakey Hall? 

A. He has been for many years the district attornej^ for this county, 
and is now mayor elect. 

1310. Q. Is he a democrat, or a republican ? 

A. He used to be a sort of rex)ublican a good many years ago, but he 
has been for many years a very decidedly pronounced democrat and a 
member of Tammany Hall. 


118 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1311. Q. Who was tlie slieriff of tlie county? 

A. Janies O’Brien. 

1312. Q. A democrat ? 

A. A democrat of tlie most decided character. 

1313. Q. State whether he appointed a large number of deputies to 
act on the day of election. 

A. I have no personal knowledge of the fact j I have information to 
that effect, some of it under oath. 

1314. Q. Were there any deputies appointed by the United States 
marshal ? 

A. Not one to my knowledge; I heard nothing of it except the sug¬ 
gestion contained in Mr. Hoffman’s proclamation. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1315. Q. Did Mr. Dayton give any instructions to the republican 
inspectors at the meeting to which you have referred ? 

A. I heard him answering questions put to him by a great many dif¬ 
ferent iiersons. 

Hew York, December 24,1868. 

John A. Foster sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1316. Question. State whether you are acquainted with Thomas Gould ? 

Answer. I know a iierson who calls himself Thomas Gould ] it is the 

liarty I saw in this room yesterday testifying. 

1317. Q. Did you have an interview with him in relation to natural¬ 
ization papers ? If so, state when and what it was. 

[Mr. Kerr. We object to this, as before, on the ground that it is hear¬ 
say, immaterial, and irrelevant.] 

A. About a week or so after the election a man who called himself 
Thomas Gould, and whom I saw here yesterday testifying as a witness, 
called at the office of the sub-committee of the Union League club, and 
stated that he was in possession of valuable information in regard to the 
frauds in the naturalization of voters at and before the last Hovember 
election. He made a long statement of what he knew and of what he 
had seen j he stated among other things that he had been in the supreme 
court, part 1, in which Judge Barnard was then presiding, and had seen 
the clerk, John B. McKean, with a large number of papers that seemed 
to be naturalization papers; that a man came in the door and passing 
him requested to be given 350 naturalization papers, and that McKean 
counted out what he said was 350 such papers. He said he was near 
enough" so that he could see the nature of the iiapers, the clerk’s name 
and the seal upon it; and that the clerk told the man that there were 
350 papers there; he said the man received them, ran over them as 
tliough to count them, and left a check of some sort—a small check—for 
them; he said he had witnessed this; and we then requested him to 
make an affidavit of the fact; he asked to be employed in some way. 
We told him that there was no employment to be had for him, and he then 
said that he wanted some money to work up the case, as he called it. 
We informed him that we did not intend to pay any person for testifying, 
but that we wanted him to give any evidence on the subject that he 
might have. He said that he know of 300 of these papers that had been 
sent to Staten island to be voted on. I attempted to get him to make 
an affidavit to that fact; he went away. I think he called within two or 
three days from that time and again wanted money. Mr. Glassey was 
there, and myself—both times I think—I am certain Mr. Glassey was 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


119 


tliere the first time. I told this man that we could not give him any 
money, but that, if he would testify, he could be put in a position where 
lie could give his testimony, and wanted him again to make an affidavit 
to the facts he had stated; I told him that we had no money to pay him, 
but that 1 wished he would give his testimony; I took down what he 
stated on a slip of paper, and he then seemed to become rather excited 
at not having been paid, and left apparently angry; I sent for him quite 
recently, but he did not come; I furnished the Sergeant-at-arms with his 
name, to be subpoenaed; I heard him testify yesterday, but I did not 
hear apparently more than a portion of his testimony. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1318. Q. What is this man’s business? 

A. I do not know him, sir. 

1319. Q. What is your business? 

A. Oounsellor-at-law. 

1320. Q. You do not know whether he was one of that kind or not? 

A. I presume that he was not; he did not talk like a lawyer. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1321. Q. He was a republican candidate for the legislature? 

A. He Avas nominated by the republican party, but he Avas understood 
to be a democrat. 

1322. Q. Is the republican party in the habit of nominating such men ? 

A. Sometimes; in that district they are very apt to. 

By Mr. Hickey: 

1323. Q. In cases where there is no chance of their Avinning the elec¬ 
tion? 

A. Yes; and there is no chance of our coming out third, or even fourth, 
in that district. 


NTew York, December 24,18G8. 

Montague Eichard Leverson sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Laaa^rence : 

1324. Question. State whether you reside in New York, and if so, how 
long haA^e you resided here ? 

Ausaa er. I have resided in New York city about two years. 

1325. Q. State whether you huA^e obserA^ed the mode in Avhich natural¬ 
ization certificates are issued and natmalization had, in any of the courts 
of this city; and if so, state AA^hen you haA^e made such obserAmtions, and 
Avhat opportunities you have had of knoAAing anything about it. 

A. I noticed the proceedings for several days in the supreme court of 
this city and in the superior court, and on one occasion in the court of 
common pleas; but as everything Avas apparently conducted AAuth per 
feet regularity in the court of common pleas, I did not again Ausit it. 

1320. Q. What is your business? 

A. I am a member of the bar of the United States. 

1327. (^,. State to what extent you have had your attention turned to 
the subject of the exercise of the electiAX franchise and the laws upon 
that subject. 

A. I may say that for the last 18 years my attention has been spe¬ 
cially devmted to A\4iat may be termed the philosophy of legislation. I 
am a disciple of Jeremy Bentham, the great father of the modern school 
of legislation, and have had the benefit of the personal teaching of John 
Stuart Mill and William Ellis. 


120 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1328. Q. State wliat occurred under your own observation in these l^ew 
York courts j and if you have prepared a statement which contains the 
whole truth and nothing but the truth, you can adopt that statement 
and present it to the committee j or you can give it in such other form 
as you may deem best. 

A. I am not aware that there is anything which I wmuld change in 
this statement. | Producing a printed statement.] I prepared this state¬ 
ment, which is published over my own signature in the Yew York Tribune 
of October 23, 18G8, and which I now i)resent to this committee as per¬ 
fectly true. 

[Mr. Kerr objected to the statement being received, on the ground that 
it was not competent testimony in any legal acceptation of the word. 

The chairman put the question on sustaining the objection, and it was 
sustained.] 

1329. Q. Take the article and refresh your recollection Avith it, if you 
I)lease, and state the facts which you observedj take up each court sep¬ 
arately, and state what you observed there, in the words of that state¬ 
ment, or otherwise, as you prefer. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

1330. Q. You w^ere in the courts witnessing the naturalization of 
Iversons desiring to be naturalized? 

A. Yes. I first Avent into a room in the basement of the old City 
Hall building, wdiich used to be the sheriff’s office. When I first Avent 
into it in the daytime there were about four gangs of four clerks to each 
gang, one of whom acted in Avhat may be termed the capacity of foreman 
to each gang. On this occasion I did not stay to notice closely what Avas 
going on, but that same eA^eniiig I Avent again. There was 'only one 
gang with one foreman at Avork at this time. The foreman had before 
him a list of names and addresses, and he Avould keep the other three 
at Avork, giAuug to each man a name and address wdiich that man would 
fill into one of the forms before him. There Avere on the table two or 
three piles of papers. One of them Avas a pile of blank forms, affidavits, 
&c. The first form Avas one in which the applicant is required to swear 
that he has arriA^ed at the age of 21 years, that he has resided in the 
United States three years next preceding his arrHal at that age, and 
has continued to reside therein to the present time; and that he has 
resided five years Avithin the United States, &c. On the front sheet 
there Avere also the other affidaAdts AAdiich are giA^en in this communica¬ 
tion to the Tribune. The three clerks Avould fill in each the name fur¬ 
nished to him as that of the applicant. It would be filled in as that of 
the applicant in three places, and the clerk Avould then sign the name of 
the applicant in each instance. In every case wdiich I saAv each of the 
clerks filled in the name of Patrick Goff' as that of the attesting Avitness 
for the applicant without a single exception. The name of “Patrick 
Goff'” w^as inserted as the wdtness by each of the three clerks, inserted 
as the name of the person avIio Avas Avell acquainted Avith the applicant, 
&c. The clerks did not sign the name of “ Patrick Goff',” but put it 
“Patrick Goff—his mark.” The clerks wrote the name of Patrick Goff' 
and made the mark also. 

1331. Q. Without his being there? 

A. Yes. Whether Patrick Goff' exists or not I do not knoAv; at any 
rate he \yas not there, nor any one of the applicants wUose names Avere 
signed. This wms common to nearly every case. In a feAV instances, 
hoAvever, there w^ould be a variation in the cases of men who w^ere sup- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


121 


posed to liave been in the armed forces of the United States. It would 
be rather important to have the form for the judge’s endorsement. We 
have in this paper only the endorsement for a person who has been 
in the service. The more common form, and the one which was used in 
ninety-nine cases out of the hundred, would be the other form. 

1332. Q. The ordinary form of the judge’s certificate on the back? 

A. Yes, sir j the form ordinarily used. I did not on that evening 
trace the papers which I then saw as passing through the court in any 
way, but that same day, and also on two or three other occasions, I wit¬ 
nessed the scene in the supreme court where Judge Barnard holds his 
court. 

1333. Q. What communication have these rooms where you saw these 
clerks to w^ork with any court ? 

A. They had no particular connection with a court; they are in the 
basement of the City Hall. The room is the old sheriff’s office. It 
does not communicate with any court, except that you can go up and 
down from it to where Judge McCunn was sitting in the evening, but it 
has no immediate connection with any of the courts, neither was the room 
in use for any court business. Whether these clerks were clerks of the 

court, or clerks employed for the occasion, 1 do not know. 

« 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1334. Q. Can you give the names of any of them ? 

A. Ko; I do not know any of the names. 

By the Chairman : 

1335. Q. Was there any other court in the building ? 

A. The superior court was held by Judge McCunn in the evening, in 
the same building. Judge Barnard held his court nominally from 7 to 9 
o’clock in the evening, but I have seen the session running up till half-past 
10 or 11 o’clock. The mode in which the process was gone through in 
Judge Barnard’s court was this: As the men came up, they would hand 
in their papers, this form of affidavit, and it would be handed to the clerk 
by the usher, who would call out the names. It is a presumption on my 
liart that they called the names of the persons who in that paper are repre¬ 
sented as applicants and witnesses, because of course I could not tell 
that of my own knowledge j all I can tell with certainty is that the clerk 
purported to call out the names from the paper. On one occasion a man 
named Lush or Lusk was called forward while Judge Barnard was in 
court, and the clerk said to him, ‘‘Getyour witness to sign his affidavit.” 
The man looked about the court. I was at that time at the extreme end 
of the court, and I heard him say, in a voice which I supposed was lieard 
by the judge and the clerk, “I don’t know who he is, your honor.” The 
clerk would call out the names of persons so rapidly that I could not take 
them down. I commenced to do so at first, but it was performed too 
rapidly for me to follow it, but I made a mark on some papers which I 
had with me for each name called; I forget the exact number, but I 
think I have it mentioned somewhere in this paper. I have been called 
here suddenly without notice, and have had no opportunity of referring 
to my notes. On looking at this report, I see tliat I put the number at 
from one hundred and ten to one hundred and fifty or even two hundred. 
I remember now, on one occasion one hundred and eighty were called up 
in one batch ,* I do not remember and I do not tliink that, while I was 
there, there was any oiie occasion when the number was less than one 
hundred and ten, the lowest number mentioned in my report, in a batch. 
The average was about one hundred and forty to one hundred and fifty 
in a batch. I made a mark on my paper as each name was called. When 


122 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


they came up they would he divided in groups round four or five Bibles; 
each Bible would be held up by four, five, or six men in the ceutre, and 
the others would either touch it or stretch out their hands towards it, on 
being directed so to do by the clerk or the judge, I am unable to say 
which. While they Avere being called up to touch the Bible, or in effect 
to stretch out their hands towards it, the clerk Avould call out the names. 
There AA^as a double calling of the names; the first time to get them Avithin 
the bar, and the second for the purpose of getting them to touch the 
book. As the clerk called out the names he would hand the paper, being 
the afiidaAuts before mentioned, tothe judge, turning eacli paper over as 
he handed it, so that the place for the judge’s sigtiature might be pre¬ 
sented at once to him to save time. The judge Avould make some mark, 
which I have no doubt you Avill find on the records when you ha\^e them 
produced, as his signature to the endorsement, being, in fact, the fiat for 
the naturalization. No eAudence of any kind Avas taken by the judge, nor 
was any oath of any kind administered to the applicants prior to the 
judge’s signing the i^apers in this Avay, Avhich he did as fast as the clerk 
could hand the papers over to him. When they Avere all through in this 
way, the judge then administered the oath in words Avhich I took down 
at the time, and Avhich I adopt from this report: “You, the several 
ai)plicants, SAvear that you are tAventy-one years of age; that you arriA^ed 
in this country three years before attaining that age, and have resided 
fiA^e years in the United States, and for the last year in the State of Noav 
York.” He swore them in a batch to that form. He Avould then say: 
“And you, the seA^eral witnesses, swear that the contents of your seA^eral 
atfidaAuts are true.” 

By Mr. Boss: 

1336. Q. And they all swore to that, did they ? 

A. They did, and to nothing further than I have stated. The judge 
repeated this form of oath, and every man Avas sui^posed to kiss the book. 
The batches ran from one hundred and ten ui) to about two hundred; and 
I remember on one occasion Avhen 1 counted oA^er one hundred and eighty 
in a batch. That number Avas diAuded round fiA^e Bibles. Probably tAvo 
dozen hands reached the Bibles, and the rest stretched out their hands 
OA^er the shoulders of the others toAvards, the Bible. On one occasion 
that I was taking notes I Avas Avithin the bar, and the judge ordered the 
space within the bar to be cleared. I had gone bn one side to one of the 
tables, and was seated by the table. When the judge had gWen the 
order the other jAersons within the bar Avent out, but I considered I had 
a right to remain, and I remained. The usher came to me and told me 
that the judge had ordered the space within the bar to be cleared. I 
told him I was a member of the bar, and had a right to be there. He 
went to the judge and came back to me, and said that the judge required 
the space within the bar to be cleared. I, therefore, Avent Avithout the bar 
and stood on a platform at the extreme end of the court. It Avas Avhile 
I was standing there that I heard Lusk say that he did not know Avho 
his witness was. I was observed to be continuing taking notes, and 
just as another batch had been sworn in the Avay I haA^e named. After 
they were SAVorn, when they were being called over to receiA^e their cer¬ 
tificates, a further qi’der was given by the judge to clear the court. 
There had been no disturbance Avhatever in the court, and no more noise 
than was absolutely unavoidable from the shuffling of so many feet 
going up and croAvding around the Bibles. The other people Avithout 
the bar went out. I did not. The usher, not the same one Avho had 
first spoken to me, came up and told me that the judge had ordered the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


123 


court to be cleared. I told liiui tliat it was a public court and tliat I 
was a uieinber of tlie bar, and that on both accounts I had a ri^ht to be 
there. He began to forcibly eject me. I then called out to the judge 
that I was a member of the bar, and called upon him to protect my 
rights. I did not hear anything done in consequence of that. I only 
know that I was ejected. Of course I did not attempt to resist. I 
allowed them to eject me. I did not want to be seen with a black eye 
in the streets of New York. I cannot say positively that Judge Barnard 
heard my appeal to him for protection, but I express my belief that he 
must have done so, because I spoke loudly, intending that he should 
hear me. Still, being at the extreme end of the court-room with a man 
hustling me out, of course I cannot say positively that the judge heard 
me. The process of giving out the certificates was in this way: The 
certificates were stamped with the seal of the court, in blank, and they 
were placed in a huge pile. As fast as the judge signed the applications 
he handed them out to the clerks who were sitting behind this pile of 
certificates and to the judge’s right; they would then fill in the names 
as the papers were handed to them. The name of each applicant would 
then be called, the certificates handed to him, and then all would 
together take the oath of allegiance to the United States. 

By Mr. I^err: 

1337. Q. Before the clerk ? 

A. No. The judge was generally still present. I only remember one 
occasion when the judge retired to his room when this oath was admin¬ 
istered. They were sworn in the same way as before, in batches, but 
the batches were not quite so large. The certificates would be handed 
probably to forty or fifty persons at a time. As they were finished by 
the clej'ks the usher would call out the names of the parties, and the 
papers would be delivered to them while the clerks went on writing 
others. On one occasion I saw a gentleman, whose name I do not know, 
blit I could identify him—I believe him to be a prominent politician in 
this city, and I have seen him several times—I saw him come out of the 
judge’s room and take away with him a considerable number of these 
certificates in blank, stamped with the seal of the court. I had seen 
them go through the operation of stamiiing. I presume they also bore 
the signatui’e of the clerk, though that of course I had not an oppor¬ 
tunity of seeing. He took away a considerable number of them in blank, 
and for each one that he took away he handed in a red ticket. I do not 
know whether the committee have had these red tickets before them. 
The red tickets, thus handed in, were in these words: 
o ^ 0 , -. 

‘‘ Please naturalize the bearer. 

^^M. D. GALE, 

Chairman Naturalization Committee^ Tammany HalV^ 

By Mr. Dickey: 

1338. Q. YJiat was the judge—a democrat, or a republican ? 

A. Judge Barnard ? 

1339. Q. Yes. 

A. If I am asked my opinion, I believe he is a democrat—so reputed. 
The clerk also. The clerk of the court is Mr. Loew; I do not know Mr. 
Loew personally and cannot, therefore, say that I saw him in any of 
these operations. It is possible that when I know him personally I may 
be able to identify him as one of those whom I saw in court. 



124 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Chairman : 

1340. Q. These papers that were being prepared by batches of clerks, 
each batch having four clerks with a leader—they were blanks for what 
court 

A. All for the supreme court. The proceedings in Judge jVrcCunifs 
court had a far greater semblance of regularity, and what I saw in the 
court of common pleas seemed to me so entirely regular as not to call 
for any fiu*ther attention. 

1341. Q. What is the judge of the superior court—a democrat or a 
republican ? 

A. He is reputed a democrat. 

1342. Q. What is the judge of the court of common pleas ? 

A. In all these courts there are several judges. Of the judges of the 
court of common pleas I am unable to speak with any certainty. 

1343. Q. Go on and state all the facts that you observed. 

A. Do the committee want the conversation of the parties engaged in 
these operations'? 

1344. Q. Certainly—conversation occurring at that time. 

A. On the occasion when I saw these papers filled up with the name 
of Patrick Golf as the witness for so many persons, I saw a pile of the 
same kind of papers all filled up apparently in the same writing. When 
I say uZZ, it is a presumption on my part, for I had an opportunity of 
seeing only three or four in the batch, but they were all in the same 
handwriting. I lifted up a number and saw several in different parts of 
the pile 5 all had Patrick Goli* as witness, and all were in one or other of 
the same three handwritings. Of course I had no opportunity of exam¬ 
ining the whole pile, but these seen in different parts of the pile seemed 
to be in the same handwriting, both the filling up and the applicant’s 
name and the signature of the applicant; and to all three, besides those 
which I counted during the time that I was watching the operations— 
to the whole batch already prepared, the name of “Patrick Goff—his 
mark,” was placed as witness. I say this with the explanation that I 
did not see the whole lot. One batch of clerks could not get through 
the whole lot, and the foreman handed a list of names on some sheets of 
brief paper to some one else, and told him to fill them up. The man 
said, “ Shall I make these in the supreme or superior *? ” to which the 
reply was: “Make them in the supreme; they go through easier.” On 
the 15th of October one of the clerks told me that up to that date they 
had put 20,000 through the mill, (that was the expression used by him; I 
employed it first to him and he adopted it,) and that they expected to 
get through another 20,000 before election. Another gentleman came 
in about that time, and his statement reduced the number about one- 
half ; he said they had done 10,000 and would do 20,000. My belief is 
that the former number was correct, and I will give you my reasons for 
so thinking. There would be four or five batches varying from 110 to 
200 in number, averaging about 140 or 150, got through by Judge Bar¬ 
nard in each hour. It seems impossible at first, until you remember that 
the only thing the judge had to do was simply, as fast as the clerk 
turned over the papers to him, to sign his name, or, I think, simply his 
initials to the fiat. That is the way it was done—no cpiestion of any 
kind being asked. I can also speak of two occasions when I saw the 
court at work up to 10 and half-past 10 o’clock at night. I cannot 
myself speak of more than two such occasions, but I can direct you to 
further evidence about the hours that Judge Barnard’s court was kept 
open. I sent down some persons to make certain inquiries, and I could 
also bring them before you if you desire. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


125 


By Mr. Dickey : 

1345. Q. Give us tlie names of the iiersons that you sent, and their 
circumstances, so that we may have them subpoenaed. 

A. 1 have not got the names here, but I liave them at my office. 
Perhaps you would like to know the names of the most frequent 
vouchees, McCaffrey, Harvey, Patrick Goff, Gallagher, Schmidt, Spencer, 
Tracy, and Dunphy. This Dunphy I think there would not be much 
difficulty in finding. He is a young man, very intelligent-looking and 
of very prepossessing appearance. He was one of the most active of 
these men, and certainly a man who, from his appearance, you would 
expect to find otherwise engaged. 

134G. Q. What do you mean by vouchees'? 

A. The witnesses. 

By the Chairman : 

1347. Q. Did the judge examine the affidavits, or was it physically 
possible for him to do so*? 

A. Not at all—utterly impossible. He did not attemiit it. 

1348. Q. Did he make any inspection which would enable him to 
ascertain whether the persons making the affidavits were the persons 
present, or Avho they were, or anything about it*? 

A. He made no inspection of any kind whatever, nor any examina¬ 
tion at all. The men were called u}! and he swore them in batches, as I 
have described. 

By Mr, Kerr : 

1349. Q. In describing this scene do I understand you to say that 
these men whose names you have mentioned as witnesses or vouchees 
remained there for the i)urpose of putting these batches through *? 

A. Precisely. In a large number of cases I made note of times they 
appeared under different names—sometimes as applicants and sometimes 
as witnesses. This man Patrick Goff I never saw. I took his name 
from seeing it on these i^apers. He was not in the place at all when his 
mark was made, and I never saw him to my knowledge. 

By the Chairman: 

1350. Q. Were these papers which you have described as being pre¬ 
pared in the basement of the City Hall used in the course of the business ? 

A. I know that the same kind of papers were. I had not the oppor¬ 
tunity, from circumstances which the committee probably might not care 
to have described, to inquire into the matter particularly—I had not the 
opportunity of tracing these identical papers, and I could not say that 
those were the same papers which I saw filled up. But there is a mode 
in which the committee can get at it, which I will suggest if desired. 
Whether all the papers are preserved or not I don’t know; but you 
ought to find the i^aj^ers filed as of the 16th and 17th of October, and 
they ought to bear the name of Patrick Goft* as witness. If they do 
not they have been made way with. 

By Mr. Dickey^: 

1351. Q. Did you hear the name of Patrick Goft‘ called in court? 

A. Yes, I did, decidedly. 

1352. Q. As witness to these naturalization papers ? 

A. Whether to these or others, I do not know. 

1353. Q. How often was his name called? 

A. I should say that I did not hear his name called more than three 
or four times—once to each batch—when I was iiresent. 


126 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1354. Q. If you lieard liim called once, of course tliere was no neces¬ 
sity of his being called again when he answered that time? 

A. That I could not answer for j I can only tell you the fact. I heard 
him called three or four times one evening in Judge Barnard’s court, each 
time for a different batch of applicants. But he could not have been 
witness for all the men in each batch, because I also heard some of 
these other names which I had before noticed in Judge McCunn’s 
court. For instance, I heard the name of Dunphy, and having heard 
it and noticed it before specially in Judge McCunn’s court, I remembered 
him when I heard his name mentioned in Judge Barnard’s court. So 
again the name of Gallagher. 1 had heard it in Judge McCunn’s court, 
and I had noticed it in the newspapers, which published, as long as they 
were permitted to do it, the names of persons naturalized and their wit¬ 
nesses. I have noticed the name of Gallagher appearing as a witness 
in a very large number of cases; consequently when I heard it again, 
and when I saw him or a person answering to his name in Judge 
McCunn’s court, and afterwards heard the same name called in Judge 
Barnard’s court, I concluded—it is a mere surmise, of course, but I con¬ 
cluded—that it was the same man appearing as a witness again. Of 
course Gailagher is rather a common name among the Irish population, 
and it might have been another Gallagher. Then McCaffrey was 
another name which I had noticed in Judge McCunn’s court and noticed 
again in Judge Barnard’s court. Of course, as in the other case, I could 
not state positively that it was the same man, but I have, no doubt 
about it. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1355. Q. Did the judge put any questions to those men who came 
there as witnesses? 

A. Not one. 

1356. Q. Was any oath administered ? 

A. Merely as I have described. 

1357. Q. The witnesses did not take that oath at the same time that 
the applicants did ? 

A. It was administered in this way: ^Won, the several applicants, 
swear [following the form] that you are each of you 21 years of age j 
that you arrived here more than three years before attaining that age; 
that you have resided five years in the United States, and for the last 
one year in the State of New York; and you, the several witnesses, swear 
that the contents of your several affidavits are true.” That was the 
whole extent of the swearing. 

1358. Q. Prior to that oath being administered were the names of the 
witnesses called by the clerk or the judge ? 

A. Names were called over which I could not positively distinguish 
as those either of applicants or witnesses. A lot of men went forward 
when the names were called, and having no opportunity to read the 
papers as the names were called I could not say positively which were 
applicants and which witnesses; but I will give the committee such 
facts as will enable them to draw, no doubt, the same conclusion which 
I drew: With each batch I would hear one name called which was per¬ 
fectly familiar to me, which I had heard over and over again before, 
and my conclusion was that this was the name of the witness. Each 
batch would probably have two or three or four witnesses. Then I 
would hear those familiar names called again with a succeeding batch, 
while the bulk of the names called which I took to be those of the appli¬ 
cants appeared perfectly strange; besides which, the number of cer- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


127 


tificates issued after each swearing, before fresh batches came within 
the bar, corresponded very nearly with the nnmber within the bar; 
nearly every man within the bar received a certificate. 

1359. Q. Then there was no w^ay of discriminating, when the clerks 
were calling the names, between applicants and witnesses ? 

A. None w’hatever, excepting the wmy in which the judge put the 
oaths: “Yon, the several applicants,” and “ Yon, the several witnesses.” 

13G0. Q. Then there was a promiscuous crowd of applicants and wit¬ 
nesses all bound towards the Bibles'? 

A. Exactly; some with their hands on the Bible. The Bible was held 
up high as those in the centre could hold it, and others were pointing 
to it. 

13G1. Q. By that wny of doing business w^ould it have been perfectly 
easy to have gone through with all those forms without having any wit¬ 
nesses there at all ? 

A. Of course it would; in fact, facts which I will mention presently 
will show clearly that in many cases the man w ho really wanted the 
certificate did not appear. 

13G2. Q. State the facts. 

A. A gentleman named Jourdain applied for his certificate. He 
resides at present with Dr. Petitjean, Franklin street, below West 
BroadAvay—Avhether it is beyond Yarick street or not I forget, but I 
could find it. Petitjcan’s name is on the door. He applied for his cer¬ 
tificate and wns rejected, I think, in the superior court, by Judge 
McCunn. He had been four years and a half in this country, and his 
first papers, I believe, were about three years old; but of course he 
w'ould be better able to tell you all that himself. At all events he after¬ 
wards got his papers w ithout appearing in any court at all. I have seen 
the ])apers in bis hands, and the man himself wmuld not commit peijury 
at all, and had no idea at the time that any perjury had been committed 
in getting the papers. 

13G3. Q. AYhat court did he get them from *? 

A. I think the superior court, but I won’t be sure about that. 

13G4. Q. Did you learn Avho he obtained them from ? 

A. Through this committee at No. G Centre street. I was asked in 
this room in the basement of the City •Hall whether I wanted my papers 
prepared. I told them I had not been in this country a sufficient length 
of time to entitle me to naturalization. I may add that I have been 
over and over again offered my certificate. Even when I had not been 
in the country three wrecks Ewms offered my certificate. 

By the Chairman : 

13G5. Q. AYlien you said that you had not been long enough in the 
country what wms said to you? 

A. I wns told that that Avas of no consequence; that they could get 
my papers for me. 

13GG. Q. Who said that to you ? 

A. One of the clerks dowm there engaged in the filling up of those 
papers. [Mr. Kerr objected to the last answer as too indefinite.] In 
the superior court the proceedings Avere conducted in this way: A clerk 
at the gate of entrance for the bar called the names of applicants and 
Avitnesses in the order in AAbich the papers came to his hands, and on 
the persons called coming forAvard they w^ere arranged within the bar, 
often one Avitness for four or fiA-'e apifiicants at a time. When a number 
were thus arranged their papers aa ere handed to the clerk, Avho stood at 
the judge’s left hand, Avho, as he finished off the lot already in hand. 


128 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


took up tlie fresli batcli. An applicant and a witness being now called 
by tills clerk, and answering to their names, the judge would direct 
them to hold up their right hands. Very frequently the left would be 
held up, and the usher would have to help the man to put up his right 
hand instead of his left. The judge then proceeded to swear the par¬ 
ties in the following words: “You solemnly swear in the presence of 
the ever-living God that these affidavits Avhich you have severally sub¬ 
scribed are true: So help you God.” Does the committee wish me to 
describe some of the scenes which took place before Judge McCunu? 

1367. Q. Yes; state facts within your knowledge. 

A. I state these facts, not that I have any recollection of them now 
outside of my report, which is taken from notes I took at the time and 
which refresh my memory; of course I could not pretend to remember 
them but for these notes. “Patrick Hogan, the applicant, or some one 
personating him, and McCarthy, the witness. McCarthy I notice to be 
one of the most common vouchees. The Judge says: AVhich is Hogan P 
Hogan nods. Judge: ‘ How old are you % ’ Hogan: ^ 24.’ Judge: ‘ How 
long are you iu this country?’ Hogan: ‘Seven years.’ Judge: ‘How 
old Avere you when you came into the country V Hogan: ‘17.’ Judge: 
‘Pass on and get your papers.’ Denis O’Peilly and G. Gallagher— 
Judge: ‘Which is O’Keilly?’ Gallagher (pointing to OTieilly:) ‘This, 
sir.’ Judge: ‘Hoav old are you, O’Peilly?’ O’Keilly: ‘27.’ Judge: 

‘ How long have you been in the country ? ’ O’Eeilly: ‘ 10 years.’ Judge, 
(to Gallagher:) ‘ Do you know this man V Gallagher: ‘ YTes, sir.’ Judge: 
‘Is he a man of good moral character ?’ Gallagher: ‘Yes, sir.’ Judge: 

‘ Pass on and get your papers.’ Denis Darcy and Flanagan—to Denis: 
Judge: ‘How old are you?’ Yo answer. Judge: ‘How long have you 
been in this country?’ Denis, (scratching his head:) ‘I don’t knoAA^’ 
Flanagan, (xmompting him:) ‘25 years.’ Judge, (to Flanagan:) ‘How 
long has he been in this country?’ Flanagan: ‘25 years.’ Judge, (to 
Denis:) ‘Hoav old are you?’ Denis: ‘32.’ [Denis is bald at the crown 
of his head, and Avhat hair he has is gray; he looks over 60.] Judge: 

‘ Noav, that won’t do, Denis; a Avorn, gray-headed man like you must be 
OAW 50; I am 43, and look 10 years younger than you. I can’t natural¬ 
ize you.’ The judge then tore up the papers. I noticed many of these 
witnesses going from Judge McCunn’s to Judge Barnard’s court, back- 
Avards and forwards. A man named Dougall, eAudently an elderly man, 
said he Avas 38. He Avas cross-examined by Judge McCunn, and admit¬ 
ted he was 48. As the Avitness Avas evidently too young to swear that 
he had knoAvn him 30 years, the judge asked Dougall if there Avas any 
one in the court Avho liad knoAA ii him in this country oA^er 30 years. 
The usher of the court said to him in a Ioav tone, [I Avas within the bar, 
seated at counsel’s table, just behind the usher, and heard him,] ‘Go 

and fetch-.’ I could not catch the name, but Dougall answered, ‘Is 

he here?’ The usher said, ‘You Avill find him below, or about some¬ 
where.’ One Brennan said he a\ as 23, and had been here fiA^e and a half 
years; he looked over 40. Thornton, 19 years in this country, had Amted 
before; came over at three years of age; his father Avas naturalized. 
Judge McCunn told him he Avas already a citizen, and Avas about to 
destroy the papers, when a clerk said something to the judge, and the 
judge said, ‘Oh! Awy well; let himhaA^e his certificate.’ SeA^eral appli¬ 
cations Avere made for naturalization for discharged soldiers aa ithout the 
production of the discharge or the production of any evidence as to its 
loss except the affidavit of the man himself. They Avere all passed. To 
one man A\ffio came up and who had lost an arm the judge said, ‘ Your 
armless sleeve is the best certificate.’ Nearly all the applicants, Avith 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


129 


scarce an exception, purported to liave arrived in this country between 
the ages of 17 and 18. Probably there were two or three exceptions. 
There was no examination into these at all in the snpreine court, but in 
Judge McOunn’s court they were examined, and thej^ all swore that 
they came over before they were 18, and generally between the ages of 
17 and 18.” 

By the Chairman : 

13G8. Q. Do I understand you to say that in the superior court the 
judge asked all the applicants themselves what age they were when they 
came to this country ? 

A. Generally he asked the apxdicants, but sometimes the witnesses. 

13G9. Q. The witnesses then made no statements as to the age of the 
applicants when they came into the country"? 

A. Sometimes they did, and sometimes not. I have mentioned the 
case of Dougall, who said he Avas 48. His witness was evidently too 
young to state his age when he came into the country. An applicant 
gave his age as 31 and said he had been 12 years in the country, Avhere- 
upon this colloquy took xdace between him and the judge: Judge: 
“How old were you when you arrived?” “17.” Judge: “Hoav long 
have you been in this country?” “12 years.” Judge: “NTow, how old 
are you?” “31.” Judge: “How much is 12 from 31?” No answer. 
Judge: “How old were you Avhen you came to this country?” “17.” 
Judge: “How long have you been in this country?” “12 years.” 
Judge: “How much are 17 and 12?” No answer. Judge: “I can’t 
Xiass this case,” and tore ux> the pax^ers. This .man Dunxdiy axqieared 
when I was in Judge McCunn’s court on one occasion certainly 25 
times—generally as a witness, but sometimes as an axix>licant, but not 
eight times under the same name. I beliewe he rex)resented 12 to 15 
different names iii his 25 to 30 ax)xiearances. 

1370. Q. You saw him? 

A. I saw him and heard him make his appearance under these dif¬ 
ferent names 5 but his favorite name was Dunxihy. On one occasion 
he axipeared and answered as Gotleib Sxher, or as Keutch, 1 don’t know 
wdiich. The judge said to him, “ I think I have seen your face before 
to-day ?” “ No, sir.” Judge: “ Are you quite sure?” “ Yes, sir.” Judge: 
“ I rarely mistake a face I’ve once seen. Are you quite sure you haA^e not 
been here before to-day ?” “ Quite sure.” Judge: “ Nor yesterday, nor 
the day before?” “No, sir.” Judge: “Well, I have no doubt you are 
an honest witness.” (To ax^plicant:) “Pass on and get your x)ax)ers.” It 
frequently happened that a man would come forward and give evidence 
AAuth perfect truthfulness, and it Avould ax)pear that he came here after 
he was 18 years of age. In such case, Judge McOunn would tell him to 
come back in tAA"0 years, AA^hen he Avould naturalize him; but he could, 
neA^ertheless, get his x^apers. I have referred to Jourdain as one of those 
cases, but he afterward obtained his certificate, as 1 haA^e stated, without 
going to court at all. I aauII state that the conduct of Judge McOunn, 
and of all his officers, was marked Avith the utmost courtesy. The officials, 
of course, took their tone from Judge McOunn, and thejudge Avas x)erfectly 
X)olite and courteous to everybody Avho axip^ared before him. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1371. Q. Then the only court that you arraign for the disregard of law 
is the suxmeme court ? 

A. You Avill judge whether what I have stated as occurring in the 
superior court shoAVS a disregard of the statute or notj but in regard to 
the supreme court I suppose there can be no question. 

9 T 


130 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1372. Q. AVell, as you have uiidertakeii to give some oi)iiiioiis here, I 
will ask you for aiiotlier; whether it is your opinion, based upon all you 
saw and all you heard there, that Judge MeOiinn really desired to exe¬ 
cute the law in good faith, or Avhether he desired to be a i)arty to any 
fraudulent violation of law f 

A. I think that Judge McCunn desired to keep up the appearance of 
complying with the law. 

1373. Q. That is not answering my question, because that is suscepti¬ 
ble of two or three meanings. Do you mean to say that, in your opinion, 
he desired onlj^ to keep up an appearance of complying with law; that 
he was unfaithful to the law, and was willing to violate it whenever he 
could so without a palpable appearance of desiring to violate if? 

A. If you insist upon my giving an answer to that question I will do 
so, but I would rather not. 

1374. Q. I ask it because you have been giving just such answers all 
along. 

A. I would rather not give an opinion if I am permitted to retain it. 

The Chairman. State your opinion. 

Mr. Dickey^. The question is whether he can be forced to state his 
opinion. 

Mr. Kerr. I have no doubt that he cannot be if he objects. 

Witness. 1 would rather not give it. It Avas the mode of granting 
and afterwards distributing the certificates in the superior court, which 
specially enabled me to distinguish the witnesses or common vouchees. 
On leaving the superior court the applicants would go doAvn stairs and. 
Avould be conducted by their witnesses to room Ko. II. The Avitnesses 
handed a red ticket to each applicant, andAvould stand outside Avliile the 
applicants aa ent in. Three clerks and the principal deputy of Mr. Loew 
were seated behind a long table, the ])rincipal deputy by himself, the 
other clerks with a number of certificates in blank, not yet stamped, 
before them. So far as I saw, no certificates were eA er stamped in blank 
in the superior court. I did not see any at any time stamped with the seal 
of the court, in blank. The record bearing the judge’s fiat Avould be 
handed to the clerks behind this deal table, Avho Avould i)roceed to fill up 
the certificates. There were three clerks engaged in filling up, and as 
soon as they AA^ere done the certificates Avere handed oA^er to a clerk who 
was standing at another desk near the AAindoAA^, having charge of the 
seal, and he would seal the certificates and hand them over to the appli¬ 
cants, in exchange for these red tickets. 

By the Chairman : 

1375. Q. You say that in the supreme court the judge signed some 
papers; state Avh at pajiers those av ere. 

A. They were the endorsement on those forms aaIhcIi I liaA^e given 
here—the printed forms in Avhich these names had been filled in—and 
he signed on the reverse side, being the judge’s fiat for the admission of 
the ai)plicant. 

137G. Q. It was not the certificate of naturalization that he signed? 

A. Ko, it Avas not. The form of fiat given here (in the Tribune) is oidy 
that for discharged soldiers; the more common one was the other form. 

1377. Q. Are there any other facts which you Avish to state; give them. 

A. I do not at present remember any facts bearing upon this part of 

the subject. 

1378. Q. Can you state the names of any other persons who saw these 
or similar transactions in this court? 

A. There is a man by the name of Henri, whom I employed. He 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


131 


boards, I believe, at an hotel in Greene, just above Bleecker. There are 
a great many suggestions which I could make to the committee to enable 
them to get at the whole truth, and to prevent these frauds in the future. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1379. Q. With what political party do you act % 

A. I have acted with the republican party in this election. 

1380. Q. Did you ever act with any other party in this country ? 

A. I have not. 

1381. Q. You appear to have given a good deal of attention and a good 
deal of time to the investigation of this matter; have you done that 
upon your own voluntary motion, or upon the employment of others ? 

A. I was applied to by gentlemen connected with the citizens’commit¬ 
tee, sitting at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

1382. Q. Appointed by the League % 

A. Ko, not by the League; I don’t know who they were appointed by ; 
it was a citizens’ committee acting with the State republican committee. 

1383. Q. And by that committee you were emi)loyed to look after this 
matter'? 

A. Yes, sir; I will tell you if you wish exactly the whole story of the 
employment. 

1384. Q. I don’t want the details; I just wish to know the fact. In 
pursuance of that employment you went to work to make these various 
inquiries and observations? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1385. Q. And reported them at the time in notes, and subsequently in 
this form ? 

A. Yes, sir ; I did not report them in notes to the committee; I had 
v^erbal commnnications with the members of the committee; I i)ointed 
out the manner in which the whole thing might have been stopped by, 
the latest, the 20th of October, but I was not supported and nothing 
was done to that end. 

1380. Q. In reference to the place where those papers were apparently 
in the first instance prepared, you say it is in the old City Hiill ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1387. Q. And part of that building Used to be the sherifTs office? 

A. Yes, sir. By saying that that used to be the sheriffs office, I only 
mean to describe it; I can’t speak for my personal knowledge as to how 
it has been used generally within the last six months. 

1388. Q. It was not then used as a sheriff’s office, but by those people 
whom you have described ? 

A. It had ceased to be the sheriff’s office at the time they were using 
it in this way. 

1389. Q. Do you know who those persons were that werein that room 
and carrying on that business ? 

A. No; I have seen one of them since, however, in one of the courts. 

1390. Q. How comes it that, acting, as I must assume you were, first from 
personal coimctions of duty, and secondly from employment, you did 
not make it your duty to inquire the names of those persons ? 

A. 1 think if I had done so I should hav^e been very summarily turned 
out, and not allowed to see what I was anxious to see. 

1391. Q. It might have been so, but could you not have got the infor¬ 
mation somewhere else outside ? 

A. My impression is that if I had asked at the time any quesfions 
there as to the names, I should have failed entirely in the whole object 
of my investigation. 


132 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1392. Q. And upon that impression you declined to make such inqui¬ 
ries ? 

A. Quite so. 

1393. Q. Was that the only reason you had for failing to make such 
inquiries 

A. Within the building, yes, sir. I was prevented from prosecuting 
the case as I should have liked to do. 

1394. Q. Did you afterwards make such inquiries outside of the build¬ 
ing? 

A. I did not; I laid a plan before members of the citizens’ committee, 
and also before members of the State committee, for the purpose of 
obtaining a comxdete chain of evidence ; but I could get nothing done; 
I could get no assistance from any of the committee. Mr. Wilkes was 
away on account of severe sickness, Mr. Eaton was out of the city on 
business, and Colonel Bliss was already overwhelmed with w'ork which 
he did manfully, though it was a work for three men, and with the 
exception of these gentlemen, the rest of that committee were either 
incomx)etent or indifferent, and they did nothing; otherwise the whole 
thing might have been exposed and stopped b}^ the 20th of October at 
the latest. 

1395. Q. But on the contrary it went on and you made no further 
inquiries ? 

A. No, sir; I had no further opportunity; my jffan was not adopted. 
In fact, nothing was done. 

1396. Q. Have you the memoranda which you made at the time these 
things were going on ? 

A. I have, but I have not them here; I was brought here suddenly to¬ 
day, without notice. 

1397. Q. Did you obtain from any of these parties who were thus being 

put through” any x)apers ? 

A. Yes; I have got several of them, and I have seen a very large 
number of them. 

1398. Q. Have you those which you have, here ? 

A. No, I have not; but I can look them ui) and bring them here. 

1399. Q. Will you do so ? 

A. I will, with great pleasure. 

1400. Q. Can you go to the court-room in which Judge Barnard’s court 
is held and look at the employes in that room, and about it, and in the 
clerk’s office, and identify those persons if they are about there now ? 

A. Which persons do you refer to now ? 

1401. Q. Only to those doing the subterranean work which you have 
described. 

A. 1 could go and look, but I should not expect to find them. 

1402. Q. I will ask you whether you think you could identify them, if 
you should see them again ? 

A. 1 think I could identify two or three of them. 

1403. Q. I request you now to go at a convenient time into the court¬ 
room—you need not state your business—and see if you can identify them. 

A. I will do so with i^leasure, but will you x)ermit me to give a reason 
why I do not think that any of these persons were the clerks of the court. 

1404. Q. Yes; give the reason. 

A. 1 described three clerks as present with Judge Barnard in his 
court, engaged in the business, one clerk seated by him and two others 
at tlie desk. There were in the superior court in the same way three 
clerks engaged in filling up the certificates, and two clerks in the court¬ 
room, so that it is scarcely within the bounds of probability that any of 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


133 


tlie principal or ordinary clerks of the court should have been engaged 
in the work in the room below, unless so large a staff of clerks is emidoyed 
as one cannot imagine to be at all necessary. Still I will make the search. 

1405. Q. Now, 1 want to know, more specifically than I was able to 
com])rehend from your running statement, precisely when these different 
operations Avere witnessed by you. State, as near as you can, the dates 
and the hours of the day that you personally observed them. 

A. The first day AA^as Thursday, the 15th; then Friday, the IGth; and 
Saturday, the 17th of October; also the 19th, 20th, and 22d of October. 

1400. Q. On the 15th, at AA^hat time did you go there, and how long did 
you remain ^ 

A. On the 15th 1 went into Judge McCunn’s court at about 3 o’clock 
in the afternoon. 

1407. Q. What time had the court met ? 

A. I don’t knoAV at what time it met. He held his court all day. I 
went there about 3 o’clock, and stayed until 5. On the 16th I Avas also 
in Judge McCunn’s court; I think about the same time. On the 15th I 
also went to Judge Barnard’s court—in the evening. I was there from 
about 7 until 9 o’clock—two hours. I understood the court was about 
to close at 9, (I saAv it in the iieAvspapers,) and I left and AA ent down 
stairs. I also Avent to Judge Barnard’s court on the 20th. That Avas the 
day on wliich I made most of my notes in Judge Barnard’s court. I 
Avas one hour there on the 20th, and two hours on the 15th. On the 
loth and 17th 1 Avas not in Judge Barnard’s court at all. I aa^s there 
for about half an hour on the 19th—from 10 till about half-past, p. m. 

1408. Q. Where AA^ere you on those days ? 

A. In Judge McCunn’s court, a considerable part of the time. 

1409. Q. Hoav long each day? 

A. I AA'cnt in there tAvice in the course of each day, and stayed each 
time from three-quarters of an hour to an hour and a quarter. Then, on 
the 22d, I aa^s refused admittance to Judge Barnaixls court; there was 
no admittance for anybody except applicants and Avitnesses. The court 
AA as held with closed doors. 

1410. Q. Who refused you admittance ? 

A. The usher at the door asked me if I was an applicant or a witness, 
and I told him.no, and he said: “Then you can’t come in; none but 
applicants or Avitnesses are admitted.” I got in by the other door. An 
usher then came to me and said that there Avas no admittance, except 
for applicants or Avitnesses, and I then Avent out, haAung been in there only 
a feAv minutes. I think it Avas before the court had organized for the 
night, as there was nothing doing. 

1411. Q. So that you saAv nothing there on the 22d ? 

A. Nothhig, except the fact of the court being closed to the public. 
I passed there again at 10 o’clock, and by the lights and the crowd out¬ 
side and shadows Avithin I iiresumed the court was still sitting. 

1412. Q. Noav go back to that subterranean space—on the 15th, IGth, 
and 17th, Avhat time did you actually spend in that place ? 

A. I Avent into that place, for the first time, on the 15th. I went in 
first for about a quarter of an hour in the middle of the day, and then 
that same evening I went in for about 40 minutes, making about an 
hour altogether that day; then on the 17th or 19th, I forget Avhich, I 
Avent in once more Avith Henri Lassey, Avhom I have referred to here, to 
shoAV him the place, and enable him better to understand my explana¬ 
tions of AA hat I Avanted him to do. When I took in this man I saw the 
same work still going on. 


134 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1413. Q. And it was during these various times in the two courts, and 
in that room, that you made the observations, and obtained the informa¬ 
tion that 3 "ou liave reported here under oath 

A. Quite so. 

1414. Q. Now, in reference to the number of persons who came in that 
day, during the time you were there, tell the committee about how many 
you saw come in and go out. 

A. In the room in the City Hall? very few indeed. Except those who 
were already there writing, I think there were not altogether a score. 

1415. Q. During that time, how many papers of the kind you have 
described did you see brought in or taken out, any ? 

A. I saw one batch taken out in the evening; I did not notice any¬ 
thing in the daytime beyond the continual writing. My observation 
in the morning was confined to that. I saw one large batch taken out 
in the evening. 

141G. Q. Give us your impression as to the number. 

A. No, I cannot; but* I should think it could be ascertained pretty 
closely. 

1417. Q. Hav-e you any memoranda on the subject? 

A. No, except this; the batch was about half as thick again as this 
book, (the Bible commonly used in the United States circuit court in 
this city,) about three inches thick but not tightl 3 ^ compressed—the 
papers just laid on each other and carried aAvay. You know the papers 
I refer to, and it Avould not be a a ery difficult thing to ascertain approx¬ 
imately the number of them. 

1418. Q. You saw that one batch taken out: do you know where they 
were taken to? 

A. No, I do not. 

1419. Q. Did you see any brought in ? 

A. No, none. 

1420. Q. Did you knoAv where any of these blanks came from, when 
they came to that room? 

A. No. 

1421. Q. Did you make any inquiries with a AueAV to develop the 
source Avhere they came from ? 

A. No. 

1422. Q. You liaA^e made allusion to the place at No. G in connection 
with Jourdain: do you know anything else about that, except what you 
haA^e stated? 

A. No, sir. 

1423. Q. Now we will go for a little while into the court-room; you 
say in reference to the general mode of prosecuting business in Judge 
McCunn’s court, that the judge and his officers Avere courteous and 
attentive to their duties. 

A. Perfectly so. 

1424. Q. Treating everybody right? 

A. Yes, perfectly so. 

1425. Q. You decline to ansAver in reference to your opinion as to the 
judge’s real purity of purpose, but in reference to his real conduct I Avill 
ask you now to state Avhether, in a single instance, you saAv him do 
anything officially that seemed to leave manifcvStly open a loop in the 
law or in his conduct Avhere a rascal could go through and get natural¬ 
ized; in other Avords, was the mode of transacting business so loose as 
that a man might go through fraudulently, except in the Avay in Avhich 
courts may at any time be deceived by applicants ? 

A. O, yes. In the first place, the Avitnesses who appeared A^ery fre- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


135 


quently appeared for different persons; the same witnesses appeared 
sometimes under different names and sometimes personated applicants. 
With every desire to speak as charitably as possible of a gentleman 
who behaved so courteously to myself as Judge McOunn did, it would 
certainly be a large charity which should suppose that he could have 
failed to notice that. One single man appeared five and twenty times, 
at least in a single evening under many different names. 

1426. Q. Do you say that in view of the great, and by him uncontrol¬ 
lable, rush at such times ? Do you make any allowance for that 

A. I do. 

1427. Q. And for its effect upon the best of us ^ 

A. Yes, I make every allowance for that. 

1428. Q. You think, then, that even in view of that great rush of busi¬ 
ness and the insufficiency of time for the transaction of the business, 
there was too great looseness in passing applicants 

A. I have seen men committed by judges for perjury on very much 
less evidence than was palpable in the conduct of those witnesses. 

1429. Q. How many cases deserving that sort of criticism did you see 
in Judge McOunn’s court “? 

A. The bulk of them. 

1430. Q. The bulk of the business done there ? 

A. Yes; the bulk of the business done there was done by these vouch¬ 
ees. 

1431. Q. You were in his court altogether about three hours 

A. A great deal more. [By the direction of the committee, the steno¬ 
grapher here read the statements already made by the witness as to the 
time he wms in the superior court on the 14th, 15th, 16th, and 17th of 
October last.] 

1432. Q. Do you mean to say now that you were in Judge McCunn’s 
court on each of those four days ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1433. Q. How long were you there on the 15th ? 

A. About two hours. 

1434. Q. On the 16th f 

A. About two hours and a half in the morning and half an hour in the 
evening. 

1435. Q. On the 17th ? 

A. On the 17th about two hours and a half. 

1436. Q. On the 19th 

A. About the same time; I am speaking from recollection myself, and 
of course it is difficult to tell; I do not know the time exactly in each case. 

1437. Q. During the time you were in there, on each of these days, 
about how many persons were passed through in the way you have 
described ? 

A. I did not begin to count the number until the 16th ; I have got a 
memorandum which I made on that day, but the effect of it is this: on 
one occasion I timed the operation for 30 minutes, and I noticed the 
l)assage of three in two minutes. There were between forty and fifty in 
the half hour, some of whom were rejected ; I did not continue to count 
further than that. 

1438. Q. Do you know personally, or did you personally determine by 
the examinations and observations which you made in Judge McOunn’s. 
court, that one single person was granted naturalization i)apers who 
was not entitled to them ! 

A. 1 know, as I have told you, of the case of a gentleman named 
Jourdain. 


136 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1430. Q. That case only ? 

A. Only. I should mention that I have since had a number of cases 
before me of persons who have obtained certificates in the superior court, 
without ever having been there at all. 

1440. Q. But they were not persons whom you know to have been 
passed on those days ? 

A. No, sir 5 none that I have any personal knowledge of, except from 
the admission of the parties afterwards when charged with the offence. 

1441. Q. Did you know any persons who received naturalization there f 

A. No, none. 

1442. Q. Do you now know personally the clerks who presided in that 
court room ? 

A. I think I could identify them. 

1443. Q. Do you know them by name f 

A. I do not; I have not since made any inquiry at all. 

1444. Q. Did you know any persons i:>roduced as witnesses, except 
those you have attem])ted to describe, who were duplicating themselves? 

A. No; I noticed several who were evidently very honest. I noticed, 
for instance, a father appearing for his son, who had arrived in this 
country after the age of 18. A thing I noticed very frequently in Judge 
McCunu’s court was the case of two men who came to this country 
together, appearing as witnesses for each other, which I believe is con¬ 
trary to the statute. 

1445. Q. Go noAV to Judge Barnard’s court. Do you know the clerk 
of that court, Mr. Loew ? 

A. Personally, no. 

1440. Q. Do you know a young man in there whose name has been 
given to us as McKean? 

A. I think I do f I am almost sure I do. There are several persons 
thai; I know, without knowing their names; 1 do not i)ractice in the 
State courts, but only in the LTnited States courts, and hence I am not 
acquainted with the officers of the State courts. 

1447. Q. Are you personally acquainted with Judge Barnard ? 

A. Not i>ersonally acquainted; I recognize him, of course j I have seen 
him sitting as a judge in these matters. 

1448. Q. You were in his court about three hours and a half on two 
separate days ? 

A. Yes, somewhere thereabouts. 

1449. Q. During those hours, about how many persons do you think 
were put through there—making the estimate as well as you are able 
from your recollection of what you saw ? 

A. I should think, sir, about 1,800 to 2,000. 

1450. Q. In the space of three hours and a half? 

A. Yes ; I reckon four batches an hour, averaging 150 each; that would 
make about 1,800 or 2,000—about six hundred an hour. I reckon that 
they averaged four batches of 150 each, although it might be a little 
less; I once saw five batches in the hour. 

1451. Q. In that court how many persons do you think you saw who 
were either personating others as applicants or repeating their appear¬ 
ance as witnesses ? 

A. It is impossible for me to form any idea as to that in Judge Bar¬ 
nard’s court. 

1452. Q. Was the multitude considerable in the court room all the time ? 

A. It was pretty considerable; not very great. I have seen the court 

fuller, but the way the parties were called up rendered it impossible to 
distinguish except by surmise. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


137 


1453. Q. You mean tlie rapidity of the calling? 

A. Kot so much that as that there was no distinction made between 
witnesses and applicants. 

1454. Q. Do yon mean to say that the officer did not know which he was 
calling, witnesses or applicants ? 

A. The officer would read from a paper, but there was nothing given 
out publicly to show which was which ; applicants and witnesses were 
read out promiscuously, and it would be utterly impossible, when once 
the batch was there, forjudge or clerk to tell which were witnesses and 
which were applicants. 

1455. Q. You say that you could not tell which was which, from what 
you saw or knew ? 

A. Ko; it was perfectly impossible. 

1450. Q. You did not see the lists from which they read ? 

A. 1 saw the papers. 

1457. Q. Blit you had no knowledge of what was on them ? 

A. None. I knew nothing whatever of the papers, except that they 
resembled the papers which I had seen filled up in the old sheriff’s room. 

1458. Q. You don’t pretend to have identified any of them as being 
the same ? 

A. No, sir. 

1459. Q. Do you mean to say, now, that it was impossible for the 
clerks who were reading off* those names and for the judge to have so 
understood themselves and the business they were doing as to have been 
able to distinguish the one class from the other, and to have had an intel¬ 
ligent comi^rehension of what they were, in fact, doing ? 

A. Utterly imi)ossible. When the men were once called up there was 
no attempt at separation. They formed a promiscuous assemblage, and 
it was utterly impossible, except by going through the process of count¬ 
ing and separating them, to tell which was which. 

14G0. Q. Remember, now, 1 am asking you not on the basis of what it 
api^eared to you to be. 

A. Yes, I understand; and I unhesitatingly say that it was utterly 
impossible, in the way in which it was managed, for judge or clerk to 
know which Avas witness or which was api)licant. 

1461. Q. In other words, you mean to say that it was impossible for 
them to know what they were doing ? 

A. I would rather not put it in those words—I will say that it was 
utterly impossible to know which was witness or which was applicant. 

1462. Q. I understood yon to say that in that court you heard no 
inquiries made by the judge, as you say in Judge McCunn’s court? 

A. None whatever. 

1463. Q. And no response made by the witnesses ? 

A. None whatever. 

1464. Q. And no response by the parties ? 

A. None whatever. 

1465. Q. And that was the case as to all the applicants who came in Avhile 
you Avere there on those days ? 

A. All, Avith the single exception of Lusk. 

Neav York, December 24, 1868. 

Maximilian Boeck sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1466. Question. Of Avhat country are you a native ? 

Answer. Bavaria. 


138 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


14G7. Q. How long have you been in the United States ? 

A. I am not five years yet. 

1408. Q. How old were you when you came to the United States ? 

A. Twenty-four. 

1469. Q. -Did you ever go into any court to be naturalized ? 

A. Never. 

1470. Q. Hid you ever take out your first papers ? 

A. No. 

1471. Q. Will you produce any naturalization paper that you have ? 

A. [Producing a naturalization paper, which is annexed.] I paid for 

this $‘2. 

1472. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. I got it here in the City Hall room—No. 12, in the basement. I did 
not go up into the court-room to get it. There were about three or four 
men in there. 

1473. Q. Hid they have papers scattered about'? 

A. Yes j there were about 200 or 300 men in there. I said, “ I want 
my first i)apers.” He says, What is the reason you don’t take the whole?” 
I said, ‘‘ 1 have not got my first.” He said, ‘‘That don’t make any differ¬ 
ence—have you got $2 ?” I say yes. I gave him $2 and got that paper, 
and then he said, “ Now, you go home.” I got the pax)er, but I did not 
take a vote on it. I put it in my trunk. 

1474. Q. Why didn’t you vote ? 

A. My boss told me, “You have no right—you have no first paper j” 
and of course I told him this man told me it is not necessary, but my 
boss say, “You had better not vote on it.” It cost me $2 50. I was 
before up in No. 80, and I told the man I wanted my first paper, and he 
said, “ Wait about a couple of hours and come back again.” 1 then went 
down in the City Hall. I showed that paper in my shop. There was 
about 40 men in my shop. My boss says, “ You don’t take a vote ; you 
will get trouble.” 

1475. Q. Hid you take any witness with you ? 

A. My boarding-house boss, Mr. Smith. 

1476. Q. How long did he know you ? 

A. He knew me, I guess, about two years. He has a lager-beer saloon ; 
he lives at 103 Essex street, where I live. 

1477. Q. You had no other witness with you ? 

A. No. 

1478. Q. Was there any man in the City Hall that proposed to be a wit¬ 
ness for you for $5 ? 

A. No; he asked me for $2. 

1479. Q. Hid you go out in the hall and ask the man if he would be a 
witness for you ? 

A. No; he came up and told me, “ You have got a witness ?” I say, 
“ Well, no, I have not got a witness here, but my boarding-house boss 
will be here ; 1 had not time to go up and fetch him.” The man that gave 
me the papers I gave $2. He asked me, Ho you want a large or a small 
paper,” and he showed me one for $3, one for $2, and one for 50 cents, 
and I said, “ I like better this and he gave me this for $2. 

1480. Q. Ho you know any other man who has naturalization papers, 
who has not been in the United States five years? 

A. I know a man in my shop who took out one, but I do not know how 
long he is here ; I am sure he is about six years here j he was in Canada 
before. I think he got a paper like this. I did not see his paper, but he 
saw mine. 

1481. Q. Will you surrender this paper to the committee to be annexed 
to your testimony. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


139 


A. Yes; when it is not right I cannot use it. 

1482. Q. Do you know what sign was up over this room in the base¬ 
ment? 

A. Yes: ‘^Sheriff’s Office, ^lo. 12.’^ 

By Mr. Boss: 

1483. Q. When do you say you came to this country ? 

A. I came in November, four years ago. 

1484. Q. How old Avere you Avhen you came? 

A. Twenty-four. 

1485. Q. How old are you noAV ? 

A. Twenty-eight. 

148G. Q. Have you ever voted ? 

A. No 5 my boss told me, ‘‘Don’t take a vote on it,” and I asked him 
why, and he said, “I don’t like it; you will get trouble.” 

1487. Q. You don’t know the name of this man who gave you the paper ? 

A. I don’t knoAv ; he is a small man about 22 or 23. 

1488. Q. Do you know aa here he lives ? 

A. No. It Avas an old man that I saw in No. 80; I asked him for my 
citizen papers, and he asked me to come again in a couple of hours. 

1489. Q. HaA^e you seen the man lately that let you have the paper? 

A. Yes. 

1490. Q. Where is he noAv ? 

A. I stood there in the door, and he asked me what I wanted, and I 
said, “ My lirst papers.” He said, “ I Avill ghA you your lAapers.” 

1491. Q. You did not vote on this paper? 

A. No. 

1492. Q. How were you going to vote, if you had voted? 

A. Well my shop is all democrat. 

1493. Q. Would you have voted for Grant? 

A. Well, my shop is all democrat, except tAvo or three or four for Grant; 
and somebody told me to vote for Grant, and I said, “No, I have no 
vote.” 

1494. Q. But would you have voted for Grant, if you had a chance? 

A. Yes, when 1 had a chance I Avould vote for Grant. 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

Be it remembered, that on the nineteenth day of October, in the year 
of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, Maximilian 
Boeck appeared in the superior court of New York, (the said court being 
a court of record, having common hiAv jurisdiction, and a clerk and seal,) 
and applied to the said court to be admitted to become a citizen of the 
United States of America, i)ursuant to the provisions of the seAwal acts 
of the Congress of the United States of America for that purpose made 
and luovided. And the said applicant haAung thereupon produced to 
the court such evidence, made such declaration and renunciation, and 
taken such oaths as are by the said acts required; thereupon, it was 
ordered by the said court that the said applicant be admitted, and he 
was accordingly admitted by the said court to be a citizen of the United 
States of America. 

In testimony Avhereof, the seal of the said court is hereunto affixed this 
nineteenth day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, 
and in the ninety-third year of our independence. 

By the court: 

[seal.] JAMES M. SWEENY, Cleric, 


140 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, December 24, 18G8. 

Charles E. Loew sworn and examined. 

By tlie cliairman: 

1495. Question. You are clerk of the supreme court? 

Answer. Clerk of the city and county of New York, and, by virtue of 
that office, clerk of the supreme court of the first judicial district. 

1400. Q. Have you in your i)ossession the records and papers relating 
to naturalization for the months of August, September, October, and 
November of this year ? 

A. I think there are filed in my office the certificates, or rather the 
^ records, of naturalization for October and what there is of them for No¬ 
vember. I think there was none for August and September. 

1497. Q. But those for October are filed in your office and under your 
control? 

A. I presume tliey are to a certain extent under my control. They 
are under the control of the court. They are filed in my office. 

1498. Q. Can you state what number of persons certificates of natu¬ 
ralization were issued to in that court during the month of September 
last? 

A. No; I cannot. 

1499. Q. Or during October and November ? 

A. I cannot. 

1500. Q. Can yon ascertain for the committee the number? 

A. I presume I could put a clerk to work counting them for yon if yon 
desire to have that done, or I would let the committee come over and 
have the use of my office to examine the records if they choose or if it 
would be convenient for them. 

1501. Q. You will submit for the inspection of the committee the papers 
and records? 

A. Yes, certainly; with pleasure. 

1502. Q. At what time would it be convenient for yon to do that? 

A. Almost at any time that yon name. 

1503. Q. Of course not to-morrow ? 

A. If necessary, I could. I will come down and attend to it myself if 
the committee desire. 

1504. Q. Were there clerks employed in the room No. 12, “the old 
sheriff’s office,” in the basement of the City Hall building? 

A. None that I know of; none by me. 

1505. Q. Do you know whether there were any employed there? 

A. I do not. I was not in it and do not know. I know there were 
none employed by me there. In fact, much as I know about the City 
Hall I don’t know where No. 12 is. 

1506. Q. I hand yon three papers, purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization, annexed to the testimony of Kobert Murray and signed 
“ Charles E. Loew”—that is your name ? 

A. That is supposed to be my name; I presume it is. It looks like 
the signature of John B. McKean as he writes my name. 

1507. Q. Was he a clerk in your office? 

A. He was clerk in that portion of the supreme court that took up 
naturalization—supreme court circuit. Part 1. 

1508. Q. How many clerks had you in that business? 

A. Mr. McKean was clerk of that department of the court, and it was 
his business to attend to that. There were other clerks deputized, but 
none of them could sign my name in that court but him. 

1509. Q. In whose writing is the name “James E. Smith,” in the body 
of that certificate ? 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


141 


A. That I cannot tell yon. 

1510. Q. And the names Lemuel Eeynolds and Patrick Eafferty? 

A. It looks like the writing of Isaac Heyman, a clerk there. 

1511. Q. In whose writing is the filling in of the dates of this cer¬ 
tificate to James E. Smith? 

A. That I cannot tell yon. 

1512. Q. Is it in the handwriting of any clerk about that office? 

A. That I cannot tell. I am not familiar with the handwriting of all 
the clerks in the office. 

1513. Q. Can you tell the handwriting of the filling in of the dates in 
the certificate of Eeynolds? 

A. No, sir 5 I cannot tell the handwriting in either one of the cer¬ 
tificates. 

1514. Q. Did yon give your personal attention to naturalization in 
that office ? 

A. During the evenings, when the court held sessions, I tried to be 
present, and was as much as I could, not neglecting my other duties. 

1515. Q. How many subordinates have yon in your office ? 

A. I have in my office probably 30—in the neighborhood of 30—that 
is, in the county clerk^s office and the suiu’eme court both. Then I have 
some 20 odd that I pay myself, who are not said to be employed in 
the office because they are employes of my own. 

1516. Q. Could you have any i:)ersonal knowledge of the great mass 
of persons Avho apply for naturalization, of their witnesses ? 

A. No, sirj it would bean impossibility. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1517. Q. Is No. 12 in the City Hall building a part of your office? 

A. No, sir. 

1518. Q. I woidd like to have you state, if you can, who presides over 
the supreme court, in which you are clerk j state the names of the 
judges. 

A. Do 5 "Ou mean the judges of the entire supreme court? 

1519. Q. Yes. 

A. The judges are Cardoza, Barnard, and Ingraham, and Sutherland. 

1520. Q. Do they all preside together ? 

A. At the general term they do; at other times the court is divided 
into various branches for the transaction of business—chambers, special 
term, and circuit. Parts 1 and 2—and each of the judges is assigned to 
some portion of that court. 

1521. Q. The different parts of the court sitting in different buildings 
in different parts of the city? 

A. In different parts of the building, but generally in the same build- 
ing. 

1522. Q. And of all those courts you and your deputies are clerks? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1523. Q. Was this naturalization business confined to one court, or to 
Parts Nos. 1 or 2, or to the general term ? 

A. It was done by the supreme court, circuit. Part 1, before Judge 
Barnard. 

1524. Q. Alone? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1525. Q. That sat in the same building ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1526. Q. During what time in the months preceding the last general 
election was this business of naturalization mainly carried on? 


142 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. The main portion of it was carried on in the supreme court from 
about the Gth to about the 23d of October. 

1527. Q. Give us an idea of how long Judge Barnard sat during that 
time attending to the business of naturalization alone—doing nothing 
else ! 

A. That I could not tell you, because during the day-time I was not 
there and do not knowreally what portion of the day he devoted to that 
business, or whether he devoted the whole day to it or not. In the 
evening he generally sat there from C to 11 or 12 o’clock. 

1528. Q. How many evenings did he sit that way! 

A. Almost every evening from about the Gth or 8th of October until 
the 23d. 

1529. Q. During the days between those dates did the court do civil 
business in its ordinary course! 

A. Various branches of the court did. I cannot say whether that 
Ijarticular branch did or not. I have so many things to attend to that 
I cannot tell. 

1530. Q. Which of your subordinates was the clerk of that court! 

A. John B. McKean. 

1531. Q. For all purposes! 

A. Yes, for all purposes. It was his business to attend to that part 
of the court, and has been for a number of years. He is appointed by 
the county clerk. 

By the Chairman : 

1532. Q. With or without the approval of the court! 

A. I don’t know whether the court had anything to do with it in that 
particular case or not. He held over. He has been there six or seven 
years. I have not removed him. 

1533. Q. State to the committee how you would do if you were about 
to appoint him to-day. 

A. Well, I should administer the oath to him that he would faithfully 
discharge the duties of the office; and I would file the certificate of his 
appointment. It would not require any action on the part of the court. 
The certificate would be filed in my office. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1534. Q. By what authority does he sign your name ! 

A. He is a deputy appointed by the county clerk to perform the duties 
of clerk of that portion of the court, and therefore he has that right. It 
would be impossible for me to attend to the various branches of the 
court and perform the duties myself. 

1535. Q. Is it not the proper and the usual way, where the deputy 
signs your name, to sign it “by J. B. KcKean, deputy!” 

A. It never has been the custom in that court or in this county. 

By the Chairman : 

153G. Q. Did either of the judges of that court, other than Judge 
Barnard, hold court at nights in the supreme court! 

A. Kot to my knowledge. 

1537. Q. Did Judge Barnard hold court prior to October 1st, or after 
the 25th ! 

A. He did not, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1538. Q. You say you were not able to be in Judge Barnard’s court 
except in the evenings! 


ELECTION FRxVUDS IN NEW YORK. 


143 


A. I say that I was not there except then. 

1539. Q. About what portion of time during the evenings were you 
there f 

A. Sometimes I was there all the evening. I cannot exactly specify 
the evenings. Some evenings I was not there at all; but 1 attended to 
it as much as I could without neglecting other matters. 

1540. Q. State how this business of naturalization went on there; 
was it a continued i)ressure—a demand beyond the ability of the court 
to attend to"? 

A. It was a continual pressure of the people who desired to be natu¬ 
ralized during the time that the court was in session. 

1541. Q. Won’t you just give to the committee, in your own language, 
a minute description of the modus operandi in that court room during 
the evenings that you were there'? 

A. Well, the way it was done was this: First, the applications of the 
various parties were handed in by the officer of the court. The parties 
were sitting outside, just as if they were outside that railing, and the 
judge was sitting on the bench, and the applications were handed in by 
the officer. The court then called off the name of the applicant—some¬ 
times Judge Barnard called it off*, and sometimes I called it when I was 
there. The party answered to the name, and came inside the railing. 
Then the witness was called, and he came inside. The judge would call 
probably eight or ten in that way, and then the oath was put to them. 

1542. Q. The judge, or you, would call the applicant, and then the 
witness ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1543. Q. Was that the uniform mode of doing in each particular case ? 

A. That was the uniform mode of doing. 

1544. Q. And in that way you would go through with a certain num¬ 
ber? 

A. Yes; with eight or ten at a time. That is the way it was done. 
When they canie inside the railing, the judge would either swear them 
or direct me to swear them. 

1545. Q. How did you administer the oath to so many ? 

A. I administered it—that ‘^you and each of you (whose names 
have been called) do severally and solemnly swear.” That is when the 
applicants were all alike—of one class. The papers were separated and 
each class put by itself, and then the usual oath prescribed by the law 
was administered. 

1540. Q. How did you swear the witness? 

A. “You, John Doe, (or whatever the name was,) and you -, 

being witnesses for the several parties who have just been sworn, do 
severally solemnly swear that you have been acquainted with the par¬ 
ties,” &c., complying with the requirements of the law. 

1547. Q. Do you mean to say that you administered the oath to the 
witnesses separately ? 

A. Xo, sir; I do not. In some cases it was done, and in some it was 
not. 

1548. Q. How did you proceed with the examination of the witnesses? 

A. Judge Barnard examined the witnesses; I did not examine them; 

I had not the power to examine them. 

1549. Q. Were they ever passed without examination? 

A. No, sir; not to my knowledge. I never saw one. 

1550. Q. The witnesses were sometimes sworn in a batch and some¬ 
times separately? 

A. Yes, sir. 



144 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1551. Q. How were tlie applicants sworn? 

A. As I have described—eight or ten at a time. 

1552. Q. Either by the court or by you, in open court? 

A. Yes, sir; I don’t say that that was always the case, but when I was 
there I would, by his direction, administer the oath occasionally. 

1553. Q. You would repeat the oath but once for the eight or ten ? 

A. Yes, sir; calling the names as they came up and putting the oath 

to them, “You do severally and solemnly swear,” &c. 

1554. Q. What is the space inside of the bar there—is it as large as 
this Space? 

A. No; not quite so large. 

1555. Q. Is that court-room as large as this, or larger? 

A. I don’t think it is quite as large as this; I think not; but I can’t 
say. 

1550. Q. Tell the committee what is the largest number of applicants 
and witnesses that you ever saw at any one time inside of that bar, 
receiving naturalization or giving testimony, in that way? 

A. To the best of my knowledge the largest number I ever saAV was 
not over a dozen. 

1557. Q. Would it be physically possible for 140, or 150, or 175 appli¬ 
cants to get inside of that bar, with their witnesses ? 

A. It might be, but I do not think it is. 

1558. Q. You are confident that you never saw over a dozen there ? 

A. Yes, sir; at one time. 

1550. Q. That is, a dozen applicants and a dozen witnesses—24 persons 
in all ? 

A. YYs, sir; the largest number I ever saw naturalized there, or the 
oath administered to, did not exceed that number at one time. 

1500. Q. On the evenings when that naturalization business was trans¬ 
acted by Judge Barnard, what was his custom in reference to allowing 
the presence of attorneys or strangers inside the court-room or inside 
the bar—did he sufier it habitually, or did he order them out ? 

A. At times when the room got crowded he ordered some people out, 
and told them that if they had not any business there they had better 
leave. He told them that if they had no business there in reference to 
naturalization they had better leave; and that if there were any report¬ 
ers there they should come up and he would give them a seat at the table. 

15GI. Q. Did he ever, to your knowledge, or within your hearing, order 
the court-room to be cleai'cd of all persons ? 

A. Yes; when there were no more papers and no more i^arties to be 
naturalized, he ordered it cleared. 

1502. Q. What did he order it cleared for, then ? 

A. Because he wanted to close up, I presume. 

1563. Q. I mean to ask whether, when he was transacting this business, 
he ever ordered the court-room to be cleared of all except the ofticers of 
the court and the applicants and their Avitnesses? 

A. Not Avhile I was there, and there were any applications. When 
the applications were exhausted, and there Avere people there, he would 
say: “If there are no more applications here, and if the parties have no 
further business Avith the court, they can leave.” 

1504. Q. In other Avoids, he Avould adjourn ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1505. Q. Do you know how this business of naturalization and the 
preparation of parties and their papers for naturalization was conducted 
before they came into the court-room to receive the final action of the 
court ? 

A. I do not. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


145 


loGO. Q. Do yon know where it was done ? 

A. I do not. 

1507. Q. Or by whom it was done ? 

A. I do not. 

1568. Q. You speak of those papers having been brought there by 
them—the applications you mean, I suppose. 

A. Yes, sir. 

1569. Q. You say you don’t know where or how they were pre])ared ? 

A. I do not know. ' * 

1570. Q. You are clerk of the county and city of New York, and ex 
officio clerk of the supreme court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1571. Q. Is it your right to direct these subordinates in the perform¬ 
ance of their duties, and to give them instructions, from time to time, 
how they shall discharge those duties ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1572. Q. State to the committee how it is that those blanks of the 
final papers, such as you saw here to-day, are procured to be printed, or 
by Avhom it is done. 

A. It is done in my office; they were ordered to be printed by my 
office—by me. 

1573. Q. And they are kept in your office 

A. They are. 

1574. Q. Are they printed on separate sheets, or in books? 

A. Ahvays in separate sheets. 

1575. Q. And they are sent to you in bundles ? 

A. Yes. 

1576. Q. Where is it your custom to keep those blanks ? 

A. In the general office of the county clerk. 

1577. Q. Undercover? 

A. No; they were put away in a closet. Any one that wanted one 
received it. 

1578. Q. Did you permit yoiu* deputies to hawk those final papers 
about the city—to carry them with them or give them out to irresponsi¬ 
ble parties ? 

A. No, sir; but if anybody called and wanted a blank he received it. 

1579. Q. That is, an absolute blank—no signatures ? 

Aj No signatures. ^ 

1580. Q. Could any person calling at the office and vfanting a blank 
naturalization paper like that submitted to you here, get it ? 

A. They could get blank applications; nothing else. 

1581. Q. Did you ever give out any of those other papers, so as to have 
them go outside of the court-room, to any person ? 

A. I never gave out any of them. 

1582. Q. Who does that; who gives out the final papers ? 

A. If I understand you, the final paper’’ is the certificate ? 

1583. Q. Yes. 

A. Well, that paper was to be given out only by the clerk, on the 
order of the court. 

/ 1584. Q. The blank, then, is never given out? 

A. The blank is never given out; there never was one given out to 
my knowledge ; but even though parties had a blank certificate, there 
could not be any signature attached, because my clerks are not allowed 
to sign aii}^ papers except on the order of the court. 

1585. Q. Were you examined in the prosecution against Eosenberg ? 

A. I was not, sir, I was subpoenaed to appear there forthwith; I did 
10 T ' 


14G 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


SO, and reported to Mr. Courtney that I was there and should like him 
to have me placed upon the stand. He replied that he did not know 
whether he should want me or not, and that I had better go about my 
business, and when he Avanted me he would send for me 5 and he never 
sent for me. 

1586. Q. Was Mr. McKean ever sworn there ? 

A. I don’t know; but I think not. 

1587. Q. State to the committee whether at any time, when you were 
in the court-room and when persons Avere being naturalized, you ever saAV 
persons come into the court room and perform the office of witness for 
several applicants. John Smith, for example, might come up and be a 
Avitness for three or four applicants. 

A. Well, I might say that I suppose that the same witness Avas called 
in three or four different cases. 

1588. Q. How numerously have you seen such persons 1 

A. I cannot positiA^ely swear that I knew of more than one case, but 
from the similarity of name I should say that there were several cases. 
I might call Patrick Murphy to-night and I might call Patrick Murphy 
to-morrow night as a witness. I don’t mean to say that Patrick Murphy 
was the individual in any case, but I take that name for illustration as 
you took John Smith. 

1589. Q. Did you ever see or call the same person half a dozen times 
during the same evening ? 

A. Probably two or three times the same name. 

1590. Q. No more than that ? 

A. Not to my recollection. 

1591. Q. Do you recollect ever having called the same person as a 
Avitness tAA^o or three times, or any number of times, on successive even¬ 
ings ? 

A. That 1 don’t remember. 

1592. Q. In other words, do you know of any set of professional 
hangers-on or loafers about any of your courts, who are in the habit of 
ha\ung themselves hired, bribed, suborned, or in any way induced, to 
come up there and swear through these applications fraudulently ? 

A. In ansAver to that question I say I do not know of any set of 
professional hangers-on, or anything of that kind, and have not, in fact, 
heard that there Avas any professional hangers-on of the courts. I have 
no acquaintance Avith any such people. 

1593. Q. Have you reason to believe, from your observation, or from 
Avhat you know of the transactions in and about your office and in and 
about the various courts of which you are clerk, or from any information 
you have received, that such persons do exist here during times of 
naturalization and are used to come into court and fraudulently swear 
that they have knoAvledge of the applicants, representing tliat they are 
persons Avhom they are not, and being used to personate others, or in 
any way to aid parties to perpetrate frauds upon the law by obtaining 
natm’alization papers in violation of law ? 

A. I have no knowledge of anything of the kind. 

1594. Q. You have no knowledge of such combinations of persons ? 

A. No, sir; I have not. 

1595. Q. In reference to this particular clerk, McKean, I will ask you 
Avhetheryour suspicions have not been excited at times during this 
period that you speak of, that he was acting otherwise than in good 
faith, or otherwise than according to the strict line of his duty in refer¬ 
ence to such matters ? 

A. No, sir; they have not. I went into the court in the eA^enings 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


147 


simply to see tliat this business was conducted properly; that is the only 
reason 1 attended the court at all; and if I had had the least intimation 
of anything of the kind mentioned in your question, I should have dis¬ 
charged him install ter. 

1506. Q. Had it been suggested to you before that time that he was 
acting improperly in the administration of his duties; was it anything of 
that kind that induced you to go there? 

A. No, sir; it never was suggested. 

1597. Q. What induced you to go there ? 

A. For 20 years past it has been the custom in New York, when 
naturalization has been going on, to talk of great frauds and everything 
of that kind, and I went there to see that nothing of that kind was being- 
done there or should attach to me or my court, as far as it was possible 
to avoid it. 

1598. Q. And in all that business you had no reason to suppose that 
McKean was acting unlawfully or in violation of his duty ? 

A. No, sir; as I said before, if the least intimation or knowledge of 
anything of that kind had come to me, I should have discharged him 
instantly. 

1599. Q. You have heard that these charges of fraud have been made? 

A. Yes, it has been the custom to make such charges for the last 20 

years. 

1600. Q. That custom prevailed during the last canvass ? 

A. I presume it did; it is the custom of the newspapers always. 

1601. Q. You know that fraud was charged in the last canvass ? 

A. I know that the newspapers spoke about it—tLat is all I know. 

1602. Q. You heard that it was charged that fraudulent naturalization 
papers Avere being procured in some way, and that persons were claiming 
to be naturalized under them and to haA e a right to vote. 

A. I know it only from what I saw in the paper. 

1603. Q. I ask you whether, upon the basis of what you saw and 
learned in that way, you instituted any inquiry to determine how those 
frauds were being practiced, or whether they were being practiced at all? 

A. The only inquiry that I made in regard to the matter was to watch 
the proceedings in our court, to see that nothing wrong was done there 
so far as the clerical part of the business was concerned; that is all I had 
any power over or could have any control over in the least. 

1604. Q. During the trial of Eosenberg did you examine any of those 
idleged fraudulent papers ? 

A. I did not, sir. 

1605. Q. Do you know a gentleman in this city, a member of the bar, 
practicing chiefly in the federal courts, whose name is Montague Eichard 
Leverson ? 

A. I do not know him by name. I might know him if I saw him. 

1606. Q. Did you, during the last cam^ass, when this naturalization 
business was going on in Judge McCunn’s coiu4, ever Ausit that court in 
the Avay you visited Judge Barnard’s? 

A. No, sir. 

1607. Q. Who acted there as clerk ? 

A. 1 do not know avIio acted there. I know Avho the clerk of the 
superior court is: James M. Sweeny. 

1608. Q. You liaA^e nothing to do with that court? 

A. O, no, sir. 

1609. Q. That court also has several branches ? 

A, Yes, sir. 

1610. Q. And the clerk of it also has a multitude of assistants? 


148 


ELECTIOX FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir; but I don’t kri0\7 wlietlier iiis assistants are appointed in 
the same Avay as mine are or not. 

IGll. Q. Look at that impression of a seal on the three naturalization 
papers annexed to Marshal Murray’s testimony; that appears to be an 
impression of the seal of the supreme court. 

A. I presume it is. 

1G12. Q. Of course it might be counterfeited, but you thinly it ai^pears 
to be genuine ? 

A. If the i)aper is signed by Mr. McKean, it is genuine, of course. 

1G13. Q. Tell the committee whether, in that court, any other form for 
the final certificate ever was used than that. 

A. I know of no other. 

1G14. Q. You have used that a good while 

A. I have been in office only this year, on the naturalization, and con- 
sequentl}^ I know nothing further about it. 

By Mr. Koss: 

1G15. Q. Bo you know of any i^ersons getting papers of naturalization, 
who were not present or who were i^ersonated by any one else ? 

A. That I know nothing about. 

IGIG. Q. Bo youknow of persons i)ersonatiug different applicants there 

A. Ko, sir. 

1G17. Q. If these are legal pai)ers, will tiiere be corresponding applica¬ 
tions in your office to fit them ? 

A. I have no doubt of it, sir. 

1G18. Q.. These records are not kept alphabetically in your office ? 

A. Ho, sir; because we have uot had time to get them up yet in that way. 

1G19. Q. What does the judge do ? 

A. He enters' the order on tlie record that'is kept in the clerk’s office. 

1G20. Q. In each case! 

A. In each case. On the back of the application it says: ^Mt is ordered 
that (so-and-so) be admitted a citizen of the United States,” and he signs 
his initials on the back. 

1G21. Q. Well, they are, or should be, on file in your office ! 

A. They are, or should be—all that have got certificates. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1G22. Q. You keep no record in a book! 

A. Ko, sir; the record is only in the papers themselves. 

1G23. Q. Are the applications always brought to your office b^’^ the 
persons making them! 

A. Ho, sir; they are not brought to my office at all; they are brought 
before the judge. 

1G24. Q. I speak of the court in which you are employed—they are 
brought before the judge in open court! 

A. Yes, sir. For instance, if this room were full and the parties out¬ 
side the railing, the officer would take the paper and hand it up to the' 
judge. 

1G25. Q. Then in such a case you do not know whether the applicant 
himself brings the papers, or whether they are brought by some third 
party! 

A. Well, the applicant is supposed to be the person, but I could not 
tell whether it would be the applicant or not. I could not be supposed 
to know whether John Boe was John Boe or not, or whether liichard 
Boe was Eichard Eoe, except to his answering to his name and swearing 
to it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


141} 


102G. Q. The point I want to get at is whether it has not been the eus- 
tom for other parties to bring packages of these applications and luive 
them sent into the court, the applicants not accompanying them? 

A. Not to my knowdedge. 

1G27. Q. Who is the man at the door who receives them and passes 
them to the judge? 

A. There are several otlicers there. Of the officers in court the even¬ 
ings I was there, there are only two that I can name—one was Kniglit 
and the other Valentine, the crier of the court. 

1020. Q. Are they still employed there ? 

A. Yes, sir; they are appointed by the court—not by me. 

1030. Q. You stated that never to your knowledge have over 12 men 
been naturalized in one batch there at one time ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

1031. Q. Do you know of your own personal knowledge that 150 per¬ 
sons have not been naturalized there in one batch in one evening, in 
October last ? 

A. I have said that it Avas never done to my l^nowledge. 

1032. Q. How much of the evenings Avere you there ? 

A. Some evenings all the eA^ening; some eA^enings two or three hours,, 
and some eAmnings not at all. 

1033. Q. Then you cannot say that there Avere not 150 persons, or 
more, naturalized there in one batch at one time ? 

A. Of course not; if I Avas not present I cannot SAvear to what Avas 
done. I say that not to my knowledge was anything of that kiiid done. 

1034. Q. In your absence aa as McKean there ? 

A. He was there all the time, Avhether I was present or not. It aatiS 
his portion of the court, and he had to be there, because no one else 
could sign those certificates. 

1035. Q. You say you have seen nothing except the general charge in 
the newspapers in regard to frauds in your court. Were you not 
api)rised of the fact that Rosenberg Avas arrested and indicted and tried 
for that crime ? 

A. I knew nothing about that except from the iieAvspapers. 

1030. Q, Did not that lead you to make a more thorough inquiry than 
you otherAvise AAmuld haA'e done ? 

A, No, sir; that had nothing whatever to do Avith it, because, as I 
stated before, I took all the precautions to haA^e the things honestly 
done, so far as I could control it, and I could do no more; and, of course, 
Avhen there Avere no charges made against any one in my office I couhl 
not iiwestigate any further. There Avas no such charge brought to my 
notice in any Avay, shape, or manner. 

1037. Q. The charge against Eos,enberg AAms for issuing fraudulent 
papers purporting to liaA^e come from the court in Avhich you are a clerk? 

A. No, sir; I don’t so understand it. The charge was that he had 
issued fraudulent papers; and, if I understand it, they could not be 
fraudulent i)apers if thej; AA ere issued by the court. If they were forged 
papers they could not haA^e anything to do with the court. 

1038. Q. Fraudulently obtained i)ax)ers, I suppose, was what he Avas 
charged Avith issuing? 

A. I did not see that; and. there being no intimation or charge, in 
any Avajy shape, or form, that anything Avroiig was done by any of my 
employes, I had nothbig to do AAith it. 

1039. Q. Was it eA^er said to you, or in your i)resence, that any one 
of your subordinates Avas acting fraudulently ? 

A. No, sir. 


150 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1640. Q. You were not requested to make any investigation into tlie 
personal conduct of any of them ? 

A. NTo, sir, never. 

By the Chairman : 

1641. Q. Is Mr. McKean still retained as clerk! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1642. Q. How long have you been clerk! 

A. Since the 1st of January last. 

1643. Q. You have given no attention to naturalization except between 
the 6th and 23d of last October ? 

A. That is all, sir. 

1644. Q. All the naturalization was done between those dates ! 

A. There might have been one or two or a few cases in November, 
but the great bulk was between those dates. 

1645. Q. What are the clerk’s fees for naturalization ! 

A. They vary. I suppose them to be from 50 to 75 cents, in propor¬ 
tion to the kind of paper the applicant wants. 

1646. Q. Were a great many persons naturalized upon red tickets 
received from Eosenberg's office ! 

A. The tickets I don’t know anything about. I had nothing to do with 
tliem. I know there were tickets. 

1647. Q. Eed tickets ! 

A. All kinds of tickets. Eed tickets and, I think, white tickets. 

1648. Q. Don’t you know that blank applications for naturalization, 
and blank affidavits for witnesses, ready to be used, were brought from 
Eosenberg’s office, or other places outside, into the court room to be 
used there ! 

A. I do not, sir. 

1640. Q. You gave no personal attention to the business in Judge 
Barnard’s court during the day ! 

A. No, sir; I was in the clerk’s office. 

1650. Q. And you were in court only a portion of the evenings ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1651. How many seals are there of the supreme court! 

A. Only two. 

1652. Q. Are they alike ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1653. Q. Where are they ! 

A. One is in the county clerk’s office proper, and the other was over in 
that portion of the court—supreme court. Part 1, Mr. McKean’s part. 

1654. Q. You have blank forms of affidavits for witnesses, for the pro¬ 
curement of naturalization papers ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1655. Q. The testimony of the witnesses is all taken by affidavit! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1656. Q. The oath which is administered, then, to witnesses, in appli¬ 
cations for naturalization papers, is: ‘‘You swear that the affidavits to 
which you have subscribed your names are true!” 

A. No, sir; it is read off as it is on the application to which he signs 
his name. 

1657. Q. Just give me the form of the oath. 

A. If I had my blanks here I could give it to you. I will show it to 
you when you come over. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1658. Q. The witnesses and the applicants would be together, and the 
oath administered to both together ! 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


151 


A. First to the applicants and then to the witnesses. 

1659. Q. But it is a sort of continuous oath to the two ? 

A. No, sir; the applicant is finished with before the other is taken up. 

1660. Q. Is the applicant separated from the witness inside the bar so 
that you can distinguish them? 

A. They were while I was present. 

By the Chairman: 

1661. Q. I now present you the blank form of affidavit referred to in 
the testimony of Goldstein, who was one of Eosenberg’s clerks; state if 
that is one of the blanks used in your court. 

A. That appears to be similar to one of the blanks, but most of them 
were different from that. 

1662. Q. Give the form in which the oath is administered. 

A. “John Doe, residing at-? yon do solemnly swear that 

you are well acquainted with the above-named applicant, and that the 
said applicant has resided within the IJnited States for the term of five 
years,” &c.—as on that patter. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1663. Q. About how many men were naturalized in Judge Barnard’s 
court during the month of October ? 

A. I cannot tell you. 

1664. Q. Can’t you approximate the number ? 

A. I cannot. 

By the Chairman: 

1665. Q. Is there a journal kept by the court on which all naturaliza¬ 
tions are entered ? 

A. No, sir; these are the records of the coiu’t and of the transaction. 

1666. Q. They are filed ? 

A. They are filed. 

1667. Q. They are not put in a book ? 

A. No, sir. 

1668. Q. Suppose a person is naturalized, and afterwards wants a 
certified copy of his naturalization, from what is it furnished ? 

A. These papers are all taken and the names are put in a book, and 
the names of the witnesses are put in a book and arranged alphabetically, 
and if you want a duplicate they turn to the name and see who the wit¬ 
ness was, and what was the date of the naturalization, &c. It is all 
arranged aliffiabetically in a book. 

1669. Q. Is that record made up yet, in your office, of the naturaliza¬ 
tions in October ? 

A. It is not. 

1670. Q. How far is it made up? 

A. I cannot tell you; but it has not proceeded a great way, because 
w^e have a great deal of business to attend to, and we have to do that 
after hours. 

1671. Q. Does that record show the country from which the appbcant 
came ? 

A. The application shows that. 

1672. Q. But the record does not ? 

A. No; but I can refer to the application; the record contains the 
name of the applicant, the date, and the name of the witness. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1673. Q. Do you refer to them by the number ? 

A. By the date. 



152 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1G74. Q. Is it not a fact that, with the mnltitnde of clerks that yon 
have, and the large amount of business that you have, you personally 
have been able to give but very little attention to this matter of naturali¬ 
zation in Judge Barnard’s court? 

A. I have stated to you that I attended that court as much as my 
business would allow me, and that that was almost every evening 5 the 
exceptions were very few. 

By the Chairman : 

1G75. Q. How long a time did the judge take to examiue each man— 
about how long ? 

A. That I cannot tell you; I kept no memorandum of it. 

1 G 7 G. Q. Is it a matter within your knowledge that he did make a 
practice of examining each man that appeared there for naturalization ? 

A. Each man was called; and each man was sworn; and each Avitness 
was sworn. 

1G77. Q. That does not answer my question; did the judge ask or 
examine each applicant separately and distinctly in regard to his 
application, or did he hist administer the oath in the words of the affi¬ 
davit? 

A. Well, I Avould not sw^ear that he examined each man separately. 

1G78. Q. Was there any examination of the witness, except adminis¬ 
tering the oath in the words of the affidavit? 

A. There was at times; I don’t know that he would ask every witness 
particularly, but there was such an examination at times; but I don’t 
swear that he asked every one of them. 

1679. Q. How many, or about how many, were ^^put through,” using 
a common term, in one day and evening in that court? 

A. I have told you that I could not answer that because I was not 
present. 

1680. Q. Well, how many in any one evening Avhen you were there ? 

A. I cannot tell. 

1681. Q. If the judge, or clerk, or another person, should examine eA^ery 
Avitness as to his knowledge of the right of each applicant to be natural¬ 
ized, how many such examinations could be made in one ewening sitting 
of that court? 

A. That would depend entirely upon who the judge was, and what 
kind of witnesses he had. 

1682. Q. Assuming that he did it in the ordinary time? 

A. I could not answer that question; you might ask me a question,, 
and I being a witness that could answer it promptly, it might take you 
but a second; but there might be another witness who could not answer 
your questions, and it might take longer, so that I cannot give an 
opinion. 

By Mr. Keer: 

1683. Q. Is Judge Barnard a man who talks rapidly ? 

A. He is rather a rapid talker. 

By the Chairman ; 

1684. Q. Suppose the judge or clerk should ask each witness in relation 
to each applicant these questions: ‘^Are you acquainted A^dth the appli¬ 
cant? How long has he resided in the IJnited States? How long has 
he resided in the State of Kew York? How has he behaved as a"man 
of good moral character? Is he attached to the principles of the Con- 


ELECTION FR4UDS IN NEW YORK. 


15a 


stitution of the United States, and well-disposed to the good order and 

-of the same V'> Suppose a judge or clerk or an attorney should 

have to ask these questions of each witness in relation to each applicant, 
how many such examinations could be made in one evening sitting of 
the court 

A. You would be as well able to judge of that as I would. 

Xew York, Dccemher 2G,. 1868. 

Charles D. Loew recalled and examination continued. 

Witness. I desire to correct one statement given in my testimony the 
day before yesterday. I understand that Mr. jNIcKean did keep rough 
minutes of naturalization matters. 

By the Chairman: 

1685. Question. Do you mean that he kept rough minutes all the way 
through % 

Answer. For the first few days, 1 believe. 

1686. Q. I present to you papers purporting to be certificates of natu¬ 
ralization to James M. Smith, Samuel lieynolds, Patrick Ealferty, Pat¬ 
rick O’Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alexander E. McCann, 
and Adolph Slechelseine. Can you furnish the committee with the appli¬ 
cation for naturalization and the affidavits of the witnesses in those ca ses f 

A. I will try. The papers in the Rosenberg case were, at the request 
of his counsel, laid aside j and I can the more readily procure them. 

1687. Q. Examine these certificates, and state whether they bear the 
genuine seal of the court and the signature of the county clerk ? 

A. They appear to be impressions of the genuine seal, and the signa¬ 
tures appear to have been written by Mr. McKean, clerk of Part 1 of 
the supreme court. 

1688. Q. I present to you similar certificates of naturalization, ])ur- 
porting to have been issued to Thomas' Schmitt, Sebastian Schneider, 
John Winkens, Hugh Smith, James McCarty, Michael Dunn, Josejffi 
Herbert, Frederick Henney, Thomas Surridge, William Honig, James 
Brown, August Betzel, Henry Beaune, John Doolin, August Miller, 
Henry Stern, Charles Warneck, WiUiam Lukas, Gottlieb Kaffenberger, 
Charles Fehling, William Schmidt, John Lehman, Jacob Schafer, John 
Noelsch, Daniel O’Donohue, August A. Sanger, and Patrick Dully. 
State whether they bear the genuine seal and signature. 

A. They appear to be genuine. 

1689. Q. Can you tell in whose handwriting the names of the persoiis- 
naturalized are ^ 

A. Some of them appear to be in Mr. Heymaii's handwriting. 

[Witness withdrew in order to have search instituted for the papers 
which he was asked to produce, and on his return he presented to the 
committee the applications and affidavits (with the initials of the judge 
granting naturalization) in the case of Adolph Slechelseine, Patrick 
O’Brien, Alexander K. McCann, John J. Mercer, and Antonio Gomez, 
being the cases referred to in the testimony of Marshal Murray, the cer¬ 
tificates being annexed to his testimony, marked Exhibit A.” Tlie 
witness in each of those cases ap])ears to have been George Hoffman, 
residing at 61 First avenue. New York. The residence of the principals 
is given in each case as Yonkers. Certified copies of those papers are 
annexed to the testimony.] 



154 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr : 

1690. Q. Have yon examined the initials to the order in each of those 
cases'? 

A. I liave. 

1691. Q. By whom are the initials WTitten ? 

A. By George G. Barnard. 

1692. Q. You are familiar with his handwriting, and know these initials 
to be his ? 

A. Yes. He is i)residing judge of the supreme court. 

1693. Q. Is this his customary way of signing orders, by initials only ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

1694. Q. The committee has adopted this resolution : 

Resolved, That the chairman of the committee be, and he is hereby, authorized to cause the 
records and papers in the possession of the county clerk of New York, referring to natural¬ 
ization in the supreme court, to be examined, and a list to be made of the name of each 
person so naturalized, his age and residence, and the name and place of residence of the 
witness, and the day of the month on which such person was naturalized during the month 
of October, 1868. 

Under that resolution I propose to designate some suitable persons to 
make the examination and lists referred to in the resolution. State if 
you are willing to submit the papers at such time and place as may suit 
your convenience, and in the presence of yourself or such person as you 
may designate for that puriiose, to be examined, so that the list may be 
made in compliance with the resolution ? 

A. I shall want to consider that question. 

1695. Q. How soon will you notify the committee of your determina¬ 
tion ? 

A. On Monday next. I want time to consider whether I have the 
facilities for the committee to make the examination without taking the 
records away, for that I cannot allow. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1696. Q. State who presided in the supreme court during the lime this 
naturalization business was done. 

A. Judge Barnard. He was holding the circuit part of the court. 

1697. Q. There was no other judge presiding but him'? 

A. No, sir. 

1698. Q. And no other judge alternated with him ? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

1699. Q. State who paid for the red tickets which you received for the 
fees for naturalization. 

A. I did not receive any. 

1700. Q. Were they received at the office? 

A. That I do not know. 

Witness subsequently produced the application for naturalization 
specified in question 1686, which are annexed to his testimony, as follows: 

Supreme Court City and County of New York. 

In the matter of the application of Patrick O’Brien to be admitted a 
citizen of the United States of America. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

Patrick O’Brien, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says, 
that he resides at Yonkers; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years *, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


155 


that he has resided in the United States three years next preceding his 
arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present 
time; that he has resided five years within the United States, including 
the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately i^re- 
ceding this application, within the State of New York; and that for 
three years next preceding this application it has been, hona fide, his 
intention to became a citizen of the United States. 

his 

PATKICK + O’BRIEN. 

mark. 


Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of JSfciv Yorlcj ss: 

George Hoffman, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at No. 01 
First avenue, and that he is well acquainted with the above-named appli¬ 
cant, and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for 
three years next preceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he 
has continued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided 
five years within the United States, including the three years of his 
minority, and in the State of New York one year, at least, immediately 
preceding this application; and that during that time he has behaved 
as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the 
Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order 
and happiness of the same; and deponent verily believes that for three 
years next preceding this application it has been, ho7ia fide^ the inten¬ 
tion of the said applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

» GEORGE HOFFMAN. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

State of New York, City a,nd County of New Yorkj ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do declare, on oath, 

that it is, hona Jide^ my intention, and has been for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince^ 
potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the Queen of 
Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I am now a subject. 

bis 

PATRICK + O’BRIEN. 

mark. 


Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of New York., ss: 

I^ - -, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear 

that I will support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do 
absolutel^^ and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity 
to every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and 
particularly to the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I was 
before a subject. 

his 

PATRICK + O’BRIEN. 

mark. 






156 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

OHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 

city of Hew York, on the-day of-18G-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter: 

G. G. B. 


Superior Court City and County of Hew York. 

In the matter of the application of Adolph Slechelsimer to be admitted 
a citizen of the United States of America. 

State of Hew York, City and County of Neio Yorlc, ss : 

Adolph Slechelsimer, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, 
says, that he resides at Yonkers; that he has arrived at the age of 21 
years j that he has resided in the United States three years next pre¬ 
ceding his arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to 
the iiresent time; that he has resided five years within the United 
States, including the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, 
immediately preceding this application, within the State of Hew York; 
and that for three years next i^receding this apifiication it has been, 
hona fide., his intention to become a citizen of the United States. 

ADOLPH SLECHELSIMER. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

CHAS E. LOEW, Cleric. 

State of Hew York, City and County of JSfew Yorlc, ss: 

George Hoffman, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at Ho. G1 First 
avenue, and that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant, 
and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for three 
years next preceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he has con¬ 
tinued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided five 
years within the United States, including the three years of his minority, 
and in the State of Hew York one year, at least, immediately preceding 
this application; and that during that time he has behaved as a man of 
good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of 
the United States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness 
of the same; and deponent verily believes that for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application it has been, hona fide, the intention of the said 
applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

GEORGE HOFFMAH. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


157 


State of Xew York, City and County of JSfew York, ss : 

1, ---, the ahove-named applicant, do declare, on oatli, that 

it is hona fide my intention, and has been for three years next preced¬ 
ing tills application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, poten¬ 
tate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the King of Prussia, 
of whom I am now a subject. 

ADOLPH SLEOHELSBIEE. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1SG8. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerk. 

State of Kew York, City and County of JYeiv York, ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that 

I will support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do abso¬ 
lutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to 
every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and 
particularly to the King of Prussia, of wliom I was before a subject. 

ADOLPH SLBOHELSIMEE. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18GS. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerk. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 
city of Hew York, on the 20th day of October, 18G8. 

Present, Hon. George G. Barnard, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evidence 
required bj^ the acts of Congress, and having made such declaration and 
renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said acts 
required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be admit¬ 
ted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter: 

V G. G. B. 


Supreme Court City and County op Ne\y YoriL 

In the matter of the application of Alex. In . McCann to be admitted a 
citizen of the United States of America. 

State of Kew York, City and County of JYew York, ss : 

Alex. K. McCann, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says, 
that lie resides at White Plains; that he has arrived at the age of 21 
years; that he has resided in the United States three years next pre¬ 
ceding his arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the 
liresent time; that he has resided five years within the United States, 
including the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, imme¬ 
diately preceding this apiilication, within the State of Nev^ York; and 
that for three years next preceding this application it has been hona fide 
his intention to become a citizen of tlie United States. 

hid 

ALEX. K + MciOAKX. 

mark. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerk. 






158 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


State of New York, City and County of New YorA*, ss: 

George Hoffman, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at No. 61 First 
avenue, and that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant, 
and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for three 
years next preceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he has 
continued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided 
five years within the United States, including the three years of his 
minority, and in the State of New York one year, at least, immediately 
preceding this application; and that during that time he has behaved 
as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Con¬ 
stitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and 
happiness of the same; and deponent verily believes, that for three years 
next preceding this application it has been, l)ona fide, the intention of the 
said applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

GEOEGE HOFFMAN. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric, 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do declare, on oath, 

that it is, honafide^ my intention, and has been for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, 
potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the Queen of 
Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I am now a subject. 

his 

ALEX. N. -f McCANN. 

mark. 


Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

OHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

State of New York, City and County of Neic Yorlc, ss: 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that 

1 will supi)ort the Constitution of the United States; and that I do 
absolutely and entirel^^ renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to 
every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and 
particularly to the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I was 
before a subject. 

his 

ALEX. N. + McCANN. 

mark. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cleric. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City HaU of the 

city of Ncav York, on the-day of-18G-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be a 
citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter; 


G. G. B. 








ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


159 


SuPRE]viE Court City and County of New York. 

In tbe matter of the application of John J. Mercer to be admitted a 
citizen of the United States of America. 

State of New York, City and County.of J^^ew Yoi% ss: 

John J. Mercer, the above-named applicant, being dnly sworn, says, that 
he resides at Yonkers; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; that ho 
has resided in the United States three years next preceding his arrival 
at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present time; 
that he has resided five years within the United States, including the 
three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately preced¬ 
ing this application, within the State of New York; and that for three 
years next preceding this a])plication it has been, honafide, his intention 
to become a citizen of the United States. 

his 

JOHN J. X MERCEE. 

mark. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerl'. 

State of New York, City and County of New YorJc, ss: 

George Hoffman, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at No. 01 
First avenue, and that he is well acquainted with the above-named appli¬ 
cant, and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for 
three years next preceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he 
has continued to reside therein to the present time: that he has resided 
five years within the United States, including the three years of his 
minority, and in the State of New York one year, at least, immediately 
preceding this application; and that during that time he has behaved 
as a man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Con¬ 
stitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good order and 
happiness of the same; and deponent verily believes that for three years 
next preceding this application it has been, honafide, the intention of 
the said applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

GEORGE HOFFMAN. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerl'. 

State of New York, City and County of New Yorlc^ ss: 

I, - -, the above-named applicant, do declare, on oath, 

that it is, honafide^ my intention, and has been for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to 
renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign i)riiice, 
potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the Queen of 
Great Britain and Ireland, of whom I am now a subject. 

his 

JOHN J. X MERCER. 

mark. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerk. 

State of New York, City and County of New York, ss : 

I,-, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that 

I will support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do 
absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity 
to every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and 





160 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK: 


paiticiilaiiy to tlic Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, of wlioin I was 
before a subject. 

liis 

JOHN J. X MEBCEK. 

park. 

Sworn in open court, this 20tli day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerl<. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the city 
of New Afork, on the-day of-, 18C-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named api)licant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

Tlie said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made siicli declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court, that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter: 

G. G. B. 


SUPEEME COUET CiTY AND COUNTY OE NeW ATOEK. 

- In the matter of the application of Antonio Gomez to be admitted a 
citizen of the United States of America. 

State of New Yoek, City and County of New Yorl', ss : 

Antonio Gomez, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says, 
that he resides at Yonkers; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; 
that he has resided in the United States three years next preceding his 
arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present 
time; that he has resided five years within the United States, including 
the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately’ pre- 
(icding this application, within the State of New York; and that for 
three years next preceding this application it has been, l)07ia fidcj his 
intention to become a citizen of the United States. 

ANTONIO GOMEZ. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th dav of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerh 

State of New Yoee, City and County of Netv Yorlc^ ss: 

George Hoffman, being duly sworn, says, that he resides at 61 First 
.avenue, and that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant, 
and that the said applicant has resided in the United States for three 
years next preceding his arrival at the age of 21 years; that he has con¬ 
tinued to reside therein to the present time; that he has resided five 
years within the United States, including the three years of his minor¬ 
ity, and in the State of New York one year, at least, immediately prece¬ 
ding this application; and that during that time he has behaved as a man 
of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution 
of the United States, and vrell disposed to the good order and happiness 
of the same; and deponent verily believes that for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application it has been, honafide, the intention of the said 
applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

GEOEGE HOFFMAN. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEAY, Cleric. 






' ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


161 


State of New York, City mid County of New Yor/c, ss : 

I?-? the above-named applicant, do declare on oath, that ‘ 

it is bona fide mj mtejition, and has been for three years next preceding 
this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to renounce 
forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, potentate, state 
or sovereignty whatever, particularly to the Queen of Spain, of whom I 
am now a subject. 

ANTONIO GOMEZ. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 18G8. 

OHAS. E. LOEW, Clerh 

State of New York, City and County of New Yoy% ss : 

1?-, the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that I 

will support the Constitution of the United States; and that I do abso¬ 
lutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to 
every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and par¬ 
ticularly to the Queen of Spain, of whom I was before a subject. 

ANTONIO GOMEZ. 

Sworn in open court, this 20th day of October, 1868. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Clerh. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 
■city of New York, on the-day of-, 180-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter: ' 

G. G. 4. 


Supreme Court City and County of New York. 

In the matter of-, on his petition to become a citizen of the 

United States. 

To the Supreme Court of the State of Neic YorJc: 

The petition of-, residing at-, resiiectfully shows : 

That he is of the age of twenty-one years and upwards, and has resided 
within the United States for the continued term of one year next prece¬ 
ding the present time; that your petitioner enlisted in the army of the 

United States in the-regiment of New York volunteers, on the- 

day of-, 18—, at-, in the State of New York, and was hon¬ 
orably discharged therefrom on the-day of-, 186-, at-. 

Your petitioner therefore asks to be admitted to become a citizen of the 
United States, pursuant to section 21 of the act of Congress passed July 
17, 1862, entitled ‘^An act to define the pay and emoluments of certain 
officers of the army, and for other purposes.” 


11 T 
















162 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


State of I^ew York, City and County of New York, ss : 

-, the witliiii-named petitioner, being duly sworn, says 

that the matters contained in the foregoing petition are true. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerk. 


State of New York, City and County of New York, ss : 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted Avith the above-named petitioner, and that the 
said petitioner has resided Avithin the United States for the continued 
term of one year, at least, next preceding the present time, and within 
the State of NeAV York one year, at least, immediately preceding this 
application •, and that during that time he has behuA^ed as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and AA^ell disposed to the good order and happiness of the 
same; and that he kiiow^s the said applicant to be the identical person 
mentioned and described in the foregoing petition, and in the certificate 
of discharge from the service of the United States army, now produced 
to the court. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerk. 


State of Neav York, City and County of New York, ss : 

I,-, residing at-, do solemnly SAvear that I will 

support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do absolutely 
and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every 
foreign prince, potentate, state or soA^ereignty whatever, and particidarly 
to the-, of whom I Avas before a subject. 


S^Aiorn to in open court, this-day of-, 18G-. 


At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 
city of New York, on the-day of-, 186-. 

Present, Hon.-, justice. 

In the matter of the application of the Avithin-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, and producing his 
certificate of discharge from the service of the United States army, and 
the eAudence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such 
declaration and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the 
said acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant 
be admitted to be a citizen of the United States of America. 

Enter; 























ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


163 


SuPRE^EB Court City and County of ]S^ew York: 

In the matter of the application of-, to be admitted a citi¬ 

zen of the United States of America. 

State of j^Tew York, City and County of New YorJc, ss : 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted Avith the above-named applicant, and that the 
said api)licant has resided within the United States for the continued 
term of fiA^e years, at least, next jireceding the present time, and v^ithiii 
the State of ^NToav York one year, at least, immediately iireceding this 
application, and that during that time he has behaved as a man of good 
moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the 
United States, and Avell disj>osedto the good order and happiness of the 
same. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 186-. 

-, Clerh. 

State of Neav York, City and County of New YorJi^ ss : 

I,-, residing at -, do solemnly swear that I Aviii 

support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do absolutely 
and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every for¬ 
eign prince, potentate, state or soA^ereignty vfhatever, and particularly to 
the-, of Avhom I Avas before a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-, 180-. 

-, Cleric. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 

city of New York, on the-day of-, 180-. 

Present, Hon.-, justice. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in court, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 
acts required, it is ordered by the said court that the said applicant be 
admitted to be a citizen of tlie United States of America. 

Enter: -. 


Supreme Court City and County of Neav York. 

In the matter of the application of --to be admitted a citi¬ 

zen of the United States of America. 

State of Neav York, City and County of New Yorlc, ss: 

-, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says that 

he resides at-; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; that 

he has resided in the United States three years next preceding his 
arrival at that age, and has continued to reside therein to the present 
time; that he has resided five years within the United States, including 
the three years of his minority, and one year, at least, immediately pre- 





























1(U 


ELECTIO^' EKAVDS IN NEW YORK. 


coding this application, ^Yitlun the State of Xew York, and that for three 
years next preceding this application it has been hoiia tide his intention 
to become a citizen of the Ignited States. 


Sworn in open court, this-dav of-, 18tv-. 

-, Clerk. 


State of New York, City and County of Xew York, ss: 

-, being duly sworn, says that he resides at-, and 

that he is well acquainted with the above-named applicant, and that the 
said applicant has resided in the United States for three years next 
preceding his arrival at the age of -1 years; that he has continued to 
reside therein to the present time; that he has resided live years within 
the United States, including the three years of his minority, and in the 
State of New York one year, at least, immediately preceding this appli¬ 
cation, and that during that time helms behaved as a man of good moral 
character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United 
States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same, 
and deponent verily believes that for three years next preceding this 
a]>plication it has been hona fde the intention of the said applicant to 
become a citizen of the United States. 


Sworn in open court, tliis-dav of-, 180-. 

-, CJcrk. 


State of New York, City and County of Xeic York.ss: 

I,-, the above-naiiuHl applicant, do declare, on oaih, that 

it is bo7\a dde my intention, and has been for three years next preceding 
this application, to become a citizen of the United States, and to renounce 
forever all allegiance and tidelityto every foreign prince, potentate, state 
or sovereignty whatever, particularly to"the Queen of the United Iving- 
tlom of (U'eat Britain and Ireland, of whom I am now a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-dav of-, 180-. 

-, Clerk. 

State of New York, City and County of Xew York, ss : 

I,-. the above-named applicant, do solemnly swear that 

I will support the Constitution of the United States, and that I do abso¬ 
lutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and tidelity to 
every foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and "par¬ 
ticularly to the Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ire¬ 
land, of whom I was before a subject. 


Sworn in open court, this-day of-. 18(>-. 

-, Clerk. 

At a special term of the supreme court, held at the City Hall of the 

city of New York, on the-day of-. 18t>-. 

Present, Hon.-, judge. 

In the matter of the application of the within-named applicant to be 
admitted a citizen of the United States of America. 

The said applicant appearing personally in coimt, producing the evi¬ 
dence required by the acts of Congress, and having made such declara¬ 
tion and renunciation, and having taken such oaths as are by the said 



































KLECrnON FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 165 

acts required, it is ordered l:)y tlie said court that the said applicant Ixi 
adiuitted to be a citizen of tlie United States of America. 

Enter: _ 


New York, December 2(3, 18G8. 

Robert U. Adams sworn and examined. 

By tlie Chairman: 

1701. Question. State’youi’residence. 

Answer. One-hiindred-and-sixteerith street and Avenue A, in this city. 
I have resided in this city ever since I was bom. 

1702. Q. State if you were in the supreme court in the month of Octo¬ 
ber last, and if so, whether anything occuiTed there in relation to 
naturalization papers. 

A. I was in the circuit room, supreme court, on the morning of 
October 10th last, about 10 o’clock. 1 went in at the usual entrance to 
the court-room. There was no judge in court. Mr. ^IcKeau, the clerk, 
was there, and several young men officiating in some clerical capacity 
behind an extra table at the clerk’s desk. My business there was to 
look at the day calendar of the day before. I asked Mr. McKean, tin/, 
clerk, to let me see it. He said he would, and told me to wait a fevv' 
moments. While waiting, I was startled by somebody behind the coun¬ 
ter wanting to know why that door was open by v/hich I had come in. 
It was ordered to be shut and it Avas shut. While I was waiting, some 
men at the table alongside the clerk’s de.sk were very busy filling out 
naturalization papers. During this time a jiarty came by the door that 
is usually used by the ujdges and some officers of the court, and with 
red tickets in his hand, called out to the clerk, as he ax>proached the 
table, want ten citizens’ papers.” “Very well,” said McKean, 
Mill hand them to you directly.” The man said, “I am in a hurry.” 
McKean turned his back to his desk and opened some diTnvers that were 
behind him and took several of the.se papers. The man said, “He Mas 
in a hurry, and Minted to know whether Charley, or Bill, or somebody 
else, would not give him the papers.” McKean said “Wait a minute,” 
or something of that kind. After a little interval he got uj) and handed 
him ten citizens’ papers, and the man threM^ down ten naturalization 
tickets. I am not sure whether it was McKean or one of the men at the 
desk who handed him the papers. In the mean time I got the calendar 
from Mr. McKean, found what I Minted, and then left. 

1703. Q. Did you examine the papers delivered to the man who came 
with the red tickets ? 

A. No, sir 5 I judged the character of the i^apers from their general 
style. They were printed forms, jiartly printed and partly Muitten. I 
cannot say whether they correspond with these now shoM n me, because 
I did not see them opened. But the man did not ask for any iiarticular 
kind of papers, only he wanted ten citizen.s’ x>apers. 

1704. Q. Was any writing done ux>on the i)ax)ers that were delivered 
to him after he came in ? 

A. There was nothing done to them after he came in. 

1705. Q. Do you know of any other fact connected with natiualization 
in this city that would throw light upon our inve.stigation? 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1706. Q. You understood that the red tickets repre.sented so much 
money? 




166 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. That was my understanding. 

1707. Q. Do you know whether the papers were signed and sealed ? 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

1708. Q. Do you know whether these papers that were handed ou 
by the clerk were not papers passed upon by the court the night before? 

A. As a matter of fact, I cannot say; as a matter of opinion, I sup¬ 
pose they were not. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1709. Q. What is your political association? 

A. I am a republican at present, and have been for some years. I was 
formerly a democrat. 

1710. Q. Did you go into the court-room for any purpose connected 
with the business of naturalization, or on your professional business? 

A. On my professional business as a lawyer. 

1711. Q. Do you know the names of any of the clerks who w^ere 
there ? 

A. I do not. 

1712. Q. Did the man say what kind of papers he wanted? 

A. No. 

1713. Q. What led you to infer that he wanted any particular kind of 
papers ? 

A. I had liad knowledge of the operations of naturalization for some 
30 years, and I knew that it was usual for political parties to send to 
clerks these tickets to pay the fees of naturahzation papers. 

1714. Q. That is the custom of both parties? 

A. I believe it is; but I do not think that tickets did the republican 
party any good. 

1715. Q. Why? 

A. I had a German who vranted to be naturalized, and I sent him to 
one of the republican rooms for that purpose ; he there got a ticket, and 
I found that there was great difficulty afterwards in getting him natu¬ 
ralized although he Tvas fully entitled to it. The pretext set up was, 
that the witness could not swear that the applicant had been in the 
country live years; but afterwards the man was naturalized on the tes¬ 
timony of the same witness. 

1716. Q. How long did it take Mr. McKean to hunt up the papers and 
hand them out to this man? 

A. There did not seem to be any hunting up particularly. I do not 
think the man was there more than three minutes altogether. 

New York, December 26, 1868. 

James M. Sweeney sworn and examined: 

By the Chairman : 

1717. Question. State if you are clerk of the superior court, Kew York; 
and if so, how long have you been ? 

Answer. 1 am, and have been for the last two years and over. 

1718. Q. During what months in the present year were persons natu¬ 
ralized in that court? 

A. During the whole year. 

1719. Q. Can you give the number of persons naturalized during each 
month of the present year? 

A. I can get that information, and will furnish it to the committee. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 167 

X 

172^. Q. Can you give, conveniently, tlie number naturalized each day, 

in your statement'? 

A. In the early part of the year there would be very few naturalized. 
I will try to get that information. 

1721. Q. Were they principally naturalized in October ? 

A. They were; in October previous to the election. 

1722. Q. Will you furnish the committee with the aggregate number 
naturalized each month in 1868, and with the number naturalized each 
day during October ? 

A. I will as near as I can possibly get at it. 

1723. Q. State whether you use printed blank forms for api)lications of 
naturalization, for the affidavits of the witnesses, and for the certificates 
to be issued to persons naturalized. 

A. Yes, sir. 

1724. Q. In naturalizing persons, was it the practice of the court to 
swear the witnesses to the affidavits that they made 

A. I am not present in the court when these things are done. I 
merely issue the certificate. 

1725. Q. What officers are i)resent when naturalizations are granted? 

A. Thomas Bennett and Thomas E. Nolan are both special term clerks 

dejjutized for that purpose. 

1726. Q. I now j^resent to you four papers puri)orting to be certifi¬ 
cates of naturalization—one to Joseph Bush, dated October, 1868, one 
to John Wallace, dated October 22, 1867, one to William Malia, dated 
October 25, 1867, and one to James Montgomery, dated October 25, 
1867, signed James M. Sweeney, clerk, and referred to in the testimony 
of Albert Bogart; state if the seal affixed to these papers is the genuine 
seal of the superior court, and whether the signatui’e of the clerk is 
genuine. 

A. The seal appears to be the genuine seal, and the signature appears 
to have been written by Mr. Joseph Meeks, who is authorized to sign 
my name. I haven’t signed my own name to certificates during the 
l)resent year. [Witness also identifies in the same way the certificates 
issued to Edward Sullivan, dated October 17, 1868, and to Michael Ker- 
%vin, same date.] 

1727. Q. Can you furnish to the committee the apifiications of those 
persons i)urx)orting to be naturalized, and the affidavits of witnesses in 
these several cases ? 

A. I will take a memorandum of them and do so. 

1728. Q. You do not give x)articular attention yourself to the mode of 
naturalization ? 

A. No, sir; I would be in and out of the court, but I gave no particu¬ 
lar attention to that branch of the business. 

1729. Q. Will you permit any i)erson or persons whom the commit¬ 
tee may designate to go to your office and in your i)resence, or in the 
l)resence of such persons as you may designate, make a list of the names 
of i)ersons naturalized, their residences, the dates, and the names of the 
witnesses and their residences ? 

A. I would like to employ my clerks to do it, under the supervision 
of anybody you may suggest. These x)ax)ers are records and I do not 
feel justified in letting them out of my i)OSsession. I have no objection 
to any investigation into the affairs of the office. 

1730. Q. Then these lists may be made ? 

A. Yes, I think so. 


168 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Boss: 

1731. Q. Have yon any idea how many x)ersons were natnralized last 
year ? 

A. Not nearly so many as this year. 

By the Chairman : 

1732. Q. Were there one-fonrth as many ? 

A. O, yes; I think more, nearly one-half. 

1733. Q. Are the clerks yon have named the only clerks in yonr 
office authorized to attend naturalization ? 

A. No, sir; when the rush comes, all the clerks are engaged. But Mr. 
Aleeks signs all the certificates so as to have a uniform signature. I 
never sign one myself. I think we have 12 clerks in the office. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1731. Q. Did yon keep a record of persons who have received natnral- 
ization ? 

A. Yes, sir; we index them as we go along, but that takes consider¬ 
able time. The index for this year is not complete. We index the wit¬ 
ness as well as the apxfiicant. 

1735. Q. What proportion of the whole number were natnralized 
during the month of October ‘I 

A. I cannot say j I think a very large proportion. 

1736. Q. Have yon more than one seal for yonr court ? 

A, We have two, and imx)ressions are made from both seals. Mr. 
Meeks, my deputy, had in charge the seals j they were locked np each 
night. There were no papers sealed in advance; my directions were to 
have no certificates sealed in advance. 

1737. Q. Jndge McOnnn is judge of that court 1 

A. He is one of the judges. 

1738. Q. He is the one who had charge of this naturalization business 

A. No, sir; Jndge Garvin did some of it, and so did Judge Jones 

1739. Q. Do yon know what has been the habit of these judges in 
reference to questioning each applicant and witness ? 

A. No, sir, I do not. 

1740. Q. Yon do not know whether the forms prescribed by the statute 
have been followed by all these judges ? 

A. I didn’t take particular notice. 

1741. Q. How many did they put through there at a time ? 

A. Generally the apifiicants are put through singly; those Avhom I 
saw naturalized came along singly and the applicant and witness were 
sworn. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1742. Q. Did yon ever see it done np by batches? 

A. No, sir; not in the superior court. 

1743. Q. Did yon ever in any court where naturalization was done? 

A. No, sir 5 the judges in my court used to destroy a great many 

papers where they did not have the proper affidavits. 

1744. Q. Was that the case during the days of the rush ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1745. Q. Who did the chief part of this naturalization business in the 
superior court ? 

A. Judge McCunn and Judge Garvin did the most of it; I think that the 
late chief justice did a small part of it; so did Judge Jones; Judge 
Monell was in Europe, and Judge Barbour was away. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


169 


1746. Q. Gan you approach any opinion as to the number of persons 
naturalized in any one day in your court during the month of October 
last ? 

A. I think that one day there Avere in the neighborhood of 2,000. 

1747. Q. Were you in the court-room during the time? 

A. I was in and out. 

1748. Q. Was there any other business transacted by the court on that 
day ^ 

A. I think not. 

1749. Q. Was the court-room left open to the public and the lawyers, 
or Avere they excluded from the court-room during that, day 

A. I don’t think they were excluded. 

1750. Q. Did you ever knoAV them to be excluded any day when this 
business was going on “? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

1751. Q. How long did the court sit that day'*? 

A. It sat almost all day. 

1752. Q. And in the evening *? 

A. I think so, but I am not positiA^e. 

1753. Q. Describe how the work was done on that day? 

A. Similar to any other day, I suppose. The men Avould go in with 
their applications to the judges, and the judges would swear them, and 
then they would get their certificates. 

1754. Q. Did the judges undertake to make personal examination of 
witnesses; or Avere their statements put in the form of an affidavit, and 
the affidavit sworn to ? 

A. In all cases that I saw, the judges swore them. 

1755. Q. Would the judge detain them to answer any questions touch¬ 
ing qualifications, residences, &c. ? 

A. He would, sometimes. 

1756. Q. And sometimes he would not ? 

A. Sometimes he would swear them to the affidavit, I think; but I 
did not pay sufficient attention to know exactly. 

1757. Q. During the time you were paying any attention to this busi¬ 
ness, was it a common thing for you to hear persons coming in as wit¬ 
nesses swearing for a dozen principals ? 

A. I never kneAv that; I heard reports to that effect, but know nothing 
of my own knowledge ; I didn’t see any such thing. 

1758. Q. You saAv no ^Hepeating” of this kind on the part of Avitnesses? 

A. No, sir. 

1759. Q. Can you say that you were in the court-room during these 
hurried days enough to observe that kind of business going on if it Avere 
going on ; I mean this reiAetition of service by Avitnesses ? 

A. The court-room would be yerj much croAvded. I saw the judges 
going on Avith their business as usual, and I did not go up Awy close to 
the judges to see what they were doing. 

1760. Q. Did you know anything of the details of the business carried 
on at No. 6 Centre street, where Eosenberg was chief clerk ? 

A. No, sir; I know nothing at all about it. 

1761. Q. Did you haA^e occasion to go in there on the part of any per¬ 
son who wanted to be naturalized during the last political canvass? 

A. I nCAW went into any of those places but once; and that was to 
tell them that the court would not be open that night. 

By the Chairman: 

1762. Q. You say there were as many as 2,000 naturalized in one day? 

A. About that. 


170 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


1763. Q. Were tliey all naturalized before one judge? 

A. No, sir; I think not. I think that the four judges whom I have 
named were naturalizing that day. 

1764. Q. Were they in four different rooms ? 

A. They had two rooms; and afterwards we had rooms in the City 
Hall. 

By Mr. HoPKiNS: 

1765. Q. Who distributed these papers to the applicants after they 
were signed by you ? 

A. The papers were given as the men came through. 

1766. Q. Were these applications first brought in by either of the par¬ 
ties in batches in your office for the official certificate to be made ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. Mr. Meeks issued all the certificates. 

1767. Q. You do not know whether it was his habit to give out these 
papers in batches ? 

A. No, sir; but I rather think not. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1768. Q. Who had charge of the two seals used by your court? 

A. Mr. Meeks; it was his business to take charge of them. The seals 
were kept right opposite where he was sitting. 

1769. Q. Tell the committee Avhether it is a fact within your knowl¬ 
edge or belief that at any time during the last political canvass any of 
these certificates were given out in blank. 

A. No, sir; they were not. I do not think there was anything of the 
kind done. 

1770. Q. Hid you use any precautions or give any directions with a 
view to prevent any such thing being done? 

A. Yes, sir; I gave direction to Mr. Meeks to lock up the seals every 
night; also, that the seals should be entirely under his charge, and that 
he should sign every one of the certificates. 

1771. Q. Are you aware that any of the certificates in blank were 
obtained by anybody out of your office ? 

A. No, sir. 

1772. Q. Since the common rumor about frauds in the procuring of 
these certificates of naturalization, have you instituted any inquiry or 
made any examination with a view to determine in your own-mind the 
fidelity of your own subordinates ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1773. Q. With what result? 

A. With the result that I am satisfied that they have not done any¬ 
thing wrong. 

1774. Q. In connection with these inquiries, did you or not develop 
any irregularities in connection with this business, either on the part of 
your subordinates or on the part of any of the judges? 

A. I did not. 

1775. Q. Have you had brought to your knowledge any certificates of 
this kind that were ever obtained for which there is no corresponding 
record in your office ? 

A. No, sir; I have had no opportunity to search, because I have not 
been notified of any such case. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1776. Q. Ho you know what clerks occupied room No. 12 in the City 
Hall? 

A. Yes, sir; I understood there were some outside parties who occu- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


171 


pied the basement kiio>Yii as the old sherift*’s office j and on learning that 
fact I had the communication between the office and the rooms where 
my clerks were at work closed. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1777. Q. Can yon give ns the names of the parties who occupied that 
room ? 

A. 'NOj sir. 

1778. Q- Who has charge of the building? 

A. Samuel Eoome, the general janitor j he lias the keys; whether he 
acts under another or not I do not know. 

By the Chairman : 

1779. Q. This old sherifl’s office in the basement of the City Hall was 
one of the rooms belonging to the city? 

A. Yes, sir—in the City Hall. 

1780. Q. Who rented that room to these outside parties ? 

A. I do not know anything about it. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1781. Q. Was it generally understood that some of the rooms were 
being used by parties in writing up applications for citizenship ? 

A. I heard it said, and that was the reason that I closed the commu¬ 
nication between that and the room where my clerks were. 

Kew York, December 26, 1868. 

Anson Willis sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1782. Question. What office did you hold at the last election? 

Answer. I was one of the inspectors and registrars of election of the 

16th district, 16th ward. 

1783. Q. State what you know of persons presenting certificates of 
naturalization that w^ere fraudulent ? 

A. Many naturalization certificates were presented by i)ersons who 
came to be registered. They appeared to have the genuine seal and the 
genuine signatures of the clerks of the various courts. Being apprized 
that spurious naturalization papers had been sent out in every direction, 
I interrogated several of these persons and they gave me unsatisfactory 
answers. They could not tell me in what court they were naturalized, 
when they were naturalized, or wdiere they were naturalized. One 
of them told me he wus naturalized in Tammany Hall; another that 
he wus naturalized in Columbia street, aw^ay over in the east side 
of the city; and another down in the park. They gave no satisfactory 
information uiion this subject. Some of them, after being registered, 
did not offer to vote. Several told me that they had never declared 
their intention to become citizens, and that they never had received any 
first papers. It appeared from the answers they made that these papers 
had been sent to them, and had been sent broadcast all over the city, 
and given to persons w ho had never applied for them. 

1784. Q. What proportion of voters in your district w^ere of foreign 
birth ? 

A. Much less than half of them w^ere native-born. 

1785. Q. What proportion of those presenting certificates of natural¬ 
ization w^ere sworn ? 

A. It is my impression that not more than one in fifty was sworn. 
Some of the inspectors appeared to be perfectly satisfied, if the parties 


172 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


only presen led naturalization papers. And they were opposed ^^erj^ 
strongly to my asking questions, or taking any steps like investigation. 
Some naturalization papers were several years old, and these we did 
not investigate very closely. It was only those that had been recently 
issued that we took i^articular notice of. I questioned some parties so 
severely that they never made their ai^pearance on the day of election j 
they were generally registered; some, very few, were rejected. 

By Mr Hopkins : 

1786. Q. Do you recollect the number of naturalized citizens that 
were registered at your district"? 

A. I said over one-half of the whole j the whole number was about 500; 
I was the only one of the four inspectors that seemed to take any interest 
in stopping this thing j the democratic inspectors put every obstacle in 
my way; and when a young man took his position there to challenge 
some of these men, the chairman of the board ordered him out of the 
room and told him he was interfering with the election, and that he could 
not stay there. 

1787. Q. Was the chairman a democrat? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1788. Q. Do you recollect the relative vote of the two parties in that 
district ? 

A. I do not recollect; it was largely democratic. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

1789. Q. Give us the names of the democrats who acted with you ? 

A. Mr. Van Buren and Mr. Seixas; my republican colleague said but 

little. 

1790. Q. Did he not vote with you all the time? 

A. Questions were very rarely put to a vote j he made no objection to 
receiving these papers ; I had heard so much of these illegal votes* that 
I suspected that a great many of these votes were wrong, but I had no 
positive means of determining. 

1791. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes liaving been given at vour 
polls ? 

A. I am not positive of any, but 1 had good reason to suspect that 
many were illegal, because the men could not tell where they were 
naturalized, and many of them had never made application and never 
received their first papers. 

1792. Q. How many did you reject ? 

A. About half a dozen. 

1793. Q. How many did you register who could not give you satisfac¬ 
tory evidence ? 

A. I should think from a dozen to 20. 

1794. Q. Did you have some one at the polls to challenge ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1795. Q. Did you discharge that duty yourself, or did somebody else? 

A. I believe I did in one or two instances; my position was at the 

desk, to look over the names as they presented themselves, and see if 
the names were there. 

1796. Q. You had a challenger at the polls? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1797. Q. Did he exercise the privilege pretty freely ? 

A. No, sir ; he was ordered out of the room by the chairman. 

1798. Q. Did he go out of the room ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1799. Q. After that you had no challenger ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 173 

A. After that there was no regular challenger; once in a while some 
person came up and challenged a vote. 

1800. Q. What was the name of your republican colleague on the 
board ? 

A. I have forgotten it. He was an Englishman, and lives in the ave¬ 
nue just above Twenty-third street. He keeps a tailor’s shop just north 
of Twenty-third street, on the avenue. 

Byj.Mr. Kerr : 

1801. Q. Did you register two men whose answers were so unsatisfac¬ 
tory as you have stated i 

A. Yes, sir; we registered more than that. 

1802. Q. More than three ? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 think we registered more than half a dozen of those 
cases. 

1803. Q. Can you name one of them 

A. Of course not; they were men I never saw before. 

1804. Q. Do you know Avhether any one of these persons so registered 
voted I 

A. Yes, sir; some of them did. They swore right through. 

Kew York, December 2G, 1868. 

Samuel S. IJrmy sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1805. Question. What office did you hold at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion ^ 

Answer. Inspector of elections for the 15th district, 21st ward. 

1806. Q. State what you know of persons presenting fraudulent natu¬ 
ralization papers. 

A. I know parties who presented papers who, when they were sworn 
and rpiestioned respecting them, stated that they had not been in court. 
Some of them had never taken out any first papers, and two or three of 
them had papers given them in lager-beer saloons, club-houses, and such 
places. 

1807. Q. State what you know of James Gillem. 

A. James Gillem was registered as living at 444 Fourth avenue. On 
the morning of the election, about 11 o’clock, a man came along and gave 
that name. I challenged him for non-residence, administered the oath 
to him, took his vote, and had him arrested. After he was arrested 1 
subsequently ascertained his name to be Michael Cochran. I thought 
he lived out of the district. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1808. Q. He was voting on a name which did not belong to him ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1809. Q. You style such men repeaters ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

1810. Q. Is he a foreigner ? 

A. I think he is. 

1811. Q. Did he register on naturalization papers ? 

A. 1 do not think he was registered at all. I think another man gave 
that name. I don’t think he was near the polls at all until he came to 
vote. 

1812. Q. Who were the inspectors in that district f 

A. On election day they were Stephen K. Crandall, Wm, P. Slater, 
John Dalton, and myself. 


174 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Chairman : 

1813. Q. State wliat occurred after you liad tliis man arrested. 

A. A few minutes after lie Tvas arrested and taken away to the police 
station a posse of deputy sheriffs came in, rushed around the counter, car¬ 
ried me out, put me in a stage, took me to the Ludlow street jail and put 
me in charge of the keeper. 

1814. Q. How long were you confined 

A. I was taken from the polls a few minutes after 11 o’clock, and was 
confined in jail until 3 o’clock, Avhen I was taken out on a writ of habeas 
corpus. I made application to send a letter or despatch to my friends, 
hut I was not allowed to do so. 

1815. Q. For what were you arrested ? 

A. 1 was not accused of anything. These deputies came in, caught 
hold of me and carried me out. 1 am convinced they had no authority. 

1810. Q. What was the pretext for arresting you? 

A. There was no pretext stated. Afterwards I saw a commitment 
charging me with obstructing the polls. But the warrant, I am sure, 
was not in the hands of the deputy sheriffs when I was arrested. 

1817. Q. Had you done anything to obstruct the polls, except to chal¬ 
lenge this man to vote ? 

A. Nothing in the world. I had taken votes very ra]>idly from sunrise 
up to that. 

1818. Q. With what political party do you act? 

A. With the republican. 

1810. Q. Who were the deputy sheriffs ? 

A. One was Lawrence O’Brien, brother of James O’Brien, the sheriff'. 
Another was George E. Hickey, who is somewhat notorious, and 
another was John Bennett, ^yho is known in the ward as “ Black Jack,” 
and another of whose name I am not positive—I think it was Armstrong. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1820. Q. Were these men special deputies, or were they regular 
deputies ? 

A. I think that Bennett and O’Brien were special deputies for preserv¬ 
ing the peace at the last election. 

By the Chairman : 

1821. Q, AVhat was their x)olitics? 

A. They were democrats. I am inclined to think that Hickey is a 
regular deputy from his having had transactions before in connection 
with such matters. 

1822. Q. Had there been any disturbance at the polls during the day? 

A. No, sir, none at all. It vras perfectly quiet and orderly. 

1823. Q. What proportion of voters in your district are of foreign birth? 

A. Considerable more than a majority of voters in that district are 

Americans. There are a good number of Irishmen and Germans there. 
There were 789 names registered. 

1824. Q. What proportion of naturalized citizens were challenged at 
the registry ? 

A. Probably one in ten was challenged at the registry; at least, if not 
absolutely challenged, a greater number than that were questioned^ 
Those persons whom we knew were, of course, not questioned. 

1825. Q. Have you any means of expressing an opinion as to the num¬ 
ber of illegal votes registered and polled in your district ? 

A. I have only the means which my knowledge of the people there 
gives me. I am satisfied there were a great many fraudulent papers pre- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


175 


seuted there, and that a great many men voted who had no right to vote. 
For instance, there is one house in our district from which about twenty 
names were registered; it is a little shanty two stories high; the first 
story is taken up with a bar-room and restaurant, and there cannot pos¬ 
sibly be more than four small rooms in the second story. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1826-1827. Q, Has there been any investigation in court of the case of 
the person whom you challenged and whom you arrested? 

A. No, sir; he was brought before a police justice in the morning, and 
admitted to bail. He is a man who is well known in the ward ; he has 
been up on the island a number of times. 

1828. Q. This occurrence was at the presidential election ? 

A. Yes, sir; it is our State election as well. 

By the Chairman : 

1829. Q. When did you revise your registration ? 

• A. Friday and Saturday before election. We registered names as 
well as revised them on these days. The first two days for registration 
are the Tuesday and Wednesday three weeks before the election. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1830. Q. How many did you say were registered from this house in 
Fourth avenue ? 

A. I think about 20. It was known in the district as ^‘The Senate.” 
It is a drinking saloon and restaurant kept by Michael Sharkev. 

1831. Q. What is he politically ? 

A. He always votes the democratic ticket. 

1832. Q. Can you give a fair Approximation of the number of persons 
of foreign birth who registered in your district? 

A. I do not know, but I think halt of them were persons of foreign 
birth. 

1833. Q. Can you give an approximate proportion of those men of 
foreign birth who presented papers more than a year old? 

A. I should think that half the naturalization papers presented were 
new ones issued within three months of the last election—most of them 
within six weeks. 

1834. Q. You say that you ascertained for yourself that this Clillem 
did not reside where he said ? 

A. Yes, sir; I went to the proprietor of the house and asked him if 
any such iierson lived there; he said he did not. It is a drinking saloon 
kept by Patrick Daly. The man is notorious as a rough; he is a man 
of very bad character; he has frequently been before the police courts, 
and has been sent to the island. 

1835. Q. Is he a man of drinking habits also ? 

A. I should think he is a man who drinks a good deal. 

1836. Q. In reference to your arrest, was it made in a rude and iingen- 
tlemanly way? 

A. Yes, sir, it was; my coat was badly torn, and I was absolutely 
carried or dragged out of the room. 

1837. Q. Did you resist? 

A. I did not resist with any force—I refused to go. 

1838-1839. Q. Then it required the use of physical force to carry you 
out of the room ? 

A. They did not wait to see whether it did or not—they carried me 
out. 

1840. Q. How did the business go on in your absence ? 


17G 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. There was a man sent there to take my place Tiiitil I returned—a 
Colonel Colvin, a republican. 

1841. Q. Did you ever institute any legal proceedings against these 
persons for making the arrest ? 

A. No, sir. ' 

1842. Q, Were you arrested or tried for any offence ? 

A. No, sir. 

1843. Q. The whole matter dropped after your discharge ? 

A. Yes, sir; the deputies told me when they wwe taking me to prison 
that I would be let out the next morning. 

1844,1845. Q. Do you know that any person did, in fact, vote at that 
district who was not by law entitled to vote, except this man Gilleni ? 

A. I cannot positively say that there was any. There were men who 
voted and who swore in their votes, who, I believe, were not voters in 
that district—men whom I knew to be just as likely to vote in one dis¬ 
trict as in another, for they are floating back and forth from one saloon 
to another, and live in any place, as the case may require. I had a list 
of names of persons who, I was well satisfied, were fraudulent voters, 
for the pui'pose of challenging them. This Gillem was one of them, and 
he was the first that presented himself. When I returned these names 
were all voted in. 

1846. Q. IIow do you know they voted? 

A. Their names were checked upon the book as having voted. 

1847. Q. Are there a good many times men having the same name in 
a district? 

A. It does not very often occur. I find the name of Patrick Keeffe 
registered twice from 449 Fourth avenue. I also find the name of Wil¬ 
liam Doogan registered twice from the same place. Another instance 
is that of a man named Nicholas Moore, who is registered in our district 
as John Moore; and he does not live in the district at ail. After he 
had registered as John Moore he came, at another session of the board, 
and offered to register as William Murray. I knew the man, and turned 
him away. 1 knew him to be identical with the other man; I had known 
him two or three years—perhaps longer. A number of instances occur¬ 
red where parties registered and other parties came in to vote on tlieir 
names—men whom 1 knew not to be the parties who had registered. 

1848. Q. State, generally, whether you and your republican colleague 
and your democratic colleagues used reasonable diligence to purge the 
ballot-box of that kind of votes. 

A. For myself, I did use all the diligence I could. I cannot answer 
for the others. 

1849. Q. State, generally, whether you know, of your own knowledge, 
that persons unauthorized to register did, in fact, register in that dis¬ 
trict, except those whom you have named. 

A. I am satisfied that a good many did register who were not author¬ 
ized to register there and to vote there. 1 had a list of 50 names of per¬ 
sons who I was satisfied were not legal voters. 

1850. Q. Is it true that this list was furnished you by others? 

A. Some names of the men were furnished me; but I know I made 
personal inquiry and investigation Into every name on the list. 

1851. Q. How much time did you give to that kind of inquiry? 

A. I gave considerable time to it. 

1852. Q. You do not know, as a fact, that all of those upon that list 
of 50 were illegally registered ? 

A. I do not know it as a fact, but I have every reason to believe it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


177 


By Mr. Hopkins: 

1853. Q. I unclerstand you to say that you had a list of 50 illegal 
voters whom you intended to challenge, and that while you were under 
arrest their votes were received? 

A. .Yes, sir. Tliose deputies, when they were taking me down to jail, 
told me they would teach me that I had no right to challenge any votes. 

1854. Q. How many wards are there in this city? 

A. Twenty-two. 

1855. Q. How many of these republican ? 

A. Only one, I believe—the 15th ward. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

1856. Q. In the 50 men whom you had upon that list were those 20 
who were registered from 449 Fourth avenue included ? 

A. A good many of them were on the list. There were two or three 
of them whom I knew to be legally entitled to vote. 

1857. Q. How many of that 20 were on your list of 50? 

A. Probably 11 or 12. From 120 East Thirty-second street there are 
six Joneses registered; on personal inquiry and investigation I found 
there were only two men by the name of Jones living there; those six 
men all voted. 

1858. Q. How many voted from this 449 Fourth avenue ? 

A. I think they all voted, except, possibly, one or two. 

Yew York, December 26, 1868. 

Timothy Lynch sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

1859. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. I was registrar and inspector in the 5th district, 6th ward. 

1860. Q. Of what country are you a native ? 

A. Ireland. , 

1861. Q. How long have you been in Yew York ? 

A. Since 1849 or 1850. 

1862. Q. What proportion of the men in your district are of foreign 
birth ? 

A. A large majority of them are Irish. 

1863. Q. State to what extent persons who came to be registered this 
year had naturalization papers. 

A. A great many. 

1864. Q. State whether persons were registered who ought not to have 
been. 

A. I cannot swear that a great many were registered who had no 
right to be registered; but a great many voted who had no right to 
vote. They did it by coming from other districts and taking up other 
men’s papers. 

1865. Q. How many were registered in that district ? 

A. Some 872. 

1866. Q. Do you know how many votes were polled ? 

A. About 767. 

1867. Q. State to what extent you are acquainted with the people in 
your district. 

A. I know the majority of them. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1868. Q. Do you know how the number registered this year compared 

with the number registered last year? i 

12 T 


178 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


A. I expect there were some entitled to vote this year who were not 
entitled last year. 

1869. Q. Were there anything like 250 ? 

A. I should think not. 

By the Ohaieman: 

1870. Q. State if there was any interriii)tioii from any of the in¬ 
spectors. 

A. I think there was. There was a great deal of favoring one party 
above the other i)arty. Myself and my partner were trying to stop it as 
much as we could; and I think if the others had acted as I did there 
would not have been the large vote cast that there was. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1871. Q. The others wanted to go fast and you wanted to go slow ? 

A. I wanted that every one who had a right to vote should vote, and 

that those who had no right to vote should not vote. 

By the Ohaieman : 

1872. Q. State if any threats or demonstrations of personal violence 
were made against you. 

A. There were, from both inside and outside. They threatened me 
all the day; and when the polls were closed a committee came and 
took me out lest I should be killed. 1 do believe they would have 
killed me. They called me a black this and a black that. 

By Mr. Keee : 

1873. Q. Are you a republican or a democrat? 

A. 1 am a republican. 

1874. Q. How long have you been a republican ? 

A. I guess I am a republican about 10 or 12 years. 

1875. Q. What is your business? 

A. 1 am in the city express business. 

187G. Q. Who were your colleagues on the board of inspectors ? 

A. One was Mr. Joralemon, who was put there as a republican, and I 
suppose did the best he could; but I wish he had been a little smarter. 
The democratic inspectors Avere Donnelly and Mr. Brophy. 

1877. Q. Was it your rule whenever you suspected a man not to be a 
legal voter to make him show his natiHalization paiiers, so that you could 
examine them? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1878. Q. And if the case was suspicious would you not swear him, so 
as to make him answer under oath ? 

A. I swore some men who had papers, knowing that the papers did 
not belong to them. Some of them refused to give us the i^aper, laughed 
at me and Avent away. 

1879. Q. Hoav many of this class were there? 

A. I didn’t catch many of them—three or four or five; we would liaA^e 
caught double three or four or five, but that my colleague across the 
Avay would vouch for these fellows. 

1880. Q. Was that done by your republican colleagues or by your 
democratic colleagues? 

A. By my democratic colleagues. 

1881. Q. Were they truthful men ? 

A. Yes, sir, I dare say they were. 

1882. Q. Was your republican colleagTie as sharp a man as you are? 

A. I should think he was sharper because he aa as an American. 

1883. Q. That doesn’t follow, by any means. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


179 


A. Well, I wish he was as sharp as I was. 

1884. Q. Did your board ever register one man without such an 
examination as satisfied the majority of the board that he ought to be 
registered ‘f 

A. Ko, we did not. 

1885. Q. State generally what you know of one single man having 
voted in your district who was not entitled to vote. 

A. Yes, sir; I know a good many. 

188G. Q. Tell us who they are. 

A. I cannot tell you. 

1887. Q. Can you tell one of them? 

A. I cannot name one of them. 

1888. Q. How many of that kind voted? 

A. I guess as good as two or three hundred. Between them and 
repeaters there were as many as from two hundred to two hundred and 
fifty. 

1889. Q. How do you know, if you do not know one man? 

A. Here is my book. I find from 472, 474, and 476 Pearl street, and 
502 Park street, there were more men registered than lived in those 
houses. 

1890. Q. Will you furnish the committee with the number and names 
of persons voting from each of those houses ? 

A. 1 will make up the list, and furnish it to the committee on Monday. 

[This witness did not again appear before the committee.] 

David Crowley sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1892. Question. Are you a United States deputy marshal? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

1893. Q. How long have you resided in this city? 

A. About 11 years. 

1894. Q. In the office of the clerk of the supreme court of this city 
there are five applications on file, purporting to be apjdications for natu¬ 
ralization of Patrick O’Brien, J. J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alexander 
17. McCann, Adolf Slechelseine; the witness whose affidavit is on file to 
support these applications is George Hoftinan, No. 61 First avenue. New 
York; state if you have made impiiry at 61 First avenue as to whether 
there is or has been any such person living there as George Hoffman. 

A. I have; there are two Nos. 61 in First avenue, the old number and 
the new number; the one is a slaughter house, and the other is a candle 
manufactory. I have been at both places, and made due inquiries, and 
found that no such person was ever known there. 

New York, Decemher 28,. 1868. 

Charles E. Loew recalled and examination continued. 

Witness. In answer to your question of Saturday, I now produce the 
original applications, affidavits of applicants and witnesses, and the 
order of the court thereon in the cases in which certificates of citizen 
ship were issued to Daniel O’Donohue, Jacob Schafer, Win. Lukas, 
August A. Sanger, Thos. Surridge, Chas. Fehling, Patrick Duffy, John. 
Winkens, Sebastian Schneider, August Muller, Thos. Schmidt, William, 
Schmidt, Chas. Warneck, Michael Dunn, Hugh Smith, Joseph Herbert, 
Frederick Henney, Henry Beaume, Win. Honig, August Betzel, James. 
Brown, John Lehman, Henry Stern, Gottlieb Kaffenberger, Patrick 
Eafferty, James E. Smith, and Samuel Eeynolds. These are all the 
records that 1 have been asked to produce, with the exception of the 
five that I produced on Saturday last. 


180 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


In regard to the subject of the resolution adopted by the committee 
last Saturday I desire to say I find I am in a very peculiar and 
unpleasant dilemma; that 1 am fettered by State la\AS and statutes 
which make me liable to indictment for allowing papers to be taken from 
the files of the court without the order of the court, I being merely the 
custodian of those papers and subject entirely to the direction of the 
court. While l am willing, as I before stated, to allow the members of 
the committee to make any examination individually of the files, I do 
not think that, without the order of the court, I have any right to allow 
other parties to come in and take temporaiy custody of those papers; 
I have, therefore, prepared a communication to the justices of the supreme 
court, requesting its proper order in the matter, which communication I 
will read to the committee: 

To the justices of the supreme court of the first judicial district: 

The undersigned clerk of your court has been served with the original 
of the following resolution: 

'•‘•Resolved^ That the chairman of this committee be, and hereby is, 
authorized to cause the records and papers in the possession of the 
county clerk of New York, referring to naturalization in the supreme 
court, to be examined, and a list to be made of the name of each person 
so naturalized, his age and residence, and the name and place of resi¬ 
dence of the witness, and the day of the month on which such persons 
were naturalized during the mouth of October.” 

The above is a true copy of a resolution passed this day, (December 
:26, 1808,) at a meeting of the select committee of Congress, appointed 
to investigate alleged frauds at the recent presidential election in the 
State of New York, held in the office of the county clerk of the county 
vof New York. 

Attest: JOHN I. DAVENPORT, Cleric, 

The undersigned is the mere custodian of the records of the court, and 
its oMcer. He is fettered by certain State statutes providing how papers 
in his office shall be filed, kept, examined, and copies made, and making 
him eustodian merely for the purpose of searches by his own authorized 
deputies and for their production on order of court, and then oidy in his 
custody or that of his statutory assistants. 

He iias been advised by the chairman that the chairman considers 
bimself empowered to select any person and anj" number of persons to 
examine and take temporary custody of i)apers in his office, and take 
copies thereof, and all without the assistance from or participation in the 
.said proceeding by the undersigned or his clerk. 

Being in doubt how he shall act in the premises, and the court being, 
as he is advised and believes, the rightful authority to order the under¬ 
signed ill and about the premises, he begs its instruction by proper order. 
The undersigned begs, however, to express his entire willingness that 
the chairman of the committee, or any member of the same, may (ex comita) 
do whatever they please in the way of furthering the object of said reso¬ 
lution, but to add that it is an unprecedented course to allow irresponsi¬ 
ble persons, not parties in interest, or their attorneys, to handle records 
and papers on file in this court, and, as he is advised, contrary to a State 
statute^ aiid thereby possibly interfere with their validity or subject them 
to interpolation, spoliation, and loss, and especially so as to records which 
are bnportant muniments of personal rights and of real estate. 

Respectfidly, yours. 

New York, JDecemher 26,1868. 


CHARLES E. LOEW. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


181 


That is my communication to the court, and I am awaiting its order 
in that matter. 

By the Chairman : 

Question. Will you refer the committee to the law which you suppose 
you would violate by submitting for inspection to such persons as may 
be designated by the chairman, the papers which I have asked to be 
inspected, giving volume and page ? 

Answer. I will send you the law. 

Q. I will prepare a written communication to you, which I will ask 
you to submit to the court with your statement. 

A. I will do so with pleasure. 

The chairman prepared, signed, and delivered to the witness a com¬ 
munication, of which the following is a coi)y: 


I^EW York, December 28, 1868. 


Dear Sir : In explanation of the communication which you have this 
day submitted to the committee of Congress charged with the duty of 
investigating alleged election frauds, you will please advise the supreme 
court that it is deemed necessary that a list should be made of the names 
and places of residence of the witnesses and applicants in matters of 
naturalization in the supreme court in the month of October. That to 
make these lists I will select clerks of integrity and good character, and, 
if you or the court require, these gentlemen shall be attorneys and coun¬ 
sellors at law—officers of the court. I further desire you to state that I 
do not exi)ect or intend that said clerks shall take the custody of the 
naturalization papers in your office, but merely that they shall make the 
lists indicated in the resolution of this committee, of which you have an 
attested copy, from the papers themselves and in the presence of your¬ 
self or such of your deputies as you shall designate, and in your office, 
or at such other place as you shall direct. 

I desire also that the papers shall be submitted to the inspection of 
one or more experts in chirography, of high character, skill, and integ¬ 
rity, and, if you or the court desire, the names of these clerks and experts 
shall be fiumished at once, and would be herein Avere they at this time 
selected. 

I respectfully ask you to submit this communication to the supreme 
court in general term, if that be the proper tribunal, and as it is desira¬ 
ble the examination should be made at an early hour, I express the hope 
that it may be convenient to have a s^ieedy decision. 

Eespectfully, yours. 


WM. LAWEENCE, Chairman, 


Charles E. Loew, Esq., County Cleric. 

The following are the names of the applicants and witnesses in the 
papers iiresented by the witness: 


APPLICANTS. 


WITNESSES. 


John Lehman, 160 East 4th street. 
Henry Stern, 168 Norfolk street. 
James Brown, 18 Delancey street. 
Wm. Honig, 32 Christie street. 
August Betzel, 114 Rivington street. 
Frederick Henney, 219 2d avenue. 
Joseph Herbert, 318 East 31st street. 
John Doolin, 509 Washington street. 
James McCart}^ 318 East 31st street. 
Hugh Smith, 318 East 31st street. 

M. J. Dunn, 317 3d avenue. 


Jacob Diehl, 207 avenue C. 
Jacob Foerster, 76 avenue B. 
John King, 318 West 41st street. 


Same. 


Same. 

Robert Blume, 24 Clinton street. 


Same. 

Owen Gannon, 64 Watts street. 
Robert Blume, 24 Clinton street. 


Same. 

Same. 


182 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Charles Fehliiio;, 10 Dominick street. 

D. O’Donoline, 44th street and 1st avenue. 
John Noelsch, 430 C street. 

Wm. Lukas, 283 East Houston street. 
Patrick Duffy, 410 9th avenue. 

.Jacob Schafer, 9.5 C street. 

Henry Baun, 46 Eldridge street. 

Charles Warneck, 263 East Houston street. 
Wm. Schmidt, 418 C street. 

Thomas Schmidt, 108 Bovrery street. 

August Muller, 543 5th street. 

John Winkens, 534 3d avenue. 

Sebastian Schneider, 3d avenue. 

August A. Sanger, 672 1 Ith avenue. 

Thomas Surridge, 528 West 29th street. 
Gottlieb Kaffenberger, 291 E. Houston street. 
Patrick Rafferty, 400 3d avenue. 

James K. Smith, 75 3d avenue. 

Samuel Reynolds, 21 Prince street. 


James McCabe, 111 Lawrence street 
John Mackelson, 225 22d street. 

Carl Spoer, 59 Attorney street, 

John Wolf, 248 2d street. 

Edward Gonnoud, 43 7th avenue. 

Jacob Dahl, 527 7th street. 

John King, 318 West 41st street. 

Charles Juls, 54 Carmine street. 

Jacob Steiger, 137 Pell street. 

William Henry, 355 Broome street. 

John G. Diercks, 44 avenue B. 

George Hill, 374 3d avenue. 

Henry Weir, 74 th street, near 10th avenue 
Julius Bock, 164 Attorney street. 

Peter Burke, 2 4th avenue. 

Rudolph Watke, 137 1st avenue. 

Maurice Baker, 62 Washington street. 


Same. 

Same. 


John Jay sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1900. Question. State what you know of the arrest of S. S. Uriny on 
the day of the last presidential election in this city. 

Answer. I went to the polls about 11 o’clock. There were but few 
persons before me waiting to vote, and I waited until there was but one, 
Avhose vote was challenged. Mr. IJrmy was presiding at the polls receiv¬ 
ing the votes. This vote was challenged by Mr. Urmy, and the oath was 
administered by him. The vote was then received and deposited. As 
the man was moving away Mr. Urmy said, ‘‘Stop a moment! officer, 
detain that man.” One of the other inspectors of election said, “ Officer, 
let the man alone; you have no business to touch him.” Mr. Urmy said, 
“ Detain him.” The officer did so. There was a delay of a few moments, 
while Mr. Urmy appeared to be consulting his colleagues and examining 
the books. Presently he handed to the officer a paper and said, “ Here 
is your warrant for the arrest of this man for illegal voting.” The inspec¬ 
tor, who had sj^oken before, said, “ Officer, let the man alone; you have 
no right to arrest him.” Urmy said, “ Officer, do your duty,” and the 
officer led the man aside. I then handed my vote to Mr. Urmy, and he 
asked me if I would wait for a moment for a police officer avIio resided 
in the district, but aaUo had to go on duty, Avhich I did. That police 
officer’s vote was received; I then voted. After my Yote was receiA^ed the 
man behind me handed in his vote. About that time there Avas some 
disturbance about the door, and Urmy said, “Officers, preseiwe order.” 
Presently there Avas a rush made into the room; three, or four, or liA^e 
jjersons rushed behind the counter, on which the poll-books were placed, 
and one of them laid his hands on Urmy and said, “I arrest you; go 
Avitli me.” Urmy said, “ Take jowr hand off; you have no business to 
touch me while I am in the discharge of my duty.” The officer said, 
“We’ll see about that; come along.” The whole place was in confusion. 
They began to handle Urmy very roughly, and I said, “AVhat is it all 
about; where is your authority f ’ I think it Avas in ansAver to that remark 
of mine that the person Avho arrested Urmy pulled out a paper and said, 
“Here is my warrant;” but before Urmy had an opportunity of looking 
at it, he was dragged from behind the counter and through the door into 
the street, by tAvo or three of these men. I folloAved them into the middle 
of the street, AAdiere they hailed an omnibus, to learn Urmy’s name. The 
officer Avho had charge of him (and I think there Avas one on either side) 
•objected to my speaking to him, and threatened to arrest me. Urmy Avas 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


183 


hurried into an omnibus, which was driven off at a rapid pace. I went back 
to the polls and asked IJrmy’s name, which was given. I think it is S. S. * 
Urmy. I then j^topped at the Union League club-house, where I saw one 
of the members, and went with him to the Fifth Avenue Hotel, where I 
saw Governor Fenton and two other gentlemen, to whom I narrated the 
circumstances; and then I was told that Judge James was sitting at the 
Metropolitan Hotel. I went there, I think in company with Judge Hil¬ 
ton, and found'Judge James and a number of gentlemen at the Metro¬ 
politan Hotel, holding court at chambers. I made an affidavit to the 
facts, and a writ of habeas corpus was issued, addressed to the sheriff 
and the keeper of the jail. Then I went with the officer, to whom it was 
given, to the police headfiuarters, where I saw some of the commission¬ 
ers, and I found that they had already learned of the fact by telegraph, 
and that Urmy had been taken to the Ludlow street jail. The habeas 
corpus was made returnable at 3 o’clock; at 3 I returned to the hotel, 
and soon after Urmy was brought in, I think by the keeper of the jail, 
who made a return to the writ. I saw the writ, and it was to the effect 
that Urmy was arrested by virtue of an order thereto annexed, which 
was a warant executed by two persons, who I understood were his asso¬ 
ciate inspectors in that district. Judge James, after reading the return, 
remarked that it was an infamous proceeding, and he hoped that Urmy 
would vindicate his rights at law. [To Mr. Kerr.] It was on the return 
to the writ of habeas corpus that the judge made that remark. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1901. Q. Does that judge reside in this city ? 

A. He does not. 

1902. Q. Is he in the habit of holding court here ? 

A. I think not. 

1903. Q. Where does he live? 

A. In one of the northern counties of the State, I think. 

1901. Q. Was he brought to the city by application of the Union 
League Club, for that day ? 

A. I do not know at whose request he came down. There was no 
action on the subject by the Union League Club. 

1905. Q. Had you ever known him to hold court in this city before ? 

A. I think not; he may have done so, but not to my knowledge. 

1906. Q. Do you know as a fact whether he was or was not brought 
here for political purposes in connection with the election? 

A. I understand that he was requested to come. 

By the Chairman : 

1907. Q. State what you know yourself. 

Witness. I know nothing. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1908. Q. If you had such information, where did you get it ? 

A. I am not quite certain, but I think Colonel Cannon told me that 
he believed Judge James was coming. 

1909. Q. Did he tell you he had been sent for and requested to come 
down here? 

A. I am not quite certain whether it was Colonel Cannon, but I was 
told by some gentlemen belonging to the republican party that Jndge 
James was here, and would remain at the request of some gentlemen in 
order to protect the rights of the republicans, should it be necessary, 
during the election. 

1910. Q. Where did he hold his court? 


184 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. At the Metropolitan Hotel. 

1911. Q. Hid the judge pretend to go into any puhli9 court-rooms of 
the city or county to hold his court! 

A. I do not know. I only know what I saw j I saw him at the Metro¬ 
politan Hotel. 

1912. Q. He did not come down and hold a general court for general 

purposes . 

A. I never heard of his doing so. 

1913. Q, Ho you know of his transacting any other business than that 
to which you have referred ? 

WlZ^Q.^mat was it? 

A. A number of parties were brought before him on that day for ille¬ 
gal voting. 

1915. Q. Ho you know to what party they belonged ? 

A. I cannot say. 

1916. Q. Hid not Colonel Cannon tell you they belonged to the demo¬ 
cratic party ? 

A. He did not. 

1917. Q. Hid not Judge James himself tell you so? 

A. Ko, he did not. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1918. Q. Has he held court in this city since that day? 

A. Not that I am aware of. 

By the Chairman : 

1919. Q. After IJrmy had challenged this voter, was there time to get 
out any warrant until he was arrested? 

A. I do not think that more than five minutes had elapsed. 

1920. Q. Are you a lawyer ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1921. Q. Is there any law which authorizes an inspector to issue a 
warrant for the arrest of Urmy? 

A. Not the slightest. 

1922. Q. State if you know any reason why Judge James was brought 
here? 

A. It was suggested that ^some city judges were iireparing to issue 
mandamuses to inspectors, to comiiel them to receive votes which they 
had refused to register, and that some interference with the election by 
some of the city judges, in that and in other Avays, might render it wise 
for the public safety that an iudei^endent judge from the rural districts 
should be here. 

1923. Q. State what is the reputation of Judge James as an impartial 
and honest judge. 

A. I think it is A^ery high—very high, indeed. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1924. Q. Who were the officers who made this arrest of Urmy? 

A. I understood they were deputy sherifi's, and that one of them was 
a brother of Sheriff O’Brien. 

1925. Q. Hid you see anything Avhich, in your judgment, would jus¬ 
tify the arrest of Urmy? 

A. I saw nothing whatever to justify it. The proceedings were con¬ 
ducted Avith perfect quietness on the part of Urmy. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 185 

192G. Q. Is tliero any law wliich authorizes TJrmy to have a voter 
arrested 

A. I believe it is his duty under a statute of the State. 

1927. Q. Will you refer us to the section*? 

[Witness referred to the seyenth section of the statute of May 13, 
18G5, Avhich i^rovides that anj^ person who shall wilfully make any false 
statement in reference to his right to vote shall be deemed guilty of a 
misdemeanor, and shall be punished by a fine of $50, or by imprison¬ 
ment for 10 days; also to section 13th of the same laAv, which provides 
that whoever shall Avilfully swear falsely on such examination shall be 
deemed guilty of peijury.] 

George Bliss, jr., sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

1928. Question. What is your profession? 

Answer. I am a lawyer, and have been practicing in this city for the 
last 13 years. 

1929. Q. State your knowledge of police matters, and of any efforts 
made to prevent illegal voting, and of the manner in which persons 
registered. 

A. My knowledge of police matters arises from my being the attorney 
of the board of health and the board of excise, which is composed in 
part of the board of police. Their offices are in the same building. My 
relations, therefore, to police matters have been rather intimate for two 
or three years. I have been there every day during that time, Avith 
rare exceptions. 

1930. Q. State hoAV registrars have been imposed on by persons who 
were not entitled to Amte. 

A. I Avas actiA^ely concerned in endeavors to prevent frauds at the 
elections. Having A^ery active charge of that matter through the city, 
my attention was of course directed to it. I found this state of things: 
I Avould receive information that a man was intending to register fraud¬ 
ulently at a given place, and would send that information to the police. 
A man would come up and say he liA^ed at a certain place. The inspec¬ 
tor would question him as to Avhether he lived there, and would admin¬ 
ister an oath to him. 

]VIr. Boss. I object to this second-hand testimony. 

Witness. I saAv two or three instances of this kind. The inspector 
would challenge the man and swear him, and the man would swear that 
he lived at such a place. The inspector haAung only an unsworn state¬ 
ment handed to him, the board considered that it was bound to allow 
the man to register. Before the election, inquiry enabled us to ascer¬ 
tain that the man actually did not live at the place from Avhich he 
claimed to vote. He Avould come up on election day, be challenged, and 
SAA^ear his vote in. [To Mr. Kerr.] I saw that in a single case. I did 
not see the same man AA^ho presented himself and AA^as registered come 
on election day and Amte; but I saAv the thing done partly in the regis¬ 
try and partly in the Acting by different men. Under the registry law, 
the inspectors are obliged, if a man avIio has registered swears his Amte 
in, to take it. The inspector Avho has charge of the books then requires 
the police to arrest the man. Another inspector says, “ Don’t arrest 
him!” and it is a question of republicans and democrats, the board 
being divided two and tAvo. In one of the cases Avhich I saAV at one 
poll, the officer declined to make an arrest, as the majority did not 
direct him to do so. In the other case, the officer did make the arrest. 


186 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The party was taken before a justice and held to bail, and I know by 
general report that he, with all the others, was discharged the next day. 
That is substantially the state of the case as it prevailed at the last elec¬ 
tion at all the polls in this city. I say that from having had before me 
and talked with nine tenths of the republican registrars of this city. 

1931. Q. State how many republican wards there were in the city at 
the last i)residential election? 

A. One; I think the 15th; that had not been so for, certainly, two 
elections previously. The republicans made the largest relative gains 
in that ward that they made anywhere in the city. 

1932. Q. Are yon acquainted with the sheriff of this county. 

A. Yes, sir. 

1933. Q. Gan yon state an;\ffhing of his antecedents ? 

A. IS’ot of my own knowledge. 

1934. Q. Do yon know of his having been in the penitentiary? 

A. Not of my own knowledge. 

1935. Q. Can yon state whether he appointed deputy sheriffs on the 
day of election; and if so, can yon give us any idea of the number ? 

A. I cannot give an idea of the number. I saw a considerable num¬ 
ber of persons who claimed to be special deputies, and who had some 
kind of authority. I saw others who also claimed to be special depu¬ 
ties, and who when asked for their authority had none. 

1936. Q. Do you know anything of the characters of these men 
politically and otherwise? 

A. Not of my own knowledge. I saw three or four of them that I 
thought were about as hard-looking men as ever I saw in my life, though 
they may be reputable citizens for all I know. 

1937. Q. State what you know of the way in which naturalization 
was effected in the courts of this city. 

A. My first knowledge of it, this fall, was in the court of common 
Xffeas, where I saw the thing conducted by Judge Barrett with consider¬ 
able care, I thought, and x)robably with all the care which could be 
exx)ected; so much care that after it had gone on for a few days the 
naturalization substantially stoi)ped. After that I had occasion to find 
Judge McCunn in the superior court ou other business. I went first into 
the superior court-room over the engine-house. I found a large crowd 
there, with Judge Garvin on the bench. As I was about to go away 
Judge Garvin called me to the bench beside him. I stayed there for 
perhaps ten mioutes seeing the process of naturalization. The witness 
and the man to.be naturalized both came uj:) and handed to the judge 
the application and the affidavit. The judge put some questions to the 
witness very rayndly. He put questions as to the length of time they 
were in the country, &c., and the judge thought he did it fairly, because 
he spoke to me about it. It seemed to me that the questions were so 
rax)idly put that it was utterly impossible for the men, being in all cases 
foreigners, to understand them. They were put almost as fast in admin¬ 
istering the oath, You swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and 
nothing but the truth.” Learning that Judge McCuun was in the com¬ 
mon council chamber, holding another branch of the same court, I went 
there and found a very large crowd in the entry, gathered about the two 
doors leading into the room. They were apx^arently letting them in by 
one door and out by the other. I went to the door by which they were 
coming out, and with some little difficulty I succeeded in persuading the 
officer to let me in. I took a seat there and found a string of people 
coming up. They came in at the other door, and when they came within 
eight or ten feet of the judge the Bible was put in their hands, and per- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


187 


liaps a dozen or fifteen were sworn at a time to make true answers. They 
then passed np in front of the judge. The judge liad before him a 
large i)ile of these applications. He wonld take them np and ask ques¬ 
tions about them and the witness would answer. |To Mr. Eoss.] lie 
took them np one at a time, and at first I noticed that the question he 
asked was, ‘‘Do you know this man*?” The witness had no means of 
knowing who the man was that was named in the paper before the 
judge. I lool^ed about to see where the men to be naturalized were, and 
it struck me that the men to be naturalized were not in the room. I 
then went to one of the officers to ascertain the fact. Just as 1 was going 
to him I noticed a little noise at the door at which they were coming in, 
and heard one of the officers say to a man, “Go out.” The man said, 
“I want to be naturalized.” “Well,” said the officer, “where is your 
witnessf” “Here he is,” said the man. “Well, we do not want you 
here,” said the officer, “go out;” and he kept the man out and let the 
witness in. I then found that in no case was the person to be naturalized 
allowed to come into the room. After a time the judge adopted the plan 
of asking the witness how long he had known the man—giving his name. 
I may be mistaken, but I thought he did not give the name until he saw 
me sitting there. It seemed so to me. It went on for fifteen or twenty 
minutes in that way. The witnesses were asked the questions less 
rapidly than before Judge Garvin, but a peculiarity in Judge McGunn’s 
court was that the x^ersons naturalized were not x>resent, and there were 
no means, of course, of identifying who the man was. The witnesses 
would then ask for their x^ai^ers, and the officers would tell them, “N'o, 
you can’t have the xiaxiers.” The pax)ers were handed to a clerk in the 
court, then to an officer, and then were taken out to a room across the 
entry. There were some of them who went and took the oath of allegi¬ 
ance before the clerk. I cannot specify any man who got his X3ai)er 
without taking the oath of allegiance, but while I was standing there in 
the entry there were certainly many more x)eople coming out with their 
l)ai)ers than had taken the oath of allegiance. I ought to say that Judge 
McCunn, after he recognized me, called me ux), and I did my business 
with him. In the course of the conversation he said, “You see how we 
do this with all the legal forms, and there ought to be a stop of this 
abuse of us in the x^ax^ers.” I timed him. The first five minutes I was 
there he naturalized 13 men, and the second five minutes 15 men. In 
many cases the same party axipeared as a witness for several x:)ersons; 
and in two or three instances a man ax)X)eared as a witness in behalf of 
another, and x^retty soon that other apxieared in behalf of the first one. 
Judge McCunn told me that he x^rox^osed to stay there until midnight 
if it was necessary, as these x>oor men could not afford to leave their 
Avork. The x^apers Av^ere taken into the room across the entry, and the 
person to be naturalized w^as sux)posed to go in there before the clerk and 
take the oath of allegiance. I liaA^e said that I saAv very many more 
pax^ers brought out of that room complete than there Avere xiersons who 
took the oath of allegiance. In other Avords it seemed to me that the 
oath of allegiance was not taken by more than half the number of x)ersons 
for whom x^axiers Avere brought into the room. That was the impression it 
made upon me. In one case, Avhen a man was Avaiting to be naturalized, 

I asked to see the xiai)er Avliich he had in his hand, and on examination 
I found that it Avas a soldier’s paper, and it referred to the fact that he 
had served in the army one year and had been honorably discharged, as 
apx^eared by his discharge thereto annexed. That Avas about the language. 
The first paper I saw had a certificate dated a year before stating that the 
person named in it had surrendered his discharge for the purpose of collect- 


188 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ing bounty, and subsequently I saw some of these papers with nothing 
whatever annexed to them. 

1938. Q. State how many applications for naturalization were rejected. 

A. While I was there I think that one application was rejected. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1939. Q. You stated some two cases which you had witnessed at the 
registry and voting i^laces. 

A. Yes, sir. 

1910. Q. State at what polling place these transpired. 

A. One of them was in the 21st ward, on the west side, but I cannot 
give the number of the district. That was the case where the inspectors 
did not believe that the man lived at the i)lace indicated. There was 
no arrest there because he swore his name on to the registry, and the 
inspector had simply the statement furnished him that the man did not 
live there. The inspector had no knowledge that the statement was 
untrue and did not deem it right to arrest him. 

1911. Q. That is, the republican register had a minute furnished by 
the Loyal League to challenge the man ! 

A. I suppose that the inspector was a republican, but whether he got 
his information from the Loyal League or not I do not know, and, in fact, 
I do not know what you call the Loyal League. 

1912. Q. The inspector had a memorandum to challenge this man I 

A. He had some information that the man did not live at the place 
named. 

1913. Q. And he challenged him and the majority of the board over¬ 
ruled him ? 

A. He questioned him very sharply as to how long he had lived at 
the place, and made him take an oath, and having taken the oath, all 
the inspectors agreed, I think, to register. I think the man who chal¬ 
lenged him said something like this: “I don’t believe him, but I do not 
know how we can go back of his oath.” 

1911. Q. You have no knowledge of yoiu’ own but that he was a 
legal voter? 

A. Bo, sir. 

1915. Q. What was the trouble in the other ward ? 

A. In the other ward the information had been given from our com¬ 
mittee, and had been also derived from a man who claimed to have 
had charge of registering. The man was challenged, and swore his 
vote in. 

1910. Q. Then I understand you to say they caused his arrest? 

A. In that case he was arrested. 

1917. Q. By whose direction and authority? 

A. One of the inspectors. 

1918. Q. A republican inspector ? 

A. It seems that he was a republican inspector. 

1919. Q. What was the number of that voting precinct? 

A. That was a precinct in the 6th or 7th ward. 

1950. Q. Have you any knowledge of your own that the man was not 
a legal voter ? 

A. Bo, sir. 

1951. Q. These are all the frauds of which you have any personal 
knowledge in any of the wards of the city of Bew York? 

A. I think so; I was about the last man that they w ould have given 
any personal knowledge of frauds to. 

1952. Q. Was there any affidavit or eomplaint made before this man 
was arrested by order of the republican inspector ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


189 


A. I think not. 

195G. Q. It was done on his mere order ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1957. Q. Did yon preside over the board of republican inspectors that 
were called together at yonr instance'? 

A. I was a member of a committee whose business it was to endeavor 
to prevent fraudulent voting. I presided over no meeting. I met por¬ 
tions of the republican inspectors nearly every evening for two or three 
w^eeks prior to the election. There was no chairman; there was no 
imesiding whatever. I addressed them. 

1958. Q. By what authority of law did yon have a right to call the 
inspectors together? 

A. Hone whatever. 

1959. Q. Still you issued your mandate directing them to come before 
you for instructions ? 

A. Ho, sir. I issued a notice which was almost precisely in these 
words: You are respectfully invited to attend a meeting of republican 
inspectors, at room number 15, Fifth Avenue Hotel, on such an evening, 
for the purpose of consultation.” 

1900. Q. Were you one of the inspectors? 

A. Ho, sir. 

1961. Q. Who gave you authority to call the inspectors together ? 

A. Hobody. 

1962. Q. It was self-assumed? 

A. Self-assumed, entirely. It was very much the same authority that 
A. Oakey Hall had in calling the democratic inspectors to Tammany 
Hall; with this difference, that we called them together on week days, 
and he on Sunday afternoon. 

1963. Q. Did you direct the officers whom you called together that 
they should challenge voters? 

A. I gave them no directions. I advised them that in all cases where 
they had reason to think, from any cause, that the man was not a legal 
voter, they should challenge him. 

1964. Q. Did you direct any of these election officers to make an arrest 
of persons whom they suspected not to be legal voters ? 

A. Ho, sir; I could not direct them to do anything. 

1965. Q. Did you instruct them or advise them ? 

A. I advised them, whenever they had sufficient evidence that men 
were violating the law, to cause their arrest. 

1966. Q. Can you give the law on the subject giving the election 
boards the right to make arrests ? 

A. They are expressly authorized by the revised statutes of the State. 
The old election law is in the revised statutes, and the registration act 
has been superiinx^osed upon the old election law. It dates only from 
1865. Section 12, of chapter 740, of the laws of 1865, provides that the 
election board shall have the same powers in preserving order as are 
given to inspectors of election for preserving order on election days. 

1967. Q. Can you tell about the time when you were in Judge McCunids 
court ? 

A. I should think it was about the 10th of October. It was within 
two or three days of Judge McGunri'S return from Euro})e. [To Mr. 
Kerr.] I should say there were from 100 to 125 persons naturalized in 
the way I have described. I saw a good many others go in while I was 
in tlie entry, and I suppose they went through the same process. 

[Witness refers to Be vised Statutes, part 1, chapter 6, title 4, article 
3, section 38 j in fifth Edwards, Eevised Statutes, folio 1, page 433, 


190 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


wliicli provides tliat if any person refuses to obey tlie lawful com¬ 
mand of the inspectors, or disturbs their proceedings, the inspectors 
may make an order directing the sheriff or the constable of the county 
to take the iierson so offending into custody. The 37th section directs 
that the inspectors shall possess full authority to maintain regularity and 
order, and to enforce obedience to their lawful commands during the 
election, and during the canvass of the votes j and that it shall be the 
duty of every inspector to challenge any person offering to vote, whom 
he shall know or suspect to be not duly qualified.] 

By Mr. Koss: 

1968. Q. The point of inquiry I made was as to the authority of an 
officer of election to order a man arrested Avhen he had voted and was 
going away from the polls. 

A. As to that I cannot say; I suppose there is no such statutory pro¬ 
vision, but I suppose it is held in this State to be the common law^ to 
do so. 

1969. Q. That is all the law you find on the subject? 

A. That is all the statute law I now find; I do not think there is any 
si:)ecial act giving power to order an arrest. 

Kew York, Monday^ December 28, 1868. 

Samuel A. Egberts sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1965. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. I was inspector in the 2d district of the 17th ward. 

1966. Q. I now present to you a paper purporting to be a certificate 
of naturalization to Charles Storm, dated the 16th of October, 1868, signed 
Charles A. Loew, clerk, under the seal of the supreme court; state what 
you know of it. 

A. This man Storm presented himself at the board of registration on 
the 3d of October and desired to be registered. I asked him his name 
and place of residence; and I also asked him if he Avas a natAe or foreign- 
born. He said he Avas a foreigner, born in Germany. I asked him for his 
lAai)ers. He ])resented me this paper and I asked liim where he obtained 
it. He said that he obtained it at a liquor store, at the corner of Thirty- 
second street and Second avenue. I asked him if he had ever taken out any 
other iiaper than this, and he said he had not. I keiit the paper, and 
told him I Avould preserA^e it. We did not register him. 

1967. Q. State Avhat you knoAv in reference to the presentation of sim¬ 
ilar papers for registration. 

A. AVlien parties came up with newly-issued papers, I questioned 
them as to Avhere they got them, and Avhether they had been before a 
judge. If they ansAvered the question satisfactorily, and were willing to 
take the oath, they were registered. Some said they got their papere at 
the City Hall; but on their beina’ prompted by one of my associates as to 
what building of the City Hall, they Avould say the court building. 
There Avere some 400 voters registered in our district. I do not believe 
that over 100 of them came Avith these new papers. There were other 
old papers; but I refer to the new papers. I questioned all presenting 
these papers, and administered the oath to all who Avere Avilling to 
take it. This man Storm did not take it. He stated that he got the 
paper at a liquor store. We did not administer the oath to him. He 
frankly told where he obtained the paper, and that he had not appeared 
before a court. 

1968. Q. State what proportion of persons who presented naturaliza¬ 
tion papers for registration were challenged or sworn. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


191 


A. Blit very few. 

1969. Q. AVere not registrars liable to register many persons who beld 
fraudulent naturalization papers ? 

A. I should think they were liable to register persons who have been 
illegally naturalized. 

1970. Q. State how it was when they came to vote—whether a few or 
many were challenged. 

A. There were none challenged on election day in the district where 
I was. 

1971. Q. AVhy not ? 

A. We believed that they were legal voters, as we had given them a 
thorough examination on the days of registration. We then scrutinized 
the voters and their x^apers. 

1972. Q. State if you know any facts that led you to sux^pose that it 
would be dangerous to challenge on election day. 

A. I do not know of anything that would have deterred me from 
challenging a voter. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1973. Q. Or deter any one else? 

A. Or any one else. 

By Mr. Boss: 

1974. Q. You say you examined and scrutinized the apx^lications for 
registration under all these new certificates x>retty carefully ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1975. Q. And where there was any doubt you swore them ? 

A. I asked them if they would take the oath. 

1976. Q. Do you think in that way at registration you got rid of all 
the illegal votes ? 

A. I think that our strictness there prevented a great many from 
coming there to be registered. 

1977. Q. And that you kexit your x)olls pretty x^nre ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1978. Q. How many did you reject? 

A. I sux)X^ose we may have rejected some 20, more or less. 

1979. Q. Generally for the reason that they could not tell the x^laces 
where they got their pax3ers ? 

A. There were other questions which they did not answer satisfactorily. 

1980. Q. As to these 20 who were rejected, state on what ground they 
were rejected. 

A. Some few of them were rejected on the ground they had never 
obtained their first papers. 

1981. Q. Did they state whether they had come to the country before 
they were 18 years of age ? 

A. I was very careful to ask them that. Some of them were rejected 
because they had not been long enough in the city or county. 

1982. Q. How about the others ? 

A. The reason for rejecting those we did reject was non-residence and 
illegal papers. 

1983. Q. And do you think that on the whole the vote was XR^etty fair 
in that x)i‘eciuct, and that they were generally legal voters ? 

A. I cannot say, as I did not know them personally j they answered 
the questions. 


192 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


]New York, Monday^ December 28, 1868. 

William D. Sloan sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1084. Question. State Avliat you know of the arrest of Urmy, one of 
the inspectors of elections ^ 

Answer. Urmy was arrested by special deputies of the sheriff; a man 
named James Gilleni offered to vote, and after taking his name Urmy 
told him he would have to challenge his vote; the man swore his vote 
in, and Mr. Urmy immediately ordered his arrest on the ground that he 
was an illegal voter; immediately after that four or five or six men 
came in, and the leading man among them said, ‘‘I arrest you, Urmy 
Urmy declined to go with him, and they took him by the collar and 
dragged him out from behind the counter, thrust him into a stage and 
took him down to the Ludlow street jail, as I was informed; about the 
time tliey were arresting Mr. Urmy, one of the inspectors, named Dalton, 
said to a man named Day, who said he knew the man to be a voter, and 
that he lived in his house, See to it. Day, that that man is not arrested.’^ 

By Mr. Boss: 

1985. Q. This man Gillem was arrested ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

1986. Q. Tliis inspector, Urmy, refused to go with the officers ? 

A. Yes, sir; he declined to go, and said they had no authority to 
arrest him; I counselled him not to go, as I thought they were arresting 
him Avithout any authority, as he Avas doing his duty. 

1987. Q. These men did not use any more force than was necessary to 
take along a man who refused to go with them ? 

A. Yes, sir; they dragged him out bodily, with his back to the ground. 

1988. Q. He could have got up and gone with them, could he not? 

A. Yes, sir; if he chose to do so; when he got to the door his arm 

caught in the door, and he groaned as if he was hurt, and there was 
some excitement; he then said, “I will go along with you now;” he 
lost his hat about that time, too; they did not Avait for him to get to his 
feet, but dragged him along and gave him xAretty rougli handling, I 
thought. 

1989. Q. Had you been employed to give adAuce to election officers ? 

A. I Avas nominally in charge of the district, so to speak. 

1920. Q. Appointed by whom ? 

A. By the organization of the party to which I belong. 

Q. What organization ? 

A. The republican. 

Q. AVhere did it hold its headquarters ? 

A. 179 Lexington avenue. 

Q. Did you haA^e a written commission ? 

A. O, no. 

1921. Q. What kind of instructions had you, and from Avhom ? 

A. I got only general instructions to get our voters out, and see that 
no persons on the other side voted illegally. 

1922. Q. Who gaA^e you these instructions ? 

A. They AAwe given by the executive committee of our organization. 

1923. Q. Then you were not a police officer, or one detailed by the 
sheriff? 

A. No, I was acting as any other citizen. 

1924. Q. You had no office there ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


193 


A. No, sir. 

1925. Q. And no business any more than any other citizen? 

A. No more than any other citizen. 

1926. Q. Still you took it upon yourself to give advice to resist the 
officers of the law ? 

A. I did not recognize them as officers of the law.’ 

1927. Q. But you did recognize these men who arrested the voter 
■Gillem ? 

A. Because they were legally appointed. 

1928. Q. You did not have so much sympathy for him as for the .other 
snan ? 

A. Not by any means. 

1929. Q. He was not on your side in politics ? 

A. I do not know that that influenced me; perhaps it did. 

Stephen M. Crandall sworn and examined. 

By the Chair]RLAN : 

1930. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. I was inspector of election at the last election, but not of reg¬ 
istration. 

1931. Q. State what you know of the arrest of S. S. IJrmy. 

A. On the morning of the election I was checking the list while Urmy 
was acting as chairman of the board. About 10 o^clock a man came to 
vote who gave the name of one of those who was supposed not to live 
where he alleged he did. He was challenged, and Mr. Hrmy swore him. 
He took the oath and Mr. Urmy immediately ordered his arrest; one of 
the democratic inspectors objected to his going without a commitment, 
and Mr. Urmy turned to me and asked me to write a commitment, which 
1 did; as the officer was taking him, I heard some one outside saying 
something about that “ man in the corner.’^ Just at that moment in 
rushed five or six, or may be eight, of the crowd ;*then I surmised wdiat 
they were after, and 1 told the policemen not to allow any more to pass 
behind the counter. They did pass by the police, got behind the counter, 
and claimed Urmy as their prisoner, saying that they were deputy sher¬ 
iffs. Urmy protested against going with them ; they caught him by the 
lapels of his coat and took him out. About an hour after that one of 
the party came back with a paper and showed it to one of the demo- 
eratic inspectors—Mr. Slater, I think it was—who signed it Mr. Urmy 
was released about half past three o’clock, I think. 

1932. Q. State if Urmy did anything else to cause his arrest than to 
challenge this voter. 

A. He did nothing else. 

1933. Q. State if there was anything boisterous in his manner, or disor¬ 
derly in his conduct. 

A. Nothing whatever. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

1934. Q. What kind of a commitment was made for this man Gillem ? 

A. A commitment on one of the blanks furnished by the department 

for that purpose; we had a list of names from the house where he came 
to vote from. 

1935. Q. That list Avas furnished by the republican committee? 

A. No, sir; it AYas token from our books. There were more registered 
from that house than we supposed could well occupy the rooms in it; 1 
learned aftervnrds that tliis man proA^ed to be not a resident of the house.^ 

' 13 T 


194 


ELECTION FRAITDS IN NEW YORK. 


Michael Quinlan sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

193C. Question. Have you a certificate of naturalization ¥ 

Answer. I have, hut not with me. 

1937. Q. Of what country are you a native ? 

A. Ireland. 

1938. Q. Wliere did you get this certificate of naturalization 7 

A. In the City Hall. 

1939. Q. How long have you been in the United Statens? 

A.‘ Six years. 

1940. Q. How old are you? 

A. Twenty-three years. 

1941. Q, What questions were asked by the judge when you got your 
naturalization papers ? 

A. No questions except when I was taking my oath against all foreign- 
powers, and particularly the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland. 

1942. Q. Who was your Avitness ! 

A. My brother. 

1943. Q. What questions were asked of him ? 

A. Whether he kneAv me, and whether I was of good mond character. 

1944. Q. Was that all? 

A. That was all. 

1945. Q. Did you ever get out your first papei‘S ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Ross: 

1946. Q. Were you under 18 yeai*s when you came hei*e? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Nathaniel Jarvis, Jr., sAvom and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

1947. Question. What is your official position7 

Answer. I am clerk of the court of common pleas in this city, and have 
been since 1850. 

1948. Q. Who is judge of that court? 

A. There are three judges—Daly, Brady, and Barrett. 

1949. Q. State Avhat party you and they act with. 

A. I suppose they do not act Avith any party judicially j they wei*e 
elected by the democratic party. 

1950. Q. Can you state Avhat number of persons were naturalized in 
your court during October, 1868 ? 

A. From the 1st of June to the 21st of October the number was 2,987. 
There were but few naturalized during the preceding part of the year. 

1951. Q. Will you furnish the committee with the number of persoius 
naturalized each year for the past three years, and the number natural¬ 
ized each day during the month of October, 1868 ? 

A. Certainly, sir, with great pleasure. 

1952. Q. State what proportion of naturalizations, prior to this year, 
was done in the court of common pleas as compared with the other courts. 

A. Prior to this year I suppose the common pleas naturalized more 
than the other courts, being the county court, and being the court in 
which most of the declarations of intention are made, and being con¬ 
stantly in session. This and the superior court were then the only two 
courts that did naturalize. The supreme court never did so, in my memory, 
until this year. Tliis year we naturalized very few comparatively. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 195 

1953. Q. Can you state any reason why that class of business was done 
more in the other courts this year and less in yours ? 

A. I cannot state any reason; I may have an impression. I don’t 
think we naturalized them rapidly enough. I cannot give any other 
reason than that. We have but three judges, and the other courts have 
more. 

1954. Q. Will you permit the committee to inspect the naturalization 
papers in your office ? 

A. Yes, sir; I will be delighted to have them do so. 

1955. Q. Will you permit the persons who may be designated by the 
chairman of this committee, to go into your office and in your i)reseuce, 
or in the presence of such clerks as you may designate, make a list of 
the names and places of residence of the persons natiwalized, and the 
names and places of residence of the witnesses f 

A. Certainly; I shall be very happy to assist them. 

1966. Q. Describe the mode in which naturalization is done in your 
court. 

A. Yes, sir; as it always has been done within my memory. In the 
first instance, the apifiicant presents himself to the clerk, and the clerk 
asks the witness whether he has known the applicant for five years; 
whether he has resided in this city for the i)ast year, and whether he 
has been out of the United States any time within five years. The uni¬ 
form custom of our office and of our court has been to swear the witness 
in such case to answer the truth touching the questions put to him in the 
matter of the application of A B to become a citizen. The papers are 
sent to the court-room, and the applicant and his witness are both called 
up by the judge and examined, each in the hearing of the other; and if 
the answers are satisfactory to the court, the judge orders the apifiicant 
to be admitted to citizenship. He then returns to the clerk’s office, and 
we give him a certificate of naturalization, signed and sealed. 

1967. Q. State if there has been in all cases oral examination of wit¬ 
nesses in addition to swearing to the affidavit. 

A. Always; and the judges have their marks, as in the cases of minors, 
&c. They take the age of the witness of the aiiplicant and the length of 
time he has been in the countrj^, and they put it in the papers themselves. 

[Witness produces forms of papers used for naturalization in the court 
of common pleas.] 

1968. (^. State if these blank forms are substantially similar to those 
used in the other courts. 

A. One of the other courts has adopted the forms which we use. 

1969. Q. State what practice prevailed in your court as to the naturali¬ 
zation of several persons at once. 

A. They never naturalize more than one at a time. 

1970. Q. I present, to you a jiaper pur])orting to be a certificate of 
naturalization dated the 3d of October, 1868, with the blank for the 
name of the person unfilled; state whose signature is annexed to it, and 
what seal. 

A. That is my name, in the handwriting of the deputy clerk of the 
court, and it seems to me that it is the impression of the seal of the court 
of ceminon pleas; but it has evidently been sealed with another paper 
by some mistake, because the impression on it is very faint; it has prob¬ 
ably got out of the office by mistake; but it has never been used.^ 1 
know that we used every care and caution, and naturalized persons with¬ 
out reference to any political party. 

1971. Q. State whether your observation and experience enable you 
to say whether there is anything Inherently defective in the present sys- 


196 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


tern of uaturaiizatiou, where there is a large number of persons to be 
naturalized; and if so, whether a remedy is practicable in your opiiiiom 

A. A remedy is practicable by the court making rules by which nat¬ 
uralization shall be done in a certain way; it is a mere matter of prac¬ 
tice. I do not know that any greater care can be exercised than I have 
seen exercised in our court. I think the law might be in some respects 
very beneficially changed. I tliink the testimony of witnesses should be 
taken in a different manner. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

1972. Q. Have you ever been in either of the other courts when they 
were naturalizing citizens! 

A. Yes, sir; I have been in the suxierior court. 

1973. Q. Hid you observe the process of naturalization in that cy)urtf 

A. I did. 

1974. Q. What was it, as contrasted with yours! 

A. It was slightly different from our own. The court was very crowded, 
and the judge seemed to have a great deal to do. 

1975. Q. Did he examine the applicants and thp witnesses in the form 
required by the statute ! 

A. It was not done as it was done in our court. I will not say that it 
did not comply with the statute ; that is a question of opinion. 

1976. Q. State as a matter of fact how he did do it. 

A. 1 heard the witness called; I do not think I saw an applicant j I 
don’t know that he was called; I was very anxious to get rid of as much 
of that business as we could, and I thought it ought to be divided up 
among the courts; I do not think that the examination was quite as 
critical as was the habit in the court of common ideas. I know that 
there were other judges in the supreme court quite as careful as the 
judges of our court; for instance. Chief Justice Eobertson was very 
careful in naturalizing. I think it was Judge McOunn whom 1 saw 
naturalizing in the superior court. It was after our court had adjourned, 
and the superior court was being held in an adjoining room to ours. I 
did. not go in there for the purpose of investigating their manner of 
doing it, but to see the great number of persons who were applying for 
naturalization. 

1977. Q. You say there was no applicant present? 

A. 1 only heard the witness called. In that respect it was difierent 
from the practice in our court, where both parties are called. 

1978. Q, What questions did the judge ask the witness ! 

A. I think he asked him how long he had known the applicant, men¬ 
tioning his name from the paper, and whether he had known him to be 
five years in the country, and whether he had read the affidavit, and 
whether it was true. It was a very short examination. I did not see 
the applicant in any case. 

1979. Q. Did the judge take up the paper and read the name of the 
applicant, or did he not simply ask the witness how long he had known 
this man ! 

A. I think he mentioned the name of the applicant. In the common 
pleas the applicants and the witnesses are brought up before the courts 
side by side; but here the witness only was called, and I did not see tlie 
applicant at all. It was a very crowded room. 

1980. Q. Have you ever been present in the supreme court during the 
naturalization of citizens ! 

A. Ho, sir; I tried to get in one day to see what they were doing, but 
I could not get in. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 197 

1981. Q. Is it not a novel way of naturalizing persons not to have the 
applicant present ? 

A. It is j because the certificate implies upon its face that the appli¬ 
cant is in court. He may have been in courts but he was not called with 
the witness. 

1082. Q. Have you any kno wledge how many persons were naturalized 
this year in' the different courts ? 

A. I have not; we made up the exact number in our coiu*t from the 
books. I am told that in the other courts they naturalized 15,000 or 
20,000 each ; though I can hardly believe that can be possible. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

1083. Q. You do not know that the applicants were not i)resent m the 
superior court 

A.. I do not know that they were not present; the applicant may have 
been called after the witness was examined. I do not know their prac¬ 
tice there; I stayed but a moment. The superior court sat in the after¬ 
noon, after our coui t had adjourned, and that was the occasion of my 
having been there. 

1984. Q. Did your court sit at night for that purpose/? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins ; 

1085. Q. How long would it take, under the forms i^rescribed by your 
<30urt, to get a i)erson naturalized ? 

A. It would take certainly ten minutes for one person—that is, in the 
preparation of his papers, &c. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

1080. Q. How long would it take for the action of the court alone ? 

A. Probably about five minutes. There were many cases where I 
knew the court to be 20 minutes in the examination of a witness, and 
then to reject the ai^plications; but the ordinary time, with an intelligent 
man, answering truly tlie questions put to him, wmiild not be over five 
minutes. 

1087. Q. Did you ever go into Judge McCunits court, except that one 
time*? 

A. Never, except that one time ; and only for the reason I have stated, 
that they w^ere waiting to occupy our room. 

1088. Q. Do you know of an^^ persons being naturalized who were not 
entitled to naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir; I do. I wns subi^oenaed tp Trenton, New- Jersey, in tlie 
case of a man wdio had been naturalized in our court and who w as not 
entitled to it. The thing was put through by some x^erson x>ersonating 
the apxfiicant. The case on its face api)eared to be regular, and was 
entirely regular so far as the action of the court was concerned; but it 
appeared that the man had never been out of the State of New Jersey, 
and had been in the country only a few months. His emxfioyer having 
discovered that he had been naturalized made the charge, and then it 
wms found that some other |)erson had x>ersonated him in the court of 
common pleas in the city of New York. 

1000. Q. In other w ords, the court was deceived ? 

A. The court wais deceived by x^erjury and forgery. That is the only 
case of fraudulent naturalization that I know of. 

1001. Q. When you say that the reason of the transfer of some of 
this business from your court to the other courts was to secure greater 
expedition, on wdiat fact do you base that answer t 


198 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. We ]iave but three judges ; the superior court has six; the supreme 
court has live. During the month of October our coiurt was holding its 
general term, sitting in banc, and all the judges were required to be 
present, so that very little time could be by them devoted to naturaliza¬ 
tion business. 

1992. Q. What portion of time were the judges of your court compelled 
to be in attendance on the regular business of the court during these 
hurried days % 

A. From 11 o’clock until 3. 

1993. Q. Did your court ever sit for the exclusive purpose of trans¬ 
acting naturalization business ? 

A. Never, except during a day when the court would adjourn its regu¬ 
lar business and continue its session for the puri)ose of naturalization; 
but it never sat beyond the regular hour of adjournment. 

1994. Q. Did your court have any regular hours of the day for the 
transaction of this kind of business 1 

A. A^es, sir ^ one hour in the morning—from 10 till 11—and one hour 
in the evening: and if the (;ourt should fall through for want of other 
business the judges would be in attendance and would dispose of any 
applications for naturalization. 

1995. Q. Can you state whether, during those hours so set apart for 
naturalization business, the judges were kept busy, or whether they 
were a great part of the time idle 

A. They were a great part of the time idle. Except for a few days, 
they had no chance to attend to the business of naturalization at all but 
during the hours assigned to it. 

Q. At those hours so assigned, were the judges always engaged in 
that business, or were they during a ])art of those hours left without 
business ? 

A. They were left without business ; they attended to other cliamber 
business. This naturalization business was considered a matter of cham¬ 
ber business. 

1996. Q. Considering the organization of your court—^its number of 
judges; the time they sit; the time devoted to this business, and the 
rules in regard to it adopted by the court—I ask you, in reference to the 
other courts and their organization, how much more of this busiiiQss the 
other courts could have done than your court could? 

A. They could have done three times as much. 

Q. State whether, from your knowledge of the manner in which this 
business is ordinarily transacted, it is not practicable for persons who 
design fraud to deceive and mislead your court? 

A. Yes, sir; it is a very easy thing. 

1997. Q. And it is in the power of such persons to perfect frauds ? 

A. Yes, sir; it is very easy to accomplish them ? 

1998. Q. Without any corrupt knowledge on the part of the judges or 
officers of the court ? 

A. Yes, sir j it is a very easy thing to do. 

1999. Q. How long have you been a clerk in that court ? 

A. Since 1858 5 and prior to that time I was deputy clerk of the court. 
1 have been attached to the court of common pleas" since I attained to 
manhood, and have very large experience in naturalization business. 

2000. Q. State whether, during the year 1868, and in the closing days 
of naturalization, there was more or less of that kind of business done 
than any former year of your observation ? 

A. There was more. 

2001. Q. State whether, during the last eight years, from any cause, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


199 


and if so from what cause, an undue proportion of persons of foreign 
birth failed to naturalize until the year 1868. 

A. Most of the cases of naturalization had in the court of common 
pleas, under the section of the act of Congress providing for the naturali¬ 
zation of minors, was made necessary by the minor coming to be natu¬ 
ralized, although he might have been naturalized with the naturalization 
of his father; because our registry laws require a certificate of naturali¬ 
zation before he can vote; for that reason I know we had a very large 
number of applicants who might have been citizens of the United States 
by the naturalization of their fathers. We had one instance in tlie case 
of a man whose father was naturalized in 1705, and who was refused 
registration because he could not produce a record of his naturalization; 
I found his father’s record of naturalization. He was a man who died in 
our city a few years ago worth a good many millions. I then had occa- 
^sion to make a detailed examination of the number of persons who had 
declared their intention to become citizens during the past two years. 

2002. Q. Referring now to a different class of facts, I ask you to state 
whether, on account of the various considerations connected with the 
late war, and of the liability of citizens in this country to do military 
service, there was any diminution during the last six or eight years of 
the number of persons naturalized by the courts of this city. 

A. I am not pr<»pared to answer that. I know that, during the war, 
applications for naturalization were very few" compared to what they were 
since the war and btffore it. 

2003. Q. State whether, during the year in which w^e had a xiresiden- 
tial election, the number of persons naturalized is not greatly in excess 
of those in other years. 

A. It always has been so. Since the late election applications to 
declare intentions have been greater than a year ago. I know that the 
number of naturalizations prior to a presidential election is always 
greater than at any other time. 

Q. Are you personally acquainted with the judges of the supreme 
eourt % 

A. I am. 

2004. And of the sujierior court ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

2005. Q. I desire to know whether you have any reason to believe that 
any of them would lend himself to the accomplishment of fraud upon 
the naturalization law or upon the election laws. 

A. I should certainly answer, most positively, no. 

By the Chairiman : 

2006. Q. Would you consider it consistent with official integrity for a 
judge to naturalize persons without making any examination at all of the 
witness, but simply by sw^earing him that the affidavit subscribed by him 
was true! 

A. No, sir; that is x)ositively wrong. It is in violation of the statutes 
and of the decisions in our own States, where the courts have held that 
the examination of witnesses must be made in open court and by the 
judge. 

2007. Q. Would you consider it consistent with official integrity for a 
judge to naturalize persons when the persons naturalized are not present 
in court but only their witnesses! 

A. No, sir. 

2008. Q. Would you consider it consistent with official integrity for a 
judge to naturalize large numbers of persons, say from a dozen up to 
fifty or a hundred in a batch, swearing them all together ! 


200 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. No, sir; I should think it a great violation of law and right. ' 

2009. Q. Would you consider it consistent with official integrity for a 
judge to naturalize persons without employing the usual and ordinary 
meiins of knowing that no frauds were practiced upon him by the fal^ 
statements of witnesses or applicants ? 

A* No, sir; it is his duty to make investigation and be satisfied that the 
applicants and the witnesses are the persons whom they represent them¬ 
selves to be. I know that that is the rule in our court. 

2010. Q. Did the judges of the court of common pleas sit separately, 
each judge having jurisdiction? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2011. Q. State whether the same rules as to the hours devoted to 
naturalization prevailed in previous years in the common pleas as pre¬ 
vailed this year. 

A. Yes, sir. 

2012 . Q. State what proportion of persons naturalized are minors. 

A. About one-half were minors this year; I made that estimate. 

Q. How was it in previous years ? 

A. I estimate it as one-half, or something near it. The minor cases 
Avere in consequence of their not being able to furnish certificates of 
registration. 

2013. Q. State if in your court you used printed f(K*ms of application 
containing the oath of allegiance, and renunciation of allegiance to every 
foreign prince, potentate, and state, and particularly to the country 
or government from which the applicant came, naming that country or 
government. 

A. Yes, sir. 

2014. Q. State if any practice prevails in your court of striking out 
that part particularizing the country or government from which the 
applicant came. 

A. No, sir. 

2015. Q. Would you consider it consistent with official integrity for a 
judge to permit large numbers of forms used in naturalization to have 
that part of the oath stricken out ? 

A. No, sir; it is his duty to examine papers, as well in matters of nat- 
lualization as in any other case. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2016. Q. Would that be want of integrity, or mere carelessness! 

A. I think it would be very careless. I think it the duty of a judge 
not only to be honest, but to be at the same time careful. I do not know 
that that Avould affect his official integrity. 

2017. Q. But a man might be an honest judge and let that thing go 
through ? 

A. Certainly. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2018. Q. Was it the custom in your court for one person to be a wit¬ 
ness for a number of applicants ? 

A. No, sir; and when a man presents himself as a witness in two cases, 
he is refused to be allowed to act as a witness in either, except it may be 
in the case of minors, where the father or some relative might be a wit¬ 
ness for more than one. 

2019. Q. Would your court ever permit the name of an applicant and 
the name of a Avitness to be si^ed by other parties, Avith merely a cross 
between the two as a mark, without identification ? 

A. Certainly not. - . i 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 201 

2020. Q. Would you consider that a very loose and infonnal way of 
doing business ? 

A. Yes, sir; and for that reason persons generally make applications 
to clerks, who prepare their papers in due form. 

2021. Q. Your court would not have considered such an application as. 
being in due form, with the signatures all written by one man, without 
any identification of the person by a witness? 

A. No, sir. 

0\VEN E. Westlai^e sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2022 . Question. State what ofiice you hold. 

Answer. I am general term clerk in the superior court of this city. 

2023. Q. Can you state the number of persons naturalized in your 
court during the month of October, 1868 ? 

A. I present a statement, giving the aggregate number of naturaliza¬ 
tions in that court for the months of January, February, March, April, 
May, June, July, August, and September, and the number naturalized 
each day from the 1st to the 23d of October, and the aggregate for the 
month of November, and up to the 24th of December, the total being 
27,897. The statement is as follows: 

1868. 

. 1,653 

. 1,856 

. 1,868 

. 2,109 

. 1,430 

. 1,112 

. 840 

. 1,026 

. 1,004 

. 860 

. 911 

. 1,024 

. 41 

. 24 


27, 897 


2024. Q. Before what judges w'cre these naturalizations, in October, 
principally made ? 

A. Principally before Judge McCunn and Judge Garvin. 

2025. Q. Were you one of the clerks who acted in natiwalization matters? 

A. Yes, sir; my legitimate business in regard to naturalization was 

simply searching. 

2026. Q. State whether it was the practice of the judge to swear the 
witnesses to the truth of the affidavits by them subscribed, or whether 
there was any other examination of them. 

A. I was not present in court during the examination of the witnesses, 
but I can give you the modus operandi. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2027. Q. You stated that your duties were searching. What do you 
mean by that? 

A. When a man had been previously naturalized, and had lost his 
papers, I searched the records to get him a duplicate copy. 

2028. Q. Will you jiresent the applications and affidavits of witnesses, 
on which there were naturalized in the superior coiut, Joseph Bush. 


1868. 

January. 84 

February. 100 

March. 105 

April. 140 

May. 108 

June. 102 

July. 140 

August. 195 

September. 632 

October Jst. 580 

October 2d. 745 

October 3d. 840 

October 5th. 1,425 

October 6th. 1,721 

October 7th. 1,630 

October 8th. 1,842 

October 9th. 1,760 


October 10th. 
October 12th. 
October 13th. 
October 14th. 
October 15th. 
October 10th. 
October 17th. 
October 19th. 
October 20th. 
October 21st. 
October 22d . 
October 23d , 
November ... 
December ... 

Total... 







































202 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


October 8, 1808, John Wallace, October 22, 1868, William Malia, Octo¬ 
ber 25, 1868, James Montgomery, October 25, 1868, Michael Kerwin, 
October 16, 1868, and Daniel Sullivan, October 27, 1868! 

A. I now present such papers, and give a list of the names and resi¬ 
dences of the applicants and the witnesses as follows: 


APPLICANTS. 

William Malia, 752 Second avenue. 

Daniel Sullivan, 450 Cherry street. 

Joseph Rush, 781 East Forty-eighth street. 

John Wallace, Forty-second street, between 
Second and Third avenue. 

Michael Kerwin, 304 West Eleventh street. 
James Montgomery, 787 Second avenue. 


WITNESSES. 

Thomas McGovern, 221 First avenue. 
William Gould, 387 Cherry street. 

Matthew Downey, Forty-eighth street and 
Second avenue. 

William WelcHi, 596 Greenwich street, 

PatrickMcMahon, 500 West street. 

Thomas McGovern, 221 First avenue. 


2029. Q. State what time the superior court met and adjourned during 
October. 

A. The hours of meeting in special term were from ten to three, and 
in trial term from eleven to four. 

2030. Q. State if the court sat at night. 

A. I think it did on two or three occasions. 

2031. Q. State whether in the application of William Malia his signa¬ 
ture and that of his witness, James McGovern, are not in the same 
handwriting; and whether in the case of Daniel Sullivan his signature 
and that of his witness, William Gould, are not also in the same hand¬ 
writing. 

A. I should not like to swear positively ; but there is a great similarity; 
they look very much as if they were in the same handwriting. 

2032. Q. State Avhether all the other applications which you produced, 
with the exception of the application of Joseph Kush, are not signed 
with a mark both for the applicant and the witness. 

A. Yes, sir. 

2033. Q. I present to you a paper juirporting to be a certificate of nat¬ 
uralization to Maximilian Boeck, issued by the suiierior court, dated the 
19th of October, 1868, and referred to in the testimony of Maximilian 
Boeck; canyon furnish the application and affidavit on which it was 
issued ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

2034. Q. Also the case of Andrew B. Leiguer ? 

A. I will endeavor to find it. 


By Mr. Hopkins : 

2035. Q. How long have you been connected with the superior court? 

A. About six years. 

2036. Q. How did the naturalizations this year compare in numbers 
with those of the preceding years! 

A. I cannot answer that question intelligently, because I have not had 
charge of that department. I can give the exact number from our books. 

By the Chairman : 

2037. Q. State whether in the application of Janies Montgomery the 
witness does not purport to be Thomas McGovern, residing at 221 First 
avenue. 

A. Yes, sir. 

2038. Q. In the paper his name is signed with a mark? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2039. Q. State whether in the application of WOham Malia the wit- 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 203 

pess does not appear to be the same person^ and whether his name there 
is not signed without a mark,. 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2040. Q. Do you know whether the final papers were delivered to the 
parties for whom they were made out, or to the parties who filled the 
applications for the i)apers 

A. I do not know ; the final papers were all signed by Mr. Meeks, the 
deputy clerk, and Avere given out, I sui)pose, to those entitled to them. 

2041. Q. Were you present in court on the 14th of Octo1)er, the day 
when over two thousand Avere naturalized*? 

A. No, sir; I was not present any time in October except one day 
about ten minutes. My business Avas confined principally to entering 
judgments, satisfying judgments, and various other business ])ertaining 
to the office. I had nothing to do Avith naturalization. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2042. Q. You really know very little about the business of naturali¬ 
zation ? 

A. Very little during the last year, because 1 Avas not ])resent any 
time. My duties called me into another court; I am clerk of a g.eneral 
term, in which these matters are not attended to. 

By Mr. Boss : 

2043. Q. Howmany Judges Avere acting at tlie time this large number 
of naturalizations Avas granted*? 

A. From two to four. We liaA’^e six judges, and they may have all 
taken part. As a general thing there were Uyo judges, McOunn and 
Garvin, sitting almost all day. 

2044. Q. And frequently in the night'? 

A. Not frequently—two or three nights. The chief justice naturalized 
some. 

2045. Q. Did you see anything in the conduct of the court or its ofti- 
cers that looked like a disposition to get through fraudulent papers ? 

A. No, sir ,* I did not. 

j;i046. Q. Do YOU know of any fraudulent papers having gone from 
that court*? 

A. No, sir. 

2047. Q. You haA^e no knowledge of any judges or officers Avinking at 
anything of the kind or encouraging it *? 

A. No, sir; I Avas not present in court at any time during naturaliza¬ 
tion except perhaps twenty minutes in the entire month. I know of no 
frauds myself, and I have not heard of any frauds luiAung been commit¬ 
ted by our court. 

2048. Q. Did there appear to be in the action of the court a disposi¬ 
tion to do the thing fairly and justly *? 

A. Yes, sir, in CAery case. 

2049. Q. And if an.>i:hing improper occurred there, it was through 
mistake ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Henry J. Chapman sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss : 

. 2050. Question. Did you hold an office at the late election *? 

Answer. I was registrar in the 10th district, 16th Avard. 

2051. Q. Who constituted that board of registration? 


204 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Mr. Willis and myself were tlie republican registrars, and Mr. Van 
Buren and Mr. Seixas were tlie democratic. 

2052. Q. How many votes were given in that poll f 

A. We registered about 511, but I doif t think we voted as much as 500. 

205t3. Q. How many of them were registered on certificates of natu¬ 
ralization 

A. Tliere were some few tried to register on fraudulent certificates, 
and were refused, and they did not try again. Tliere was one man reg¬ 
istered, and when he came to vote lie would not take the oath, and we 
would not receive his vote. That is about the only case I know of. I 
was there all day, and checked the ballots as they were put into the box. 

2054. Q. Were you in the habit of swearing the api)licants for regis¬ 
tration on certificates of naturalization ? 

A. Mr. WilUs did that principally. He was very particular with it. 
I allowed him to do it, for he understood it better than I did. 

2055. Q. All about whom there was suspicion were sworn 

A. Yes, sir; and we were very strict and exact about it. 

205G. Q. And every one was excluded who could not give satisfactory 
answers ? 

A. Yes, sir; two men came ui) and registered, who spoke like Ger 
mans, and who claimed to have been born in this country. Mr. Willis 
said it was impossible for men to have been born in this country and not 
speak better English than they did, and so he refused to register them. 

2057. Q. Is not that often the case among Germans ^ 

A. They can generally speak the English language. 

2058. Q. So far as you know there were no frauds either in the regis¬ 
tration or in the voting ? 

A. No, sir; there were none. 

2059. Q. You think the thing was fairly conducted 

A. It was fairly conducted. The democratic inspectors were veiy 
respectable men j we had no trouble at all. They acted very fairly and 
honorably. 

Richard G. Hunt sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2060. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. I was registrar and inspector of elections in the 19th district, 

11 th ward. 

2061. Q. State what you know of fraudulent naturalization papers 
having been jiresented for registration. 

A. I had no knowledge of fraudulent naturalization papers being out 
on the first day of election. On the second day papers were presented 
to the board issued within a few days previously. When we came to 
question persons having them pretty-closely, we found that they could 
not give satisfactory answers as to how and when they obtained them. 
We threw a considerable number of them out. On the first day we 
had received similar papers, and we registered them without question. 
On the second day we threAv out 30 of them. Several applicants swore 
right through that they had come down personally to such and such a 
court and brought their witnesses with them, and had got their papers. 
Their papers, w hen produced, were done up in a large envelope and were 
addressed, By the politeness of Henry Waltman.” That opened my 
eyes more particularly to the rumors I liad heard about these papers, as 
I was somewhat acquainted with Mr. Waltmaifs character in the ward. 
Perhaps a half dozen admitted that they got their papers from Waltman^ 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


205 


and that they had gone to the City Hall for them. In the case of one of 
these men we refused to register. The man went on to state how he was 
a voter but had lost his papers. He said he knew the papers which he 
had presented he had not obtained himself, but w^ent to such and such a 
number w ith a friend. [To Mr. Kerr :] I think he said No. 6C or 08, 
Avenue C, a place occupied by Mr. Brincker’s real estate agency. He 
said he swore there to the fact of his having been naturalized, and to his 
papers having been lost; that he swore to it before a Mr. Joseph Lyons, 
'and that he told him that was satisfactory, and took his name and 
residence, and told him to come next evening for his papers; that he had 
gone the next evening and got his paper. He wished me to use my 
mtiuence with tlie board to have his name registered. I told him I 
could not do that. The Saturday evening previous to election, when I 
\Yent to supper, he went in before the three registrars who w^ere there 
and made the same statement, and produced a witness who swore that 
lie had seen the naturalization paper which he had obtained at Avenue 
C. I have it no^v with me and present it to the committee. I have also 
a name on my registry book of a person who acknowledged that he liad 
obtained his papers of Henry Waltman, in Avenue 0, and that lie had 
never been to court. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2062. Who is Henry Waltman 1 

A. He was elected to the assembly on the democratic ticket Ifom the 
ilth ward. 

By the Chairman : /• 

2063. Q. What proportion of persons who presented themselves for 
registration with naturalization papers were swmrnl 

A. I cannot say, but I should say that 100 would come close to’ the 
number. 

2064. Q. How many w^ere registered in the district? 

A. Five hundred and sixty-seven, I think. 

2065. Q. What number of voters were challenged? 

A. So many that they made quite a noise and disturbance about it. I 
should suppose from 30 to 40, and perhaps 50. We were very particular 
ill swearing them at the time of registration if we had any doubt. 

2066. Q. With the small number of jiersons sworn, state whether the 
registrars ^vere liable to be imposed upon by persons who were aware 
they were not entitled to registration. 

A. I think they were in a few instances, but not in many instances. 

2067. Q. Can you state any number of persons who registered and who 
voted, and who were not entitled to? 

A. I can state one person who presented a vote under the name of 
Thomas J. Brown, but was not the man he personated. I swore him, 
and he swore his vote in. I understood afterwards he went to vote in 
another district, in Avenue I). 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2068. Q. Ho you know what the man^s real name is? 

A. I do not know. 

2069. Q. Do you know him personally? 

A. No, sir. 

2070. Q. Then why are you so confident that he was not the person lie 
represented himself to be? 

A. The reason in this: I had seen Tliomas J. Bro\vn frequently, and 
this was not the person. The genuine Thomas J. Brown did not vote. 


206 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Chairman : 

2071. Q. Do you know of any other man voting who was not entitled 
to vote? 

A. NOj sir 5 I do not. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2072. Q. Do yon know Mr. Waltman personally? 

A. I do. 

2073. Q. With what political party do you act? 

A. I act at present with the republican party^ and did during the last 
campaign. 

By Mr. Ross: 

2074. Q. You think you excluded all illegiil votes? 

A. Yes, sir, so far as I know. 

2075. Q. And the election was carried on purely there? 

A. At the same time I think there was a considerable number of votes 
that were not legal votes. 


New York, December 28,1868. 

Benjamin Van Buren sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

By Mr. Ross: 

2076. Question. Were you one of the election officers last year? 

Answer. 1 was inspector of election in the 16th district, 16th ward. 

2078. Q. Was Mr. Anson Willis on the board with you? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2079. Q. State to the committee how the election there was conducted, 
and how the officers discharged their duty both at the registration and 
the election. 

A. Everything went on very pleasantly. They all seemed to do theii- 
duty. I saw nothing that I supposed to be illegal. Judge Willis, being 
an ex-judge, did most of the swearing for us. 

2080. Q. There was no difference or ill-feeling among the members of 
the board? 

A. None, vdiatever. 

2081. Q. Everything went off* pleasantly? 

A. Very agreeably and pleasantly. 

2082. Q, And there was no illegal voting or registration so far as you 
know? 

A. I do not think there was an illegal vote polled. 

2083. Q. You think that the registration and election were properly 

conducted? * 

A. Yes, sir. 

2084. Q. And that none but legal voters voted? 

A. No, sir. 

2085. Q. Nothing improper transpired at the polls? 

A. Nothing, that I saw. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

. 2086. Q. State whether, during the transaction of your duties on that 
board, objection was made to a critical examination into the rights of 
persons to be registered or to vote by any member of the board. 

A. None that I am aware of. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 207 

2087. Q. Were obstructions of any kind put in the way of a critical 
examination of that kind by any member of the board? 

A. No, sir. 

. 2088. Q. Who was your democratic colleague? 

A. Mr. Seixas. 

2089. Q. State whether you or he, or both of you, either by your votes, 
or by your expressions, or otherwise, put any obstacle in the way of a 
critical examination into the rights of parties to register and to vote. 

A. None wliatever. 

2090. Q. State ^whether you had any words, or controversy, or differ¬ 
ences of opinion on this subject with your colleague Mr. Willis. 

A. No, sir; there was no objection made to anything that was done. 
Everything went on harmoniously, as much so as in any board I ever 
saw. 

2091. Q. Did you or your colleague endeavor to get fraudulent votes 
registered, or voted on? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

2092. Q. Was there any objection made to any i>erson who asked to be 
registered? 

A. No, sir. 

2098. Q. Was then any objection made to any person voting who 
ibsked to vote? 

A. No, sir. 

2094. Q. Tliere were some, however, challenged? 

A. l^ot one man was refused the right to vote who was challenged. 

2095. Q. You were not acquainted w;ith the voters in that district? 

A. No, sir; I did not reside in the district; I do not believe that I 

knew a dozen voters in it; I lived in the lower part of the ward. 

2090. Q. There may have been many persons who registered and voted 
who were not entitled to register and to vote, and you not know the 
fact? 

A. Such a thing is possible. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

2097. Q. Can you give the number of persons who registered and who 
voted on certificates of naturalization ? 

A. I think twn-thirds of them did; it is a district composed chiefly of 
foreign residents. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2098. Q. Was not the presentation of natur alization papers considered 
evidence suflicient that the man was a voter? 

A. Yes, sir; I so considered it; that is the way I understood the law. 

New York, JDecenther 29, 1868. 

Patrick Duffy sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2099. I am a native of Ireland; have been in the United States since 
1853 or 1854; I got a paper from J. M. Moore, purporting to be a certificate 
of naturalization; he keeps a liquor store comer of Thirty-fifth street 
and Ninth avenue; I happened to be in there one day and to remark how 
curious it was that as long as I had been in the country I had never 
voted; he asked why it was, and I said it was neglect on my part; he 


208 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


said lie could get papers for me for a dollar; I gave him a dollar, and on 
the following Saturday evening he handed me the paper. 

James E. Clifford sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2100. I am engaged as foreman of the job press-room by the blew York 
Printing Company; we printed blank forms of naturalization certificates 
and of applications, of different kinds, for the various courts; the print¬ 
ing was done for six or eight wrecks previous to the NTovember election; 
we would print sometimes 5,000, sometimes 10,000; we may have printed 
in all 100,000; the forms now shown me (referred to in the testimony of 
ll^athaniel Jarvis, jr., and of Emanuel S. Goldstein) look like those we 
printed; we had sometimes one press running at this work, sometimes 
three or four ; one press would work off about 10,000 a day. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

We have printed these blanks before, prior to other elections; there 
was more of this printing done than was taken out of the building^ 
because we ran short of them at one time, and after that we always had 
some on hand; we did that on our own motion; they were printed by 
order of the superintendent; I do not know any of the clerks of the 
courts, Mr. Sweeny, Mr. Jarvis, or Mr. Loew; I do not know the sheriff 
or mayor. 

2101. Q. With what political party do you act ? 

A. The republican party. 

2102. Q. With what i)arty do the other principal employes of the 
company act? 

A. Some are republican, and others democratic. 

New York, Deceinher 29, 18G8. 

John Robertson sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

2103. I am a native of the United States. 1 was furnished with a 
naturalization certificate by a person named Winter or Winters—Fred¬ 
erick, I think; it Avas right after the Pennsylvania October election 
this year. It was the first time I ever saw the man. He said he had 
papers for me and would like to have a little money on them. I said I 
did not knoAV anything about giving money for papers. He told me he 
was engaged in that business. T think the paper was from the superior 
court. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

2104. I am not positive about the court. An acquaintance of mine, 
Mr. Wood, took the paper over to the police headquarters. I am a 
republican; so is Mr. Wood. Winter told me he was a democrat. I 
never saw him before or since, and do not know where he can be found. 

Kew York, December 29, 1868. 

T. J. Gillmore sw^orn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2105. I Avent last evening to serve a subpoena issued by this committee, 
directing Paul Hahlman to appear as a witness. The name is Dellinger 
—not Dahlman. He keeps a barber shop in Avenue C. When I went 
in, Charles E. Loew, county clerk, was there Avaiting to be shaved, and 
there was quite a crowd of other roughs there too. 

2106. Mr. Kerr. Youi nclude the county clerk in that description? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


209 


Witness. Yes, sir; When I presented the subpoena to the barber Mr. 
Loew told him not to take it unless I had the original to show him. I 
said the original was in possession of the committee. Dalliugar would 
not take the subpoena, and as they showed a disposition to be quarrel¬ 
some I left 

To Mr. Kerr : 

2107. This was last night. I have no regular employment at present. 

I was emidoyed to serve this subpoena by Mr. Davenport, the clerk of 
the committee. I have no permanent business at present. 

2108. Q. Do yon belong to that distinguished class that you call 
roughs 

A. No, sir. 

2109. Q. What are your politics ? 

A. Republican. 

2110. Q. You are sure you know Mr. Loew, clerk of the supreme court? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2111. Q. What was he doing there ? 

A. .Waiting to be shaved. 1 told him I did not come to serve a sub¬ 
poena on him, but on the other party, and to mind his own business. 

2112. Q. ^^at did he reply? 

A. He did not reply to me. He told the barber not to take the sub¬ 
poena unless he saw the original. He knew that it was not the original 
I held in my hand, because he looked over my shoulder. 

Andrew J. Bross sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2113. I was inspector of elections at the last election in the 12th dis¬ 
trict of the 13th ward. On the first day of registry a man named Timo¬ 
thy Gullom was registered from No. 26 Goerck street; but immediately 
after he left we discovered that that house was not in our district, and 
we sent an ofiicer to notify him. The name was erased from the registry. 
On the day of election the same man presented himself to vote, but his 
name was not on the registry, and finally he said he resided at No. 29 
Goerck street, which is in the district. I objected to his being allowed 
to vote as he was not registered; my republican colleague, Mr. Austin, 
was also opposed to his being allowed to vote j but one of the democratic 
inspectors, John J. Mulligan, put in the vote forcibly, against our protest. 
I subsequently ascertained, prior to the December election, that the man 
did live at 29 Goerck street. 

By Mr. Ross: 

2114. Q. Then all this story is that the man made a mistake in giving 
the number of the house, and that he was a legal voter ? 

A. Yes, sir. I believe the man had a right to vote j but the question 
was whether this inspector had a right to force the ballot in without the 
man being registered. 

2115. Q. Was there any illegal voting in your precinct, so far as you 

know ? ^ 

A. I do not know of any but this case. There were 437 votes polled 

in our precinct. 

David Crowley recalled. 

By the Chairman: 

2116. Question. By the testimony of Charles E. Loew, clerk, and the 
naturalization papers referred to therein, it appears that John King, of 

14 T 


210 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


318 West Forty-first street, was the witness for the naturalization of 
James Brown, William Honig, August Betzel, and Henry Beaume. State 
if there is, or has been, any such person at that place as John IHng. 

Answer. There is not. Numbers 316, 318, and 320 West Forty-first 
street comprise a wood-yard, kept by J. Blair. Nobody resides there, and 
there is no place there to live in. 

2117. Q. By the same testimony and papers it appears that Eobert 
Blume, 24 Clinton street, was the witness for the naturalization of Fred 
crick Henney, Joseph Herbert, James McCarty, Hugh Smith, and Michael 
Dunn. State if there is, or has been, any such person as Eobert Blume 
at that place. 

A. I went there last evening and inquired at Nos. 22 and 24, there being 
but one entrance to the rear buildings. I went into the buildings on both 
numbers, rear and front, and could not find any one who knew of any 
such man. 

2118. Q. By the same testimony and papers it appears that Maurice 
Baker, 62 Washington street, was the witness for the naturalization of 
Patrick Eafferty, JamesE. Smith, and Samuel Eeynolds. State whether 
any such person is, or has been, residing at that place. 

A. No, sir. That is a storehouse, with the entrance on West street, 
and has been for the last four years. I inquired at the office, but they 
Imew nothing of any such person. 

E. W. Me Alpine sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2119. Question. State your business. 

Answer. Journalist. 

2120. Q. For what paper ? 

A. For several. In October last I was on duty for the New York Tri¬ 
bune. 

2121. Q. State what occurred under your observation in any of the 
courts of this city where naturalization was going on. 

A. I made but one visit to a naturalization court in this city. It was 
near the time of the November election. I was requested by the man¬ 
aging editor of the Tribune to visit the naturalization court where Judge 
Barnard was sitting, and to write a spicy but accurate account of what 
I saw. I went to the court with the intention of learning something of 
the modus o;perandi of making American citizens. I sat for perhaps half 
an hour before I saw anything iiarticular being done except simply call¬ 
ing out names. At a given time a certain number of persons whose 
names had been called were gathered in the middle of the court-room, 
and then the process of swearing these men in as citizens was gone into. 
What I noticed was that there could not, by any possibility, have been 
more than two or three men who could have touched the Bible at the 
same time, and I noticed that when the judge directed that those who 
could not reach the Bible should raise their right hands, there were very 
few in that crowd who raised their right hand or any other hand. The 
judge, while either waiting for a new batch of men to swear in, or for 
some other pui’pose, made some remarks from the bench in reference to 
certain strictures that had appeared in the papers of the city, and spoke 
of the writers as a set of scoundrels who had charged him falsely. He 
said he intended to see that those worthy citizens in front of him should 
be protected in their rights. Then he "ordered the court-room to be 
cleared. He said: “Those who have not come here for the purpose of 
being naturalized, or who are not here by order of the court, will imme¬ 
diately leave. If they do not immediately leave they will be ejected by 
the officers of the court.” At the beginning of the address I had rise 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


211 


from my seat, and before the judge bad fairly concluded bis remarks an 
officer of tbe court took me by tbe arm. Say,” said be, “ did you come 
bere to be naturalizedF ^^No,” said I, “I did not.” Then tbe sooner 
you get out of bere tbe better.” So, without letting go my arm at all, 
be marched me off towards tbe public entrance of tbe court-room. That 
bad been locked and bolted after my entrance into tbe room. Then we 
were obliged to pass through that crowd of as yet unnaturalized citizens, 
past the judge^s bench, and through tbe private door. That ended my 
experience of a naturalization court, except that I wrote up a full, fair, 
and impartial account of what I saw. This was tbe supreme court, before 
Judge Barnard. 

2122. Q. How many lots of men were sworn while you were in court ? 

A. I think only two lots. 

2123. Q. About bow many in each lot ? 

A. I should say there were from 60 to 100 in each lot. 

2124. Q. How long were you in tbe court ? 

A. Perhaps an hour. I was quite interested in it, as 1 had never before 
seen persons naturalized. 

2125. Q. State what you beard as to witnesses being sworn in reference 
to naturalization applications. 

A. I have no recollection, whatever, of anything being said on that 
occasion in relation to witnesses. I remember that there were some 
formalities, but what they were I do not recollect. I know that the 
names of witnesses were called, and I remember seeing the clerk pass 
back certain witness papers with the remark that they were not i^roperly 
made out. 

2126. Q. Who administered the oath ? 

A. The clerk, I think. On that point 1 am not certain. 

2126J. Q. Who was the clerk ? 

A. I do not know his name. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2127. Q. You saw the whole process, did you ? 

A. Most of those men were in the room before I entered. I suppose 
some entered after I came in. The space was contracted. The men who 
were being sworn occupied the middle of the room j and those who had 
been sworn, or who were about to be sworn, occupied the side. 

2128. Q. Did the judge call each man up to him and examine him 
separately as to his qualifications ? 

A. Nothing of that sort at all. 

2129. Q. The oath was administered to the whole promiscuous crowd'? 

A. To the whole batch. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2130. Q. What iiroportion of those men eitherkissed the book or held 
up their hands ? 

A. Not more than one-eighth of them took the oath; in reality, most 
of the men in the batch which I particularly noticed were engaged 
in conversation at the time the oath was being administered. 

2131. Q. At the time the judge made this order for the closing of the 
court room, were you taking notes ? 

A. No, sir; I did not take a note while I was in the couit-room. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2132. Q. Do you know whether any of those men were being natural¬ 
ized at the time, except those who either put their hands on the book or 
held up their hands ? 


212 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do not know, except that they were gathered by the officers of the 
court. 

2133. Q. But do you know that those other men, who did not hold up 
their hands, were not waiting to have their names called ? 

A. Those who were waiting to be called were standing Avhere I was. 
When a man’s name was called he went down from a little raised plat¬ 
form and walked down into this herd of men. 

2134. Q. I do not know how you can teU that there were other men 
naturalized except those who raised their hands. 

A. I would not be competent, of course, to swear that those men were 
naturalized; but still, I have every reason to believe that that was so. 

2135. Q. You do not know that there were any men naturalized, except 
those who did hold up their hands or kiss the book ? 

A. I supposed, at the time, that all those men who were herded 
together by the officers of the court—brought up in a squad in the middle 
of the room, and ordered by the officers of the court to hold up their 
right hands—were brought in there for the purpose of being naturalized. 
I heard the officer ask several of them why they did not hold up their 
hands. It struck me that those who did hold up their hands were all 
paying attention to the words of the judge or clerk. 

213G. Q. I suppose the others were waiting their turn ? 

A. I could not understand it so. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2137. Q. Was there a larger number of names called than there were 
men holding up their hands or kissing the book ? 

A. Yes, sir; for once in a while a name would be called to which there 
would be no answer. There was a larger number of names called. If 
the man answered to his name he walked down—sometimes escorted by 
an officer—into the crowd. 

2138. Q. How many do you suppose answered to their names and were 
marched into this herd? 

A. I suppose that in each one of these batches there were from GO to 
100 men. 

2139. Q. Out of these batches, what proportion took the oath ? 

A. I thought that night that about one out of eight or ten took the 
oath. 

By the Chairman : 

2140. Q. How did the number of names called compare with the num¬ 
ber herded together ? 

A. It was very nearly a tally. There were very few who did not 
answer to their names. 


Hew York, December 29, 1868. 

William Joralemon sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 


To Mr. Ross: 

2141. I was inspector of elections in the 5th district of the 6th ward. 
My republican colleague was Mr. Lynch, and the democratic inspectors 
were Messrs. Brophy and Donnelly. I do not know of any illegal votes 
being given there. I think we took all proper precautions to guard the 
polls and the registry against illegal votes. All my colleagues seemed 
desirous of guarding against frauds. I saw no evidence of any of them 
desiring to get in fraudulent votes. All the voters that we had any 
doubt about were sworn and pretty thoroughly examined. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKK. 213 

2142. Q. Did the board act with unanimity in admitting or excluding 
A. it did. 

2143. Q. It did not appear to be acting in a party spirit ? 

A. No, sir. One of the democratic inspectors was complained of by his 
own party for being too much on the republican side. 

2144. Q. You thought they all acted fairly and justly ? 

A. I did. 

2145. Q. And you do not know of any illegal registering or illegal 
voting 

A. I do not. 

2146. Q. There was nothing to interfere with the legitimate exercise 
of the elective franchise ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

2147. Q. Do you live in the district ! 

A. I do not. 

2148. Q. What proportion of the voters do you know *? 

A. I do not know any of them j but the other three inspectors lived in 
the ward, and one of them in the district. 

2149. Q. What proportion of the voters in that precinct are foreign- 
born ? 

A. Three-fourths of them. 

2150. Q. Irishmen'? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2151. Q. What proportion voted on new naturalization papers I 
A. A good many; I suppose one-fourth. 

2152. Q. Two hundred or two hundred and fifty ? 

A. I should think so. 

2153. Q . Did you scrutinize those papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2154. Q. Did you swear them ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2155. Q. Two hundred and fifty ? 

A. I cannot swear positively that that number were sworn, but there 
were a great many. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2156. Q. You swore all that any of the board thought doubtful ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

, By Mr. Hopkins : 

2157. Q. Was it not the habit for two of the inspectors to vouch for 
parties'? 

A. In some instances. Three of the inspectors were residents of the 
ward. 

2158. Q. And when one of the inspectors vouched for a party you did 
not examine him? 

A. Sometimes we did. 

2159. Q. But generally you did not ? 

A. We examined them pretty generally, but not as a general thing. 

2160. Q. As a general thing, did you not take the naturalization papers 
as prima facie evidence of the right to vote ? 

A. We questioned the men as to where they got their papers, and 
whether they had been in court, &c. 


14 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2161. Q. Was it not easy for a large number of these men to have 
registered on fraudulent papers ? 

A. I think so. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2162. Q. What proportion of voters did you personally know ? 

A. Scarcely any. 

By the Chairman : 

2163. Q. WTien persons came with new naturalization papers, were 
they generally registered on them without inquiry ? 

A. Ko, sir. I tried my best to keep them out. 

2164. Q. What proportion of them were sworn ? 

A. I suppose we swore 200. 

By Mr. EOSS: 

2165. You were one of the republican inspectors ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2166. Q. Did your republican colleague and yourself vouch for persons 
who were registered f 

A. He did; I did not. 

2167. Q. And the democrats extended that courtesy to him, the same 
as you did to them? 

A. O, yes; we had no trouble at aU. 


New York, December 29,1868. 

Charles E. Wilbur sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2168. I am president of the New York Printing Company, and 
have been since its commencement, two or three years ago. We 
printed naturalization blanks for the various courts this year as fol¬ 
lows: For the superior court: October 2, 10,000 certificates of natu¬ 
ralization; October 8, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; October 
15, 10,000 certificates of naturalization; October 3, 10,000 applications; 
October 16, 20,000 apphcations of four or five different kinds. I believe 
they were delivered to the officers of the court; that is our custom. We 
printed for the supreme court: October 6, 5,000 certificates of naturali¬ 
zation; October 12, 5,000 certificates of naturalization; October 15, 
10,000 certificates of naturalization; October 20, 10,000 certificates of 
naturahzation; October 6, 25,000 applications, 5,000 each of five differ¬ 
ent kinds; October 12, 5,000 applications; October 13, 10,000 applica¬ 
tions ; October 16, 5,000 applications; October 19, 5,000 applications; 
October 22, 5,000 applications. They were delivered, I believe, to the 
officers of the court. The aggregates are: for the superior court,^30,000 
certificates of naturalization and 30,000 applications; for the supreme 
court, 30,000 certificates of naturalization and 60,000 applications. I 
know no reason why there should be more applications in the supreme 
court than in the superior. I should suppose there would be two or three 
times as many applications needed as certificates. I do not recollect our 
having x)riuted naturalization certificates for the supreme court prior to 
this time. There may be many blanks on hand in the offices of the clerks 
of the courts; there are none in our office. The company is a stock 
company. 

2169. Q. State its members, so far as you know. 

A. I do not know that that is necessary for the puri)oses of this inves¬ 
tigation. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


215 


2170. Q. You decline to answer ? 

A. I prefer not to. 

2171. Q. Will you exhibit to the committee copies of the blanks printed 
at your office ? 

A. Here is a copy of each one, with the date and the quantity marked 
thereon. 

2172. Q. On whose order were these printed? 

A. I cannot tell, positively; but the orders come from the clerks of 
the courts by messengers. 

2173. Q. State if any were printed on the order of any other person 
than the clerks of the courts. 

A. On the order of no other person than the clerk or his deputy. 

2174. Q. Was Mr. Loew, the clerk of the supreme court, at your office 
this morning ? 

A. Not that I know of. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2175. Q. Does your company do all the printing of blanks for the 
courts ? 

A. I do not know. If I thought any of it was done elsewhere I would 
try to get the whole business. We are the printers for the county, and 
all this work is charged to the county. 

By the Chairman : 

2176. Q. Did your company print Mr. Tildeffis circular, referred to in 
the testimony of John T. Hoffman ? 

A. It did not. 

2177. Q. Did you print blank mandamuses prior to the last presiden¬ 
tial election ? 

A. We did not. 

New York, Decemher 29, 1868. 

Samuel J. Glassey recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2178. Question. State what application you made, if any, to Charles E. 
Loew, clerk of the supreme court, for permission to inspect the naturali¬ 
zation papers in his office this year, and what he said and did about it. 

Answer. I called upon Mr. Loew about four or five weeks ago, having 
previously written him a letter stating that I desired to make an examina¬ 
tion of those records, and having received a verbal reply from him to 
the effect that he wished to see me. I had an interview with him in his 
office, and he asked what I wanted to do with the papers. I told him I 
desired to make an examination of a great many of the original records 
to ascertain the total number naturalized during the month of October, 
and the number naturalized on each day in that month, and that I should 
want to examine nearly all of the original records. He said that he had 
shown my note, received the day before, to a gentleman whose name he 
mentioned, a lawyer of this city, an acquaintance of his own, Abraham 
R. Lawrence. Not knowing me personally, he had consulted Mr. Law¬ 
rence, who told him that he knew me well, and that I was a very respect¬ 
able person. Mr. Loew said: I should have no personal objection to 
allowing you to examine these papers, but I do not think I can allow 
them to be examined at all, because if I can let you do it I must let any 
member of the bar who chooses to ask it do it also.” I told him that I 
had a distinct, and, as I conceived, a legitimate purpose in view; that 


216 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


I desired to make this exammation on behalf of the Union League club, 
with a view of ascertaining whether there were or were not irregulari¬ 
ties and frauds which had been charged; that I had no bias or preju¬ 
dice in the matter, and proposed to ascertain only the facts as they 
existed. He said he was i)erfectly willing, so far as he was personally 
concerned. He had very little to do with the matter of naturalization, 
but he was not willing to allow the papers to be examined generally; 
that if I would give him the names of any i^articular individuals whose 
papers I wanted to see, he would have them looked up. I then asked 
for a number, which he said he could not give, because the papers were 
not yet arranged and iudexed j he said it was being done as rapidly as 
possible. I had more than a week i^reviously made some inquiries of 
the clerk in charge of the book in which the papers are indexed, and 
observed that he had indexed the proceedings of six days, from the 7th 
to the ‘12th of October, inclusive, and he had made little or no progress 
during the week before I saw Mr. Loew. I had two interviews with Mr. 
Loew, and I think at the second of them he said that he had had some 
conversation on the subject with Judge Barnard, and that Judge Bar¬ 
nard had expressed the opinion that he ought not to permit me to make 
any general examination, or, as he expressed it, to overhaul liis records. 

[Mr. Kerr objected to the witness stating what somebody else had 
said to him, and moved that the statement in reference to what Judge 
Barnard had said be stricken out. 

The question was put and the committee refused to strike it out.] 

2179. Q. State if you got iiermission to examine the records. 

A. I did not. He said that he would have any particular record rela¬ 
ting to individuals whose names I should give him looked for. I had 
with me a list of some six or seven names, and showed them to the 
clerk, whom I was informed had charge of the papers, and he found 
one, and others he could not find, because he said they had not yet 
been reached; under the arrangement they had not yet got to that day. 

2180. Q. State if you communicated to Mr. Loew the fact that you had 
been employed as counsel by the Union League, to investigate this 
matter. 

A. I did explain it to him very distinctly. 

2181. Q. State if you are an officer of the court. 

A. I am an attorney and counsellor-at-law, and have been for some 
12 years. 

2182. Q. State anything that has occurred between you and Mr. 
Sweeney recently, yesterday or to-day, in relation to the examination 
of the natoalization papers in his office. 

A. I have never had any personal interview with Mr. Sweeney, although 
I have had a great deal of business with his office ; I have never seen 
him, and though I called at his office yesterday afternoon with a com¬ 
munication from the chairman of this committee, Mr. Sweeney not being 
there, nor his chief deputy, I gave it to the gentleman who was in charge 
of the office, Mr. Westlake. I communicated its contents to him, and 
left it with him, he saying that he would deliver it to Mr. Sweeney per¬ 
sonally, and that it was already arranged that the desired examination 
should be made, and that the papers would all be in readiness for exam¬ 
ination by nine o’clock this morning, and if I would call this morn¬ 
ing 1 would have free access to the papers. I called there this morning 
for that purpose, and Mr. Westlake informed me that he saw Mr. Swee¬ 
ney yesterday afternoon aud delivered him my letter, and Mr. Sweenev 
said that while he was perfectly willing that the examination should 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


217 


take place, lie thought it proper that he should communicate with the 
justices of the court before allowing it to be commenced, and that he 
would see the judges early this morning and be ready for me jiy 11 
o’clock. I waited until 11 o’clock, but Mr. Sweeney did not appear; I 
went to his office at 12 o’clock and was informed that he had not been 
there j I waited 15 minutes and left a quarter of an hour ago. Mr. 
Sweeney had not been there this morning. 

2183. Q. Will you produce that communication? 

A. I left it with Mr. Westlake to be delivered to Mr. Sweeney, and 
Mr. Westlake informed me that he had delivered it. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2184. Q. How long have you been practicing law in this city ? 

A. Twelve years. 

2185. Q. What courts do you practice in ? 

A. In all the courts of the State. 

2186. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. Thirty-fifth street, in this city. 

2187. Q. Have you personally known Mr. Loew and Mr. Sweeney for 
some time past ? 

A. I have known Mr. Loew for some two or three years; but Mr. 
Sweeney, the clerk of the superior court, I don’t think I should know if 
I met him, although I have had a great deal of business with that court. 

2188. Q. What kind of business ? 

A. Law business. 

2189. Q. What is the name of your firm ? 

A. I have no firm. I have a partial partnership arrangement. 

2190. Q. Your principal practice of law has been in connection with 
the Union League in looking up naturalization papers, has it not? 

A. That has been my principal employment for the last four or five 
weeks, not before that. 

2191. Q. Have you any objections to state what the Union League 
pays you for that service ? 

A. I really don’t know. I have received a retaining fee, but have 
rendered no bill and made no charge. I am a member of the club myself. 

2192. Q. Are your relations with Mr. Loew pleasant ? 

A. I have never had any relations with him at all. I had no personal 
intercourse until I called on him on this occasion. I have not seen Mr. 
Sweeney in his office although I have been there many times. I am 
personally very well acquainted with all his deputies. 

2193. Q. Are you devoting yourself to giving advice and assistance to 
this committee now ? 

A. I have given information to it; I do not undertake to give any 
advice. 

2194. Q. Are you acting as attorney for this committee ? 

A. NTo, sir; I am acting professionally for the committee of the Union 
League club. 

2195. Q. Has not the Union League directed you to give your services 
to this committee ? 

A. The club has given me no directions excepting those at the time 
I commenced to act for it six weeks ago. 

2196. Q. Did you prepare their memorial to Congress ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

2197. Q. Who did ? 

A. Mr. Jay, I think. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2198. Q, Do you practice in the United States courts ? 


218 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I liave practiced tliere, but have never been legally admitted j I 
never had occasion to do so excepting for a short time during the war, 
when I represented the War Department in habeas corpus cases j but I 
practice in all the courts of the State. 

2199. Q. How many cases have you commenced in the supreme court 
of the State in the last year ? 

A. It would be impossible for me to remember now. 

2200. Q. How many have you commenced in all the courts during the 
last year ? 

A. Quite a large number; it would be impossible for me to remember 

New York, December 29, 1868. 

N. H. Sprinostein sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Hoss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

2201. Question. You were one of the election officers in this city at the 
November election, were you not ? 

Answer. I was an inspector. 

2202. Q. In what ward and precinct ? 

A. In the 19th precinct of the 11th ward. 

2203. Q. Who were your colleagues on the board ? 

A. Mr. Hunt, Mr. DalliDgar, and Mr. Mansfield. 

2204. Q. State to the committee if there were any illegal votes regis¬ 
tered or voted to your knowledge ? 

A. Well, Mr. Brown was set down on the register, but he was a sus¬ 
picious character, and what they called at the time a repeater. 

2205. Q. What was his given name ? 

A. I don’t know. When he came up to vote Mr. Hunt challenged 
him; he swore in his vote, and he went immediately from there into 
another district in the same ward, as I understand, and voted there. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

Q. You state that from hearsay; you do not know it, do you ? 

A. No, sir; I do not. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2206. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge whether that man was 
a legal voter or not ? 

A. I do not. 

2207. Q. Did he vote % 

A. He did in my district; he voted under the name of Thomas J. 
Brown. 

2208. Q. Independent of that, was the registry and the poll well 
guarded ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2209. Q. Did you swear many men who had certificates of registry ? 

A. A good many of them. 

2210. Q. About what proportion of them should you think ? 

A. I should think there were some 15 or 20 that were sworn. 

2211. Q. Was there harmonious action in your board with reference 
to excluding illegal voters from registering and from voting ? 

A. Yes, sir; there was. 

2212. Q. You all concurred in it ? 

A. We all concurred in having things done fair and square. 

2213. Q. Was any one admitted to register or vote excepting by the 
consent of the board % 

A. Not one. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


219 


2214. Q. And in this the board all concurred ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

2215. Q. From all yon know, was the election fairly and honestly con¬ 
ducted? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2216. Q. How many voters are there in your precinct or election dis¬ 
trict? 

A. In the general election, I think, we polled in the neighborhood of 
570 votes. 

2217. Q. Do you reside in the precinct ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2218. Q. How many voters do you know personally ? 

A. I should say I know 75 out of the 570; that is to say, I was 
acquainted with them so as to know their names. 

2219. Q. How many voted in your precinct on naturalization papers ? 

A. Two-thirds of them are German and Irish. 

2220. Q. Out of those you swore 15 or 20 as to their papers, and the 
rest were not sworn? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2221. Q. Would it not have been easy for many men who came there 
with new papers to have been registered ? 

A. Every one of those papers was set down as doubtful, and the 
majority of them were challenged. 

2222. Q. But you say you only swore 15 or 20 ? 

A. Yes, sir; and the men swore that they went to the City Hall and 
got their papers. 

2223. Q. According to your own statement about 350 men voted in 
that precinct on new naturalization papers; what means had you of 
knowing whether their papers were fraudulent or not ? 

A. A great many of them were old papers, dated as far back as 1855. 

2224. Q. What proportion of them ? 

A. More than one-half or two-thirds. 

2225. Q. Then one-third, or 175, came with new papers? What means 
had you of knowing whether they had fraudulent papers or not? Was 
it not easy for the board to be imposed upon by those men ? 

A. When a man came in we asked, Where did you get these papers, 
and did you have your witnesses with you?^ and if he answered cor¬ 
rectly what more could we do ? 

2226. Q. Where a man answered in that way did you not administer 
an oath ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

2227. Q. You only administered an oath to such men as failed to 
answer the question? 

A. Yes, sir. Mr. Hunt, who was a republican and was well posted, 
did all the questioning; and I do not think there was a lot of inspectors 
anywhere that stuck closer to their work than ours did. 

By the Chairman: 

2228. Q. Did you hold, when a man presented a certificate of naturali¬ 
zation, that it was on the face of it evidence that he was entitled to vote? 

A. Hot in all cases, but generally so. 


220 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Boss: 

2229. Q. You state that the leading man on that board who made the 
examination was a republican? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2230. Q. Did yon or your democratic colleagues ask that any man 
should be permitted to register or vote whom he objected to ? 

A. No, sir. 

Henry Waltman sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2231. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. 197 avenue 0, in the 11th ward. 

2232. Q. What office have you been elected to? 

A. I was elected member of the assembly on the 3d of November last. 

2233. Q. Of what party were you the candidate? 

A. The democratic party. 

2234. Q. Did you attend in person at the polls in district No. 19, in 
the 11th ward, on the day of election ? 

A. No, sir, I did not. 

2235. Q. State generally what knowledge you had on the subject of 
the existence of fraudulent and spurious certificates of naturalization 
during the last i^residential campaign. 

A. I had not any knowledge of it. 

2236. Q. State whether you knew or now know that during that cam¬ 
paign any person in your district, acting in the interest of the democratic 
party or the republican party, was engaged in selling or giving away, or 
procuring or distributing, or in any way unlawfully using, such certifi¬ 
cates of naturalization. 

A. I do not know of anything of the kind unlawfully. 

2237. Q. What do you mean by saying that you did not know of it 
unlawfully? 

A. I have been in courts where naturalization was going on, and have 
seen persons naturalized. I did not know whether some of them resided 
in my district or not, and for that reason I say I did not know anything 
of what was going on. 

2238. Q. State to the committee whether, during the last presidential 
campaign, you handed voters in your assembly district, or elsewhere in 
the city, with a view to have them vote in this election, either legal or 
unlawful certificates of naturalization. 

A. I have handed them lawful certificates. 

2239. Q. Can you name some of the persons ? 

A. I have no record of it, but I can tell you the way I procured them, 
or the part I took in it. In the first place there are a great many per¬ 
sons that have procured papers in prior years, and have lost their papers, 
and in order to have their names registered they are compelled to show 
papers, provided the inspectors demand it, and it therefore becomes 
necessary for them to procure duplicates of their papers. In order to 
give persons the necessary information and save time I would take the 
names and residences, and the year in which they took out their papers, 
and the witnesses to their papers, and procure duplicates for them. I 
had an office at No. 86 avenue 0, and in the evenings, after the judges 
made up their minds to naturalize in the evening, in order to save the 
people annoyance in waiting for the clerk to make out their applications 
for certificates, I would make out the applications for them, and they 
would come down with their witnesses to the court and go through the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


221 


regular form. They could not, however, all get their papers that even¬ 
ing, and I would get them for them the next day. In that way I have 
handled some persons’ certificates. 

2240. Q. Did you ever, at any time during the last election, hand to 
any person who was a voter, or wanted to vote, a certificate of natural¬ 
ization that you knew to be fraudulent, or believed to be fraudulent, or 
had reason to believe to be fraudulent 1 

A. NTo, sir; I did not. 

2241. Q. Do you know Eichard G. Hunt? 

A. I have seen the gentleman, and am slightly acquainted with him. 

I believe his name is Eichard, though I am not positive about Eichard G. 

2242. Q. I refer to the gentleman who Avas inspector and registrar in 
the 19th district of the 11th ward. 

A. I hear that he was inspector, though I am not much acquainted 
with him. 

2243. Q. Do you know what his politics are ? 

A. I can only speak from what I have heard, but I believe he is a 
republican. 

2244. Q. During the election in your assembly district, do you know of 
your own knowledge of any illegal votes having been cast in favor of, or 
upon the xArociirement of, either political party ? 

A. Of my own personal knowledge I do not know, nor have I heard 
anybody say, that illegal votes had been cast. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2245. Q. How many of these papers did you deliver to jiarties in the 
11th ward? 

A. I cannot exactly state the number; there might have been 100 or 

200 . 

2246. Q. How many of them were certificates of former naturalizations, 
and how many new certificates? 

A. There were quite a number of duplicates, probably 100 or 200. 

2247. Q. How many new papers? 

A. About the same proportion, 100 or 200. 

2248. Q. By what court were they issued? 

A. Some by the superior court, and others by the supreme court. 

2249. Q. Were you iiresent when any of these parties were sworn to 
procure their x)apers ? 

A. I was, during the day. 

2250. Q. How large a proxiortion were x^rocured during the day, and 
how large a proportion during the evening, in Judge Barnard’s court? 

A. In the day-time the x:)eox)le waited for their papers, and in the even¬ 
ing I got them for them. 

2251. Q. Were you in court in the evening? 

A. No, sir; I was at my office. The parties would go before the judge 
in the evening, and I would get the papers the next day from the clerk 
of the court. 

2252. Q. Did you distribute those papers at your office, or did you 
send them to the parties? 

A. A majority of them I kexit at my office, and the parties would call 
for them; but some left their residences with me, and asked me to send 
them their papers. 

2253. Q. Was you a branch of any committee for this purpose? 

A. I was a branch of the general committee of Tammany Hall that 
took this matter in hand. They had a committee of naturalization, but 
I was not a member of that committee. 


222 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2254. Q. Had tlie Tammany committee, of which you are a member, a 
naturalization office in every ward ? 

A. I do not know how many offices they hadj they had no more than 
one that 1 know of. 

2255. Q. Where was it? 

A. It was here on Centre street. 

2256. Q. How many offices similar to yours, at which parties had their 
papers prepared, were there in the city, under the auspices of the Tam¬ 
many Hall committee ? 

A. I doffit know. Each ward had a general committee, and acted for 
itself. 

2257. Q. How many of these papers were prepared in your office? 

A. About 500. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

2258. Q. Did the parties come to you to have their papers got ready 
for being passed upon by the court ? 

A. Yes, sir, they were all ready. 

2259. Q. Do you know that the parties that were applicants took their 
papers to the court, or were they sent down to the court, and the papers 
sent back to you? 

A. They were not sent back to me. As I stated before, I kept a mem¬ 
orandum of those who had appeared before Judge Barnard, so that I 
could get their certificates. 

2260. Q. Do you not know that some of the men for whom application 
was made at your office never went to the court until their papers were 
received ? 

A. I have no knowledge of that. 

By the Chairman : 

2261. Q. Did you personally know all the persons whose applications 
were made at or through your office? 

A. No, indeed 5 but a very small proportion of them. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

2262. Q. You stated that you was not a member of the general com¬ 
mittee on Tammany naturalizations ? 

A. No, sir; I was not a member of the committee on naturalizations, 
but I was a member of the general committee. 

2263. Q. State whether you know anything about the pretended natu¬ 
ralizations at No. 6. Centre street, where Kosenberg acted as chief clerk. 

A. I know nothing particular about them; I was in there once or 
twice, but not on naturalization business. 

New York, December 29,1868. 

Joseph Eeinhardt sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2264. Question. Did you ever go into any cornet to be naturalized? 

Answer. No, sir. 

2265. Q. Was a certificate of naturalization furnished you? 

A. Yes, sir; I don’t know exactly when, but it was four or five days 
before the last election. 

2266. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. John Perrine, of Porty-second street, between Second and Third 
avenues. 

2267. Q. Did you ever present it to have your name registered as a 
voter ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 223 

A. I went then to the polls and wanted to be registered, and they 
would not register my name, and I went off again and did not vote. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2268. Q. How long have you been in the United States ? 

A., Fifteen years next New Year. 

2269. Q. Did you ever get your first pai)ers ? 

A. 1 never got any such papers. 

2270. Q. Have you lived in this city all the time? 

A. Yes, sir j I have lived in the 20th ward 14 years. 

New York, December 29, 1868. 

Alexander Ostander sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2271. Question. In what business are you engaged? 

Answer. I am a lawyer. 

2272. Q. How long have you been so engaged ? 

A. For 20 years; for 12 years in this city. 

2273: Q. State what you know, if anything, of illegal voting in this 
city at the last presidential election. 

A. I spent a couide of hours on the afternoon of election day down 
in the 6tli ward; the first place I visited was the poll in Elizabeth street, 
I think in the 6th ward, near the corner of Bayard street j there was a 
grocery store on the corner of Bayard and Elizabeth streets ; I noticed 
quite a crowd in the store and about it, and I stepped inside for the pur¬ 
pose of seeing what was going on; there were several men leaning over 
the counter, engaged, as I thought, in looking over some papers ; a man 
in a blue coat, just inside the door, partially stopped me as I was going 
in, and I said, “Can I get a light for my cigar?” He said there was 
nobody smoking there, and rather edged me out; I took the hint and 
went out and walked along to the polling place, and the first thing I 
observed was a couple of men changing caps outside and close to the 
polling place; one of them went in, and I followed him in and saw him 
vote ) he then came out and re-exchanged caps with the other man; this 
operation was repeated several times, different men voting; there seemed 
to me to be half a dozen or more men who were banded together engaged 
in that business, as I saw these men in company together, not only at that 
polling place, but, as I will tell you shortly, I saw them going together to 
another one in the same ward; I saw several men (and this blue-coated man 
appeared to be their leader) a little while after going around to a poll which 
was at No. 46 Bayard street, in a barber shop, and which was away about 
one block from this polling place on Elizabeth street, up towards Bowery; 
the company stopped in front of a feed store, where they were furnished 
with little slips of i)aper on which were names and numbers; how I 
knew that these were names and numbers was because I saw a man (not 
the blue-coated man, but another man who appeared to be, also, a leader) 
reading the name which was upon one of the papers and the number to 
a man who apparently could not read ; there were from four to seven of 
these men furnished with slips at that time and went in and voted. 

2274. Q. Were they the same men who had voted at the other polling 
places ? 

A. Some of them were the same men, for I recognized them. One of 
them, on going into the polling place, was told by the inspector, “ You 
have voted before to-day, sir.” He appeared very indignant, and said he 
had not. The inspector took his name and number, and the man gave 


224 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mm his card of business. Another of the same men was told that the 
name was just voted, and the fellow simply turned upon his heel and 
went off without making auy remark. I also saw these men coming out 
of a grocery store with these little slips of paper in their hands, and they 
also changed caps before going into the Bayard street polling place. 

2275. Q. You saw these men vote at different polling places? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2276. Q. Can you state whether the same man voted more than once 
at the same polling jdace after changing his hat or cap? 

A. I would not swear positively that I saw any one do that, for, as I 
told you, I had never seen these men before, and tilings were a good deal 
mixed up ; I was taking notes as rapidly as I could, and these men were 
changing hats and caps so frequently, that I do not know. I could not 
swear positively that I saw one man vote more than once at one polling 
place, but I am positive that I saw men go from the polling place on Eliz¬ 
abeth street, who had voted there, to the polling place on Bayard street, 
and vote there. From there I went to No. 67 Baxter street, opposite to 
Franklin, and there I remained until the close of the poll. This was 
near the time of closing the polls. I saw the same operation of changing 
caps repeated there by several men who stepped into an alley-way, just 
on one side of the polling place, where they would make the exchange, 
and step right out into the street and into the polling place and vote. I 
did not see them deposit their votes, because there was a great crowd in 
the room, and they went behind a sort of screen to vote. There was also 
a counter that extended from the screen out to the window opening on 
the street. I stood by that window, and a few minutes before the poll 
closed I saw a man come out from behind the polling place, behind the 
screen, with a slip of paper, upon which he wrote two names and num¬ 
bers and handed them to a person outside the counterj who went out and 
brought in two men, as I took it, to vote upon those numbers. 

2277. Q. Can you state whether the tickets which these repeaters voted 
were furnished from the democratic boxes or the republican ? 

A. That I could not say. The little slips of paper were placed in their 
hands, and I did not know the politics of the men. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2278. Q. How many men do you think you saw changing caps that day ? 

A. Well, I might have seen six, or I might have seen twenty f that is 

as near as I can come to it. 

2279. Q. Were you employed by any one to make this examination ? 

A. I was not. 

2280. Q. How long have you resided here ? 

A. Since 1852, permanently. 

2281. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. At 244 West Thirty-seventh street; my office is No. 1 Park Place. 

2282. Q. How long have you practiced law here ? 

A. Since 1852. 

2283. Q. Have you ever known, in a closely contested election, that 
persons would go and find out who had not voted and send other per¬ 
sons in to personate them? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2284. Q. That is the inference you drew in this case ? 

A. My inference was that these men who had access to the polls found 
that there were two names registered of men who had not voted, and 
they furnished those names to the parties outside that they might vote 
upon the names. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


225 


By Mr. Hopkins : 

2285. Q. That is the general style of repeating, is it not ? 

A. It is. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

2286. Q. Have yon made yourself familiar with the system of repeating ? 
A. I got more familiarity with it that day than I ever had before. 

2287. Q. Have you ever been engaged in the business of furthering 
the ends of repeating yourself ? 

A. I have not. 

2288. Q. What political party do you belong to ? 

A. I am a republican. 

2289. Q. Do you belong to a secret political organization ? 

A. I belong to the IJnion League. 

2290. Q. Is that a secret organization 

A. Well, I suppose it is in some respects. 

New York, December 29, 1868. 

Hugh Ward swmrn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2291. Question. How long have you been in this country ? 

Answer. Two years on the 26th of July last. 

2292. Q. State if you got a certificate of naturalization; and if so, where? 
A. I got it, but I have forgotten the name of the place where it was : 

it was in Westchester county. 

2293. Q. When did you get it ? 

A. Two months before election. 

2294. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. Mr. Smith. 

2295. Q. Who is Mr. Smith ? 

A. The squire then in Hastings. 

2296. Q. Was there any judge present ? 

A. No, sir. 

2297. Q. Did you ever go into court to get your papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

2298. Q. Who advised you to go and get your papers? 

A. 1 never had any person advise me about it. 

2299. Q. Did you pay anything for your papers ? 

A. I paid one dollar. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2300. Q. Did you vote on your paper ? 

A. No, sir. 

2301. Q. Did you try to vote on it ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2302. Q. Why did you not vote ? 

A. Mr. Lee told me not to vote, and I took his word for it. 

New York, December 29,1868. 

John Donnelly sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Eoss.) 
By Mr. Eoss: 

2303. Question. Were you acting as an election officer last fall ? 
Answer. I was inspector of registry and election of the 5th election 

district, 6th ward. 

15 T 


226 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2304. Q. Who were your colleagues on the board f 

A. Mr. Jarolemoii, Mr. Brophy, and Mr. Lynch. 

2305. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being given there I 

A. I do not. ' 

2306. Q. Do you know of illegal votes being registered ? 

A. N^oiie to my knowledge. All those of whom I entertained the 
slightest doubt I caused to qualify. 

' 2307. Q. Was the action of your board harmonious in excluding from 
registering and voting all illegal voters ? 

A. Yes, sir. I have acted as an election officer on several occasions, 
and I have never seen any body ot men conducting themselves in a more 
proper manner than our board did at that general election. 

2308. Q. Did the democratic inspectors attemid to get anybody regis¬ 
tered, or to vote, who was objected to by the other inspectors'? 

A. No, sir; there was more harmony in that district than in any other 
district or ward, so far as I know ; all my colleagues will testify the same. 

2309. Q. You have no knowledge or information of any illegal regis¬ 
tering or voting 

A. No, sir ; I acted as chairman of the board, and in all cases when we 
entertained the slightest doubt I administered an oath. 

2310. Q. Or when your republican colleagues had any doubt ? 

A. Yes, sir; whenever they made the slightest objection I adminis 
tered the oath. 

2311. Q. Was the board unanimous in admitting or excluding voters 
on that occasion*? 

A. Yes, sir; we neither rejected any one unless we were all satisfied, 
nor allowed any one to vote. I had to administer the oath on several 
occasions to men whom I knew to be legal voters myself, some of them 
old enough to be my father. 

2312. Q. Was any man by the decision of the board permitted to vote 
that any one of the officers was opposed to ? 

A. So far as I recollect, there was no instance of the kind. 

2313. Q. Do you know how many voters there were in your district *? 

A. There were 870, I believe, registered, and I think from 825 to 832 

voted. 

2314. Q. Do you live in the district ? 

A. Yes, sir ; at 112 Franklin street. 

2315. Q. llow many voters do you personally know ? 

A. A great many; I have lived a long time in the ward, and presume 
1 know about one-fourth of them. 

2316. Q. What proportion of the voters are naturalized citizens ? 

A. A majority. 

2317. Q. Did any of them present new naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir; that was our great trouble, almost every one of them had 
to qualify. 

2318. Q. Did you hold that Avhen a man presented new naturalization 
papers that was evidence of his right to vote *? 

A. Well, my colleagues, in a gve‘dt many instances, made objection, 
and we would question the applicant, and require to know who were 
their witnesses, and all such inquiries as that. 

2319. Q. Did you not hold yourself, that if a man presented a natural¬ 
ization paper it gave him a right to vote 1 

A. I was under that impression myself, but my colleagues differed 
with me on a great many occasions. 

2320. Q. How many men were rejected ? 

A. I could not state accurately the number; there were in the whole 
perhaps 50 or more. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. ‘z27 

2321. Q. Were these men who presented naturalization papers? 

A. O, noj but men who had lost their papers, and had been citizens 
tor a long time, and we thought it necessary that they should have 
duplicates. 

2322. Q. Were any rejected who presented naturalization papers j and 
if so, how many ? 

A. There was only one that I can recollect certainly. 

2323. Q. But a small proportion of them were sworn ? 

A. I should judge that, upon the whole register, it would be sufficient 
to assume that one-eighth were sworn. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2324. Q. Do you reside in the ward ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2325. Q. Have you been an inspector there before ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2320. Q. How did the vote this fall compare with the vote of the year 
before ? 

A. I have not acted as inspector in the same precinct for about five 
years ; but the last time I did act there the vote of the precinct reached 
within a hundred of what it did now. It was then 700 and odd, and this 
year it was 800 and odd. 

New York, December 29, 1868. 

►Solomon Seixas sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

2327. Question. Were you one of the election officers last fall ? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

2328. Q. At what voting place ? 

A. At the 10th district, 10th ward. 

2329. Q. State who were the officers with you. 

A. Mr. Van Buren, Mr. Chapman, and Mr. Willis were the registrars. 

2330. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being either registered or 
voted at that place ? 

A. No, sir. 

2331. Q. Did you use ordinary precaution to protect the polls ? 

A. We did. 

2332. Q. State to the committee what action you took for the iiurpose 
of iirotecting them. 

A. We looked at all the papers, and any paper that we though doubt¬ 
ful we did not receive. We found one paper, for instance, that was all 
correct, but we did not receive it on account of the man saying he did 
not have his first papers. All the rest were in due form, I believe, to 
the best of my knowledge and belief. 

By Mr. Ej5RR : 

2333. Q. State whether, at the time of holding the board of regis¬ 
tration of voters and the taking of the vote, many objections were made 
to voters, either by the democratic memliers of the board or by the repub¬ 
lican members of the board. 

A. No, sir 5 there were a few j there were some votes that were chal¬ 
lenged. 

2334. Q. When such challenge was made, were any obstacles interposed 
to making the challenge or to the most particular inquiry ? 

A. No, sir, not that I know of. THien a challenge was made it was 
always asked oii what grounds the vote was challenged j and when the 


228 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ground of tlie challenge was deemed reliable, and the man took the oath, 
the vote was deposited as the law requires. I believe that if a man swears 
in his vote it must be deposited in the box. 

2335. Q. Was there any ditfereiice between the members of the board 
as to your duty when yon came to swear in a vote ? 

A. "None at all. 

2336. Q. Did any member on either side desire to make inquiry into 
the right of a man to vote that was objected to by a member of the other 
side ? 

A. Not that I know of. 

2337. Q. Do you know Mr. Anson Willis ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2338. Q. AYas he on that board ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2339. Q. Did he ever make any objection, or ask that any question be 
put which any other member of the board objected to ? 

A. I don’t remember anything of the kind. 

2340. Q. Do you know of any obstacle having been placed in the way 
of careful inquiry as to the right of a man to vote, by anybody on that 
board ! 

A. I don’t think any obstacles whatever were put in any man’s way. 
AA^e were very particuiar, as we had taken an oath to do our duties and 
we intended to fulfil them. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2341. Q. Do you know of any republican challenger being ordered out 
of the way on election day I 

A. Yes, sir; he had made Dvo other challenges and withdrawn them, 
and he was obstructing the polls. I told him that he had no right to 
challenge in that way, and that if he did it again unless it was a reliable 
challenge I should put him out, for he was obstructing the voting, and 
I believe that he was put out. 

By the Chairman: 

2342. A. You say that he challenged some men ? 

A. He challenged three or four men and withdrew two of his challenges. 
He would say, ‘‘ I challenge that man on the ground that he does not 
live Avhere he states.” AVhen the man showed that he did live there he 
would withdraw the challenge. 

By Mr. I^err : 

2343. Q. AVhat was your opinion as to the real purpose of that challenge 
at the time at which he made those challenges and withdrew them*? 

A. That his purpose was to delay the voting as much as possible. 
That was what my opinion was, and I think my colleagues thought the 
same thing. 

2344. Q. AYhich colleagues % 

A. I think Mr. Chapman, and Mr. Van Buren I know did. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2345. Q. Mr. Van Buren was your democratic colleague 1 

A. Yes, sir ; Air. Chapman and Air. Van Buren were both by when the 
man was ordered out of the office. 

By Air. Boss: 

2346. Q. AVas any person registered or permitted to vote at that poll 
who was not agreed to by at least three members of your board ? 

A. None whatever, that I know ofj most of the time all four members 
were agreed. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


229 


2347 Q. Did you have any wrangling or ill-feeling on the board? 

A. INone at all. The most amiable feeling prevailed, and we had a 
very nice time of it. 

2348. Q. Did there appear to be a disposition evinced to protect the 
polls against fraud either in registering or in voting? 

A. Yes. I do not think we would have allowed anything of the kind. 

By the Chairman : 

2349. Q. State what this man said who was turned out of the polling 
place. 

A. He challenged a man whose name I do not remember; I think he 
gave his residence as Twenty-sixth street, and he understood the man to 
say Twenty-tifth street, and said “I challenge.” We asked ui^on what 
ground, and when he explained, we questioned the voter if he did not 
live on Twenty-sixth street, and when the challenger heard that he said, 

withdraw the challenge.” I told him, ‘‘My friend, you must be very 
careful and listen well, so as not to delay the voting.” Well, two or three 
times after that he challenged again and withdrew the challenge in the 
same way. 

2350. Q. What did he say and do? 

A. Just the same thing j he said, “I challenge,” and then found out he 
was mistaken and withdrew the challenge. I thought he was rushing it 
too much in challenging all the time as much as possible, and I told the 
officers to put him out, and he went out, and at 1 o’clock in the afternoon 
he came in again and voted, and remained in the room and was very 
careful afterwards. 

2351. Q. What proportion of the voters in your district were natives? 

A. 1 cannot tell; perhaps one-half, or perhaps not so many. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2352. Q. You say you put the man out because he was obstructing the 
polls? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2353. Q. Did you not know that it was the right of every citizen to 
challenge? 

A. I did. 

2354. C^. Then what right had you to put the man out for exercising 
his right as an American citizen? 

A. Because he was delaying the voting by challenging and then with¬ 
drawing his challenge. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2355. Q. How many challenges did he make ? 

A. Dour or five. 

2356 Q. How many did he withdraw? 

A. Three. 

2357. Q. And you say that was such an obstructing as authorized you 
to expel him? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2358. Q. Did you put anybody else out that day who challenged? 

A. IS’o, sir. 

2359. Q. What proportion of voters in the district do you know? 

A. I do not know 25 voters in the district. 

2360. Q. Would it not have been easy for you to have been imposed 
upon by a large number of persons registering upon fraudulent naturali¬ 
zation papers ? 


230 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A I don’t tliink it would, I tliink the board could have told them well. 

2361. Q. If you had before you a paper i^urporting to come from a 
court with a seal of the court, how could you tell if it was-bogus or not? 

A. I suppose unless the seal of the court was on the pai)er it would be 
a bogus paper. 

2362. Q. But if the seal was there, that would be conclusive in your 
mind ? 

A. I suppose that would be conclusive that it would be a right paper; 
that was the way we all regarded it—not one, but all. 

Kew York, December 29, 1868. 

jAiviES J. Brophy sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

2363. Question. Were you an election officer last fall? 

Answer. I was. 

2364. Q. At what election precinct? 

A. Fifth district, sixth ward. 

2365. Q. State to the committee what means you took to protect the 
registry and ballot from illegal voters. 

A. That which Avas required of me by law; we required each one to 
answer the questions put to him whether he was a citizen, if there was 
any reasonable doubt as to his being a citizen. 

2366. Q. Was that examination pretty thorough and strict? 

A. I believe I asked the questions which were in our book of instruc¬ 
tions. 

2367. Q. You asked those pretty generally, did you? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2368. Q. Do you know of any illegal registering or Acting in that 
district? 

A. I do not. 

2369. Q. Was there harmonious action of the board with reference to 
protecting the registry and the ballot from fraudulent Amters? 

A. As a general thing there was, but sometimes there Avas a difference 
of opinion and Ave settled it by our couA^ersation; sometimes one had a 
doubt, and Ave put the questions more strictly in that case. When any 
one member of the board of registry had any doubts about the right of 
any particular individual to Amte he put the questions himself. 

2370. Q. When you came to a conclusion was it or AAms it not with the 
concurrence of the board ? 

A. It was. We agreed either to reject or admit a Amter to registry by 
the concurrence of the board. 

2371. Q. Was it brought to the knowledge of the board that there 
were persons registered at a certain place aaTio did not live there? 

A. We iieAm’ ascertained any such thing; I don’t know any such case. 
I know there Avere men who would go and see if voters did live in the 
place where they registered, and if any one had any doubt they could 
be there to challenge, and Avhen a party was challenged and took the 
requisite oath, AA^e considered that conclusive proof that he was a Amter. 

2372. Q. HaA^e you any knowledge now, after the election is over, of 
any persons being illegally registered or voting upon such registrations? 

A I have not. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2373. Q. How many Amters are there in your precinct? 

A. We registered 870 voters. 

2374. Q. Hoav many did you poll? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


231 


A. Eight hundred and thirty-seven at the presidential election. 

2375. Q. How many voters in the election district do yon know per¬ 
sonally ? 

A. I should judge that I knew 300 out of the 837. 

2370. Q. What is your occupation ? 

A. I am a clerk of the Harlem and Albany Railroad Company. 

2377. Q. How many votes were rejected by you on the day of election? 

A. I should judge there were about three; there may have been more 

or less, but certainly not over six. 

2378. Q. How many were challenged ? 

A. About 50, or from that to 100. 

2379. Q. You took the oath of the party as conclusive evidence in 
every case of his right to vote ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2380. Q. You heard no other evidence ? 

A. We followed our insHuctions and took the oath of the party as 
conclusive of his right to vote if he was challenged, 

2381. Q. Did you get any other instructions besides your printed 
instructions ? 

A. No, sir. 

2382. Q. Were you at a meeting of the Tammany inspectors ? 

A. I was. 

2383. Q. What was that meeting for ? 

A. It was an open meeting, and theproceedings were published in the 
papers. The purpose of the meeting, if I can recollect it, was to instruct 
us that in case there should be an attempt made to intimidate us from 
receiving votes we should not be intimidated. 

2384. Q. Who gave you those instructions ? 

A. I did not accept them from anybody ; it was only spoken of. 

2385. Q. Who spoke of those instructions to the assembled inspectors ? 

A. Well, there were several parties present that day; 1 could not say 

who it was who gave those instructions. The meeting was organized, 
if I recollect right, with Mr. A. Oakey Hall as chairman, but I am not 
positive of it. 

2386. Q. Did he give you any instructions ? 

A. No, sir ; not that I considered instructions. 

2387. Q. What did he tell you ? 

A. He told us that there had been a secret meeting of the republican 
inspectors of election, at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, and from what he could 
learn of it they would probably make an attempt on election day by 
some means to prevent the vote from coming out; that the two repub¬ 
lican inspectors would on some pretext iirobably leave us and insist that 
it was not a legal election ; and be said that in case such a thing was 
done, we should remain at the polls until the time for closing the polls 
arrived, and receive the votes as usual; those were only the words of a 
man. 

2388. Q. What else did he advise? 

A. Well, I don’t know that I can recollect any other particular thing 
that he told us. 

2380. Q. Who else made a speech to that meeting ? < 

A. I do not recollect the parties. 

2390. Q. Did Mr. Tweed make a speech? 

A. Not to my recollection; so far as I recollect that gentleman was 
not present. 

2391. Q. Who else made a speech there to you ? 

A. I believe the Hon. John Fox told us that if we required any instruc- 


232 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tions there was to be a committee sitting in IS’assau street; a committee 
of legal gentlemen who could give us advice in case we were in any way 
confused and did not know how to act. 

2392. Q. You say that there were three voters rejected at the polls ; 
how many were rejected at the registry ? 

A. There were several who camein there who thought they were in the 
proper place to register; when we ascertained where they lived, and found 
that they did not live in that district, we directed them to the proper 
district. That was the mistake they made. 

2393. Q. How many new naturalization papers were there in your pre¬ 
cinct ? 

A. There may have been one hundred new naturalization papers. 

2394. Q. Were those who produced new papers examined under oath? 

A. Some of them were. 

2395. Q. How many ? 

A. Nearly half. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2396. Q. Where was that meeting held ? 

A. At Tammany Hall. 

2397. Q. Before that meeting was held was it not a matter of public 
notoriety that there was a large number of what were called fraudulent 
naturalization papers being distributed about the city ? 

A. Not, so far as I believe. 

2398. Q. Was it not so charged in the public press and on the streets? 

A. I do not recollect having read it myself. 

2399. Q. You did not hear anything of such charges ? 

A. Yes, I heard of the arrest of a man by the name of Bosenberg, I 
believe. 

2400. Q. Was this meeting held after that? 

A. I could not swear to that; it was held on a Sunday afternoon. 

2401. Q. Was not that meeting held with a view to encourage voting 
by parties who had naturalization papers whether they Avere legal or 
not ? 

A. To the best of my belief it was not; it was held more for the pur¬ 
pose of assisting those who were entitled to vote, by being naturalized, 
to get their rights. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2402. Q. Were not you advised at that time that the certificate of a 
court was conclusive upon you; did not Mr. Hall say that naturaliza¬ 
tion papers with the seal of the court were conclusive, and that you had 
no right to inquire regarding them ? 

A. No, sir. 

2403. Q. What did he say about the seal of a court being conclusive ? 

A. I do not know that I can express it in words; he said that we 

should always take it. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2404. Q. Did he say that it was prwia facie eAudence ? 

A. Perhaps that was it, but I cannot recollect. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2405. Q. You considered that it was conclusive evidence, did you not? 

A. No, sir; a man might have found that paper on the street. If I 

thought that he went to the court and got it there, I would consider it so. 

2406. Q. Was it not true that Mr. Lynch, one of your colleagues on 
that board, objected to a good many men being registered who were reg- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 233 

istered, and registered because you and your colleague, Mr. Donnelly, 
vouched for them 

A. We registered no one until after Mr. Lynch was satisfied that he 
should be registered. 

2407. Q. Be careful how you answer that. You say you registered no 
one until he was satisfied ? 

A. To the best of my recollection we registered no voter where he held 
to the last that he should not be registered. 

2408. Q. Did he not find fault with the registration of the large number 
of voters at diflerent houses in that ward, say at 472 Pearl street and 
476 Pearl street? 

A. No, sir; not to my recollection. He would ask a man, “Do you liv^e 
there?” I remember one man, John Ward, to whom he said, “You do 
not live at 478 Pearl street; you live at City Hall Place.” Now, that 
man does live in Pearl street, with his father. I know him to live 
there. He is a young man, with whom Mr. Lynch is also very well 
acquainted. He had once lived in City Hall Place, but he has been living 
in Pearl street long enough to vote. 

2409. Q. Do you swear that this Mr. Donnelly and Mr. Lynch did not 
have sharp words in regard to the registry; Mr. Lynch protesting against 
the registration of many voters, you and Donnelly vouching for them ? 

A. The onl}^ sharp language that I recollect was between Mr. Don¬ 
nelly and Mr. Lynch, and that arose about the case of a man that Mr. 
Donnelly said that he would vouch for himself. If I recollect aright it 
was the case of a i)erson by the name of Sullivan, and Mr. Donnelly 
told Mr. Lynch that he ought to know him; that he had lived long 
enough there to know him, and to the best of my belief now, Mr. Don¬ 
nelly convinced Mr. Lynch that the man had lived at that number. 

2410. Q. Then you say that every man who was registered by the 
board was registered with the consent of Mr. Lynch ? 

A. No; I do not say so, because Mr. Lynch was not present all the 
time. 

2411. Q. Wliile he was present? 

A. Yes, sir; while he was present. 


New York, December 29, 1868. 
Richard Day sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2412. Question. Of what country are you a native ? 

Answer. Ireland. 

2413. Q. Were you ever in any court to be naturalized? 

A. No, sir. 

2414. Q. You never took any oath of allegiance? 

A. No, sir. 

2415. Q. Were you furnished with a certificate of naturalization? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2416. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. Michael Conroth brought it to me. 

2417. Q. Have you got that paper with you now? 

A. No, sir. 

2418. Q. Where did he give it to you? 

A. He brought it to the house where I lived, on Thirty-sixth street. 

2419. Q. When was that ? 

A. Just a few days before the registry. 

2420. Q. Did you present it to be registered as a voter ? 


234 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I (lid, but tliey said it was uot correct, and asked me where I got 
it 5 I told them and then they would not register my name. 

By Mr. IO^rr : 

2421. Q. Did yon vote? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2422. Q. How long have yon been in the United States? 

A. About eight years. 

2423. Q. Did you make your first application to become a citizen?. 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2424. C^. AVhere is the scallawag that gave yon that paper? 

A. He is at homej he lives in the same building with me, on Thirty- 
fourth street. 

2425. Q. Of whom did he get it? 

A. Of the man who keeps the place, McMan I think it was, who keeps 
a liquor store ,* 1 do not know the number, but it is on Thirty-fourth 


street. 


By the Chairman : 

2420. Q. Are you a democrat? 

A. I don’t know 5 I had not made up my mind how I would vote if 1 
was registered. 

Huaii F. Dolan recalled. 

2427. Question. Will you produce to the committee a list of the names 
of the persons found on the registry list as registered at No. 288 Hudson 
street? 

Answer. I produce a list of names registered at that place. 

[The list is hereunto annexed.] 

2428. Q. Will you-produce the poll-list from the 12th district, 8th ward, 
of this city, and the registry list for that district ? 

A. I now produce them. 

2429. Q. How many of these names do you find on the poll-list as vot¬ 
ing there during the iiresidential and State election ? 

A. Every man on that list marked with a v is found on the poll-list of 
voters, except the name of Andrew Wilson. 


NAMES OF llEGISTRY FROM 288 HUDSON STREET. 


Checked 23, 12 not = 3o. 


V John L. Betts. 


David McGrath. 

V Samuel Merritt. 

V William McGrath. 
V, Tames O’Rourke. 

Thomas O’Neal. 

V John Oakley. 

John Pierce. 

V Augustus Rodgers. 
Henry Strong. 

V James Stewart. 
Andiew Smith. 
William Taylor. 
Samuel Thompson. 

V George Wood. 

V Henry Wolf. 

V Andrew Wilson. 
George Wilson. 


V James Cavanaugh. 


V James Cook. 


William Conner. 

V John Clarkson. 

V James Dunn. 


V William Davis. 

V John Dreunon. 

V .James Eveland. 

V Lewis Fox. 


Henry Gregory. 

V Henry S. Hall. 

V Peter Lynch. 


George Logan. 
V James Moran. 


V Thomas Moran. 


James Mitchell. 
V John McEntee. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


235 


Owen E. Westlake recalled. 

Witness. I now present to tlie committee a statement of the naturali¬ 
zations for the years 1864, 1865, 1866, and 1867, in the superior court of 
the city of New York, as follows: 1864, 6540; 1865, 3,274; 1866, 6,588; 
1867, 10,814. 1 also produce the application for naturalization of Max¬ 
imilian Boeck, and the affidavit of the witness, dated the 12th day of 
October, 1868, for the inspection of the committee. 

David Crowley recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

2430. Question. Did you take any steps to ascertain the number of 
persons who resided at 288 Hudson street; and if so, when*? 

Answer. About three or four weeks ago I was up at 288 Hudson street; 
it is known as the Palace” liquor store; and I inquired of the bar-tender 
and he told me there was only one man lived in the place and that was 
James Moran, the man who kept the place. I asked him if there had 
been any boarders or any men who lodged there, and he said no, only this 
James Moran; also inquired next door, but they knew nothing more 
about it than this. 

New York, December 29,1868. 

John A Poster recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

2431. Question. State what you know of the place 288 Hudson street. 

Answer. I know what the dimensions of it are as appears from the 

official records of our tax office. The house known as 288 Hud soils treet 
is 18 feet by 30. I am not positive, but I think the lot is 51 feet deep. 

2431J. Q. That is the outside dimensions ? 

A. Yes; that is, from party line to party line, as appears from the tax 
map. 

2432. Q. How many stories high is the building upon the lot? 

A. It does not appear from the map. 

2432J. Q. State what lists are made of persons who are supposed to 
be voters in the several districts of this city. 

A. The city is divided into wards, and the board of common council of 
the city divides those wmrds into election districts, tlie intention being 
and the law requiring that they shall be convenient districts, sufficiently 
small to allow the voters to easily vote during the election. There are 
22 wards in the city divided into 340 districts, the larger wards into a 
large number of districts and the smaller wmrds into a small number— 
one of the wards having only two districts and one of them 31 districts. 

2433. Q. What lists of voters are-made by the registers of election? 

A. There are in each of these election districts four inspectors of reg¬ 
istry and elections appointed. These inspectors meet to register in the 
large districts polling 400 votes and upwards, two days on the first 
meeting, and in the smaller one daj^; but they all meet two days after 
that, making at least three days for registering, and in the large districts 
four days. They are by law each required to make a list of all who 
appear and prove themselves entitled to vote and register their names. 
These four lists are left iu the liands of the inspectors, and on the day of 
election they serve as inspectors of election. They receive the votes and 
at the close of the poll they pass them over to two canvassers w ho canvass 
the votes. These registries of election or lists are required to be used 
by them during the election day, and after that they are filed with the 
clerk of the county of New York, or if it is the December election, they 
are tiled Avith the supervisors. 

2433J. Q. State if there is a xioll-list of the voters made. 


236 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


A. There are two clerks who assist the registers or inspectors on the 
day of election, and they take the name of each person as he votes. That 
list is called the poll-list and is used by the canvassers in canvassing 
the votes after the poll is completed. These also are filed with the clerk 
of the county within 24 hours after the canvass is completed. 

2434. Q. The poll-list regularly should not have on it the names of any 
persons except those who voted*? 

A. J^o; the poll-list can only contain the names of those who have 
voted and their residences. The registry contains the names of those 
who have registered, and a voter must have registered on one of the four 
days prior to an election. 

2434J. Q. Do the inspectors, in conducting an election, use the registry 
list? 

A. It is their duty as they receive the votes to check upon the regis¬ 
try list the names of those on the list who have voted; consequently the 
registry will contain a check, usually on the margin, opposite the names 
of each man who has voted. 

2435. Q. Is the check usually a v/”? 

A. Yes; a mark similar to a “ 

By Mr. Kerr : 

24t35^. Q. Is that check required by law? 

A. Ko; the law does not say how it shall be done. 

2436. Q. Does the law require that the names shall be checked off as 
the men vote ? 

A. No; I think an old law required it; it is common law; I don’t think 
the present law requires it, but it is uniformly done. 

2436J. Q. So far as you know ? 

A. I mean to say that it has habitually been done as I know, because 
I have had occasion to examine the whole poll-list in our office on several 
occasions. 

243'?. Q. Do you know, of your own knowledge, that this checking 
was done at one single precinct this year? 

A. It was done at my own, where I staid all day. 

2437J. Q. How do you know it was done? 

A. I saw it done. 

2438. Q. By whom ? 

A. By the inspectors. 

2438J. Q. Where were you standing? 

A. I was standing on one side of the table and they were standing at 
the opposite side of the table. 


New York, Decemher 29, 1868. 

James F. Hall sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2439. Question. State anything you know of persons being registered 
as voters for the last presidential election; that is, of persons making 
application to be registered who were not entitled to be registered or to 
vote. 

Answer. John Maloney, Michael Morrisey, John Early, and James Mc¬ 
Dermott, at the first district in Phillip town, in Putnam county, offered 
to register on papers which afterwards proved to be bogus papers. 

By Mr. E:err : 

2440. Q. Were you an election officer ? 

A. I was not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


237 


2441. Q. In what capacity were you about the polls? 

A. As a voter. 

2442. Q. With what party did you vote ? 

A. Voted the republican ticket. 

2443. Q. You saw these men, John Maloney and others, attempt to 
vote on papers that proved to be bogus ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2444. Q. How do yon know that ? 

A. From the examination to which they were subjected. 

2445. Q. Who made that examination ? 

A. The officers of election. 

2446. Q. Did you hear it made ? 

A. I did; the questions were suggested to some of them by me. 

2447. Q. In what way did their invalidity appear j how did it come 
out? 

A. That they were not present when the papers were issued by the 
court, but that the papers had been sent to them by some i)ersou. 

2448. Q. Was that the case in each of the four instances ? 

A. In each of them; they testified that they had never been natural¬ 
ized in court; that thej" had not received their papers in court. 

2449. Q. Did they say that they had never been in a court to be sworn 
as citizens ? 

A. Yes, sir; they had not been there at the date of their naturaliza¬ 
tion inipers, and they did not state when they had been there. 

2450. Q. Did every one of them state that he had been naturalized 
at all ? 

A. I am under the impression that one of them claimed to have been 
naturalized and to have lost his papers j the others did not claim it. 

2451. Q. Can you state where these men live ? 

A. They live in the town of Philliptown, opposite West Point, at what 
is called Garrison Station. 


New York, December 29, 1868. 

William H. Hendrick sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2452. Question. State what you know of persons registering their 
names more than once in this city just prior to the last presidential elec¬ 
tion, and of such persons voting more than once at the last election. 

Answer. I wrote the paper which I now hold in my hand in order to 
save me trouble j it recites the fficts within my knowledge j I wrote it 
from memory. 

2453. Q. Keferring to that to refresh your memory, state what you 
know. 

A. I was engaged by Peter Norton to join a gang of repeaters, and it 
w^as understood that I was to be registered as often as possible on the 
two last registry days previous to the presidential election on the 3d of 
November. Those two days of registry were October 30 and 31. On 
the night of the 30th of October I repaired to Peter MitchelPs liquor 
store, corner of Bleecker and Greene streets, and I saw there a congre¬ 
gation of repeaters, I should say at least 40 men. There I met Peter 
Norton, who had engaged me. He took me to task for not being with 
them during the day. I made some plausible excmse, when I was told to 
be with them without fail the next day; that is, I had missed the first 
day of the last two registry days, and was found fault with for not being 
on hand. I was told to be with them without fail the next day, the last 


238 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


registry day, at 7 o’clock in the morning. The next day I consulted 
with Colonel Bliss, who said that Superintendent Kennedy suggested 
that I should go on with these men and register with them, keeping a 
memorandnni of my proceedings. After I was engaged with this party, 
I went to Colonel Bliss and reported the aftair to liim. I told him tliat 
1 would not go with them unless I had some sanction from him, because 
1 felt that I might compromise myself, and I was not willing to get into 
any such com])any, and go through with this business that they proposed 
to me, without 1 had some authority and some pledge that 1 would be 
protected in it. On the morning of tlie 31st of October, 1868,1 reported 
to Peter Mitchell, according to promise, and the only one of the gang 
I found there at that hour was David Somers, who claimed to be Peter 
Norton’s right-hand man. He asked me to take a drink, aiid said that 
Pete Norton had been up with the boys all night, and that he had gone 
home for a nap. Dave said, ‘‘ You and I will go about and do a little work 
registering, and then go and wake up Pete.” We then went to a drink¬ 
ing saloon and saw Peter Burns, corner of Elizabeth and Houston streets, 
(No. 69 East Houston.) Mr. Peter Burns furnished us with names 
and a residence. David Somers took his own name as a resident of 
69 East Houston street, while he gave me a slip with the name of 
‘^Charles Walters, 69 East Houston street.” From Burns’s place we 
went around the corner to the place of registry of this district, when 
David Somers registered himself as a resident of 69 East Houston street. 
He was questioned sharply by one of the registry officers, and was chal¬ 
lenged. He swore in his registry. I Avas then registered at the same 
place as a roommate of David Somers, under the name of ‘^Charles 
Walters,” of 69 East Houston street. We then returned to Peter 
Burns’s place, who inquired if it was all right, remarking that they had 
everything all snug in that district. Peter Burns then put the two names, 
as registered, on hie to be voted on election day, and we (David Somers 
and myself) then AA^ent to the ihace of registry of the 1st district of 
the 14th ward, AAdiere I registered my correct name and residence, 604 
Broadway. David Somers Avould not register here, because he said he 
Avas too Avell knoAAm; besides, he said that he had registered his OAAm 
name the day before in a dozen lAlaces in different parts of the city. 
We then Avent OA^er in the 8th ward and joined more of the gang. I do 
not knoAv their names. About three joined Dave Somers and myself, and 
the party, hve in number, were all registered at thetAvo registering places 
on Greene street, one near Prince and the other near Broome street. Of 
the names there registered, 1 only remember W. H. TraAus, of 595 Broad- 
Avay, and W. H. TraAus, of 117 Spring street. When a second proposed 
to give his residence 117 Spring street, another member of the five 
remarked, It won’t do for any more to give 117 Spring street, as there 
is only room there for one man, and four of us haAm already given in 
that residence.” Besides the above, others of the gang arrived, and ask¬ 
ing if all was right, registered at the above places as residents of 84 
Greene street, the residence of Peter Mitchell, Avho Avas the c.andidate of 
that district for the assembly; I think it was the 5th assembly district. 
Dave Somers and myself then Avent to the house of Peter Norton, 142 
Sullivan street, Avho roused up from his nap. Peter Norton and the 
three of us joined the main body at Peter Mitchell’s liquor store. There 
I saw slips serA^ed out for different districts by Alderman Norton and 
his brother, Peter Norton, and also by Peter Mitchell. Some 25 or 30 
names Avere here given out Avith residences attached. I was told that it 
Avas understood by the women at the different houses hoAv to answer all 
the questions that might be propounded to them by the police or by 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


239 


detectives wlio might call to know who lived there, &c. The gang- 
was then divided into parties of four, six, eight, and twelve, and went 
in different directions. The party I was with consisted of live, each 
one of whom made an extra registry at a i)olling place on Yarick street. 
I have forgotten the names registered here. This was Alderman Nor¬ 
ton’s district. We then returned to Peter Mitchell’s liquor store, which 
wSeemed to be a general rendezvous for at least 50 repeaters. Here 
I was told by Peter Norton to join a party of 12 bound for the Gth ward. 
The party were strangers, of whom I did not even know their names. I 
hesitated, but Dave Norton said it was all right. Dave Norton said, 
“It is all right; go along and do as the rest do, and I will make it all 
right.” I joined them, and we walked rapidly together to Alderman 
Cuddy’s place, 44 Bowery, and in five minutes’ time Alderman Cuddy in 
person produced a book that must have contained several hundred names 
and residences. Each of the 12 was furnished with a name and residence. 
One of James Welch, of GO or 70 Mott street; another of George or 
William Bennett. I took James Darling, of G3 Mott street. Alderman 
Cuddy passed these cards over his counter. Each one got a card. 1 
now present to the committee the card containing my name and address 
which I received: 


JAMES DARLING 


60 Mott 


td 


2454. Q. State how he gave you that card. 

A. He was looking over his book, and I was looking over his left 
shoulder. He looked over the list and said, “ Who will take John this, 
or John that ^ ” He would call them off in that way. I felt that I must 
call for one name, and I waited until I heard a name that sounded like 
an American name. Most all the names were Irish—such as Sullivan 
or McCarthy. I felt that I could not present a name like that. Finally, 
when he called the name of James Darling, I said, “I will take this;” 
and that is the card he gave me. 

2455. Q. State if he looked at you when he presented it to you, or 
whether he handed it in such a way that he could not see you when he 
gave it to you. 

A. I do not think he saw me. I do not think he caught my eye 
during the whole time I was in there. 

245G. Q. He handed it to you over his shoulder ! 

A. Yes. We then went around to the registry on Bayard street, near 
the Bowery, and the whole 12 were registered there. One or two 
were challenged, but they swore themselves on the registry. Numbers 
GG, G2, G8, and 70 Mott street occurred very often on Cuddy’s book, which 
I saw by looking over his shoulder while he served our i)arty with their 
names; also Nos. G2, G4, and G8, on Bayard street. The gang I accom¬ 
panied then returned to Peter Mitchell’s, and after a few hours’ conver¬ 
sation Ave agreed to be on hand election day and vote; and Avith the 
directions of Peter Norton that I should call on him for my reward, I 
left the ])arty for the day. I Avas told by one of the party that they had 
done more work the day before (the 30th) than the day on AAdiich I was 
AAuth them,(the 31st.) In conversation Avith the chief men of this gang 
since the election I haA^e heard scA^eral of them boast that they had 



240 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


been registered and voted over twenty or twenty-five times, and some 
of them thirty times. It was invariably the rule, when challenged, to 
swear the vote or registry in. On receiving my instructions tor the 
work on election day, and in reply to my remark, But if I am chal¬ 
lenged,” the reply was, You must swear it in; if you once weaken you 
are gone up; we will get you out, of course, but it will hinder the work.” 

2457. Q. I present to you four cards on which certain names appear. 
State what you know of them. 

A. These are cards that I wrote myself. I stepped into a cigar store 
before I went to Peter Mitchell’s, and got these four cards and put them 
into my pocket with the intention of putting on them a memorandum 
of what I did while with the party during the day. I had a lead pencil 
in my pocket, and after we had registered in Bayard street I went back 
to Alderman Cuddy’s and took a drink, and while the rest were talking 
and drinking I went down into the water closet and Avrote these cards. 

2458. Q. What did you write upon them 

A. Here is the name of James Goodwin, Ko. 70 Mott street; James 
Welsh, residence 142 Sullivan street. Here is another card with the 
name of Charles Walters, C9 Houston street, and David Somers. 
Both received slips of paper from Pete Burns’ porter-house, corner of 
Houston and Elizabeth streets. David Somers is said to have regis¬ 
tered in real name a dozen times. This is the first time I have seen 
these cards since I gave them to Colonel Bliss. Here is another which 
has upon it Gordon McKay, 595 Broadway.” W. H. Travis registered 
twice—first from 117 Spring street, and 84 Greene street. “ William 
Bennett, G2 Bayard street, (it should have been William Bennett, regis¬ 
tered in Bayard street, near Bowery.”) A large number registered from 
142 Sullivan street. 

2459. Q. Who is Peter Norton ? 

A. He is a brother of Alderman Michael Norton. 

24G0. Q. What is he politically ? 

A. He is a democrat—at least I don’t know whether he has any poli¬ 
tics personally, but he seemed to be interested in the success of the 
democratic ticket in that ward. 

24G1. Q. State if you know the politics of these repeaters with whom 
you are associated. 

A. Well, the repeaters, most of them that I was with that day, I do 
not think have much politics one way or the other, but they seemed to 
have been keeping on good terms with certain parties in the locality. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

24G2. Q. Did you learn of which i)olitical party ^ 

A. The democratic. 

24G3. Q. Norton was in the interest of that party ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

24G4. Q. And Burns ? 

A. He was a democrat. 

24G5. Q. For whose benefit were you making these registries; for the 
benefit of the democrats or the republicans ? 

A. The democrats. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

24GG. Q. Who employed you to engage in this business? 

A. Peter Norton. 

24G7. Q. Anybody else ? 

A. No, sir; I do not think there was; I do not think any one else gave 
me direct encouragement. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 241 

2468. Q. How did you come to go to Peter Norton for such emplov- 
ment? 

A. 1 did not go to him for emi)loyment; I met him with a party of 
sporting men at Florence’s saloon. 

2469. Q. What do you mean by “ si)orting men?” 

A. Men that keep faro banks, fast women, and fast horses. 

2470. Q. What is your business ? 

A. 1 have been in the army for the last seven years. 

2471. Q. Are you in the army now? 

A. I was discharged on the 24th of June last. 

2472. Q. What service were you in? 

A. The general service of the regular army. 

2473. Q. What regiment were you in ? 

Q. In no regiment; it is impossible for a man who is in the general 
service to be in any particular regiment; the general service embraces 
those unassigned men in the army who have never been sent to any 
regiment. 

2474. Q. Where were you on duty? 

A. At Governor’s island, in the bay of New York. 

2475. Q. Under whom? 

A. Under General Henry D. Wallen. 

2476. Q. Were you known there by the same name under which you 
appear here ? 

A. No, sir 5 as William H. Travis. 

2477. Q. Is that or is this your real name? 

A. William H. Hendrick is my real name. 

2478. Q. When did you leave the service? 

A. On the 24th of June last; I was honorably discharged, and I have 
my discharge in my liocket. 

2479. Q. How many more names have you ? 

A. That is all; but I would like to have it appear in the record why 
I was on Governor’s island under an assumed name. 

2480. Q. When did you enter the service at Governor’s island ? 

A. On the 24th of June, 1865. 

2481. Q. What duties did you perform there ? 

A. I was clerk to General Wallen—Brigadier General Wallen. 

2482. Q. When you left that service in June last, what did you do ? 

A. I looked for a situation in New York; I hoped to get a clerkship 

in a civilian department ? 

2483. Q. Did you find any such employment ? 

A. No, sir; I was for a while looking for a situation, and I got 
acquainted with these men in my idle moments. 

2484. Q. You did not find any situation ? 

A. No, sir. 

2485. Q. Then you went around with these sporting gentlemen ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2486. Q. And your business was visiting gambling houses and houses 
of ill-fame? 

- A. I must decline to answer such questions as may reflect upon my 
character; I can say, however, that I never was in a house of ill-fame ; 
but I will have to acknowledge that I have been addicted to going into 
faro banks. 

2487. Q. During this time? 

A. During this time; in fact for 15 years. If I had not done so I 
should never have got in with these parties. 

10 T 


242 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2488. Q. During this time were you piirt owner ot a faro bank, or of 
a gambling house ? 

A. Never, sir. 

2489. Q. Did you not keep a woman who was not your wife ? 

A. No, sir. 

2490. Q. What was your business before 18G5 ? 

A. I was in the United States marine corps; I served my full four 
years as sergeant; I was first on duty at the Philadelphia navy yard. 

2491. Q. Under whom? 

A. Under Lieutenant Colonel Ward Marston, at that time command¬ 
ing officer. 

2492. Q. Where did you next do service ? 

A. 1 was only three weeks at the barracks in Philadelphia when I was 
sent to Washington among a squad of recruits. 

2493. Q. By what name were you known in the service at Philadelphia ? 

A. My real name, William H. Hendricks. I also have my honorable 

discharge from that service. 

2494. Q. What did you do when you went to Washington ? 

A. I was instructed in the drill; had six hours’ drill a day for six 
weeks; and Avas made a corporal right on the jump. I never did sentinel 
duty but once. 

2495. Q. How long did you remain there ? 

A. I was in Washington acting in the capacity of corporal for thi^ee 
months. 

2496. Q. Under whom? 

A. Colonel John Harris was commandant of the marine corps. 

2497. Q. What year was this ? 

A. I enlisted in the fall of 1860. 

2498. Q. When did you go to Washington? 

A. About the 4th of September in the same year, and I staid there 
about three months. 

2499. Q. Where did you then go ? 

A. I was then drafted as one of the marine guard of the frigate Mace¬ 
donian, then fitting out at the Portsmouth navy yard. We were taken 
in a body to Portsmouth, under command of Captain Macauley. The 
shij) went into commission about the 1st or 2d of January, 1861 j and 
we made a cruise of 13 months. We Avent to Vera Cruz, St. Thomas, and 
around Cuba. 

2500. Q. Who AA^as commander of the ship ? 

A. Captain James Glynn, of the United States naA^y. 

2501. Q. Under what name were you there ? 

A. William H. Hendricks. 

2502. Q. What rank had you ? 

A. I was made what was called “lance sergeant,*’ when Ave got on 
board ship. 

2503. Q. Did you remain in that position all the time ? 

A. Yes, during the Avhole of the 13 months. My discharge gives the 
date of my promotion. 

2504. Q. What did you do after that? 

A. The ship returned to Boston harbor and went out of commission. 
I then had the privilege of a furlough of 10 days, and reporting for 
duty at any navy yard in the United States service. I took my furlough 
and reported for duty at the Portsmouth navy yard. This was about 
the last of February, 1862. I was two years on duty as sergeant at the 
Portsmouth navy yard. 

2505. Q. Where did you go to from there? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 243 

A. After I had been there two years I came to New York and visited 
my father, who was then living in New York. 

2506. Q. Where does he live now ? 

A. At Norwalk, Connecticut. 

2507. Q. What did yon do there ? 

A. I was with him for several months, and then got a clerkship in 
Washington? 

2508. Q. In what department 1 

A. In the Provost Marshal General’s department. 

2509. Q. At what date was that ? 

A. I do not remember the precise date. It was about 1865. 

2510. Q. What were you doing during the long space that intervened 
between your service at the Portsmouth navy yard and the commence¬ 
ment of your service in Washington ? 

A. I was in New York doing nothing. 

2511. Q. How long did you remain in the Provost Marshal General’s 
department at Washington "? 

Five months. 

2512. Q. In what class were you as a clerk'? 

A. I was a third class clerk. 

2513. Q. What was your compensation? 

A. I received a hundred dollars a month. 

2514. Q. On whose procurement were you appointed ? 

A. I had several recommendations; one from Paymaster Cunning¬ 
ham, of the Macedonian; one from Paymaster Bleecker, of the Ports¬ 
mouth navy yard; another from Anthony J. Bleecker, of New York city. 

2515. Q. What did you do when you left there ? 

A. I was discharged from there for visiting faro banks. 

2516. Q. Where did you then go ? 

A. After I lost my situation I was very poor. I had a wife and child 
to support, and became very much reduced. I came to New York and 
found I could get detailed as clerk in Colonel Hayden’s office, then com¬ 
manding at Governor’s island. I called on him and he advised me to 
enlist, and told me if I would do so he would appoint me clerk in his 
office, and that I would get a hundred dollars bounty, which would 
relieve my distresses. I enlisted and got the one hundred dollars bounty 
in advance, and two hundred dollars bounty which came afterwards. 
When I went to him I felt ashamed of the circumstances which had 
brought me to it. 

2517. Q. After you left the service on Governor’s island, you did not 
enter again into any kind of public service, and you have since had no 
business ? 

A. No, sir; I did not. I did not like to re-enlist there. 

2518. Q. Since you have left that service what other business have 
you been engaged in excepting what you have stated ? 

A. In no business at all. 

2519. Q. For how long a time have you been in this condition ? 

A. Since the 24th of June of this year I have had no regular business, 
although I have occasionally been employed. 

2520. Q. Who employed you to go to Peter Norton’s and get this kind 
of employment from him ? 

A. I was sitting in the reading-room of the Fifth Avenue Hotel when 
a gentleman I knew, by the name of Kay, who was chief clerk of the 
republican committee in session there, passed through the room and 
asked me what I was doing. He told me there was plenty of work to do 
in writing for the committee, and .that I could get four or five dollars a 


244 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


clay, and miglit as well go there and write. I did so, and in the evening 
I went to this drinking saloon and there it was proposed that I should 
engage in this business of repeating. 

2521. Q. Who first made you the proposition ? 

A. I was a stranger to Peter NTorton, but there was a man I had seen 
about faro banks. In fact I had given him some money, and he came 
up to me and said, You Avant to make a stake?” I said, Certainly 
“ Well,” said he, here is Pete Norton, who wants to get people to Avork 
on election day.” 

2522. Q. Who Avas this man of whom you now speak ? 

A. A little fellow Avhom they call “Horse Jackj” he is a hanger-on 
about faro banks, and has spent most of his life as a jockey about New 
Orleans; I think his real name is Jack Hodge. 

2523. Q. Do you know where he is now ? 

A. I understand that he has gone to NeAV Orleans, but I am not sure ; 
T have not seen him for some months. 

2524. Q. Did or did not this republican committee which had quarters 
at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, or any person belonging to it, employ or seek 
to employ you through Mr. Norton ? 

A. No, sir; the proposition was made to me before they knew any¬ 
thing about it. 

2525. Q. Hoav did you come to make the acquaintance of Mr. Kennedy f 

A. After this proposition was made to me I reported it to Colonel 

Bliss, and he told me to come next day. He seemed to wish to consult 
Avith somebody before he told me what to do. I called again, and he 
then told me that I could go with these men, and said he, “ I spoke to 
Mr. Kennedy about it, and he says perhaps the best thing you can do is 
to go with them and take a memorandum of what you do.” 

2526. Q. What assurance did he give you of reward ? 

A. He told me he could not tell what I would receive, but he said my 
expenses would be paid. 

2527. Q. How did you come to communicate to him the fact that you 
had made the acquaintance of these men ? 

A. Well, I am rather inclined to the side of order and good govern¬ 
ment. I am patriotic in my feelings, and I think that the only patriotic 
party in the last five years is the republican party; my sympathies are 
entirely with them. 

2528. Q. Is that the only reason you had for seeking him and making 
this communication ? 

A. No, sir; that Avas not the only reason ; the other reason Avas that 
I was obliged to find some means of getting employment, and I thought 
I might as well be employed in a virtuous cause. 

2529. Q. And shift from a vicious one? 

A. Yes, sir; I think it was a decided improvement. 

2530. Q. Did you get out of the company of those bad men ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have kept out of their company since then. I have 
been afraid to go near them. 

2531. Q. What haA^e ymu detailed in this paper to which you have 
referred, about your association afterwards with these men ? 

A. I did not associate with them; but I met one or two of them at 
saloons casually, where I had no idea of meeting them. 

2532. Q. After you entered this virtuous service, then, you ceased to 
have communication with the bad men named in this paper ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2533. Q. Then you did not do what Superintendent Kennedy advised 
you to do, cultivate their acquaintance and get all the information you 
could from them ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 245 

A . He did not advise me to do that. It was only on that day of the 
registry. 

2534. Q. Who advised that 1 

A. Colonel Bliss. 

2535. Q. Did you see Mr. Kennedy on the subject of this business ? 

A. I did not speak to him. 

2536. Q. Did you never speak to him on this subject ? 

A. Colonel Bliss told me to meet him at police headquarters; but, 
although I saw Mr. Kennedy there, 1 never spoke to him. 

2537. Q. Have you ever been indicted for any offence against the laws 
of the country ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

2538. Q. Where did you first meet Peter Norton ? 

A. At Florence’s saloon, at the corner of Houston street and Broadway. 

2539. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. No, 145 Sullivan street. 

2540. Q. What is his business f 

A. I do not think he has any particular business; I never heard any¬ 
thing of his business; I always looked upon him as a sporting man, who 
lives by his wits. 

2541. Q. How did you come to have this conversation with him about 
this business of repeating. Did you suggest it to him, or did he suggest 
it to you 

A. He never made any suggestion to me, except by implication. For 
instance, this Hodge that spoke to me about this matter introduced me 
to Norton, and said, ‘^This is a friend of mine, and he will go into this 
thing.” 

2542. Q. What did Norton say then ? 

A. Norton said, ‘‘All right, let us take a drink.” 

2543. Q. Who drank with you ? 

A. This Hodge and Norton, and several others whose names I cannot 
remember. 

2544. Q. What did you drink 

A. I think I took a Santa Croz sour. 

2545. Q. Who paid for it ? 

A. I didn’t see who paid j there was a great crowd drinking at that 
time. 

2546. Q. Were they all drinking on the same treat ? 

A 1 do not think they were. I think there were two or three parties 
at the bar. 

2547. Q. Is there a gambling table in that house 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

2548. Q. What did Norton say on the subject of this business at that 
time 

A. Norton said, “We will give you something to do on election day 
and registry days.” That is what he said, and I said, “All right, I will 
be there.” 

2549. Q. Did he ever talk with you much afterwards'? 

A. Not except on the day of registering. When we were coming back 
jrom one of the registering places he had a conversation with me. 

2550. Q. What did he say then*? 

A. I will try to call to mind what he said. I was expressing some fear 
of being caught in this thing. I asked him what should be done in such 
a state of things. I don’t remember now exactly what hypothesis I stated 
to him; but he stopped me and said, “Don’t talk so loud, there is Cap¬ 
tain Young of the detective force just passing us, and he may hear you.” 


246 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


I asked, “Suppose they cliallenge me when I go to get registered—what 
shall I do f’ “You will have to swear it in/^ he answered. 

2551. Q. And all this time you were in the service of the republican 
party of New York ? 

A. No, sir; I can’t say I was in their service. 

2552. Q. Were you then in Mr. Norton’s service! 

A. No, sir; I was in no service. 

2553. Q. You were serving no master just then ! 

A. None but myself. 

2554. Q. Have you generally served all of yoim employers during the 
last eight years about as faithfully as you did your employer in this case? 

A. I refer you to my written recommendations from all the command¬ 
ing officers under whom I have served. 

[Mr. Dickey objected to the question, but after discussion it was 
allowed.] 

2555. Q. During the last eight years have you served all your employ- 
ers with the same fidelity with which you have served Mr. Peter Norton 
on this occasion ! 

A. Yes, sir; and with much greater fidelity. 

2556. Q. What other conversation had you with Mr. Peter Norton ? 
A. I do not think I had any more conversation with him at any time- 

2557. Q. Where is Peter Mitchell’s liquor store ! 

A. At the corner of Green and Bleecker streets. 

2558. Q. What kind of a store is it! 

A. A retail drinking store. 

2559. Q. Is it a gambling house ! 

A. No, sir ) not that I know of; I never was in any place, only in the 
bar-room, where they sell liquor. 

2560. Q. Do you know Peter Mitchell! 

A. 1 know him by sight, and was introduced to him. 

2561. Q. Did you ever have any talk with him on this subject! 

A. No, sir. 

2562. Q. Did Norton or Mitchell ever pay you anything for your ser¬ 
vices ! 

A. No, sir. 

2563. Q. Did you ever ask him for any pay ! 

A. No, sir. 

2564. Q. You are sure of that ? 

A. Yes, sir; I only fulfilled half of my contract with him. 

2565. Q. Did they pay any of your expenses ! 

A. They paid for drinks during the day j nothing more. 

2566. Q. Where does David Somers live ! 

A. I don’t know. 

2567. Q. What does he do ! 

A. He is what they call a “ rounder.” 

2568. Q. What is the business of a rounder ! 

A. It is a difficult word to define. 

2569. Q. You have been acquainted with a good many in your life^ 
have you not ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have met with one or two. 

2570. Q. What did they do ! 

A. They were hangers-on at faro banks. 

2571. Q. That, then, is the business of a rounder ! 

A. I believe it is. 

2572. Q. Is that the only business such men have ! 

A. I believe they indulge in other luxuries besides that. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


247 


. 2573. Q. Do you know where David Somers is now"? 

A. I do not. 

2574. Q. When did you see him last ? 

A. I passed him on Broadway one day since the registry, about two 
months ago, or less. 

2575. Q. Did you speak with him? 

A. No ; I avoided his recognition. 

2570. Q. How have you managed to get a living since then ? 

A. Since then I have been employed as a clerk in the office of the 
Union League committee, and am now in that service. 

2577. Q. At Avhat comj)ensation ? 

A. I have been getting $18 per week. 

2578. Q. Was your right to registration questioned ever ? 

A. No, sir. 

2579. Q. Did you ever swear it in ? 

A. No, sir. 

2580. Q. Where were you registered ? 

A. I have already stated from the paxier. I should have to have a 
map in order to tell you without referring to the paper. 

2581. Q. In what part of the city?. 

A. From Pete Burns’s we went from Elizabeth to Prince street, and 
a few doors above Elizabeth on Prince street we first registered; that 
is the place where Charles Walters and David Somers were registered. 
I was registered under the name of Charles Walters. We then went to 
the 8th ward, where the places of registry were both on Greene street— 
one near Spring and the other near Broome street. 

2582. Q. When did you write out this statement from which you have 
testified? 

A. About three weeks ago. 

2583. Q. From what did you write it? 

A. From memory. 

2584. Q. You remember very distinctly all you have done during this 
time? 

A. No, I am not quite certain that I remember everything that 
occurred, but I think I have it all down there. 

2585. Q. Do you ever indulge in habits of intoxication? 

A. No, sir; I drink occasionally, but in moderation, I hope. 

2586. Q. You hope ? 

A. Well, I know. 

2587. Q. Were you drunk during those days of registration and 
voting? 

A. No, sir. 

2588. Q. You say that on a certain day you reported to Peter Mitchell; 
did you ever have any conversation with Peter Mitchell on the subject 
of your business ? 

A. No, sir. 

2589. Q. Did you ever tell him how often you had registered ? 

A. No, sir. 

2590. Q. Did you ever tell Peter Norton how often you had been reg¬ 
istered ? 

A. No, sir. 

2591. Q. Did you ever tell Peter Norton you had been registered at 
all? 

A. I think I may have given him to understand that I had, but I 
don’t remember telling him positively that I had. I remember meeting 
him that day and telling him that I had done what I could, and he said,, 


248 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Well, you be on hand now on election day,^^ and I said, ‘JYes;” and he 
asked, ‘^How did you make out to-dayand I said, “I did all I could.^ 
That is the only conversation I had with Peter Norton on the subject. 

2592. Q. Have you seen Peter Norton lately? 

A. No, sir. 

2593. Q. You say that Peter Mitchell was a candidate for the assembly, 
and kept a saloon? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2594. Q. In what district was he running for the assembly! 

A. I think it is called the fifth assembly district. 

2595. Q. On what ticket was he running? 

* A. I suppose the democratic. 

2596. Q. Was he elected? 

A. I believe so. 

2597. Q. Did you ever have any talk with him on i>olitics? 

A. No, sir. 

2598. Q. Did he keep an eating house as well as a drinking saloon ? 

A. No, sir; only a drinking saloon. 

2599. Q. Did you ever drink there on his expense, or at his invitation! 

A. No, sir; I believe not. 

2600. Q. Who is Peter Burns? 

A. He is proprietor of a liquor store on the corner of Houston and 
Elizabeth streets. 

2601. Q. Was he one of the men whom you denominate the ^^gang?” 

A. Well, I don’t know, because I had never seen him before; I was 

only in his place about five minutes, and knew nothing about him. 

2602. Q. Did you have any talk with him? 

A. Yes; there was a little chafiiug over the drinks at his bar, before 
we went around to the registry, and, when we came back, about the elec¬ 
tion, and how evervlhing would be quiet in that district; that was about 
aU. 

2603. Q. Where did you go from Burns’s ifiace ? 

A. We went around to the corner of Elizabeth street, and up Prince 
street, about half a dozen doors above Elizabeth, towards Broadway. 

2604. Q. You say David Somers registered there ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2605. Q. How did he secure his registration ? 

A. He was cross-examined by one of the registrars very sharply, and 
they insisted upon his swearing that he lived at 69 East Houston street; 
and as soon as he was sworn and was registered, he was rather overbear¬ 
ing to the republican registrar, asking him what right he had to ask him 
these questions, and talked in a manner that almost imifiied that he was 
going to pitch into him if he had anything more to say. 

2606. Q. How did you know that Peter Mitchell was a democrat? 

A. I saw his name upon the i)rinted democratic ticket, which was 
posted all over the district. 

2607. Q. How many men were there in this gang to which you belonged? 

A. I could not tell; more than I could count during the excitement of 

the time. 

2608. Q. By whom was this gang organized ? 

A. I do not know; I can form no idea. 

2609. Q. So far as you know under whose direction was it acting ? 

A. That I cannot tell. 

2610. Q. How many of the persons whose names you have given us, 
constituting the gang, do you know the residence of? 

A. Only two, or rather but one only—Peter Norton; I am only sure 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 249 

of his residence; I have looked in the directory and saw other residences 
there. 

2611. Q. Can you tell from memory where the residences of the others 
are? 

A. 1 think Alderman Norton lives on Yarick street. 

2612. Q. Do you remember the residence of any other one which you 
saw in the directory? 

A. I saw Peter Norton’s residence there at No. 142 Sullivan street, but 
I never saw the names of any of the others registered in the directory, 
nor do I think they are there. 

2613. Q. Where is the residence of Alderman Michael Norton? 

A. On Yarick street, I do not remember the number. 

2614. Q. Do you know Mr. Norton personally? 

A. I know him by sight; I never spoke to him. 

2615. Q. Where did you meet him? 

A. I saw him at Peter Mitchell’s liquor store during that day to wliich 
I have referred. 

2616. Q. Where is his office as alderman ? 

A. I do not know. 

2617. Q. Do you know when he was elected to that office? 

A. No, sir. 

2618. Q. How do you know he is an alderman? 

A. I happened to read the proceedings of the board of aldermen in 
some of the public jirints, and I saw he had made several motions; that 
is all that I know about his being an alderman. 

2619. Q. What did you see him do at Peter Mitchell’s? 

A, When he came into Peter Mitchell’s, he and Pete Norton, who is 
his brother, had their heads together and were handling slips of i)ai)er 
with names on them, and those slips were given to David Somers, who 
gave them to members of the gang wdio went to the 6th ward. 

2620. Were you of that gang? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2621. Q. Did Peter Norton give them to you? 

A. No, sir. 

2622. Q. Did Michael Norton give out any? 

A. I did not see him give out any individually. I saw his brother give 
them to Somers, and Somers distributing them. 

2623. Q. Did you know what those papers w^ere? 

A. I didiit make a close examination; Iliad some of them in my 
hands afterwards during the day, and they had names and addresses on 
them. 

2624. Q. How did you know they w^ere the same papers? 

A. It is merely a matter of guess; I came to that conclusion. 

2625. Q. How" many did you see Alderman Norton give to Peter Nor¬ 
ton? 

A. I do not know^, nor can I guess. 

2626. Q. Who was standing by and saw this done besides those you 
have named? 

A. There were 20 or 30 persons. 

2627. Q. Was it done in a public, open way, or was it done secretly? 

A. Quite publicly; they were all leaning against the outside of the 

bar, and there were nearly 30 iiersons present; or at all events more 
than 20. 

2628. Q. Were they all belonging to this gang ? 

A. Yes, sir; they must have been or they would not have taken the 
papers out publicly. 


250 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2629. Q. Was it at that point that the gang was divided up into smaller 
gangs? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2630. Q. By whose direction was that done? 

A. I cannot say, but those three parties seemed to have the direction 
of it—Peter Norton, Alderman Norton, and Peter Mitchell. 

2631. Q. What did they do ? 

A. I do not recollect. 

2632. Q. Did you hear Peter Mitchell give any orders ? 

A. No, sir. 

2633. Q. Did you see him give any tickets? 

A. I did not see him distribute any tickets j I saw him handling the 
tickets and talkingj I thought they were slips of paper, I do not know 
Avhat was on themj they might have been blank; I do not know what 
they were. That was all I saw him do or knew of his doing. 

2634. Q. How many persons did you ever see at Peter Mitchell’s liquor 
store at any one time during that day? 

A. I think I saw 25 or 30, as near as I can guess. 

2635. Q. What is Alderman Cuddy’s business ? 

A. He is a sporting man, I believe, and is interested in a faro bank. 

2636. Q. Do you know where he does his sporting business? 

A. Only from hearsay; I do not know the locality. 

2637. Q. Do you know tliat he does any such business except from 
hearsay? 

A. No, sir; I can’t say that I do. He keeps a drinking saloon on the 
Bowery; that is to say, he is the ostensible proprietor of a liquor saloon. 
I never saw him there except on this one day. 

2638. Q. Is his name over it ? 

A. It is called ‘^Cuddy’s Hotel,” and is next door to the Bowery thea¬ 
tre; his name is over the door in large letters; it is only a drinking 
saloon, although there are three or four lodging-rooms about it. 

2639. Q. What intercourse did you have with him ? 

A. None at all; I never spoke a word to him in my life excepting when 
I said that I would take the name of James Darling. 

2640. Q. What was he doing when you said that ? 

A. He was holding out these cards. 

2641. Q. How many were present when he was doing it? 

A. I am sure there was a dozen; there might have been 14 at his bar. 

2642. Q. Did he say anything about the repeating business at the time 
he was handing out the tickets? 

A. No, sir. 

2643. Q. How many did he hand out? 

A. Twelve that I saw. 

2644. Q. Did you count them at the time? 

A. No, sir, I did not; but I know there were 12 in our party, and 
each got supplied. 

2645. Q. What were their names ? 

A. I do not know; there was not one man among them that I knew 
by name. 

2646. Q. Did you ask any of them their names? 

A. No, sir. 

2647. Q. How.did you address them when you talked to them? 

A. There was no particular way of addressing them; the parties seemed 
to be quite fraternal, and talked the same as a couple of brothers would do. 

2648. Q. How did you talk to them? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


251 


A. I assumed the same style and manner that they did. 

2649. Q. Did Mr. Cuddy give any directions to you, or in your hearings 
to the other men of the gang? 

A. I think lie did, hut I cannot say what he said. 

2650. Q. Did he drink with you ? 

A. No, sir. 

2651. Q. Did he ask you to come up and drink with him ? 

A. No, sir. 

2652. Q. You never saw him but that one time ? 

A. That is all. 

2653. Q. Were you in the habit of frequenting that place before you 
saw him there ? 

A. No, sir. 

2654. Q. Have you ever met him since ? 

A. Yes, sir; once, on Broadway. 

2655. Q. Did you talk with him ? 

A. No, sir; nor did I know him at the time the papers were served 
out; I had no idea who was serving them out; he was an entire stranger 
to me, although I may have seen the man before. 

2656. Q. How, then, do you know him now ? 

A. Because at the time I met him on Broadway, eight or ten days after 
the serving out of the papers, I followed him four or five blocks to find 
out who he was; and while I was cogitating how I should find out, I saw 
an elderly gentleman who spoke and bowed to him, and 1 ran after him 
half a block and asked him who the gentleman was to whom he bowed. 

2657. Q. Will you have the kindness to give us the name of this- 
gentleman whom you followed in that way? 

A. 1 have no idea what his name was; I never saw him before or since. 

2658. Q. Is that the way you ascertained the names of the other parties f 

A. No; the other men I knew. 

2659. Q. Did you know Peter Mitchell ? 

A. Yes; Peter Norton introduced me to him at his saloon. 

2660. Q. By what name did he introduce you ? 

A. By my right name of Hendrick. 

2661. Q. When was this ? 

A. It was about three or four nights after I met him at Florence’s' 
saloon—several days before the registration, and before this businevss 
commenced. 

2662. Q. At whose request did you write out this statement to which 
you have referred in your testimony? 

A. At no one’s request; it was an impulse of my own. 

2663. Q. What was the origin of that impulse ? 

A. My object was to retain in my memory facts that I expected tO' 
testify to. 

2664. Q. Where did you get that ex])ectation from ? 

A. I was told that there would probably be an investigation ordered^ 
and that I would be called up as a witness. 

2665. Q. By whom were you told that ? 

A. Colonel Bliss. 

2666. Q. Did he not tell you in that connection that he wanted you 
to write this out and fix it up ? 

A. No, sir. 

2667. Q. Did you never read it over to Colonel Bliss ? 

A. No, sir. 

2668. Q. Did you offer to vote yourself? 

A. Yes, I voted once. 


252 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2669. Q. Did you vote as a repeater 1 

A. No, sir; I was not with them at all on election day. 

2670. Q. As what did you vote'? 

A. I voted in my own natural right. 

2671. Q. Did you vote under the name you now bear I 

A. Yes; William H. Hendrick. 

2672. Q. Where? 

A. In the 1st district of the 14th ward. 

2673. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. I went for Grant and Train. 

2674. Q. For whom did you vote for governor f 

A. I think Mr. Griswc»ld’s name must have been on my ticket; I voted 
the general republican ticket. 

2675. Q. Did you see any other of this gang vote there? 

A. No, sir. 

2676. Q. Do you know, of your own knowledge, that any of them 
did vote? 

A. No, sir. 

2677. Q. Did you see any of them on election day at all ? 

A. I do not think I did, either in that district or in any other* 

By the Chairman : 

2678. Q. If you desire it you may state now why you were on Gover¬ 
nor’s island under an assumed name. 

A. I should like to state it. When I lost my situation in Washington 
I A\ as very much reduced, scarcely knew what to do; I came on to 
New York, and, although I had a father here who was keeping house, I 
felt ashamed at being in such a redu(;ed situation and would not go near 
him. I was ashamed to enlist under my own name, and it w'as on the 
impulse of the moment, when I enlisted, that an assumed name came to 
my lips. I had no contemiilation five minutes before about giving that 
assumed name. But after I got upon Governor’s island I had a very 
good character, and the commanding officer took a fancy to me and took 
me as his clerk ; and when I seemed to be getting into his confidence I 
never exi)osed what my real name was until I had been there two years, 
and then I told General Wallen, and he said that as it had been going 
on so long I might as well let things remain as they were. 

New York, Wed7iesdayj December 30,1868. 

John J. Mulligan sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

2679. Question. Were you one of the election officers last tall ? 

Answer. Yes, sir; I was an inspector of election in the 12th district 

of the 13th ward. My colleagues were Thomas Flynn (democrat) and 
Messrs. Austin and Bross. 

2680. Q. State to the board in what way you conducted the registra¬ 
tion and the voting, and what means you took to prevent illegal votes 
being registered or polled. 

A. All who came there to have their names registered were questioned 
as to their nativity, and if they were foreigners they were required to 
produce their naturalization papers. Then they were questioned as to 
how long they had lived in the State, county, and district. 

2681. Q. Did you swear them ? 

A. Where we had any doubts or thought that they were not legal 
voters we swore them. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


253 


2682. Q. Was tbe examination pretty tliorougli and full? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2683. Q. Was any objection made by any of the other inspectors to 
challenging or examining apidicants ? 

A. No, sir; not in receiving their names. 

2684. Q. Do you know whether any illegal votes were registered or 
polled in your district ? 

A. No, sir. 

2685. Q. Do you recollect anything about a voter having made a mis¬ 
take in the number of his residence ? 

A. Yes, sir; a man came to register giving his residence at 26 Goerck, 
and when he came to vote we found that his residence was at 29 Goerck 
street. Objection was made to his voting on the ground of his having 
given a wrong number. But I went myself to see whether he actually 
did live in No. 29, and I found that he did, and that he was a legal 
voter. 

2686. Q. Was there any disposition evinced by any member of the 
board to have illegal voters put on the registry or admitted to vote ? 

A. Not that I am aware of. 

2687. Q. Do you knoT^ of any illegal votes having been registered or 
given in your precinct ? 

A. No, sir; 1 think they w^ere all legal votes. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2688. Q. How many voters were sworn ? 

A. About half a dozen. 

2689. Q. How many voted in your prciunct at the presidential election ? 

A. I think 437. 

2690. Q. How many voters were you personally acquainted with? 

A. Perhaps not over 50. 

2691. Q. What proportion voted on naturalization papers? 

A. I should think the majority of the voters were adopted citizens. 
Most of them produced their papers. 

2692. Q. What proportion of them had been naturalized this year ? 

A. Very few; not over 15 or 20; I do not think there were so many. 

2693. Q. In the case of this man who voted from 29 Goerck street, had 
not his name been scratched off the registry book? 

A. It was not scratched off my book. Mr. Bross, I think, had scratched 
it off* his, and Mr. Austin had marked on the margin that he did not live 
at 26 Goerck street. We had no power to erase anything from the 
registry book, only to mark on the margin whether the vote should bo 
challenged. That is the way I marked mine—“ Challenge.” Immedi¬ 
ately when a man came to vote we challenged him. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

We did not find out where he lived until election day, and on that 
day the police officer, who was stationed at the polls, said he knew the 
man; that he lived at 29 Goerck street, and that he was an old resident 
of the ward. I took his vote on the ground that he lived there. Then 
in the charter election the other inspectors went and ascertained that 
the man did live therp and had lived there for 18 months. 

New York, December 30,1868. 

Morris Livingstone sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

2695. Question. Ipresent to you four papers purpoiting to be certificates 


254 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


of natfuralizatioii from the supreme court of the State of i^’ew York, each 
dated the 20th of October, 1868, one to Henry Beaum, one to August 
Betzel, one to James Brown, and one to William Honig; state what you 
know of these papers. 

Answer. I went on the 20th of October last to the office No. 6 Centre 
street, which was at the time an office for naturalization of citizens. I saw 
there a man named Eosenberg and asked him whether he could furnish 
me with four papers for four different parties wffio wanted to become 
citizens of the United States. He told me he could. I asked him what 
he wanted for the papers, and he demanded, first, $8, but I made a bar¬ 
gain with him for $7. He told me to call for the papers by and by, which 
I did; and after having seen him several times I came to the office again, 
and he nodded to me that the papers were ready for me, and I went with 
him into an adjoining room, where he handed the papers to me, and I 
paid him $7. After I got the papers I gave them to the United States 
marshal. These are the same papers; I recognize them by my signature 
written on the back of each of them. 

2696. Q. How long after you asked Eosenberg for the papers was it 
before you got them? 

A. I went into the office in the morning and he told me to come about 
12 o’clock. I came then, and he told me that there were no blanks at 
that time, but that he would have them in a very short time, when he 
would give me the papers. It was about 4 o’clock in the afternoon of 
the same day when he handed me the papers. 

2697. Q. State whether the names in the certificates were real or fic¬ 
titious. 

A. They are fictitious namesJ which I got out of my own head just as 
they entered my head. 

By Mr. I^rr : 

2698. Q. You had no talk with anybody else but Rosenberg ? 

A. Only with Eosenberg ? 

2699. Q. And aside, so that none of the others could hear you ? 

A. We spoke in a low voice, and he cautioned me to do so. 

2700. Q. Who asked you to go there? 

A. I was introduced to Marshal Murray. 

2701. Q. Hid he employ you to go there? 

A. No, sir. 

2702. Q. Did he furnish you with the money to pay for them? 

A. No; but Mr. Krouberg did. 

2703. Q. What party do you act with ? 

A. I act with no party. I am no partisan at all. My sympathies are 
with the republicans. 

New York, Wednesday, December 30, 1868. 

Thomas Flynn sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Eoss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

2704. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

Answer. I was one of the election officers in the 12th district of the 

13th ward. 

2705. Q. State to the committee whether you used precautions, and if 
so, to what extent, to prevent persons registering who were not entitled 
to do so. 

A. We exercised all the caution that our judgment led us to. If we 
thought there was reason for rejecting an applicant, we rejected him; if 
not, we registered him. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. ” 255 

270G. Q. What proportion of the naturalized citizens were sworn ! 

A. Very few were sworn in the registry. The inspectors living so long 
in the neighborhood generally recognized the persons coining. 

2707. Q. Were those who were registered without swearing known to 
some.member or members of the board ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2708. Q. In cases where they were not known to any member of the 
board, were they then sworn 

A. They were then sworn. 

2700. Q. In reference to the voting, was much swearing done there? 

A. There was more swearing done there. 

2710. Q. Did the board challenge or permit anybody else to challenge? 

A. Yes, sir; any citizen was at liberty to challenge, but he would have 

to showThe ground on which he challenged. 

2711. Q. Whenever an applicant for voting was challenged he was 
then sworn and examined ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 unless the challenge was withdrawn; if the challenger 
insisted, we were forced to swear the man, notwithstanding we might 
have the opinion that he was entitled to vote. 

2712. Q. Do you know of any persons who were registered or who 
voted without being entitled to ? 

A. I do not. There was one individual named Kelley who gave us a 
wrong number, and there was some trouble about that. When he came 
to vote he was challenged, and he had to qualify as to his residence 
before he could vote. 

2713. Q. Did you satisfy yourself that he was entitled to vote? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2714. Q. Then you do not know of any illegal vote being given there? 

A. 1 do not. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

2714^. There were 500 names registered in our district and 470 or 480 
votes polled. Kot one-half of these were on naturalization papers. 
Yery few were sworn at the registry. The inspectors were generally 
satisfied with the papers, or recognized the men and knew them to be 
voters. I did not live in the election district, but a few blocks from it. 
I used to live in the district until last May. I suppose I must have known 
from 30 to 35 of those who voted on naturalization papers. The other 
inspectors knew more voters than I did. They were Mr. Mulligan and 
Mr. Bross. It appeared to me that thej' knew a good many of them. 

2715. Q. Did you hold that when a man presented a certificate of 
naturalization that entitled him to register ? 

A. I did. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

2715J. We did not strike from the registry the name of this man Kelley, 
who resided at Ko. 29 Goerck street; we did not strike his name off, but 
we put a note upon the margin to challenge him, and when he came to 
vote he had to swear in his residence. 

2716. Q. Did not one or two members of the board protest against his 
vote being received ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2717. Q. And you and your democratic colleague insisted on receiving 
his vote ? 

A. Yes, sir, when he swore to his residence. The two republican 
inspectors made objection at first; but when Mr. Mulligan explained it 


256 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


to them, they did not seem to persist. The man had given a wrong 
number. He actually lived in the district and was a legal voter. 

New York, Wednesday^ IJeeember 30, 1868. 

(3HARLES E. Loew recalled and examination continued. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2718. Question. Have you had an opportunity of consulting with the 
judges of the supreme court on the question which you submitted to 
them ? 

Answer. The day before yesterday, I copied the communication deliv¬ 
ered to me by the chairman of this committee for submission to the 
judges. I had a copy thereof sent to each of the judges.- The general 
term of the court does not meet until Monday; therefore it is not possi¬ 
ble to get their answer until that time; yet if the committee insist upon 
an answer from me at this time, I shall have to give it. 

2710. Q. State what you propose to do. 

A. 1 am now, as I have been from the commencement, ready and 
willing to allow the committee to make any examination of papers and 
records in my office, although it is contrary to State laws. And while I 
deem it disrespectful to the court, in advance of its answer and its 
decision, for the committee to ask this thing, still, to show my entire 
willingness to submit those records, to show that I desire a proper exam¬ 
ination to be made, I will, under protest, permit the committee to send 
a person or persons to my office, or to go there themselves, and make 
such examination as they desire, and I will furnish them with all the 
facilities which they require for making such examinatoin—such exam¬ 
ination to be made, of course, (if made by others than the committee,) 
under the supervision of some deputies of my own. 

2720. Q. State whether your papers are now so accessible as that such 
a person sent there can have access to them now. 

A. At any time. 

2721. Q. From this time until the examination is done ? 

A. At any time. 

By the Chairman : 

2722. Q. With permission to make a list of the names of persons 
naturalized and their residences, and of their witnesses and residences? 

A. That is embraced in your proposition. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2723. Q. State whether you know a young man who has been acting 
as messenger for this committee in the service of process, named T. J. 
Gillmore ? 

A. I do not know any such person by name. 

2724. Q. State to the committee where you were on the evening of the 
day before yesterday, from 4 o’clock in the afternoon until 10 o’clock at 
night. 

A. I left my office at about a quarter to 5, in company with W. W. 
Cook. I proceeded up Broadway as far as Phalon’s barber shop in the 
St. Nicholas Hotel, went through the tonsorial business there, had my 
hair cut, brushed up, and shampooed, and was there until a quarter 
past 6. From there 1 proceeded to Taylor’s saloon, in Broadway, in 
company with Mr. Cook, who had not left me, to get some tea. I left 
there about 10 minutes past 7, with Mr. Cook, and went to Helmonico’s, 
at the corner of Fourteenth street and Fifth avenue, to meet some 
friends; when I left there it was about a quarter to 8. I jumped into a 


ELECTION FBAULS IN NEW YORK. 


257 


Fifth-aveiine stage, Mr. Cook being still with me, and went to the corner 
of Fifth avenue and Thirtieth street, and from there to Wood’s Museum. 
I remained in the museum, in company with Mr. Cook and some other 
friends, until a quarter to 11. 

2725. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Paul Dallinger? 

A. Ko, sir. 

272G. Q. Did you see, on that evening, any one serving or attempting 
to serve a sub])(Bna issued by this committee'? 

A. Xo, sir; nothing of the kind. 

2727. Q. Did you hear any conversation between any one professing to 
be serving the subi^oenas of this committee and any one else? 

A. No, sir. 

2728. Q. Were you ever at a barber saloon in Avenue C ? 

A. I was, some ten years ago, at No. 7. 

2729. Q. Were you there the day before yesterday? 

A. No, sir. 

[Subsequently the witness, T. J. Gillmore, was confronted with the 
witness, Charles E. Loew, and examined as follows:] 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2730. Q, Do you see that gentleman? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2731. Q. Is he the gentleman whom you testified to yesterday as hav¬ 
ing interfered with you in the service of a subpoena? 

A. He is the gentleman, or else he looks very much like him. 

2732. Q. Do you say that he is or that he is not the party? 

A. I do not think he is. 

New York, Wednesday^ Becemher 30,1866. 

Samuel J. Tilden sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.)i 
By Mr. Kerr : 

2733. Question. State to the committee what relations you bore during 
the last political campaign to the j^olitical parties in this State. 

Answer. I was chairman of the democratic State committee. 

2734. Q. Look at this circular annexed to the testimony of John T. 
Hoftinan, purporting to be issued by you, and state to the committee 
whether you were the author of it or not. 

A. I Avas not. 

2735. Q. Do you know personally who was the author of it? 

A. I do not. 

2736. Q. State whether you, as chairman of the democratic State cen¬ 
tral committee, distributed this circular by the mails yourself, or pro¬ 
cured it to be distributed. 

A. 1 did not. I did not know of its being done, and I did not authorize 
it to be done. 

2737. Q. Do you know anybody who did it? 

A. I do not except as a matter of mere surmise. 

2738. Q. Do you know Avhether Mr. Tweed did it or not? 

A. I do not. I will state what I do know of it. The principal com¬ 
mittee-room of the democratic State committee was at 37 Park Row,, 
where Colonel Samuel North Avas in official charge. There Avas also for 
a short time prior to the election a room taken in the Metropolitan Hotel 
by Mr. SAveeney, a member of the committee, Avho adAUsed me afterwards 
that he had taken it, and I assented to it. I Avent in there occasionally, 
generally as I went up town on my return from my office. I at no time 
17 T 


258 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


autliorized any one at either cominittee-room, or anywhere else, to issue 
circulars signed with my name, because I have a prejudice generally for 
seeing what my name is signed to. I have a particular distaste for 
“ contidential and strictly private’’ circulars, because I never knew of any 
printed circular that did not immediately become public. I have had 
too much experience in such things ever to mark circulars in that very 
pretentious way, unless I wanted to insure their being published Avithout 
unnecessary delay. A day or two before the election, I was in the com¬ 
mittee-room at the Metropolitan Hotel, and I then understood that a 
circidar had been issued asking for early election returns. It had been 
issued some time previously 5 by whom I do not know, but I understood 
its purport from somebody. I saw on a table or shelf some circulars 
signed with my name, but I did not read them, for I understood their 
contents. I presume they were the same circular. I ncA^er saw or read - 
it until I read it in the public prints. Some gentleman, I think it was 
Mr. A. Oakey Hall, spoke of it as having been intended to preA^ent the 
holding back of the returns in the republican districts in the country 
until our Amte should be ascertained, in order that the returns then might 
be manipulated, stating his belief that frauds of that description were 
practiced in 18G6, Avhen Mr. Hoffman first ran for governor. 

Q. Practiced by whom 

A. Practiced in the republican districts in the country. I did not 
attach any importance to the statement, for the reason that I did not 
think it probable that that thing could be done either here in the city of • 
NTew York or in the country districts. With the board of police repub¬ 
lican, with a portion of the inspectors and canvassers republican, Avith a 
very active and Augilant party canvass here, it would seem to be prob¬ 
able that a majority of the election officers, or half of them, might 
obstruct or delay the returns 5 but it neA^er seemed to me at all probal3le 
that they could change the result without the certainty of instant detec¬ 
tion. I did not believe Mr. Hall’s suspicions any more than I belieA^ed 
that similar practices were performed here, and therefore I attached no 
consequence to them. When the republican newspapers called on me 
to say AYliat I kneAA^ about the circular, particularly my friends of the 
Evening Post, I did send an ansAver, as much because I was not pleased 
with the pretentious nature of the document to which my name had been 
subscribed as for any other reason. 

By the Chairman : 

2739. Q. You stated that the police board is republican; do you not 
know that it is equally divided, one-half democratic and one-half repub¬ 
lican? 

A. Yes, sir; I believe it is. 

2740. What was the size of the pile of circulars that you saw? 

A. Perhaps an inch or an inch and a half thick. That Avas just before 
the election, and some of them had been used. 

274L Q. State if it Avas a matter of common notoriety at the demo¬ 
cratic committee-rooms, and among the leaders of the democratic party,' 
that such circulars had been issued and generally distributed? 

A. It Avas not. 

2742. Q. Was the matter spoken of as a fact among some of those 
haAung charge of affairs at the committee-rooms? 

A. i never beard it spoken of in any other way except as I mentioned, 
up to the time of its publication in the newspapers. I ought to add, per¬ 
haps, that the night of the election I was in the Manhattan club, a dem¬ 
ocratic club; and that the answers to these circulars, some of them 


; 

ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 259 

addressed to me, some to Mr. Tweed, were read during the evening, to 
meetings at Tammany Hall, and meetings at the club j and, so far as I 
know or can judge, the answers were made public as fast as they arrived. 

2743. Q. From how many counties were answers received that evening^ 

A. I cannot say beca\^se they were opened generally without my see¬ 
ing them; I should think not from most of the counties. They were 
generally received and opened in the public meeting, and were read 
l)ublicly in the Manhattan club, and in the hall and parlor. 

2744. Q. Were they received from nearly half the counties^ 

A. That would be but little more than guess-work on my part. I do 
not know that I opened any of them myself. 

2745. Q. Have you the means of knowing to what extent answers 
were received next morning*? 

A. I have not. I do not think much attention was paid to answers 
after that evening, because the newspapers got ahead of them next 
morning. 

By Mr. Kerr ; 

2746. Q. You have stated your official connection with the party 
machinery during the last political campaign: I ask you whether you 
have heard through the public press, or otherwise, of certain prosecu¬ 
tions being instituted against one Beujamin B. Eosenberg, for the pro¬ 
curement and use of fraudulent naturalization papers? 

A. Through the public press I became advised of there being such a 
prosecution; I did not read the testimony. 

2747. Q. Ho you know anything about the place, Ko. 6 Centre street, 
where Eosenberg did business? 

A. I do not. I never heard of him until I reard of him in the news¬ 
papers on that occasion. 

2748. Q. Did 5 ;ou have any knowledge, personally or officially, that 
such a man existed there, or that there was such an office acting in the 
interest of the democratic party? 

A. I did not. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2749. Q. You were chairman of the State central committee, and I 
suppose you knew but little of the details of the minor committees in 
this city? 

A. I did not know very much of the details^of the minor committees. 

2750. Q. Do you know where the naturalization officers of your party 
were during the last campaign, and who had charge of them? 

A. Only in a very general way. There was generally some officer 
about the City Hall who looked after all these matters; but I had 
nothing to do with naturalization at all. 

2751. Q. You do not know where these committees had their offices for 
the puri^ose of assisting naturalization? 

A. I do not. 

2752. Q. Or the republican either? 

A. Ko, sir. 

New York, Wednesday^ December 30,1868. 

• Clarence N. Teller sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

2753. I reside at Croton, Westchester county. I acted on the day of 
election as challenger; I was acquainted Avith parties who had not taken 
out their naturalization papers regularly, and I challenged their votes 


260 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


wlieii tliey offered to vote. On being questioned they stated tliat tlieir 
pa])ers were sent to thenq and that they liad not ai)])eared in person to 
get them. Borne of them swore in their votes and others did not. TJie 
number of naturalization pajrers in wliicli registration was asked was 
between 80 and 00. It was known by all the people there that many 
irersons having these drapers were strangers and were not entithid to vote, 
and we challengcMl them on the ground of their not being entitled to 
vote. Many of them admitted they had never been in any court. Borne 
17 of them who offered their votes had not the courage to swear them 
in, although they had their papers. 1 do not know anything else about 
the election frauds. 

To Mr. Koss: 

2753J. I was not one of the election officers; the election officers 
were G. W. Lownsberry, J. Bherwin, and Cyrus Ilillocher—two demo¬ 
crats and one rcijrublican. Lownsberry and Bherwin were democrats, and 
Ilillocher repirblican. 

2754. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes having been given there? 

A. 1 woidd have to refer to the list to get their names. 

2755. Q. Do you know that the names on that list were those of 
illegal voters ? 

A. I think so, from questioning them. 

275G. Q. Do you know any of these men whom you suspect of having 
voted improperly? 

A. I think 1 know one; his name is Morris Cassady. He admitted 
tliat he had not taken out his first jiaper or declared his intentions. He 
liad lived in the place a long time and had never attempted to vote or 
get out his papers. 

. By Mr. Kerr : 

2757. Q. Did these me^ who presented naturalization papers say they 
had been in the country over five years? 

A. Borne of them would not answer any such question. In fact, the 
inspector would not allow them to answer questions. 

2758. Q. Did any of them answer that question? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2750. Q. Is not your testimony all hearsay as to these men being ille¬ 
gal voters, exciqit in that one case ? 

A. No, sir; I cha^eng^d them and they swore in their votes. 

2750. Q. And you do not know whether they were legal voters or not 
except from the fact that they swore they were? 

A. They swore their votes in, of course. 

2701. * Q. And you do not know but they were all legal voters with this 
one exce])tion? 

A. I do not. 

2702. (|^. Btate whether you knew these men personally, yourself, 
except in the one case to which you have referred. 

A. i do not know that I can answer that in the affirmative. I do not 
know that I have a clear recollection of any of them. 

2703. (|J. Do you recollect them indistinctly? Do you know them at 
all ? 

A. I do not know whether I can mention their names, and therefore I 
do not have the recollection which I ought to have. 

2704. (^. How far is your voting precinct, where this transpired, from 
this city ? 

A. About 33 or 34 miles. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


261 


By Mr. Dickey : 

2705. Q. You say that the inspector refused to allow inquiry into the 
validity of naturalization i)apers‘? 

A. Yes, sir; they would not allow inquiry. If they had done so not 
nearly so many would have been allowed to vote. They would not allow 
me to ask whether the men presenting naturalization papers had been 
before the courts or not. I would ask them sometimes if their papers 
had been sent to them, and they would say yes, and would thus commit 
themselves. The insx)ector could not very well register them after that. 
The iiispe(?tors soon got at the idea of not allowing men to answer. 

2700. Q. They took the papers as conclusive of the right of a party to 
vote? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2707. Q. Who did that? 

A. Mr. Lownsberry, who would hand the paper over to the other dem¬ 
ocratic insx)ector and ask him whether he thought that the paper was 
all right, and the other would answer that the paper looked to be all 
right. Then the rejdy was that they could not go back of the x)ai)er. 

2708. Q. When were these x>iipers dated ? 

A. Most of them were dated on the 10th of October. Some 17 of them 
admitted that the pax)ers had been sent to them. There was one man 
who, after they had taken his vote, wanted to withdraw it. He was 
somewhat afraid that there might be some x>roceeding against hitn. He 
therefore wanted his vote back again, but it was very quickly x)ut in the 
ballot-box. Many of these x>Grsons with naturalization x>apers were 
emi)loyed in the brick-yards, and the reason why we watched them so 
closely and challenged them was that many of them had made full time 
on the day their papers were dated. 

New York, Wednesday^ December 30, 18G7. 

William II. Bridgman sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

2700. (Question. What office did you hold at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion ? 

Answer. I was canvasser of the 4th district, 21st ward. 

2770. il. State what you know as to persons voting more than once on 
the same names as registered in that district. 

A. The poll-list that was given to us at the close of the polls showed 
that there wen^ ten x>ersons who had voted twice on the same name. 
One or two of them had voted after I came there myself, and I saw them 
swear in their votes. They were informed that these names had already 
been voted on. We mixed uj) the votes as much as possible in the box 
and drew out ten ballots, so as to make them correspond with the poll-list. 
The names were entered only once on the x>oll-list. 

New York, Wed^iesday^ Deeeynher 30, 1808. 

Butler II. Bixry sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

2771. Question. What office did you hold at the last election? 

Answer. I was canvasser in the 4tli district, 21st ward. 

2772. il. State what you know as to more than one vote being given 
on the same name. 

A. 1 know that there was an excess of votes in our canvass; an excess 
of 10, I think. It was said to have occurred by the same name being 


262 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


voted on twice. The inspectors so stated. We did not examine the 
names on the list ourselves, hut took the poll clerk’s statement that there 
was an excess. We threw out ten votes from the hallot-box without 
knowing what tickets they were. We did not examine them. There 
were probably 300 democratic votes to 40 or 50 republican ones, so that 
there were perhaps five democratic votes to one republican. We took 
out these 10 votes without knowing what they were, and threw them 
away without examining them. 

New York, Wednesday, Decemher 30, 18G8. 

William 0. Barrett sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2773. Question. State what you know of the modes in which natural¬ 
ization was afi’ected in Judge Barnard’s part of the supreme court last 
October. 

Answer. I have been in Judge Barnard’s court, I think, on three occa¬ 
sions when he was in the act of naturalizing persons. There was a great 
crowd of men in the room, and I saw nothing that I can say was actually 
wrong. Were I the judge, I should not have done business so quickly, 
but I saw nothing wrong on the part of the judge, or on the part of the 
ofiicers of the court. 

2774. Q. State whether the witnesses were examined orally, or were 
they simply sworn to their afiidaAuts by them .subscribed*? 

A. That I cannot state; I have no recollection; I merely went casu¬ 
ally into the court-room, and had great difficulty in making my way in. 

2775. Q. Have you any knowledge of frauds in the last presidential 
election, or any knowledge of facts which would furnish evidence on this 
subject*? 

A. None except in my capacity as counsel, and this I decline to speak 
of; I was counsel for Mr. Eosenberg. 

2776. Q. Are you a democrat? 

A. I am. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2777. Q. Were these men naturalized as indhiduals, or in a batch? 

A. Even of that I would not feel justified in speaking. There was a 

great crowd present before Judge Barnard, but whether they were sworn 
by ones or twos I have really no knowledge; I did not see the oath 
administered. When I saw the crowd I immediately left, as the room, 
was so heated. 

2778. Q. Was the process different in that court from other courts? 

A. The same particularity was not observed in that court as in another 

court. 


New York, Wednesday, December 30,1868. 

John D. Perrine sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

2779. I live in Forty-third street, between Second and Third avenues; I 
know nothing whatever about fraudulent naturalization papers. A paper 
was handed to me in the office for a man emifioyed in our establishment 
by the name of Joseph Beinhardt, and I handed it to him; I do not know 
Avhere it came from; I am almost positive that it was from Douglas 
Eyfe; he is employed in the establishment, but where he got it I do not 
know; he resides at 235 East Forty-second street. He left no other 
papers with me to be distributed. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2G3 


New York, Wednesday^ December 30, 1868. 

Jaaies J. Chealis sworn and examined, (at tlie instance of Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

2770J. I was an inspector and registrar in tlie Otli district, 6th ward. 
My colleagues were Messrs. Ogilvie, Carey, and Philips. AVe went 
according to the rides of the police department in preventing illegal 
registration and voting. We swore probably from 100 to 150 persons; 
some had naturalization papers, some had not. There were probably 20 
or 25 rejected on account of illegality; they registered, but did not come 
to vote; they were marked to be sworn; the majority of them, so far as 
the insiiectors proved them, were legal voters. There were about three 
struck olf the book; these were men who had brought their first papers, 
imagining that they were entitled to vote on them. 

2780. Q. Were there any persons registered, so far as yon know, who 
were not authorized to vote? 

A. No, sir. 

2781. Q. Were any illegal votes given that yon know of? 

* A. None that I know of; I am a resident of that district for 21 years; 
I know a large proportion of the voters; 1 should think I know from 150 
to 200 of them. 

2782. Q. State whether those who voted were generally kno^vn by 
some member of the board. 

A. They generally were, either as old voters, or as persons who had 
come to the right age to vote. Some one member of the board was 
acquainted with each man. 

2783. Q. Do yon know anything about repeaters voting at yoiu* polls? 

A. No, sir; there was one man arrested for illegal voting, but I don’t 

know whether he was a repeater or not. I judged at the time that he 
was an illegal voter, because 1 had never seen him in the district; but 
he insisted on voting, and one of the inspectors had him arrested. 

2784. Q. State Avhether yon noticed any disposition evinced by any 
portion of the board to get persons registered or to allow them to vote 
illegally ? 

A. No, sir, nothing of the kind; we were very strict in the examina¬ 
tion of parties. 

2785. Q. Did yon see or know anything about men changing their hats 
or caps or clothing, and coming and voting under different names ? 

A. No, sir; I didn’t see or know of anyttiing of that kind. 

2786. Q. What is your judgment now as to there having been illegal 
votes given at your precinct ? 

A. From what I have seen of the voting I judge it to have been per¬ 
fectly legal. I know a majority of the voters, and I think I could men¬ 
tion 200 of them by name. As far as I can judge, I should think they 
were all honest votes. 

2787. Q. You knew of no effort on the part of any member of the 
board to get in illegal votes ? 

A. No, sir; the board was equally divided, and acted according to 
justice. Everything there was carried out correctly. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2788. Q. You say that one man was arrested? 

A. Yes, sir. When we took his name I examined the books, and the 
other inspectors said, ‘‘This man has voted before.” I said to him, “You 
can’t vote here ; you have voted before.” He said, “I have not.” Said 
I, “You must have voted, for your name is checked.” He insisted on 

1 


264 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


voting, and the inspector ordered him to he arrested. We did not allow 
him to vote. 

2789. Q. Did you recognize him as a man who had voted before*? 

A. I knew that he did not belong to the district. 

2790. Q. Did you recollect whether he had voted under that name 
before ? 

A. I did not. 

2791. Q. Then it was possible for a man to offer his vote twice without 
your knowing it ? 

A. Yes, sir; I knew that the man did not belong to the ward. 

2792. Q. But you did not know whether he had voted before or not? 

A. hTo, sir. 

2793. Q. Wliere did you hold your election? 

A. At 67 Baxter street, in the front room on the first floor. 

2794. Q. In the front part of the room, or the back i)art? 

A. In the back part. 

2795. Q. Was any other business carried on in that room? 

A. No, sir. 

2796. Q. Is there a hall alongside of it ? 

A. There is. 

2797. Q. Is there a feed store in that neighborhood ? 

A. No, sir. 

2798. Q. What is your business ? 

A. A carman—I drive a horse and cart. 

2799. Q. What is the name of the man whom you did not recognize ? 

A. Atkinson. He was arrested by the other inspector. 

2800. Q. Did I understand you to say that that was the only attempt 
of a man trying to vote twice under different names at your place? 

A. That is the only one I found or knew of. 

2801. Q. How many voters are there in that district ? 

A. I believe there were from 700 to 750 registered, and I believe we 
polled somewhere in the neighborhood of 680 or 690. Out of that num¬ 
ber I should recognize 150, or probably more, whom I know personally. 

2802. Q. Do you say that either you or one of the other iuspectors 
knew every man who voted there that day?" 

A. I cannot say that; the other inspectors may have known the same 
men that I knew. They must have known them or they would not have 
put their names on the registry. 

2803. Q. Did you not put on the registry the names of persons that 
you did not know ? 

A. Not without the consent of the other members of the board. 

2804. Q. Did I understand you to say that the board knew all the 750 
men who voted there ? 

A. I cannot say that they knew them all personally. 

New York, Wednesday, December 30, 1868. 

John McMahon sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman ; 

2805. I was an inspector in the 1st district of the 11th ward of this 
city. I have made a memorandum of the parties applying for regis¬ 
tration who were rejected. I will give them to the committee: Adam 
Birmer, 124 Kidge street; he was sworn and said that he never 
was at any court, and that he received his paper from some ])er- 
son to him unknown. Herman Harburger, 77 Ridge street; he made a 
like statement. Charles F. Blush, 317 Houston street; he said that a 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


265 


soldier gave liim liis paper. Lawrence Bauman; liis residence I liave 
not got; lie said that his naturalization paper was given him by some 
person unknown. Eleazar Kohn, 164 Attorney street; said he* never 
was at any court. Isaac Firth, 151 Attorney street; he made the same 
statement. Herman Bauscher, 30 Clinton street; he made the same 
statement. Peter Schmidt, 165 Attorney street; he made the same state¬ 
ment. Philip Simmer, 24 Clinton street; he made the same statement. 
Abraham Croner, 117 Kidge street; he was sworn by us, and swore that 
he had never received even his first papers, and that he did not know 
his witness, Avhose name was to the naturalization paper presented to 
us. Charles Ollendorf, 106 Stanton street; he swore that he never was 
at the City Hall, did not know even where it was, and that a personal 
friend of his gave him the paper. Antliony Stultz, 106 Stanton street; 
he swore that he got his naturalization paper in Avenue C, between 
Sixth and Seventh streets; that there Avas a notary there in an office, 
wEere there was also a lager-beer saloon, and that he swore before that 
notary; he swore that he never was at the City Hall. Joseph Wir- 
theimer, 125 Eidge street; he was sworn by us, and swore that he got 
his naturalization paper from Alderman Frederick Eepper: that he was 
sworn in the office of Alderman Eepper—that is to say, in his lager- 
beer saloon. This alderman keeps a lager-beer saloon. Wirtheimer 
made a statement, under oath, that he got the paper from Alderman 
Eepper; that he Avas SAvorn at the office of Alderman Eepper, and that 
he had neA^er been to the City Hall in his life. This same person SAvore 
that a person by the name of Fulke left the naturalization paper at his 
house, 125 Eidge street. That is all that I know or that I have taken a 
memorandum of. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

2806. Q. Hid any of these men say anything about having lost their 
original papers ? 

A. Eo, sir; one man SAVore that he never had any original papers. 

2807. Q. Hid any of them speak of ha\ing been under age Avhen they 
came to the country ? 

A. JS^o, sir. 

2808. Q. Hid aiiy of these men get registered ? 

A. Eo, sir; we Avould not register them and they did not vote. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2809. Q. Hid the board retain possession of these naturalization 
papers ? 

A. Ko, sir. Two men tore ui) their papers on the spot, as though they 
were a little surprised to think that a fraud had been practiced upon 
them. MovSt of them retained their papers; Ave did not feel authorized 
to retain them. 


Neav York, Wednesday^ December 30, 1868. 
William M. Tweed SAvorn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2810. Question. State your official position. 

AnsAver. I am deputy street commissioner, member of the board of 
supervisors, and State senator. 

2811. Q. State AAdiat relation you sustained to the democratic party 
during the last political campaign. 

A. I Avas chairman of the general committee of Tammany Hall. 


266 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2812. Q. Do you know wlio composed tlie democratic naturalization 
committee 

A. I cannot tell you all the names. The chairman was Moses D. Gale. 

2813. Q. Do you know Avhere the office of that committee to facilitate 
the business of naturalization was held ? 

A. I really cannot say. I know it was somewhere in Centre street, 
but I Avas iieA^er in it. 

2814. Q. Do you knoAv anything of this room NTo. G Centre street 

A. No, sir; I do not. * 

2815. Q. Do you know whether that was the office of Moses D. Gale, 
or of his committee'? 

A. I am confident in my own mind it was not, but I am not Avilling to 
swear it was not. 

281G. Q. Do you know anything of election frauds in the matter of 
naturalization during the last canvass having been practiced by either 
party ? 

A. I do not of my own knowledge. 

2817. Q. Do you know anything of them except what you saAV in the 
papers'? 

A. Nothing except that one of the assistant district attorneys informed 
me that an inspector in some Avard had been indicted by the grand jury 
for stuffiug the ballot-box; I do not recollect the inspector’s name. Mr. 
Hutchings, the assistant district attorney, Avas my informant. 

2818. Q. Hoav long haAm you resided in the city of Ncav York. 

A. All my life. 

2819. Q. Ha\"e jmu a large acquaintance through the city'? 

A. Nine men out of ten either knoAV me or I know them; women and 
children you may include. 

2820. Q. State Avhether you knoAv, of your oavu knowledge, and as a 
result of your acquaintance and obserAuition, that during the last eight 
years, except in the last presidential election, the business of naturali¬ 
zation fell oft materially. 

[Question objected to by Mr. Dickey as being capable of being proved 
by statistics 5 objection oA^erruled.J 

A. I knoAv that during’the time of the Avar the naturalization business, 
for Avhich Tammany Hall paid, Avas A^ery slight, and I know that within 
the last year it has been reported as very heavy j I know that during 
the presidential election x)receding the last it Avas almost inqAossible to 
coax an adoi)ted citizen to be naturalized; they Avere afraid of the draft, 
and that they inight be required to serve on juries and other matters 
aftecting their personal interest or their personal comfort. 

2821. Q. Hoav do ordinary years compare in that matter Avith the year 
of the presidential election ? 

A. Presidential years generally exceed ordinary years at the rate of 
three to one; that is about the aAwage. 

2822. Q. State Avhether your identification with the party machinery 
is extensive or limited ? 

A. It is very extensive ; I have that reputation, and I think it is pretty 
AA^ell deseiwed. 

2823. Q. State to the committee Avhether you personally know that 
during the last campaign, or during any previous campaign, there were 
in the city of New York any number of men who AA^ere republicans, or 
who professed to be republicans, or Avho ostensibly co-operated Avith the 
republican party, but Avho Avere in fact in the employment of the demo¬ 
cratic party, or held office in the municipal government, and Avhose busi¬ 
ness it was, by direction of the men Avho managed the party, to get them- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


267 


selves into i)laces of trust, sucli as inspectors, judges, or canvassers of 
election, in order that they might in these relations and capacities serve 
the democratic party. 

A. I know of none such, taking that question as a whole. 

2824. Q. State if you know how these boards are constituted. 

A. I do 5 they are appointed by the commissioners of police, and are 
generally supposed to contain two republicans and two democrats, as 
inspectors of registry, who also serve as inspectors of election. After 
the close of the polls the boxes are turjied over to two canvassers, who 
are also similarly appointed by the police commissioners, and are alsb 
supposed to be one republican and one democrat. Both parties are 
always represented by one or more persons at any canvass of votes that 
I have seen, and the result is declared as it is arrived at. For instance, 
on the half-dozen different tickets each vote as arrived at is openly 
announced by the chairman. At the last two elections, in Noyember 
and December, slips were made as soon as the results were announced, 
and sent to the police stations of the various precincts and forwarded 
to headquarters, from which the official record was copied; I believe 
that the official record as filed at police headquarters about corresponds 
with the official result as declared by the county canvassers. 

2825. Q. At what time is the transfer of the ballot-boxes made by the 
inspectors to the canvassers ? 

A. At sundown. In some districts they allow those to vote who are 
actually in the room at sundown. As soon as the sun is down, tape and 
sealing-wax and other matters of that kind are on the table, and the 
inspectors immediately seal up the boxes, and the canvassers are there 
to receive them, and they canvass them in the same room. 

2820. Q. In the presence of the inspectors 

A. Yes, sir, if they have a mind to see it done. It is an open canvass, 
and is carried on in the presence of the policemen who are there; both 
sides are always represented j they are not only supposed to be repre¬ 
sented in the canvassers, but also represented in the crowd that stands 
around. When the official result is announced it is entered in writing 
and figures on sheets of paper attached, and each sheet of paper is, by 
direction of the police commissioners, signed by the canvassers, so that 
one sheet cannot be taken off and another sheet substituted, except by 
the connivance of both canvassers. Each sheet of paper is a complete 
record, so far as it goes, of the result found by the canvassers. They 
are signed at the bottom as an attestation of their accuracy, and on the 
last page is a final and complete signing by the canvassers, in their 
official capacity as canvassers, and with the formal language which the 
courts deem necessary. 

By the Chairman : 

2827. Q. Have you stated all the offices you hold ? 

A. I believe I have. 

2828. Q. You stated that Tammany Hall has paid for naturalization 
papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2829. Q. Can you state the number paid for in each year for several 
years past 

A. I cannot; the treasurer, Mr. Eichard B. Connolly, takes care of 
these matters. Mr. Gale probably knows better than any other gentle¬ 
man. 

2830. Q. What officers, in connection with the street department, hold 
their appointments under you ? 

A. All under the street commissioner himself. 


268 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2831. Q. How many of them are there ? 

A. The number of persons employed varies according to the work; 
the number of officers is fifty or sixty, or may be seventy. 

2832. Q. What is their compensation? 

A. It varies from $3,500 a year to $2 50 a day. 

2833. Q. How much of the time are these officers receiving pay each 
year ? 

A. These officers are designated by the common council and receive 
pay during the entire year; they are salaried officers. 

2834. Q. State if a portion of them perform but little service, if any. 

A. Men differ as to what constitutes little services. 

2835. Q. State the extent of time occupied by them in the actual duties 
connected Avith their offices. 

A. From 9 o’clock in the morning till 4 o’clock in the afternoon. 

2836. Q. Ho you mean to say that all those officers have been thus 
employed ? 

A. I mean to say that the ordinance proivddes that they shall be there 
from nine till four. I don’t suppose that I have been through the build¬ 
ing more than twice a year j but I know that when I send for them during 
business hours I generally find them. 

2837. Q. Are you able to say, as a matter of fact, that all or a majority 
of these officers are engaged in any official duty during the hours you 
have named ? 

A. I believe they all are. 

2838. Q. Ho you not know that some of them at least are mere sine¬ 
cures ? 

A. I do not know that. 

2839. Q. State if any of them are republicans. 

A. I think not; yes, sir, I believe there is one man who is a repub¬ 
lican. 

2840. Q. State if any employment has been given to republicans during 
this year in the street commissioner’s office. 

A. There has been. 

2841. Q. To what extent ? 

A. To a very limited extent, of course j probably five per cent.—not 
to exceed that. 

2842. Q. Hid the persons to Avhoni employment or patrona ge was thus 
given hold any office in connection with the election ? 

A. NTot that I know of. 1 do not know of one instance of the kind. 

2843. Q. Hid you know the fact that Eosenberg had a naturalization 
office prior to the election ? 

A. I did not. I never saw him until after the election. 

2844. Q. Can you state whether there was an office in each ward where 
naturalization papers were prepared ? 

A. I think not. 

2845. Q. Was there one in each assembly district? 

A. 1 think not. In my own ward, the 7th, which comprises an 
assembly district, I know there Avas none. 

2846. Q. Ho you knoAv that there were such offices in the city ? 

A. I understood there were; they Avere not under the direction of the 
Tammany Hall general committee. They were offices supposed to be 
kept open by individuals aaEo took an interest in the matter. It Avas 
nothing that our committee as an organization had any power OA^er. 

2847. Q. Hid you learn that fraudulent naturalization papers were 
being procured prior to the last presidential election ? 

A. I did not. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


269 


2848. Q. Did you liear any such rumor? 

A. O, I hear rumors on every subject; but I do not consider that testi¬ 
mony that I can swear to. 

2849. Q. Did you learn or were you informed of the fact that men were 
engaged as repeaters, to register their names or to vote at the last 
election ? 

A. I did not know of any such fact. Everything you have asked me 
there have been rumors about, of course. I have heard them in the gen¬ 
eral rumble of city politics and city conversation. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2850. Q. I understand you to say that the ordinances of the city 
authorize the appointment of some 70 officers in the street department. 
How many emxiloyes are there in that department? 

A. That varies according to the amount of labor to be performed. At 
this time of tlie year there are only about that, 70. 

2851. Q. How was it about last October*? 

A. We employed from 200 to 400 men. 

^ 2852. Q. And you say that live per cent, of the number were republi¬ 

cans ? 

A. That is a large estimate. 

2853. Q. Do you know whether any of these men acted as inspectors 
of election ? 

A. I do not. 

2854. Q. Or as canvassers ? 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2855. Q. What induced you to appoint republicans ? 

A. I was born in New York and have lived here all my life, and have 
as many friends among republicans as among democrats. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2856. Q. Were these men appointed on account of their iiersonal 
relations with you ? 

A. They were appointed because they were my personal friends; some 
of them are persons with whom I was brought up. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2857. Q. Is the j)atronage of your office used in the interest of the 
democratic party ? 

A. It is used for the benefit of the city government. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2858. Q. I suppose that the patronage of the democratic party, like 
that of other parties, is given to democrats ? 

A. Certainly it is. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2859. Q. You are in the habit of employing republicans ? 

A. Not as a general thing. 

2860. Q. You would not like to emi)loy a rexmblican if you did not 
think you could use him for the benefit of the democratic xipdy ? 

A. If a rex)ublican were a personal friend of mine and desired emx)loy- 
ment, and if I had it to give him, I would give it to him as quickly as I 
would to a democrat. 

2861. Q. Do you know what amount of money Tammany Hall expended 
this fiill for election purposes ? 


270 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. No ; but 1 do know how miicli money we have got to expend before 
we pay our debts. We are $12,000 behind. I cannot tell how much we 
raised. 

2802. Q. How much did you contribute in aid of the democratic party 
this fail ? 

A. I thiidi it would frighten me if I told. I do not know. It was a 
continued dribble—a hundred dollars, fifty dollars, five dollars, two dol 
lars, and one dollar. Perhaps I contributed entirely about $10,000. 

2803. Q. May it not have been $25,000 ? 

A. No, sir 5 it was not $25,000. I subscribed $5,000 to the State 
committee, and the rest went out in driblets after that, and I do not 
know what I did give. 

2804. Q. You do not know the aggregate amount that Tammany Hall 
raised f 

A. I do not. 

2805. Q. Were the officers*in your department called upon to assist ? 

A. They all did assist. 

2800. Q. By assessment or otherwise ? 

A. By voluntary contributions. I most certainly expected them to 
contribute to support the party; that is expected as a matter of course. 

2807. Q. You state that the number of naturalizations had been less 
for several years 1 

A. So rumor says. 

2808. Q. Do you know whether the number has increased gradually 
since 1804 ? 

A. I do not know j but my impression is that it did gradually increase. 

2809. Q. What is your impression as to the number of naturalization 
papers issued this fall ? 

A. I cannot sayj I have no impression whatever on the subject. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2870. Q. What, in your opinion, is the proportion between native and 
foreign-born voters in the city and county of New York? 

A. 1 think the native vote is about, at the very extreme, not over one- 
third of the whole, although what we call the foreign vote is not really 
entirely a foreign vote, as it includes the sons of adopted citizens born 
here, but whose associations and affiliations are with those of their own 
nationality. 

2871. Q. I want to know the proportion of those who would vote on 
naturalization papers, or those who had to go through the court to be 
made citizens? 

A. Probably from one-half to three-fifths of the entire vote would be 
foreign. 

By the Chairman: 

2872. Q. Are you a director in the Erie Eailroad Ooinpan/? 

A. I am. 

2873. Q. How long have you been? 

A. Since last August; I was elected to fill a vacancy. 

2874. Q. Is Peter B. Sweeney also a director? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2875. Q. What position does he occupy in this city? 

A. He is a member of the Tammany Hall democratic committee. 

2870. Q. Are there any other directors of the Erie Eailroad Company 
members of the Tammany Hall committee ? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


271 


By Mr. Kerr : 

2877. Q. What are the other directors'? 

A. They are a mixture from all sections of the State—a mixture of all 
politics. 

By the Chairman : 

2878. Q. How long has Sweeney been a director? 

A. I think since October or November last. He has never attended 
a meeting of the board of directors since he became a member. 

2879. Q. Was he ai^pointed receiver in any suit in which that road 
was interested? 

A. I do not know anything about it; rumor says he was. 

2880. Q. Do you know anything of the secret circular referred to in 
the testimony of John T. Hoffman ? 

A. I have heard of it. 

2881. Q. State from how many counties you received telegrams on tile 
evening of the presidential election. 

A. I did not receive a telegram of any description from any county, 
for I did not go to Tammany Hall. I understood there were quite a 
number of telegrams sent to my address. 

2882. Q. State to what extent this circular was sent out from this city. 

A. I do not know. 

2883. Q. Have you any information ? 

A. I have not. 

2884. Q. Neither from your own knowledge nor from others ? 

A. Neither. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2885. Q. State how large a force you had employed in the street com¬ 
missioner’s department in October last? 

A. I guess from 500 to 600 men. 

2886. Q. No more? 

A. No more. 

2887. Q. That is about 200 more than the highest estimate you gave 
before. 

A. We average from 200 to 400 men during the summer months—the 
working months of the year. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

2888. Q. Speaking of republicans, personal friends, were there no 
employes in the street department, republicans, who were not personal 
friends of yours ? 

A. 1 do not recollect of any, except this young man w^hom I spoke of, 
and who was there when I went into the office. 

2889. Q. I speak of those who names appear on the roll. 

A. None that I know of. There may be some who have been employed 
by me at the solicitation of my i)ersonal friends. I do not recollect the 
names of the persons emxdoyed there; there is a rush most of the time. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2890. Q. Is it not true that there were a good many names appearing 
on the roll of the dei)artment, as employes, of persons who did little or 
no service, except now and then? 

A. That is not my impression. 

2891. Q. Would you know it if it were so ? 

A. I would be likely to know it, although it might be without my 
knowing it; my duties are in-doors entirely. 


272 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2892. Q. Who has immediate cliarge of the working force of your 
department, and who would he likely to know it hestf 

A. Mr. Eobert Clifford, our chief clerk, would know it best. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2803. Q. You have been inquired of on the subject of the amount of 
money which you contributed during the last campaign, and as to the 
aggregate amount contributed by your political friends in this city. I 
desire to ask you what you know about the amount contributed by per¬ 
sons of the rei)ublican party during that time“? 

A. I really do not know that; it is a matter even beyond my suspicion, 
much less knowledge. 

2894. Q. What is the relative ability of democrats and republicans to 
contribute to such purposes. 

A. It is geneially supposed to be on the side of the republicans. 

New York, Becemher 30, 1868. 

Abraham de Yoursney sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

2895. I acted as inspector of election in the 9th election district, 
6th ward, at the last presidential election. I acted two days as register 
and one day as ins])ector. The ffrst two days of registration I did not 
act. I cannot positively swear that there was no illegal voter registered 
there. I thought I recognized on two or three different occasions half 
a dozen different individuals voting more than once. I had the idea that 
they had disguised themselves in such a way as not to be known, but I 
was not positive. I was a republican inspector, and my associate was 
Mr. Beeny. When we challenged parties the other inspectors refused to 
swear them, and we remonstrated. 

2895J. Q. So that there was a sort of conflict in the board? 

A. Yes, sir. I picked up my books and left, and went up to the police 
headquarters, and my partner followed me We told Superintendent 
Kennedy that it was no use to act there as inspectors, for we could not 
get anything like a legal vote, because the police and the parties about 
the polls were all against us. The names of the democratic inspectors 
were Mr. Threall and Edward M. Haggerty. 

2896. Q. Hid the election still go on after you and your colleague went 
to the pci Ice headquarters? 

A. Yes, sir; and we knew nothing of what transpired while we were 
away. The superintendent ordered us back, and we got back as soon as 
possible. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2897. Why did you go away ? 

A. We cha lien ged som e voters wh o cam e to vote, and the other inspectors 
would not admiiiistor the oath or x)ermit us to do so. We Avere satisfied 
if we persisted there Avould be a general roAV, which would probably end 
in killing some of us. The democratic inspectors said that the names 
were registered there and that the men had a right to Amte. 

2898. Q. You yourself had registered them, had you not? 

A. I did not serve on the first tAVo days. The democratic inspectors 
said that tor every name that AA^as registered they AAUAuld receive a vote. 
At that time there was a string of voters probably from tliirty to forty 
in length, and Haggerty said he would advise any one to chuck us OA’er 
the counter if aa^c challenged another one of them. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


273 


2899. Q. Was Haggerty president of the board ? 

A. No; Mr. Thread was president. Some four or five names were 
voted on twice. 

2900. Q. Do you know of any other frauds in the election there ? 

A. No; I do not know anything regarding the canvassing. 

2901. Q. Or in the voting? 

A. No, sir. 

2902. Q. All you know is that four or five men voted twice ? 

A. I know that four or five different names were voted on twice, and 
that the only way we could get a legal vote there was to challenge these 
parties and then have them arrested. We challenged one party in the 
morning, and he was sworn in. We ordered the police to arrest him, 
but the other inspectors ordered them not to do so, and he was not 
arrested. 

By Mr. Kerb : 

2903. Q. Were these police officers democratic or republican ? 

A. The captain is a democrat; his name is Jourdan. He was not there 
at the time. He sent some two or three men there. I do not know what 
their politics were. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2904. Q. You say that the democratic inspectors objected to swearing- 
men whose votes were challenged ? 

A. They refused to administer the oath. 

2905. Q. Did I understand you to say that, besides four or five persons 
who voted twice on the same names, there were other parties who you 
thought voted twice, in disguise ? 

A. I thought so. 

2906. Q. Were they among the persons whom you proposed to chal¬ 
lenge, and were prevented from challenging ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2907. Q. Were you appointed in the place of somebody else? 

A. Yes, sir; I was appointed in the place of a party who had been sent 
there. 

2908. Q. What proportion of those votes were given on naturalization 
papers ? 

A. Five hundred and eighty odd votes were cast in the district, and I 
should think that four to one were on naturalization papers. 

2909. Q. In the registry or at the polls were any of these parties 
examined as to where they got their naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir; and we rejected a good many at the registry. 

2910-2911. Q. How many ? 

A. I should think we found as many as a dozen who had no right to 
register at all from not living in the district, or from some other cause. 
I do not know how many were rejected the first two days I was not there. 

By Mr. Hopions : 

2912. Q. This was a pretty good precinct for repeating ? 

A. It was supposed to be. I think it next to impossible for any man 
to go down and get a square vote at that precinct unless he had a regi¬ 
ment of soldiers with fixed baypnets. I think it is the next thing to 
impossible. That is my opinion, based on my experience as an inspector, 
and on my having served eight years in the police department. 

18 T 


274 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, December 30,1868. 

Lorenzo Carey sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Eoss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

2913. Question. At what precinct were yon acting as election officer at 
the last election ? 

Answer. At the 6th election district of the 6th ward. 

2914. Q. Were you there during the time of the registry, and also of 
the election ? 

A. I was both times. 

2915. Q. State what precautions, if any, were taken by the officers of 
the board to preyent illegal registry and voting ? 

A. 1 do not know that there were any special precautions taken. 

2916. Q. Did you register illegal voters ? 

A. I dare say we did some. 

2917. Q. How many do you think you registered f 

A. It would be impossible to tell. 

2918. Q. Why did you take illegal voters f 

A. Well, because we could not help itj we did not know every man 
personally. 

2919. Q. How was your board composed politically ? • 

A. It was half and half. 

2920. Q. Were you a republican or a democratic inspector. 

A. I was one of the republican inspectors. 

2921. Q. Who were your colleagues ? 

A. Mr. Ogilvie, Mr. Phillips, and Mr. Nealis. 

2922. Q. Did you intentionally take any illegal votes ? 

A. Certainly not. 

2923. Q. You tried to prevent it 

A. Of course we did. 

2924., Q. But some illegal voters escaped your vigilance ? 

A. Yes, it was evident that we had illegal voters, because we had some 
attempts of two or three men to vote under the same name. 

2925. Q. Did any men vote twice on the same name ? 

A. They did not at this election; we adopted a rule that we would have 
no repeaters; I do not know positively that there were any illegal votes 
given, although I am morally certain that there were. 

2926. Q. Who do you think voted illegally % 

A. There were several attempts to do so. 

2927. Q. Who did vote illegally! 

A. I could not specify any case, for I do not know of any personally. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

2928. Q. Did any parties register twice under different names ! 

A. I do not recollect of any case of that kind; such a thing could be 
done; we had six or seven hundred voters in the district, and it was 
impossible for us to know them aU personally. 

2929. Q. What proportion of the voters in your district voted on natu¬ 
ralization papers ! 

A. I suppose at least nine-tenths of them. 

2930. Q. Did you examine them as to their papers under oath ! 

A. Certainly, we examined nearly all, except such as we were person¬ 
ally acquainted with j I do not think we have fifty native voters in that 
district j there was a set of naturalization papers sent to my store, and 
delivered to a young man in the store who never went to the court at all; 
they were sent to him filled out regularly, and apparently with the sig¬ 
nature of the clerk of the court. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


275 


By Mr. Eoss: 

2931. Q. Do you know wlietker that party went to the court at all ? 

A. He (lid not. 

2932. Q. How do you know ? 

A. I have his word for it, and he is with me all the time; there were 
several such cases in the neighborhood j the papers seemed perfectly 
correct. 

A. Oakey Hall sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

2933. Question. State to the committee your position at present and 
during the last year. 

Answer. During the last year I was district attorney of the county of 
Kew York. 

2934. Q. Have you been elected to any other official position ? 

A. Next Monday I expect to assume office as mayor of the city as the 
successor of Mr. Coman. 

2935. Q. Look at the printed circular now handed to you, incorporated 
into the testimonj^ of Governor Hoffman, and say if you recognize it? 

A. I recognize it, and know all about it. 

2936. Q. Tell the committee what you know about it, and why it was 
issued, and for what purpose. 

A. I was, as 1 have been for several years past, secretary of the 
executive committee of the democratic State committee, and during the 
recent camj)aign I acted as such; our rooms were at the Metropolitan 
Hotel; this circular was prepared by me, and ordered to be printed by 
me, and Mr. Tildeffs name was signed to it because it was the usage to 
sign the name of the chairman of the main committee; to a very great 
extent Colonel Samuel North, who was secretary of the main committee, 
and myself were the committee, and directed or supervised all its details 5 
all the printed part of this circular is my composition; I recognize the 
lettering as the handwriting of Mr. Eose, who was a deputy clerk of 
Colonel North’s, and he interlined it at my request; there are added to 
the printed circular these words, “And give orders to watch carefully 
the count.” To the best of my knowledge, and to my entire belief, Mr. 
Tilden knew nothing about it 5 nor any one else except Colonel North 
and his clerk, and our clerk at the Metropolitan, and my partner, Mr. 
Brown, who was a member of the Loyal League club, and to whom I 
read it in manuscript; this circular was printed by the regular printer of 
our committee—I forget his name, but his office is on Centre street, near 
the Tombs. 

2937. Q. State now what was the purpose of that circular, why you 
wrote it, and what you did with it after you had it printed. 

A. Mr. Brown, my partner, was a very exact writer, exceedingly so, 
and I often consulted him in digesting matters. Tlie reason of my show¬ 
ing this paper to him was mainly to get a short, concise, digested circu¬ 
lar, for I am myself rather a diffuse writer, having been an editor. This 
circular was sent to the chairman of every county democratic organiza¬ 
tion in the State through the post office, not under a frank, but with the 
postage honestly paid. The object of it was this: I state it as it cannot 
be any reflection now, but it was our supposition, and especially my sup¬ 
position, that two years ago Mr. Hofiinan was fairly elected governor. 
We found that no returns reached the city of New York from any part 
of the State of New York until between the hours of 11 and 12 at night 
—not so much as a private message. As an old Avriter and editor, and 
attendant upon the newspaper offices on the evening of election for nearly 


276 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


20 years, it was the first time I had ever noticed such an incident. We 
supposed, and I especially supposed, that it was by preconcert and 
arrangement. 1 was given to understand, and believed, that in the 
mean time the vote of the city of N^ew York had reached every other part 
of the State. There are, I think, 16,000 school districts in the State of 
Xew York, and the change of one vote in every school district would 
very seriously affect the result. A similar circular to this was issued the 
year before, not exactly in these words, but with the same idea, and this 
circular was issued by me for the purpose of using the only hour that 
could be obtained on the telegraph after the closing of the polls—the 
hour which usually elapses when the residts are beginning to be known 
everywhere. The purpose was to get local estimates from our democratic 
friends, with which to compare and to check the returns when they came 
in. In many parts of this State, as I suppose elsewhere in the rural dis¬ 
tricts, it is quite practicable to understand at the close of the polls, before 
the vote is counted, within a fraction how the polls stands, and hence 
the object was to get what would seem to be superficial guess-work, but 
which was really an approximate statement. In other words, the idea 
of this circular, whether well founded or ill founded, was simply not to 
perpetrate frauds, but to check frauds. The reason why the telegrams 
were sent to Mr. Tweed was that he was chairman of the democratic 
committee at Tammany Hall, and the wires were connected with our hall 
in the same way as the republican committee had them connected with 
the hall at the Cooper Institute. We received telegrams to the number 
of more than 200. I kept custody of the telegrams; they were read as 
soon as received from the desk at Tammany Hall, and not until publicly 
read were they shown to any person. They were then taken to the Man¬ 
hattan Club, where there was a very large meeting as at Tammany Hall, 
a very splendid congregation of moimiers. The fact is that if the major¬ 
ity in the city of Kew York be kept at the figure of two years ago it 
carries the State for Seymour by a small majority, and certainly for Hoff¬ 
man by as large a majority as Mr. Lincoln got in 1864. Another object 
of this circular was to induce gentlemen upon our side to ai)ply in such 
numbers and so frequently to the telegraph oftices of the State that the 
operators would know that returns of some kind were expected over the 
wires, for I believe that nine-tenths of the telegraph operators in this 
State are republicans. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2938. Q. Is not that so throughout the country? 

A. Let me be president of the telegraph comxiany instead of Mr. Orton, 
and nine-tenths of the operators will be democrats. We can get them 
in this city from among the policemen who work the telegraphs of this 
city. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

There was, of course, an important object to be attained in the words 
written for me in manuscript after the printing of the circular, because 
I wanted to call particular attention of parties into whose hands this 
might tall through the post, and to make it emjihatic. It is a very em¬ 
phatic sentence. One reason why I gave special attention to the circular 
was that in the proof furnished'to me the word ‘‘an^^ was printed ‘‘no ” 
so as to read, “There is, of course, no important obiect to be attained)’ 
and that would have defeated the very object of uiy putting the sentence 
in, and would have made it still more obscure. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


277 


2939. Q. Do you mean tliat we sliall infer from what you have said 
that one of your objects in sending out that circular was to direct the 
attention of the opposite political party to the fact that you had organ¬ 
ized such means of getting information ^ 

A. We did not want to attract particular attention to it; that was 
the reason why it was headed strictly confidential.” 

2940. Q. But the moment you commenced receiving telegrams in 
response to that circular you then desired that they should know it ? 

A. Certaiidy. 

2941. Q. You say that for the year past you have been district attor¬ 
ney of the county of New York; state whether in that position, in the 
discharge of the duties of that office, you ever caused any bench war¬ 
rants to be issued for violations of the law which it is the duty of the 
police force of the city to execute, but which were not executed ? 

A. Not in the plural. A bench warrant was issued for the express 
purpose of testing whether Captain Mills, of the 8th precinct, would 
execute a warrant against Wesley Allen. Captain Mills had been 
deservedly the arrester of that man. He was a high-minded, incorrupti¬ 
ble, splendid police captain. I do not know whether it is parliamentary 
to go into my motives, but I state the fact that I issued that bench war¬ 
rant to test if power was exercised upon such an incorruptible, high- 
minded man. That bench warrant was out three weeks before the 
election and was never executed until after the election, although the 
man was in the city and I could have arrested him at any moment. 

2942. Q. Was it his duty to have made the arrest immediately, under 
the law ? 

A. It. was his discipline to take that bench warrant to the superin¬ 
tendent of police and get his instructions. 

2943. Q. Who was the superintendent of police during that time ? 

A. John A. Kennedy. 

2944. Q. Do you know whether the delay was in pursuance of direc¬ 
tions from the superintendent of police ? 

A. I know nothing about it; I only know that the arrest was not made. 

2945. Q. State somewhat in detail the manner in which the election 
boards, both for the making of the registry and the receiving of the 
votes, were organized during this year. 

A. The police board at the designated period, in anticipation of the 
November election, are charged with the duty of naming four inspectors 
of the registiy and of election, the individuals being charged with the 
two duties in the 340 districts of this city; the persons so named execute 
both duties. They care for the registry and they take the votes. The 
police board are also charged with the duty of appointing, in time for 
the election, two poll-clerks at each election district, and two canvass¬ 
ers at each election district. The poll-clerks assist the inspectors in their 
duty, and also the canvassers. There is no law, that I am aware of, estab¬ 
lishing that the four inspectors or the two canvassers shall be equally 
divided between the two political parties, but such has been the usage. 
It is made the duty, by the police act, of the superintendent to detail on 
election day at least one policeman at each poll in each election district. 
There is usually, however, one officer inside the poll and one outside. 

2946. Q. How was it during the last general election ? 

A. All this machinery Avhich I have described was in operation, so far 
as I know, and I visited during the election day more than TOO polling 

places personally. ^ i 

2947. Q. Was this machinery so organized and constitutea the only 
machinery for the protection of the election and of the poll against frauds 
or unlawful conduct of any kind ? 


278 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. It was tlie only legal macliinery, but not the only practical 
machinery. The practical machinery consisted of each party furnishing 
at each poll a challenger, and each i^arty more or less appointing a com¬ 
mittee to conduct the poll and to take charge of the expected illegal 
voting. It was generally done by the local candidates, or supposed to 
be done by the local candidates or their friends. 

2948. Q. Do you know of any interruption on the part of any officer 
of the legal force to which you have referred to the organization of that 
sort of voluntary force ? 

A.' I do not, except what I have read in the public prints. 

2949. Q. Do you know of any other force, lawful or unlawful, being 
organized for the purpose of protecting the polls on election day by 
anybody ? 

A. I have already stated that the two political parties had agents there. 

2950. Q. State if you know as a fact that the marshal of this federal 
district appointed or created any such force. 

A. Well, I saw several individuals at the polls whom I recognized as 
subordinates, or attaches in the marshal’s office, but whether they were 
at the polls to vote or not I could not say. 

2951. Q. State to the committee whether you are personally familiar 
by observation with the mode of conducting the business of naturaliza¬ 
tion in the courts of record in this State. 

A. Only as a lawyer; I never saw a person naturalized, or knew per¬ 
sonally of any one being naturalized, except my own mother-in-law, who 
was naturalized, and whose papers I drew up, in order that she might 
hold real estate. 

2952. Q. Are you a member of the Tammany committee 

A. I am a member of the general committee of Tammany Hall. 

2953. Q. Had you anything to do with the committee called in your 
Tammany organization the general naturalization committee ? 

A. No, sir. Judge Moses D. Gale was chairman of that committee. 

2954. Q. Do you know of any organization for the puri)ose of facili¬ 
tating naturalization that had an olSce at No. 6 Centre street, in a cellar 
under ground"? 

A. No, sir; I do not. You refer, of course, to what is known as the 
Kosenberg office; I only know of it from what I have read in the papers 
that there was an office where naturalization was said to be done, but I 
know of my OAvn knowledge that was not the Tammany naturalization 
room, because I have been in the Tammany room. 

2955. Q. Where was that"? 

A. It was on Tryon Eow, sometimes called No. 1 Centre street. 

2956. Q. Did you know anything about the persons who were engaged 
at No. 6 Centre street, or what they were carrying on there, or whether 
they were acting with the countenance and approval of the democratic 
organization of the city ? 

A. I can only give my belief as to the organization, and I can give my 
knowledge as to myself; I never heard of such a thing until I read the 
accounts of the charges made by Marshal Murray against Eosenberg in 
the newspapers. 

Q. State, so far as your knowledge extends, whether the general com¬ 
mittee had any such knowledge. 

A. I can only say for the committee magna pars fui, that if I did not 
know of it, it was not likely that anybody else woidd; I think it was 
three days before the election that the Eosenberg explosion, as it was 
called amongst editors, took place. 

2957. Q. Between that time and the day of election did you make any 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 279 

efforts to prevent the perpetuation of frauds, or to punish such frauds if 
practiced? 

A. No, I did not; it was not my duty to arrest nor detect crimes or 
frauds; that belongs to the police; I have only to enforce the laws by 
prosecuting indictments; I remember addressing a meeting of the demo¬ 
cratic inspectors and canvassers in regard to this thing. 

2958. Q. State for what purpose that meeting was held, and what was 
the legal effect of what you said? 

A. I can produce the circular which called the meeting, which will 
speak for itself. 

[The further examination of this witness was postponed until Satur¬ 
day next.] 

James Moran sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

2959. Question. Where is your residence ? 

A. At 288 Hudson street. 

2960. Q. State what persons resided at 288 Hudson street at the time 
of the registry of voters in this city for this year ? 

A. I let out all the upper part of the house. 

2961. Q. To whom ? 

A. To George Thompson. 

2962. Q. Hid he reside there at the time? 

A. N o, sir; I let it out for political purposes; they held meetings there. 

2963. Q. Were there any lodging-rooms in the upper part of the house? 

A. There were six rooms. 

2964. Q. Who is George Thompson ? 

A. He is a painter. 

2965. Q. To what party does he belong ? 

A. He was a democrat and a member of the democratic general com¬ 
mittee, and I let him the rooms for political purposes. He is dead now. 

2966. Q. Did any person reside there as a place of residence ? 

A. Yes, sir; a man by the name of Betts, to my knowledge. 

2967. Q. Is he the only one that you know.of who resided there? 

A. No; there were a great many about there ; I let the upper part of 
the house for two months, which expired on the 15th of December; I 
slept in the house myself. 

2968. Q. Did you know of any person residing there at the time of the 
registration excepting Betts ? 

A. Well, sir, there might have been, for aught I know, two or three 
hundred; they made such a noise that I thought sometimes they would 
bring the house down; I don’t know where they slept. 

By Mr, Dickey: 

2969. Q. Did you know the names of any of these parties? 

A. I did not; I was attending to my own business. 

2970. Q. What were the political purposes for which you let the rooms ? 

A. To hold meetings; I rented the rooms to Thompson; he had got 

into business down town and did not come home then at all. 

By the Chairman : 

2971. Q. Did you occupy the lower rooms in the house ? 

A. I did; but there was nothing but a bar-room. 

2972. Q. How high was the house? 

A. Three stories. 

2973. Q. Was there any communication between that house and other 
houses ? 

A. Yes; there were two houses in the rear. 


280 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


2974. Q. Were they on the same lot? 

A. No, sir. ^ 

2975. Q. Who occupied those houses? 

A. A man hy the name of Brady j and there was a Frenchman there 
who kept a stand at the corner; there was another by the name of 
Gorkey, and another by the name of Cobb; I do not know how many 
male persons they had in the houses. 

2976. Q. Do you know of any excepting those you have named ? 

A. No; 1 only know of those who paid the rent. 

By Mr. Dicicey : 

2977. Q. Are those houses at the same number of the street? 

A. No, sir; the houses front on Dominick street, whilst my house was 
on Hudson street. 

By the Chairman : 

2978. Q. Are there two rooms in the lower story of the house and three 
in the attic ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

2979. Q. How deep is the house? 

A. I cannot tell; I suppose about 25 feet. 

2980. Q. What is the width on the front? 

A. From 18 to 20 feet. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2981. Q. What sort of iiolitical jDurposes was the house used for ? 

A. They held caucuses there and meetings;' it was what was called a 
headquarters. 

2982. Q. Was it known as a rendezvous for what are called^^ repeaters?” 
A. No, sir. 

2983. Q. Did yon know what was done there? 

A. No, sir. 

2984. Q. How did they enter the upper rooms? 

A. Through the front door. 

2985. Q. How late did they hold their meetings? 

A. Sometimes they were there all night. 

By Mr. Dickey ; 

2986. Q. Did any club or organization meet there? 

A. That I cannot say. I am not certain that there was any organized 
political association, nor did I know the names of any of the iiersons who 
were in the habit of going there. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

2987. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge if any man lived in that 
house, excepting those you have named, at the time of the registration? 

A. There was this man Betts; he did not reside there, but he regis¬ 
tered from there and voted. 

2988. Q. You know of no one else who resided there at the time of the 
registration ? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

2989. Q. Are you an active democratic politician ? 

A. No; I am no politician. 

2990. Q. What business is carried on in the lower room? 

A. I keep a liquor store; I sell whiskey. 

2991. Q. Were you a member of any political organization in the ward? 
A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


281 


By Mr. Boss: 

2992. Q. Might there not have been quite a number of persons living 
in that house without your knowing anything about it ? 

A. Exactly, sir. 

. 2993. Q. How many do you suppose might have been accommodated 
there'? 

A. Well, I do not know; I sometimes thought they got them pretty 
thick. 

2994. Q. You did not go to see who was in the rooms? 

A. NTo, sir; I rented them out. 

2995. Q. Then there might have been 20 or 30 for aught you know? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5996. Q. And for all you know they might have been voters ? 

A. I know nothing about that. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

2997. Q. You did not let the upper rooms for the purpose of people 
sleeping there? 

A. Yes, sir, I did; I let them do as^ they had a mind to with the rooms. 

2998. Q. You knew what they were going to use the rooms for ? 

A. Ho, sir; I did not. 

By Mr. Boss: 

2999. Q. Do you know whether any persons lived in the upper part of 
the house ? 

A. They slept there and made such a noise that they kept me awake 
night after night until I was very glad to get rid of them. 

Hew York, Wednesday^ Becemher 30,1868. 

Joseph E. Paine sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

3000. Question. What business are you engaged in? 

Answer. I am engaged in the counting-room of A. A. Low & Brothers 
of this city. 

3001. Q. State if you have a knowledge, experience, and capacity 
that enable you to determine handwriting and whether signatures are 
feigned? 

A. I have had quite a large experience in that way, and I think that 
my judgment is very good in such matters. I have been called upon in 
a good many cases. 

3002. Q. State what your experience was in the Cisco case ? 

A. I was waited upon by Mr. Coe, the president of the American 
Exchange Bank, in that case. Photographs of supposed forged checks 
were handed to me, and photographs of genuine ones, signed by John 
W. Hunter, and my opinion was requested as to which were genuine 
and which were false. I pointed out the false ones. Then Mr. Coe 
requested me to see if I could copy the signature of John J. Cisco, in a 
note which he had before him, “ Yours, very truly, J. J. Cisco,” so that 
he would probably think that it was his own. I copied that signature or 
tracing, and the next day I believe it was presented in court, and Mr. 
Cisco said that it was his own signature; that he had no doubt about it. 
He had previously sworn that nobody could, by any possibility, deceive 
him with reference to any signature with which he was familiar. I sub¬ 
sequently testified as to the difterence between the genuine and the false 
checks in the same case. That was all my connection with that case. 


282 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3003. Q. I present to you a number of applications for naturalization, 
referred to in testimony taken before this committee, and ask you to 
examine the signatures to these various papers. 

Witness retired to make the examination required. 

INew York, December 31, 1868. 

Joseph E. Paine recalled and examination continued. 

By the Chairman: 

3004. Question. Take up the several applications for naturalization in 
the superior court referred to in the testimony of Westlake and describe 
the handwriting in each; the name of the applicant in each case being 
signed three times and that of the witness once. 

Answer. In the application of William Malia, the filling up and all 
the signatures (except that of the clerk, James M. Sweeney) are in the 
same handwriting. In the application of Daniel Sullivan, the signatures 
of the applicant and of the witness (William Gould) are all in the same 
handwriting as the filling up. In the application of Maximilian Boeck, 
the signatures of the applicant and witness are also in the same hand¬ 
writing as the filling up. In the application of Joseph Eush I decline 
to state that any of the signatures were written by the same hand as 
the filling up, though I have pretty strong reasons to believe that they 
were all throughout written by the same hand. In the remaining three 
applications the signatures of the applicants and witnesses are made 
with a mark. There is no attempt to change in any respect the hand¬ 
writing throughout those documents. In the applications of William 
Malia and James Montgomery the witness is the same person—Thos. 
McGovern, 221 First avenue. In the one case his name is signed, and 
in the other it is written with a mark—Thos. McGovern, his mark.” In 
each case it is in the same handwriting as the filling up of the body of 
the document. The signature of the clerk is not in the same handwrit¬ 
ing in any of these papers as the signatures of the applicants and wit¬ 
nesses or as the filling in. In the three applications of Kerwin, Boeck, 
and Montgomery, the signatures of the clerk are in the same handwrit¬ 
ing. There are some variations, such as may be observed in any man’s 
handwriting at difierent times; but the characteristics are essentially 
the same. There is nothing to lead me to question but that they have 
been written by the same hand. In the application of William Malia 
the clerk’s signature appears to be in a different handwriting from those 
three; and in the application of John Wallace it is in still a different 
handwriting. Those in the applications of Daniel Sullivan and Joseph 
Eush are in still another handwriting—both alike. 

3005. Q. I present to you the certificate of naturalization issued to 
Maximilian Boeck, dated October 19, 1868, referred to in the testimony 
of Maximilian Boeck: state how the signature of James M. Sweeney, 
clerk, compares with the signature of James M. Sweeney on the appli¬ 
cation about which you have testified. 

A. It seems to me hardly possible that the signature of James M. 
Sweeney to the three applications of Montgomery, Kerwin, and Boeck 
can have been written by any other hand than the hand which wrote 
the signature “James M. Sweeney” to this certificate of naturalization. 
The signatures of Sweeney in the other applications are in an entirely 
different handwriting from the handwriting of Sweeney to this certificate 
of naturalization. There are some resemblances, as if an attempt had 
been made to imitate the signature in two of them; but I shotdd say 
they were not written by the same hand. 


• ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


283 


300G. Q. I now present to yon 30 applications produced by Charles 
E. Loew, clerk, and referred to in his testimony : take them up in detail 
and describe the handwTiting in them. [These applications have all 
three afildavits.J 

In the application of Henry Stern, dated October 21, (Jacob Foerster, 
witness,) the signatures of applicant and witness are in the same hand¬ 
writing as the Ailing up in the body of the paper—with an attempt at 
disguise. 

In the application of Charles Fehling, dated October 16, (James Mc¬ 
Cabe, witness,) the same statement applies. It is all in the same hand¬ 
writing except the signature of the clerk. 

In the application of Patrick Huffy, October 17, (Edward Gonnoud, 
witness,) the same statement applies. 

In the apj)lication of James li. Smith, dated October 23, (Maurice 
Baker, witness,) the same statement applies. 

In the case of Samuel Eeynolds, dated October 23, (Maurice Baker, 
witness,) the same is true. 

In the case of Patrick Eafferty, dated October 23, (Maurice Baker, 
witness,) the same is true. The signatures of Maurice Baker to each of 
these three applications are in the same handwriting, and so is the 
filling up. 

In the application of August Langer, dated October 5, (Julius Bock, 
witness,) the signature of Langer is in the same handwriting as the 
filling up. I am not prepared to say that the signature of Bock is. 

In the application of John Winkens, dated October 19, (George Hill, 
witness,) the signatures of Winkens and HiU are in the same hand¬ 
writing as the filling uj)—with some attempt to disguise. 

The signatures of Charles E. Loew, clerk, in the applications of Sam¬ 
uel Eeynolds, James E. Smith, and Patrick Eafferty, are in the same 
handwriting. 

In the apphcations of Charles Fehling, Henry Stern, and John Win¬ 
kens, the signatures of the clerk are in the same handwriting, but in a 
different handwriting from the others. 

In the application of August Langer the signature of the clerk is in a 
different handwriting from either of the preceding. Also in the appli¬ 
cation of Patrick Duffy. 

In the application of Thomas Schmitt, dated October 19, (William 
Henry, witness,) the signatures of Schmitt and Henry are in the same 
handwriting as the filling up of the name “ Thos. Schmitt” at the top of 
the apx3lication j but I have some doubt about the rest of the filling up 
being in the same handwriting. The signature of Schmitt is made with 
a mark; that of Henry in the regular way. 

In the application of Henry Baum, dated October 20, (John King, 
witness,) the signatures of Baum and King (the latter signed with his 
mark) are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In the application of Thos. Surridge, dated October 15, (Peter Burke, 
witness,) the signatures of Surridge and Burke (both signed with their 
marks) are in the same handwriting as the filling ui). 

In the apx^lication of John Lehman, dated October 21, (Jacob Diehl, 
witness,) the signatures of Lehman and Diehl (the former signed with 
his mark) are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In the application of John Doolan, dated October 20, (Owen Garrison, 
witness,) the signatures of Doolan and Garrison (the former signed with 
his mark) are in the same handwriting as the filling up. There is no 
attempt to disguise. 

In the ax)X3licatiou of Dan’l O’Donohue, dated October 8, (John Mack- 


284 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


elson, witness,) tlie signatures of O’Donohue and Mackelson (the latter 
signed with his mark) are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 
There is an attempt to disguise in the signature of O’Donohue. 

In the application of August Muller, dated October 19, (John G. 
Diercks, witness,) the signatures of Muller and Diercks (both signed 
with their marks) are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In the applications of John Doolan, John Lehman, Thomas Surridge, 
Henry Baum, Thomas Schmitt, and August Muller, the signatures of 
Charles E. Loew, clerk, are in the same handwriting. In the case of 
Daniel O’Donohue the signature of the clerk is in a different hand¬ 
writing, with some slight resemblance. 

In the application of Frederick Henney, dated October 20, (Eobert 
Blume, of 24 Clinton street, witness,) the signatures of Henney and 
Blume (the former signed with his mark) are in the same handwriting 
as the filling. 

In the application of Joseph Herbert, dated October 20, (same witness,) 
the signatures of Herbert and Blume (the former signed with his mark) 
are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In the application of Janies McCarty, dated October 20, (same witness, 
McCarty’s name being signed with a mark,) the same statement is true. 

In the application of Hugh Smith, dated October 20, (same witness,) 
the signatures of Smith and Blume (the former signed with his mark) 
are in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In the application of Michael Dunn, dated October 20, (same witness,) 
the signatures of Dunn and Blume (the former signed with his mark) are 
in the same handwriting as the filling up. 

In one of these applications, where Robert Blume is witness, his name 
is signed with a mark; in the other four in the usual way. 

The signatures and filling up in these last five papers are all in the 
same handwriting, except the signature of the clerk. In all the signa¬ 
tures of Blume there is a manifest attempt at disguise. They are all 
dated October 20. 

In the case of James Brown, dated October 20, (John King, witness,) 
the signatures of Brown and King (the latter signed with a mark) are in 
the same handwriting as the filling up, but different from the hand¬ 
writing in the five preceding papers. 

In the application of William Honig, dated October 20, (same witness,) 
I cannot say the signature of Honig is in the »ame handwriting as the 
filling up and as the name of King, signed with his mark. It is written 
with a different pen and different ink, and bears the German charac¬ 
teristics. 

In the application of August Betzel, dated October 20, (same witness,) 
the signatures of Betzel and King (the former spelled Lenzel” and the 
latter signed with his mark) are in the same handwriting. 

In the application of John Noelsh, dated October 20, (Carl Spoer, 
witness,) the signatures of Koelsh are in the same handwriting as the 
filling up. I decline to say that the signature of Spoer is by the same 
hand. 

In the application of William Lukas, dated October 15, (John Wolf, 
witness,) the signatures of Lukas and Wolf are in the same handwriting 
as the filling up, though there is a very manifest and earnest attempt to 
disguise them. 

In the application of Jacob Schafer, dated October 9, (Jacob Dahl, 
witness,) the signatures of Schafer and Dahl are in the same hand¬ 
writing as the filling up, with a marked attempt to disguise them. 

In the application of William Schmitt, dated October 19, (Jacob 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 285 

Sterger, witness,) the signatures and filling up are in the same hand¬ 
writing. 

In the application of Charles Warneck, dated October 19, (Charles 
Jules, witness,) the signatures and filling up are in the same handwriting, 
with marked attempts at disguise in both signatures. 

It is the same thing in the application of Gottlieb Kaffenberger, dated 
October 22, (EudolphWotke, witness.) There is quite a marked attempt 
at disguise in both cases. 

In the application of Sebastian Schneider, dated October 19, (Henry 
Wier, witness,) the signatures of Schneider and Wier are in the same 
handwriting as the upper filling of the paper. The filling up at the bot¬ 
tom of the paper is in a different handwriting. 

The signatures of the clerk, Charles E. Loew, to the applications of 
William Honig, John Noelsch, August Betzel, Jacob Schafer, Gottlieb 
Kaffenberger, William Schmitt, and Sebastian Schneider appear to be in 
the same handwriting. The signature of the clerk to the application of 
William Lukas is in a different handwriting from the preceding j and 
the signature of the clerk to the application of Charles Warneck is, I 
think, in an entirely different handwriting. 

3007. Q. I now present to you papers purporting to be certificates of 
naturalization issued on those applications. Examine them and describe 
the handwriting. 

A. The names of the parties naturalized, the signature of the clerk, and 
the date are in three different handwritings in the following certificates, 
to wit: John J. Mercer, Antonio Gomez, AlexanderK. McCann, Adolph 
Slechelseine, William Honig, Henry Baum, August Betzel, James Brown, 
Hugh Smith, James McCarty, Michael Dunn, Joseph Herbert, Frederick 
Henney, Henry Stern, Charles Warneck, William Lukas, and Gottlieb 
Kaffenberger. I decline to say that there are more than two handwrit¬ 
ings in the certificate of Thomas Schmitt, Sebastian Schneider, August 
Muller, John Winkens, and Thomas Surridge. The signatiue of the 
clerk is in a different handwriting from the name of the i)arty. As to 
the five certificates issued from the superior court, I think that in the cer¬ 
tificate of Joseph Bush the name of Bush and the signature of the clerk 
are in the same handwriting, the filling in of the date being in a different 
handwriting. In the case of John Wallace, the name of the party, the 
signature of the clerk, and the date are all in the same handwriting. 
In the certificate of William Malia the name and the date are in the one 
handwriting, and the signature of the clerk, I think, in another. In the 
certificate of James Montgomery the name, the signature, and the date 
are aU in the same handwriting. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3008. Q. To what political party do you belong 

A. To the republican party. 


Kew York, December 31,1868. 

S. C. Hawley sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3009. Question. State what office you hold in this city, and how long 
you have held it. 

Answer. I have been chief clerk of the metropolitan police since 
July, 1860. 

3010. Q. State what you know of a census being made for this city, 
when and by whom. 


286 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. The last census of which I have any knowledge was undertaken 
and made some progress in, i)revious to the last election, as I understood, 
by the police department under the orders of Superintendent Kennedy. 

3011. Q. How long before the last election ? 

A. I do not personally know when it commenced, but some time in 
October it came to my knowledge that the business was in progTess. 

3012. Q. Have you the original books of the census so taken of the 
6th ward ? 

A. I have. 

3013. Q. Who has charge of the police in the 6th ward ? 

A. Captain Jourdain is captain of the precinct. 

3014. Q. State how this census was made out. 

A. I do not know personally beyond the fact that these books were 
transmitted to my office. 

3015. Q. You now produce those books for the inspection and use of 
the committee. 

A. Ido. 

[Books presented.] 

By Mr. ICerr : 

3016. Q. Do you know how these returns were taken ? 

A. I have no personal knowledge on the subject. 

3017. Q. Do you know by whom they were taken ? 

A. Kot in regard to each j)articular book. 

3018. Q. Do you know why they were taken ? 

A. Only inferentially. I suppose they were taken for the purpose of 
collecting information to prevent frauds in registering and at the election. 

3019. Q. In other words, this was a partisan census, taken for parti¬ 
san i)urposes in the city of New York? 

A. Quite otherwise j it was intended to prevent frauds in the election. 
It was for the purpose of performing the duty that was imposed on the 
board of police by law, of preventing crime of all kinds. 

3020. Q. Do you mean to say that there is any law of the State of 
New York which made it the duty of the superintendent of police, prior 
to the last election, to take this census or cause it to be taken? 

A. There is no law that requires that he shall take a census j what 
I meant to say is that the law requires the police department to prevent 
all manner of crimes and frauds at election. 

3021. Q. What are your political associations ? 

A. I would be ranked as a republican. 

3022. Q. Wliat are Mr. Kennedy’s ? 

A. He would be ranked in the same way. 

3023. Q. Have you looked over these returns yourself? 

A. I have never looked into the books at all. 

Martin B. Austin sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

3024. Question. Were you an election officer at the last election in this 
city? 

Answer. I was one of the inspectors of the 12th district, 13th ward, of 
this city, 

3025. Q. To what political party do you belong ? 

A. I have always voted the republican ticket. 

By the Chairman : 

3026. Q. Do you know how many voters there were registered in that 
district ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


287 


A. I know pretty nearly; at the first election there were about 473, 
and at the subsequent election there were some few names taken off and 
some few put on. 

3027. Q. What proportion of the voters were sworn when they came 
to register? 

A. Very fewj I do not know that there were any sworn; we asked 
them all the questions. On the first day, however, we did not ask many 
questions because we were new hands at it. 

3028. Q. How many were sworn when they voted ? 

A. Four or five. 

3029. Q. What proportion were registered or voted on naturalization 
papers ? 

A. I should think at least three-fourths of them. 

3030. Q. Did you personally know the men who voted ? 

A. I only knew one. 

3031. Q. Did you live in that election district ? 

A. No, sir. 

3032. Q. If, then, they were not sworn, and you did not personally 
know them, were you not liable to be imposed upon by persons present¬ 
ing naturalization papers, and otherwise, who were not entitled to vote I 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3033. Q. Who were the other inspectors of election for your district ? 

A. John J. Mulligan, Thomas Flynn, and Andrew J. Bross. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3034. Q. Were you president of the board ? 

A. No, sir ; Mr. Mulligan was president of the board. 

3035-3036. Q. Did you go along pleasantly with your colleagues in 
the transaction of your duties there ? 

A. Yes; we had very little trouble. There was one vote taken by my 
associates that I protested against, because I did not think the man was 
properly registered. Beyond that there was no very material difference 
of opinion among us. 

3037. Q. Were any obstacles thrown in the way of a proper inquiry 
into the right of men to vote ? 

A. No; I do not think there were any. 

3038. Q. Were you in attendance upon the board at the time of regis¬ 
tration, as well as at the time Of voting ? 

A. 1 was generally, with a few exceptions. 

3039. Q. You know of no illegal votes being cast except this one which 
you suspect of being illegal ? 

A. No, sir; and there was some question as to whether that was an 
illegal vote. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3040. Q. Was there any voting twice, or any attempt to vote twice, on 
the same names ? 

A. No, sir; not at the presidential election. 

By Mr. HopiaNS: 

3041. Q. In registering voters did you take a certificate of naturaliza¬ 
tion as conclusive proof of the right to vote ? 

A. Yes, sir. We sometimes asked questions as to where they got 
their papers, and who were their witnesses. 

3042. Q. But you did not swear them ? 

A. No, sir. 


288 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Patrick H. I^eenan sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3043. Question. Where do you reside? 

Answer. At JS'o. 169 Henry street. 

3044. Q. What office do you hold ? 

A. I am one of the coroners of the city and county of Hew York. 

3045. Q. With which party do you act ? 

A. The democratic party. 

3046. Q. State who lives at your number on Henry street. 

A. A family named Ryan, and my brother-in-law, Mr. O’Heil. 

3047. Q. How many males over 21 years of age reside there ? 

A. Three—myself, James Ryan, and Dennis O’Heil. 

3048. Q. Were there no others residing there in October? 

A. Ho, sir. 

3049. Q. Do you know men by the names of Henry Austin, George 
W. Baldwin, George Brown, Robert A. Jones, Louis Light, Henry Law¬ 
rence, Charles Meyer, William Murphy, John Landers, and John Reilly? 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3050. Q. What are your political associations ? 

A. Democratic. I have always voted the democratic ticket since I 
have had a vote. 

Hugh F. Dolan recalled. 

By the Chairman ; 

3051. Question. State what names are on the registry list as registered 
in the 6 th district of the 7th ward of this city, at the house of Patrick 
H. Keenan, 169 Henry street. 

Answer. I give the following as thelist of registered voters at that point: 
Henry Austin, (sworn in 5 ) George W. Baldwin, (sworn in;) George Brown, 
Robert A. Jones, (sworn P. O. 5 ) Louis Light, (sworn in G. O.j) Henry 
Lawrence, Charles Meyer, (sworn P. O.;) William Murphy, (sworn P. O. 5 ) 
Dennis O’Heil, John Sanders, (G. O. 5 ) Patrick H. Keenan, James Ryan, 
John Reiley, (SAVorn.) 

3052. Q. Will you now examine the poll-list from that district and ward, 
and state how many of these names are on the poll-list ? 

A. Eight; I haA^e George BroAvu, Louis Light, Charles Meyer, William 
Murphy, John Sanders, Patrick H. Keenan, and James Saunders. 

3053. Q. State what names are registered in the 9th district of the 
6 th ward, as residing at 162 Bayard street. 

A. In the 9th district of the 6 th ward at that number, 162 Bayard 
street, I find the name of George Bennett; I also find his name upon 
the poll-list of the district. I find on the registry list the name of James 
Darling, 60 Mott street; I do not find his name on the poll-list of the 
district. I find on the registry books of the second district of the 14th 
ward the name David Somers, 69 East Houston street; his name is on 
the poll-list. 

Matthew O. Hallenback sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3054. Question. State if you have examined the registry list of voters 
for the last election for 1 st district of the 8 th ward of this city. 

Answer. I have. 

3055. Q. State what names are registered as at 116 Yarick street. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


289 


A. The following names are registered there: 


Registered 
Michael Norton. 

Samuel Bradvvay, October 30, 1868. 

Samuel Artley, October 31, 1868. 

Geo. Bowers, October 31, 1868. 

James Berry, October 31, 1868. 

Henry C. Conner, October 31, 1868. 

James Ereline, October 30, 1868. 

Henry Fanton, October 30, 1868. 

Owen Farley, (steamer,) October 30, 1868. 
James Flowers, October 30, 1868. 

Owen Gannon, (steamer,) October 30, 1868. 
Thomas Graham, October 30, 1868. 

David Hall, October 31, 1868. 

Stephen Jones, October 30, 1868. 

Wm. Johnson, October 30, 1868. 

Geo. Jones, October 30, 1868. 

Ed. Jenkins, October 30, 1868. 

John Kane, October 30, 1868. 

John Martin, October 30, 1868. 

Jas. Myers, October 30, 1868. 

Wm. Ostrander, October 31, 1868. 

Thos. O’Donnell, October 30,1868. 

Wm. B. Short, October 30, 1868. 

Samuel Steavens, October .30, 1868. 

Bernard Travis, October 30, 1868. 

James Garvey, October .30, 1868. 

By Mr. Kerr : 


Voted. 

V 

v 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V Arrested. 

V 

V 


3056. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I am deputy clerk of the board of police. 

3057. Q. How long have you been acting in that capacity? 

A Five years next May. 

3058. Q. With which party are you politically associated ? 

A. The republican party. 

3059. Q. Ho you know anything about this house from which these 
names are registered ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

3060. Q. Do you know whose house it is ? 

A. By reputation only. 

3061. Q. Do you know any of these persons ? 

A. No, sir; excepting Michael Korton. 

3062. Q. When did you make this examination ? 

A. I made it to-day. 

3063. Q. What does the word steamer” after the name of Owen 
Farley mean ? 

A. I do not know. 


Lewis C. Phillips sworn and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

3064. Question. State whether you were one of the election officers 
at the election last fall. 

Answer. I was, at Ko. 67 Baxter street. 

3065. Q. Who were the other officers of the board ? 

A. Mr. Carey, Mr. Ogilvie, and Mr. Nealis. 

3066. Q. State what precautions, if any, were taken by the board to 
prevent illegal votes being registered and voted. 

A. Well, we did not allow any persons to register their names on th^* 
day of registry if we knew them to be frauds, and upon the day of the 
presidential election I believe there was one man arrested for illegal 
voting. 

19 T 


290 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3067. Q. State if you swore the men who registered or voted. 

A. Yes, sir; we swore a great many of the men who registered. Mr. 
Ogilvie was chairman of the board, and I left it to him to swear every 
man that came in if he chose so to do j he was a republican, and he 
swore, I suppose, five out of six of the men. 

3068. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being given ? 

A. Only one, and in that instance the person was arrested by the 
direction of the inspectors. 

3069. Q. Were any other illegal votes registered or given ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

3070. Q. Was there harmonious action of the board with reference to 
protecting the polls against illegal voting or registry f 

A. There was. 

3071. Q. Do you know of any repeaters or men who voted more than 
once at your poll ? 

A. Only the one that we arrested. 

3072. Q. State as a general thing if those who voted were personally 
known to some member of the board. 

A. Yes, sir; generally most of the board knew them. 

3073. Q. How long have you lived in that district ? 

A. Thirty-eight years I have lived in the ward j I was born in the 
Bowery j I have been there all my life. 

3074. Q. You think, then, that if there had been illegal votes you 
would have known it % 

A. I am pretty certain that if there had been any illegal votes cast I 
should have known it. 

By the Chairman : 

3075. Q. Were men sworn in at the time of registry or voting I 

A. At the time of the registry we swore five out of six. 

3076. Q. Did you swear any one the day of election % 

A. Yes, sir; I think five or six. 

3077. Q. Plow many voters registered in your district ? 

A. Some 800 odd. 

3078. Q. And you say that upon the three days of registry you swore 
700 men ? 

A. No, sir 5 I do not say any such thing j on some days five out of six 
were sworn by Mr. Ogilvie. 

3079. Q. Do you say that there were 100 men sworn? 

A. Yes, sir, I should think so, but I cannot state the exact number. 

3080. Q. What proportion of them were foreigners ? 

A. Well, I guess they were pretty nearly all foreigners. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3081. Q. How many were registered on new naturalization papers ? 

A. That I cannot tell exactly; there may have been about 10. 

3082. Q. Were there not 200 new papers issued in the month of Octo¬ 
ber, on which men registered at your polls ? 

A. No, sir. 

3083. Q. Do you swear that positively ? 

A. I swear positively that there were not j I think to the best of my 
knowledge there were not over 10 new papers. 

3084. Q. Are you sure there were not 100 ? 

A. O, no; there were not; I am sure there were not 50. 

3085. Q. What proportion of the voters of that precinct do you know 
personally? 

A. Well, a good many j I know a couple of hundred. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


291 


3086. Q. Then you doiiT know 600 at all ? 

A. I might know them by sight from seeing them about the ward. 

3087. Q. How do you know then that two or three hundred of those 
votes were not illegal! 

A. I do not know, but to the best of my knowledge they were not. 

3088. Q. Do you know anything about this repeating business ? 

A. I know that such things are going on, but I have never seen it 
myself, excepting once or twice. 

3089. Q. Was it not a matter of common notoriety here*? 

A. I read about it in the pai)ers. 

3090. Q. Have you not heard it talked about otherwise ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

3091. Q. You never heard it suggested on the street I 

A. No, sir. 

3092. Q. How long did you say you have lived in New York ? 

A. Thirty-eight years; I was born in the Bowery. 

3093. Q. And you never heard anything about repeating ? 

A. I had heard about it in the papers, and had heard it talked about 
the same as we talk about murders committed that they report in the 
public papers; w^e did not see the murders committed, but we heard of 
it. If anything of the kind was going on at our poll it was not likely 
that they would let me, one of the officers of the election, know anything 
about it 5 it is not likely that a thief would tell an officer if he had com¬ 
mitted a theft or a burglary. 

Hugh F. Dolan recalled. 

Witness. On the poll-books of the 2d district, 14th ward, I find on 
the registry-book the name of James Welsh, 142 Sullivan street j I also 
find his name on the poll-books of the same district in the ward. I find 
the name of William H. Travis, 84 Greene street, on the poll-list, and I 
find Qn the registry-book of the 8th ward, 3d district, the name of Gor¬ 
don McKay, 595 Broadway j I do not find his name on the poll-list. 

By Mr. Ejerr : 

3094. Q. Where is the register for the district from which Travis 
comes ? 

A. I cannot find it in the office j I have made search for it, but sup¬ 
pose it was never filed there. 

3095. Q. Who is the proper custodian of these books ? 

A. Mr. Edmund Plumb, a clerk in the county clerk^s office. 

3096. Q. Do you know where these registry-books are kept, and who 
has charge of them between the time of registry and the voting'? 

A. I cannot answer for all of them j I have seen the clerks come in 
with them the next day after registry, and I have seen others come in 
two or three days after. 

3097. Q. Do you know anything about those books having been taken by 
the republican committee to the Fifth Avenue Hotel at any time last fall ? 

A. I do not. 

By the Chairman : 

3098. Q. State if you have examined the registry for this year at 197 
Henry street, alleged to be William M. Tweed’s, and of 167 Henry street, 
alleged to be the house of Edward J. Shandley, police justice j and if so, 
what names you find registered there. 


292 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I liave examined the registry for number 197 Henry street, and I 
find the following names registered there: 


Registered. Voted. 

Wm. M. Tweed. v 

AVm. M. Tweed, jr. v 

Florence F. Gerald. X P. O. 

Frank Thomas. v 

Thos. Boyd, sworn P. O. 

Robt. Gainer. X P. O. 


From 167 Henry street, I find the following names registered: 


Registered. 

John Bennett, sworn P. O. 
Thos. Fitzgferald. 

G«org:e Morgan. 

Jas. Weaver. 

Geo. Williams. 

Chas. Edwards. 

SamT P. Spies. 

Ed. J. Shandley. 

John T. Spies. 


Voted. 

V Sworn in. 


V Arrested. 

V 

V 

V 


John Dunne sworn and examined. 


By the Chairman : 

3099. Question. What office have you held during this year in the 
city of New York ? 

Answer. I am a police officer. 

3100. Q. Of what precinct, and who is your captain ? 

A. The 6th precinct—Captain Jourdan. 

3101. Q. With what political party does Captain Jourdan act? 

A. I cannot say. 

3102. Q. State what you know of any census taken in the 6th ward, 
and what instructions were given for it. 

A. I got orders from my captain to go around and take the names of 
all the male residents in the 6th precinct. 

3103. Did you make such a list ? 

A. I made a list of all the male occupants of each house in the 6th 
police precinct in the 6th ward of the city. 

3104. Q. Can you produce to the committee the books in which you 
made that list ? 

A. I now produce 11 books containing that list. 

3105. Q. State how you made these lists, and how thorough and accu¬ 
rate they were. 

A. Well, I commenced with the 1st district, and went to each apart¬ 
ment in each house, and asked for names. A great number of persons 
refused to give the names. I would knock at a door and ask for the 
names of all the male residents over 21 years of age. In a great many 
instances I had the door slammed in my face, and was told ‘‘we have 
got no male residents.” In one street I was followed by a man to each 
door, who said I was a radical spy, and told the people not to give me 
any names. There were few houses where there were not some names 
refused. There were many houses with which I was acquainted, and 
where I knew there were more male residents than I was given the 
names of, and I would put down the names of those residents that I 
knew without their being given to me. 

3106. Q. In those cases where the occupants of the houses refused to 
give you their names how did you get them ? 

A. I made a memorandum in my book that the names were refused. 

3107. Q. Did you take down the names of all you could learn ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 293 

3108. Q. When there was a party residing at a house whose name 
you could not ascertain what did you do ? 

A. I made a memorandum, ‘‘names refused.^ 

3109. Q. Did you give the number of persons whose names were 
refused ? 

A. No ; I could not state how many persons there were whose names 
were refused; I could not tell how many occupants there might be. I 
can only make a rough estimate of how near I came to getting all the 
names, but to judge from the number refused I should hardly think I 
got more than half. 

3110. Q. In those cases where you have taken the names and given 
the number of persons whose names you were unable to get at, to what 
extent would they all, put together, give a correct statement of the males 
in that ward ? 

A. I cannot state exactly j I have no knowledge of how many persons 
there were residing in the ward, but I know that there were as many 
parties who refused to give their names as there were who gave their 
names. 

3111. Q. What does the memorandum in this book, “ ten apartment-s 
where there were families,^^ mean ? 

A. It means that there were ten apartments in the house where there 
were families. I would ask how many male occupants over 21 years of 
age there were, and they would refuse to give me their names, and some 
of the women would say, “My husband left word I was not to give 
any names.^ In almost every case the women had been directed by 
their husbands not to give their names, because the papers came out 
and stated that the police had no right to get the names. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3112. Q. Then are we to understand that there was a systematic 
organization to prevent their giving the names ? 

A. I do not know anything about that, but I know that names were 
refused. 

3113. Q. What papers made that statement ? 

A. I read an account of it in the Mercury j they told the women to 
throw soapsuds on us. 

3114. Q. Were those democratic or republican papers ? 

A. That I cannot say, but I judge democratic. 

3115. Q. You were prevented in that way from getting an accurate 
census of the ward ? 

A. Yes, sirj my attention was drawn to the papers by one of the 
police officers in the station-house, who told me to be careful or I would 
get some soapsuds on me. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3116. Q. State to the committee if you were directed to make this cen¬ 
sus by an order in writing. 

A. No, sir; I received my orders from my captain; he told me to take 
these books and to collect the names. 

3117. Q. Did you take an oath to perform the duty faithfully ? 

A. No, sir; only my oath of office. 

3118. Q. Do you know of any law of the State of New York that 
requires a policeman to become a census-taker ? 

A. I do not. 

3119. Q. Is it not the fact that you were directed by the superintendent 
of police of this city to make this census in the interest of the republican 
party ? 


294 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK; 


A. The orders, so far as I could learn, came from the superintendent 
of police. Generally all the police captains act under the orders of the 
superintendent, and he is a republican. 

3120. Q. Did any of the papers that were not democratic—did the 
Tribune and the Times—advise the people not to give their names ? 

A. I have a faint recollection of their doing it. 

3121. Q. State now to the committee if you do not know it to be a 
fact that this census, that you were able under the circumstances to 
take, is so absolutely imperfect as not to give any just indication of the 
number of voters who lived in that district. 

A. I could not possibly make any estimate from the census I have 
collected. 

Mr. Kerr. By way of gmng a specimen of this census I propose now 
to have copied upon the record the first ten pages of this book of the 
11th district of the 6th ward. 

[Tlie following are the pages referred to:] 

iVawcs of all male persons living in the eleventh election district of the sixth ward, reported by 

Patrolman John Dunne. 


George Litte, 73 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in 73 Baxter st., refused names.) 
Patrick McFaize, 73^ Baxter street. 

Patrick Shannon, 73^ Baxter street. 

(2 parties in 73^ Baxter st., refused names.) 
William Nelson, 75 Baxter street. 

(77 Baxter street, refused names.) 

Michael Finn, 79 Baxter street. 

William Divine, 79 Baxter street. 

James Connell, 79 Baxter street. 

Michael Hoy, 79 Baxter street. 

James Lenehan, 79 Baxter street. 

John O’Brien, 79 Baxter street. 

Michadl Donnelly, 79 Baxter street. 

(24 families in 79 Baxter street, of which 
12 refused names.) 

Thomas Fay, 79 Baxter street. 

Owen Tucker, 79 Baxter street. 

John Hoy, 79 Baxter street. 

John Haskill, 79 Baxter street. 

John McKeon, 79 Baxter street. 

John McCann, 79 Baxter street. 

(5 parties in rear house, 79 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

Michael O’Brien, 81 Baxter street. 

Patrick Comedy, 81 Baxter street. 

(4 parties in front house, 81 Baxter street, 
refused names.) ♦ 

Thomas Lynch, 81 Baxter street, rear. 
Matthew Logan, 81 Baxter street. 

John Flynn, 81 Baxter street. 

(6 parties in rear house, 81 Baxter street, 
refused names.) ' 

Michael Glancy, 83 Baxter street. 

Daniel Harrington, 83 Baxter street. 

John Brien, 83 Baxter street. 

Dennis Sullivan, 83 Baxter street. • 

Michael Meehan, 83 Baxter street. 

(2 parties in rear house, 83 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

John Fayhay, 83 Baxter street. 

Patrick McLoughlin, 83 Baxter street. 
Robert Magunigan, 83 Baxter street. 

(4 parties in front house, 83 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

Francis Early, 85 Baxter street. 

Dennis Shea, 85 Baxter street. 

Patrick Scally, 85 Baxter street. 


Patrick Haggerty, 85 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in front house, 85 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

(All the names in the rear house, 85 Baxter 
street, refused. There are 8 families in 
the house.) 

(All the names in the front house, 87 Baxter 
street, refused.) 

Patrick Madden, 87 Baxter street. 

John Madden, 87 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in rear house, 87 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

James White, 89 Baxter street. 

Patrick McLaughlin, 89 Baxter street. 
Patrick Gillen, 89 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in front house, 89 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

John Dwirrin, 89 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in rear house, 89 Baxter street, 
refused names.) 

James Cain, 91 Baxter street. 

(All the names. Only one in 91 Baxter 
street has been refused.) 

Thomas Kerns, 93 Baxter street. 

Patrick Wilhern, 93 Baxter street. 

(3 parties in front house, 93 Baxter street, 
^ refused names.) 

John Welch, 93 Baxter street. 

Eugene McCarthy, 93 Baxter street. 

Patrick Mulaney, 93 Baxter street. 

Daniel Donoho, 93 Baxter street. 

John Granahan, 93 Baxter street. 

John Dugan, 93 Baxter street. 

Daniel Gilmartin, 93 Baxter street. 

Patrick Murry, 93 Baxter street. 

Daniel Campbell, 95 Baxter street. 

(All the names in the upper portion of house, 
95 Baxter street, refused.) 

Peter McGowan, 97 Baxter street. 

Patrick McGowan, 97 Baxter street. 

John H. Crew, 97 Baxter street. 

William Higgins, 97 Baxter street. 

Peter Kevlin, 97 Baxter street. 

John Higgins, 97 Baxter street. 

Patrick Brestlin, 97 Baxter street. 

John Monahan, 97 Baxter street. 

- O’Brien, 97 Baxter street. 

Thomas O’Donnell, 97 Baxter street. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


295 


By Mr. Kerr : 

3122. Q. What are your duties ordinarily as patrolman ? 

A. I am what they call a car detective"^’ at the present time. 

3123. Q. How long have you been in the service as a patrolman 

A. For about four years. 

3124. Q. What have been your duties generally during that time 

A. My duty as a general thing was to patrol the streets and look after 
the protection of life and property. 

3125. Q. State whether it was any part of your duty as a x)atroLman 
to make up partisan lists of voters for anybody. 

A. 1 never knew it to be previous to getting this order; the rules and 
regulations of the police department did not call for it. 

3126. Q. Did you receive any additional compensation for the discharge 
of this duty % 

A. No, sir. 

3127. Q. State whether, while performing this duty, you was neglect¬ 
ing your ordinary duty of protecting the life and property of the people 
of the city. 

A. Yes, sir; I could not attend to my duties as a police officer while 
attending to this business. 

3128. Q. Did you ever have any interview with Mr. Superintendent 
Kennedy while you were performing this duty % 

A. I ffid not. 

3129. Q. How long were you performing it? 

A. Eight or ten days immediately preceding the election. 

3130. Q. Is it true, or is it not, that your experience in this business 
is a fair specimen of the experience of all the patrolmen engaged in the 
same business in this city, so far as you know ? 

A. Yes; I have had conversations with several of them, and they all 
say that they had considerable difficulty about the same things. 

3131. Q. Did you use the same care to get these names that you would 
have done if you had been acting as a census-taker under a separate 
appointment for that duty ? 

A. Yes, sir j I went into every house just the same as if I had been a 
regular census-taker. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

3132. Q: Do you say that you went into every house where people could 
live in that ward ? 

A. Yes, sir ) every house that I knew. 

3133. Q. From your experience in that way, is it within the power of 
the police of the city of Kew York, under existing regulations, to ascer¬ 
tain the number of male voters in any ward of the city ? 

A. Well, I never had any of that duty to perform except at this time. 

3134. Q. Did you ever know a man who refused to give his name for 
any honest purpose ? 

A. Kot that I know of; the women were instructed by their husbands 
to refuse to give the names. 


Kew York, December 31, 1868. 
Louis J. Mottet sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

3135. Question. Of what country are you a native ? 

Answer. Germany. 

3136. Q. Have you a certificate of naturalization ? 


296 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I have, and now produce it to the committee. It is signed James 
M. Sweeney, clerk of the superior court of the city of New York,” and 
dated the 8th of October, 1868, under the seal of the court. 

3137. Q. From whom did you obtain it, and where ? 

A. I obtained the certificate in this manner at the court: I took a 
witness with me, but he had not much time to wait. They told me it 
would take some time to go through with the matter. I am a republi¬ 
can, but I thought that by going to the Tammany Association I could 
get put through much sooner than in any other way. I went there and 
told my intention, but I did not understand the ropes. They said, It 
is aU right j we will get you your papers in about five minutes.” They 
then sent a man with me and said, “ You go along with him and he 
will see you right through.” I asked the man if he would have to take 
an oath, and he said it was not likely, that it was all right, and that as 
I had been in the country long enough there would be no trouble about 
it j but in place of that as soon as I came Into the court—I think it was 
Judge Barnard’s—they called upon this man and asked him, “ Do you 
solemnly swear that you know the applicant ?” and he said, I do.” I 
thought the man did it out of kindness, but I had a feeling that I would 
like to commit him at once, but under the circumstances could not do 
it. Just there I supposed that it would not have done any good to 
denounce him, as he belonged to Tammany. I took my papers and went 
away, but I subsequently told a gentleman interested in politics about 
it, and said that if my evidence would do any good I should be very 
willing to appear. 

3138. Q. Where did this take place, was it in the superior court or in 
the supreme court ? 

A. I do not know which court; it was in the rotunda. I got my papers 
first at the court in the City Hall, but I took them at the rotunda—that 
is to say, the brown stone buildiug in the park facing on Chambers street. 
I am pretty sure Judge Barnard was the judge. 

3139. Q. Were you sworn? 

A. I was sworn in the court. 

3140. Q. How long had your witness known you ? 

A. He never knew me, although he swore he had known me since I 
was 12 years of age. 

3141. Q. Do you know who he was ? 

A. I do not. 

3142. Q. Do you know where he is now ? 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

3143. Q. Where did you meet with him ? 

A. At the headquarters of the Tammany Association, where they gave 
out intention papers. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3144. Q. What is your age ? 

A. I was 21 on the 1st of June, 1868. 

3145. Q. What do you mean by the Tammany Association ?” 

A. Well, the ring, I suppose. I mean by the Tammany Association 
those who were hired by the Tammany party to make citizens. 

3146. Q. Who were the Tammany party? 

A. Well, they are a fraud, I suppose, but I do not know exactly who 
they are; you ask me a question that I cannot answer. There are two 
parties in this city—the Tammany party and the republican party. 

3147. Q. WTiom do you mean by the Tammany party? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 297 

A. If I remember right the heading of the paper on which I signed 
my intention was “ Tammany Association.” 

3148. Q. Then you call it the Tammany party because the paper upon 
which you made your declaration was headed “Tammany Association”? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3149. Q. Were there any other words there to indicate the political 
character of the paj^er besides those words “ Tammany Association”? 

A. I do not remember any. 

3150. Q. You are sure you remember those Words? 

A. Yes, sir; words to that effect. 

3151. Q. Were they printed or written? 

A. Printed at the head of the paper. 

3152. Q. That is all you know about the Tammany Association? 

A. That is all. 

3153. Q. Did you ever hear of such a thing in the city of Hew York 
as a democratic party ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3154. Q. When you said just now that something was a fraud did you 
mean that the democratic party was a fraud ? 

A. I mean that so far as my transaction was concerned it was a clear 
ffaud. 

3155. Q. And you were a party to that fraud, were you not ? 

A. I was, but I was not one of their party. 

3156. Q. You said awhile ago that you went to the Tammany Asso¬ 
ciation because you knew that you could get through quicker; where did 
you go? 

A. There were two distinct places on Centre street, one for the repub¬ 
licans and one for the democrats, and I went to the latter. It was an 
underground office at the corner of Centre street, on the square. It was 
a grog-shop. 

3157. Q. Was that the same place you have since heard of as the 
Bosenberg headquarters ? 

A. I didfft take any notice of the name. 

3158. Q. Do you remember the number of the place? 

A. I do not. 

3159. Q. Do you know where Ho. 6 on Centre street is ? 

A. I do not. 

3160. Q. Did you know any of the persons whom you met there ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

3161. Q. Did you pay anything for what was done for you ? 

A. I paid |2 to the man who swore for me; he wanted $10. 

3162. Q. Did you ask him his name ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

3163. Q. Was he a young man or middle-aged? 

A. Middle-aged. 

3164. Q. Was he a German or an American ? 

A. I should judge he was an Irishman. I should judge so from his 
speech. 

3165. You think you know Judge Barnard? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3166. Q. And was it by him you were sworn? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3167. Q. Do you know the clerk of either of the courts of record here— 
the superior or the supreme court? 

A. Ho, sir. 

3168. Q. Do you live in the city ? 


298 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes; at 177 Tenth avenue; I have lived there since the 1st of May. 

3169. Q. What is yonr business 

A. I am a dry-goods commission salesman. 

3170. When you first went to the court whom did you take with you 
as yonr witness ? 

A. I took with me Albert Moses, who had been a schoolmate of mine. 

3171. Q. How long did you remain in the court room before you went 
over to this place which you call the Tammany headquarters ? 

A. I first went to the City Hall to the naturalization office, and there 
I was informed that I should have to go to the Rotunda with my applica¬ 
tion paper, and they told me there were two places, one for the republican 
party and the other for the democratic; I went to the democratic because 
I was told that I could get through quicker there than at the other place. 

3172. Q. You went over there because you thought that you could 
expedite your business by so doing ? 

A. I had that idea, and it was a correct one. 

3173. Q. What was the motive that prompted you to go to one place 
rather than the other ? 

A. Want of time. 

3174. Q. State whether you went to the democratic office and not to 
the other place because you believed that you could be better enabled to 
pepetrate a fraud, or whether you did it to accomplish a lawful purpose. 

A. I went there with the pure intention of accomplishing a lawful 
purpose; I wished to get my papers through, and I had my witness with 
me. 

3175. Q. Can you describe the man who offered to serve you as witness ? 

A. Yes; he was a person about my own size, and with sandy whiskers 

and moustache. 

3176. Q. Did he seem to be what is ordinarily called a raw Irishman, 
a man lately come to this country ? 

A. No, sir; he appeared to be a man who understood his business 
pretty well. 

3177. Q. Did you have any conversation with him about his name and 
where he lived? 

A. I did not; I think he said his name was Jeremiah Connery. 

3178. Q. Did you vote ? 

A. I did. I voted the republican ticket. 

3179. Q. Did you vote on that paper ? 

A. I did, and was registered upon it. 

3180. Q. Were you challenged either in registering or in voting ? 

A. I was not. 

3181. Q. Where did you vote ? 

A. On Twenty-second street, just below Tenth avenue. 

3182. Q. To whom did you first communicate the fact that you had 
obtained your papers in the way you have stated ? 

A. I cannot say. 

3183. Q. To whom did you at any time communicate it ? 

A. I communicated it to Mr. Lemuel H. Marvin, of the firm of Sprague, 
Colburn & Co., commission merchants. 

3184. Q. Did you see the proprietor of the grog-shop where you went 
for those papers ? 

A. I cannot say; there were several men behind the counter. I could 
not see who was the owner of the place. 

3185. Q. Did you see stuck up above the saloon into which you went 
to get your papers anything indicating the character of the place, or 
what was to be obtained there, on canvass, or painted upon a board, or 
anything of that sort? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


299 


A. No, sir. 

3186. Q. Do you si)eak or read the German language ? 

A. I do. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3187. Q. Did they furnish you with any other ticket at that place ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3188. Q. What was on it ? 

A. A number. 

3189. Q. Was there anything else on it besides the number? 

A. Yes, “ Tammany 

3190. Q. What was the color of the ticket ? 

A^ Bed. 

3191. Q. You were entitled to get your naturalization papers ? 

A. O, yes; I have been in the country long enough. 

3192. Q. Then the only fraud was in your witness ? 

A. Yes, sir; I felt strongly inclined to convict that person at the time. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3193. Q. Do you think you could identify the man who acted as your 
witness ? 

A. I am a little doubtful about that. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3194. Q. When you made your application did you say to which polit¬ 
ical party you belonged ? 

A. No, sir j not a word was said about that. 

New York, December 31,1868. 

Francis Donnelley sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

3195. Question. State what office, if any, you held in this city in con¬ 
nection with the election during the present year ? 

Answer. I was a registrar at 118 Pitt street, 3d district, 11th ward. 

3196. Q. State what you know of the mode of conducting the last 
presidential election. 

A. I was checking off the names of the voters that came in; I was 
standing at one end of the counter, and there was a young man stand¬ 
ing at the other end; I said to him he must not say anything to the 
voters, but must step back; I saw that he was taking the names of men; 
before they gave their names in he would say, ‘‘ All right when the men 
came up to vote I would say, Hold on, I have not got their names yet,’^ 
and Mr. Ferguson, one of the inspectors on the other side, would say. 

We cannot wait for you, it would take us all day.” I then ordered this 
young man to step back, and told the men who were to vote to come up 
to the clerk and hand their names to that person and nobody else. He 
continued in the same way; when a voter would come up he would say, 

All right,” and I would say, “ Hold on, I haVe not got that name yet.” 
After awhile I went out to vote myself, and this young man was standing 
by the window, and I told him he had got to stop that, he had no busi¬ 
ness there. Mr. Ferguson said, “ He has a right to stay here to help us f 
and there were some others there who said the same thing j I cannot 
recollect who now. 

3197. Q. Who was this young man? 

A. 1 understood that his name was David McKnight, a son of the 
deputy sheriff, Peter McKnight. 


300 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3198. Q. Was he a voter? 

A. No, sir. 

3199. Q. Did he have possession of the official registry list 

A. Yes, sir; but he had no business with it at all. 

3200. Q. Was he engaged in checking off the names ? 

A. He was engaged by Mr. Ferguson’s orders. 

3201. Q. On what book did he check off the names ? 

A. On Mr. Ferguson the inspector’s book. 

3202. Q. That was the official register ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3203. Q. He had possession of that to check off the names ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3204. Q. Was he an officer of election ? 

A. No, sir; he had no business there at all j he was a young man 
under age. 

3205. Q. State if sufficient time was given, after a vote would be taken, 
by Mr. Ferguson, to enable you to ascertain whether the name of the 
proposed voter was on the register ? 

A. Yes, sir; they gave me sufficient time at times, though at other 
times they did not; this young man would say, “ All right,” and drop the 
vote in the ballot-box before I could find the names. 

3206. Q. What proportion of the votes were put in in that way ? 

A. Well, I suj)pose about 25 or 30; there may have been more. 

3207. Q. About what number of persons registered in your district ? 

A. Somewhere about 400; I think 409. 

3208. Q. What proportion of them were foreigners ? 

A. They were nearly all foreigners; over two-thirds. 

3209. Q. Were any of them sworn when they were registered ? 

A. Yes, about a dozen or so. 

3210. Q. Did you or the other members of the board, so far as you 
know personally, know a considerable proportion of the men registered ? 

A. I cannot say; I did not know many persons. 

3211. Q. How many men who were registered as voters did you per¬ 
sonally know ? 

A. I could not say; they were all strangers to me. 

3212. Q. Did you live in that district ? 

A. 1 did not. 

3213. Q. Did the other registering officers, so far as you know, have 
any personal knowledge of a considerable number of the voters ? 

A. I believe that Mr. Ferguson knew a great proportion of them, and 
Mr. Brown knew some of them. 

3214. Q. Who were the democratic inspectors ? 

A. Mr. Ferguson and Martin Stump, I think his name was, a German. 

3215. Q. Who was the other republican inspector ? 

A. Mr. Brown; I do not know his first name. 

3216. Q. Did he live in the district ? 

A. No, sir; he lived in the adjoining district; but a great many of 
the voters knew him. 

3217. Q. Were any voters sworn on the day of election ? 

A. Yes, sir; three or four. 

3218. Q. In that great number of persons registering on naturalization 
papers and voting on them, state if you were liable to receive voters who 
were not entitled to vote, and who had fraudulent naturalization 
papers. 

A. I objected to those papers that I supposed were not proper, though 
signed by Mr. Loew. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 301 

3219. Q. How many of the naturalization papers presented were this 
yearns papers signed hy Mr. Loew ? 

A. I cannot say certainly; there might have been 30 or 50. 

3220. Q. State if the two democratic members of the board claimed 
that when a man presented naturalization papers he was entitled to be 
registered. 

A. Yes, sir. 

3221. Q. How long did this young man, McKnight, continue to check 
names ? 

A. He was there all day. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

3222. Q. What was Mr. Ferguson’s given name ? 

A. I think it was Hiram B. 

3223. Q. Did Mr. Ferguson keep the books and check the names ! 

A. He was receiving the votes. 

3224. Q. What were you doing ^ 

A. I was checking the names off as they were called. 

3225. Q. You were checking the voters j and did Mr. Ferguson have 
a book also? 

A. No, sir; he stood up and received the votes. 

3226. Q. What did your other colleagues do ? 

A. Mr. Brown helped Mr. Ferguson, so did Mr. Stump. 

3227. Q. What did McKnight do ? 

A. He had no business there at all; he was inside the counter with us. 

3228. Q. Was he in there as a challenger? 

A. No, sir. 

3229. Q. Was anybody else there besides him? 

A. No other person besides the two clerks. 

3230. Q. What was he doing ? 

A. He was checking off the names on Mr. Ferguson’s book; he would 
say, All right,” and then the vote would be received. 

3231. Q. Did he check off* the name of any person that should not have 
voted ? 

A. I took him to do it. 

3232. Q. Did you check the names off at the same time ? 

A. I did not. I told him that that would not do, but they dropped 
votes into the ballot-boxes, and told me that it would be too late if they 
did not* go ahead. 

3233. Q. Did he check off any names you could not find on your book? 
A. He did. 

3234. Q. What names were they ? 

A. I cannot tell. 

3235. Q. Then there were some men who voted who were not on your 
book ? 

A. Yes, sir; I found some of them afterwards. 

3236. Q. Do you know any person who voted there whose name was 
not on your book ? 

A. I could not say that there was any person. 

3237. Q. Did not your book and Mr. Ferguson’s agree ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3238. Q. Did not McKnight check off on Ferguson’s book? 

A. I think he called off the wrong names. 

3239. Q. Then you were afraid that he did not call the right names? 
A. That is all. 

3240. Q. There could not be any frauds in that way, could there ? 

A. O, yes, there might have been frauds in that way; because, they 


302 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


checked off names and put votes in when I could not find the names of 
the voters. There was one instance, I remember, in which I said, That 
man voted before,^’ and Mr. Ferguson said, “ If you find that that is so, 
have him arrested for voting twice.” 

3241. Q. Did you find that he had voted twice? 

A. I did. 

3242. Q. Did you have him arrested? 

A. No; I could not find him after he went out of the polling place. 

3242. Q. What was his name ? 

A. I could not tell the name; they were all Germans, and it would be 
very hard to recollect any of their names. 

3243. Q. Were there any votes put in there that were objected to ? 

A. When I could not find the names I objected to the votes. 

3244. Q. Could any vote be put in the ballot-box without three of the 
board agreed to it ? 

A. I dofft know. 

3245. Q. Did not the three inspectors agree as to the votes that were 
received ? 

A. They all appeared to agree. 

3246. Q. The only reason you did not agree with them was that you 
could not keep up with them in checking the names on your book? 

A. I could not, they hurried the voting so. 

3247. Q. And you wanted to delay it ? 

A. No, sir; but I could not find the names as fast as they could. Mr. 
Ferguson found the names much faster than I could; they were German 
names. 

3248. Q. Was it by agreement of the balance of the board that Mc- 
Knight was checking the names there ? 

A. No, sir; I objected to it, but Mr. Ferguson said that he wanted 
him to stay there to help him. 

3249. Q. Do you know of any fraudulent votes being put in there? 

A. I could not say for certain; there may have been, because names 

were called out which I could not find at the moment. 

3250. Q. How did your voting list compare with the register after you 
got through; did you have as many voters or more voters than there 
were registered? 

A. We did not have more; I do not think all those who were registered 
voted. 

3251. Q. How much did the poll-list fall short of the registry-list ? 

A. Well, I suppose about 75. 

3252. Q. Then there were 75 men registered who did not vote? 

A. There were a good many who did not vote. The voting went on 
until sundown, and some had not time to vote. 

3253. Q. Then there was some necessity to hurry? 

A. At times there was a great hurry, while at other times we would 
be waiting for voters to come in. I suppose there were about half a 
dozen at the polls waiting to vote when the polls closed. 

3254. Q. Do you think that all who were registered were legal voters ? 

A. I think they were legal voters. 

3255. Q. Did you use considerable precaution in making your registry 
to have none but legal voters upon it ? 

A. I was very particular about that. 

3256. Q. Were a great many sworn by your board? 

A. Some were sworn; we did all we could to keep out illegal votes 
from the registry. 

3257. Q. What was the party vote of your precinct ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


303 


A. Well, I suppose at tlie general election there were about 90 repub¬ 
lican votes, and there were 350 votes in all, but I cannot state for 
certain. 


New York, December 31,1868. 

Abraham Baker sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3258. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. At 134 Lewis street. 

3259. Q. State how you were engaged on the day of the last presiden¬ 
tial election in your election district. 

A. I was appointed challenger for my district. 

3260. Q. State what you observed during the time. 

A. Well, I took my position in the morning at the end of the desk at 
the polling place. I had no legal authority to act as inspector, but I was 
to take observations and if any illegal voters came there it was my duty 
to challenge them. 1 noticed a great deal of informality going on, as I 
had been an inspector of election previously myself. I noticed, for 
instance, that they had an extra inspector acting. There are only four 
inspectors allowed by law, and there was an extra one in there with a 
book of the voters, and as they would come up the chairman would ask 
their names and this young man would say, ‘‘All right,in a moment, 
and down would go the vote into the box, and the voter would go out as 
quick as possible; in fact, they would shove him out. Well, about 10 
o’clock they voted one man, whose name, I think, was George Hughs, 
and one of the inspectors, Mr. Donnolly, who had a check-book, said, 

“ Stop, stop, this will not do 5 I cannot find these names at all.” But in 
the mean time the man had voted, and they had shoved him out of the 
room. Mr. Donnolly kept hunting for the name, and he said, “ That 
name is not registered at alland in fact it was not registered at all. I 
said to the inspectors, “ I think this thing has gone on long enough. 1 
am stationed here to see that things are done right, and you have voted 
men who were not registered.” I think the chairman of the board called 
for a police officer to put me out. I then stated my authority to act, 
and the i)olice officer on duty sent up to the station-house and word 
came back from the captain of police that I should be allowed to remain 
there as challenger. 

3261. Q. Did you challenge the illegal voters that you refer to ? 

A. Yes, sir; but they got the ballots in the box, and shoved the man 
right out of the door, and said it was too late, without considering my 
challenge at all. 

3262. Q. Who was this young man who had a registry-book checking 
the names ? 

A. His name is McKnight, a son of Peter McKnight, who was aider- 
man of that ward, and one of the deputy sheriffs of the city 5 he is a 
young man of about 18 years of age. 

3263. Q. How many voters were sworn that day ? 

A. Not one. 

3264. Q. Did you make any challenges or ask that any voter should ' 
be sworn ? 

A. No further than that I made objections of the kind I have stated. 

I was told that if I should attempt to challenge my life was forfeited. 
There were men there threatening me all the time. 

3265. Q. When you made challenges were they considered by the 
inspectors ? 

A. I made no direct challenges. 


304 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


3266. Q. When you made objections, wbat was said or done about 
those objections; were they considered ? 

A. They were considered no more than that I was told that I must 
keep my mouth shut j and they wanted a police officer to put me out, 
and the crowd outside were clamorous that I should be put out. 

3267. Q. State if anybody received votes except the four inspectors 
who were election officers. 

A. Yes, sir; this young man, McKnight, acted as inspector a portion 
of the time, and received votes. 

3268. Q. Did he put them in the boxes I 

A. Yes, sir. 

3269. Q. State if he exhibited the registry-book or list of names to 
any outside parties; and if so, to whom. 

A. Yes, sir; behind the counter there was a window looking out upon 
the street, and this young man would stand by the window and hold up 
the book, and persons outside who would have pencil and paper would 
take off the names of those who had not voted. The young man went 
out five or six times. I kept my eye on him, and when he went out I 
would follow him. He would go round the next corner to a sort of ren¬ 
dezvous there, a low crib, into which, of course, I would not be admitted. 
In a few minutes after you would see a little squad come out of it and 
go round and vote, and the inspector, Mr. Donnelley, on several occasions 
found that the names had all been voted on. The attention of the chair¬ 
man was called to it by the inspector. Well,” said he, “ we don^t care 
anything about it; it is a mistake.” I do not know how many such cases 
there were, but I can testify positively to five names. About 4 o’clock 
in the afternoon the crowd got around me and threatened my life, so that 
I was advised I had better leave, and did so, as I did not want to be 
killed. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3270. Q. Who were the officers of the board? 

A. Mr. Ferguson was chairman of the board of inspectors; Mr. Joshua 
Brown, Mr. Donnelley, and another man whose name I have forgotten, 
were the other inspectors. Mr. Brown was a republican. 

3271. Q. Did you act as challenger of the republican party? 

A. I was the only one. 

3272. Q. Whom did the democratic party have as their challenger? 

A. Well, I do not know; there were a good many of them; there did 

not seem to be any one in particular. 

3273. Q. Do you not know whether they had a challenger there or not? 

A. I had no means of knowing whether they had or not. 

3274. Q. You had no doubt of your having a right to be there ? 

A. No, sir; I was appointed challenger by the republican State com¬ 
mittee. 

3275. Q. Why did you think that McKnight had no right there? 

A. Because he was acting as inspector. The law only calls for four 
inspectors, and he was acting as an extra inspector, in checking votes; 
and they took in votes which he said were all right. He had no authority 
to act there; he was not above 17 or 18 years old. 

3276. Q. Who was it who threatened your life? 

A. There were some 40 or 50 men around the door there. 

3277. Q. Can you give us the names of 15 or 20 of them? 

A. I did not know their names, and I would not like to know them; 
they were the greatest set of cut-throats I ever saw. 

3278. Q. Did they cut anybody’s throat that day? 

A. I did not see it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


305 


3279. Q. Did you see them attempt to cut anybody’s throat? 

A. No, sir. 

3280. Q. Did you see them attem])t to strike anybody or to do violence 
on anybody? 

A. 1 saw two or three little rows. 

3281. Q. Did any one attempt to strike you? 

A. Nobody raised their hands at me. 

3282. Q. You cannot recollect the name of anybody who threatened 
you? 

A. I cannot; I did not know their names; I was a stranger in the 
district. My friends told me that I had better not challenge anybody; 
and it was said in my hearing that if I challenged anybody, the son of a 
bitch’s life should pay for it; my friends advised me to stay there and 
take observations. I have not the least doubt that if I had challenged 
personal violence would have been inflicted upon me. I was told the day 
after that I got out of it very lucky. 

3283. Q. Did all the legal voters get to the polls to vote? 

A. I do not know. 

3284. Q. Was there a crowd there at the close of the polls who had 
not voted? 

A. I cannot tell; I was not there at the closing of the polls; I left 15 
or 20 minutes before the polls closed; I was advised to go away by two 
or three of my friends; for if there is any fighting to be done, it is gen¬ 
erally done very soon after the close of the poll^; I had been picked out 
as a victim, and so I thought I had better go away. 

3285. Q. Had you been active as a republican politician during the 
year? 

A. Well, I was a pretty good stout Grant man. I am a disabled sol¬ 
dier and went Grant pretty strong. I worked for the republican party 
so far as my influence was concerned. 

3286. Q. Afho were the men connected with you in the repeating busi¬ 
ness, in voting the republican ticket at difterent times in different pre¬ 
cincts ? 

A. I never heard of any such thing as that. 

3287. Q. Were you not engaged in it? 

A. No, sir. 

3288. Q. Do you not know of repeating having been done at the polls? 

A. No, sir. 

3289. Q. Do you not know that the republicans repeated here in this 
city? 

A. I never heard of their doing it. It has been charged by the other 
side, but I could not swear that I know of anybody’s doing it. 

Egbert Murray, United States marshal,, recalled.. 

By the Chairman: 

3290. Question. State if you appointed any deputy marshals prior to 
the last presidential election, for the purpose of being present at the 
election, or of discharging any duties in connection therewith. 

Answer. I did not. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3291. Q. Did you ever contemplate appointing any? 

A. I never did. 

3292. Q. Did you ever state to .any one that you intended to appoint 
any? 

A. I never did. 

20 T 


306 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3293. Q. What do you know of deputy sheriffs being appointed prior 
to election? 

A. I kno^y nothing excepting what I read in the newspapers. 

NTew York, December 31, 1868. 

John Phyte sworn and examined. 

By the iOitairman : 

3294. Question. I present you a i)aper purporting to be a certificate of 
naturalization to Joseph Keinhart, dated 20th of October, 1868, from the 
supreme court of this State, held in the city of Nlew York; state what 
you know of that paper. 

Answer. 1 think I saw this paper before during the election time, or a 
paper similar to it. 

3295. Q. AVas it in your possession? 

A. It was in my i)ossession so far as taking it off the stand and pass¬ 
ing it to other x)arties. 

3296. Q. Did you hand this paper to Mr. Perrine, the bookkeeper of 
your establisliment? 

A. I might have; I cannot remember. 

3297. Q. Did you give this paper to Mr. Perrine to hand to Eeinhart ? 

A. I niiglit have taken ip) this paper and said, ‘^Here is a paper for 

Reinhart,” as we do when any letters or newspapers are brought to the 
shop. 

3298. Q. Who brought this paper to your shop? 

A. Til at I cannot tell. 

3299. Q. Did it come by mail ? 

A. I don’t know. I will tell you all I know about Reinhart. There 
were several men came to the shop and inquired if there were any meu in 
the shop wlio were entitled to naturalization papers and had not got them. 
They askeff me if I had any such men under me, and I told him I did 
not know; they inquired and found there were some men who said thej^ 
had been in the country for so many years and had no papers, and their 
names probably were given. 

3300. Q. AA^as Reinhart among them ? 

A. I don’t know; it may have been. He does not work for me. 

330L Q. Did you give names to these parties? 

A. I did. 

3302. Q. Did jiapers come in those names ? 

A. I don’t know. I only saw this paper afterwards. 

3303. Q. l)id you see any other papers? 

A. 1 saw papers there—election notices and iiapers of one kind and 
anotheii—every day. 

3304. Q. Did you see any naturalization papers ? 

A. I don’t remember anything about it more tliaii that. 

3305. Q. You did not give out other papers that were left there—other 
than these Reinhart papers? 

A. The only thing I had to do with them was looking at them. Mr. 
Perrine told me yesterday that he gave this paper to Reinhart; and he 
said I handed it to him at the office. 

3306. Q. Did you hand any others besides this? 

A. I do not recollect. I recollect seeing papers there. They passed 
through a dozen hands, probably, and we did not know anything about 
whether they were legal or illegal. 

3307. Q. Where did they come from ? 

A. I know nothing about it, except that men came there and asked 
questions, and got the names and took out papers. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 307 

3308. Q. Can you tell tlie name of any one from whom you got natu¬ 
ralization i)apers ? 

A. I could not, except this one that came into the office. 

3309. Q. Was it brought in by some i)erson ? 

A. It may have been. 

3310. Q. Do you know how it came in the office? 

A. I suppose how it got in, but I cannot say certainly j there were 
other men who, no doubt, got papers there on the other side,* there was 
some difficulty about this man’s voting; he was a republican, and he 
came to me, knowing that I was republican, and asked me what he had 
better do; he said there were other persons who had got their papers 
without any trouble, and he had been two days in getting his; I do not 
know how the paper came there at all. 

3311. Q. Have you any knowledge that would enable you or us to find 
out how it came there ? 

A. 1 could possibly find out who got his name and trace it up in that^ 
way. 

New York, December 31, 1868. 

Simeon E. Belmont sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

3312. Question. What office did you hold at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion ? 

Answer. I was a registrar and inspector in the 12th district of the 
8th ward. 

3313. Q. State what you know of fraudident natiu’alization papers 
being presented. 

A. I doubted a great many iiapers morally; I think they were not 
right; that is all I can say. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3314. Q. Did you examine men with such papers under oath? 

A. Yes, sir; I swore them and challenged them, and the democratic 
chairman registered them. 

3315. Q. Did they swear they had been in court and had got their 
papers legally? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

3316. Q. Do you know of any persons voting more than once at your 
voting place? 

A. Yes, sir; I kept my book on which seven names are marked; 
about a dozen voted several times; I objected to it and was overruled by 
the other inspectors. 

3317. Q. Who were they ? 

A. Mathew Jordan and Mr. Lutrell; I was overruled by two inspect¬ 
ors, and the law says it must be three. 

3318. Q. Were they democrats ? 

A. Yes, sir; I told them that I saw these voters coming in, one three 
times, and another four times, and told them my proof was positive 
that I saw them, but they overruled me and swore them in. 

3319. Q. Where was your republican associate on the board ? 

A. He was either in a i)orter-house or drunk. 

3320. Q. What was his name? 

A. George McPherson; the first day of registry Mr. Sillcock was ifiy 
republican associate, and he was nominated as chairman, but that was 


308 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


almost two weeks before tbe last days of registry, and in the mean time 
Mr. Sillcock resigned because his business called him out of the city; 
and then George McPherson came in his place, but he was only there a 
very short time 5 he came at 2 o’clock and was there for about an hour 
and a half, and then he went away and did not come back until about 
9 in the evening, when he was under the influence of liquor. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3321. Q. How many votes were given at your voting place ? 

A. I believe in the presidential election we polled 425. 

3322. Q. How many did you have registered? 

A. We had more registered. We polled less than there were regis- 
tGXGCl. 

3323. Q. How many ? 

A. I believe about 50. 

3324. Q. What became of the other men who were registered ? 

A. You must ask them that; I do not know. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

3325. Q. Do you say that you saw one man vote four times ? 

A. Yes, sir; I saw some vote four times and some three times. 

3326. Q. Was this associate inspector of yours in the habit of getting 
drunk ? 

A. I don’t know anything about that. It was the first time I ever 
saw him, and I hope it will be the last. 

3327. Q. Was he there on election day? 

A. Yes, sir; just enough to swear by. He came and asked me not to 
say how little he had attended, so that he might draw his fee, and I told 
him I did not care whether he got it or not, as the city was rich enough 
to pay. 

3328. Q. Do you know the names of any of these fellows that voted 
so often ? 

A. I know that one of them was named McCabe. 

[Hugh F. Dolan here came before the committee and presented the reg¬ 
istry list of the 2d district of the 14th ward, stating that he found upon 
it the name of Charles Walters, registered from 9 East Houston street.] 

Kew York, December 31, 1868. 

Thomas Brewster sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

I was a i)oll clerk at the last presidential election. I j)resent to the 
committee a i)oU-list with a caption, as follows: 


Names of voters. 

Residence. 

Electors. 

State. 

1 Congress. 

3 

a 

(V 

rji 

W 

<i 

City and county. 

Judiciary. 

Supervisors. 



No.l. 

No. 2. 

No. 3. 

No. 5. 

No. 6. 

No. 8. 


L A. B. 

255 Elizabeth st. 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

2. C. D. 

3. Walters, Chas.. 

216 Elizabeth st. 

69 East Houston st.. 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 

1 






















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


309 


Q. What do these marks (111, &c.) indicate ? 

A. They indicate that the voter has voted for electors of President in 
one box, for State officers in another box, for Congress in another box; 
and so on. ^ 

Q. So that there are seven ballot-boxes ? 

A. Yes. 

Q. On the poll-list that you have presented there is the name ^‘Wal¬ 
ters, Charles,” residence 69 East Houston street, with no marks under the 
title of the offices to be filled j what does that indicate I 

A. It indicates that the person came there to vote, and that his name 
was taken down, and that, for some reason or other, he did not vote. 
Such things happen very frequently. 

3329. Q. What do the numbers preceding the name indicate % 

A. The number of voters. 

New York, Saturday^ January 2, 1869. 

Moses D. Gale sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3329. Question. State your political relations. 

Answer. I am, and always have been, a democrat. 

3330. Q. What position did you hold in the organization of the party 
in this city last fall ? 

A. I was a member of the Tammany Hall general committee for 1868. 

3331. Q. Did you act as chairman of any subordinate committee ? 

A. I think about the 25th of September the chairman of the general 
committee, Mr. Tweed, announced the standing committees, and I was 
appointed a member and chairman of the committee on naturalization, 
one of the standing committees of the organization. 1 had been so for 
some years previously. 

3332. Q. What did that committee do ? 

A . Immediately after the announcement of the standing committees I 
called the members of it together and made arrangements to proceed at 
once with the usual business devolving on the naturalization committee. 

3333. Q. Who were its members ? 

A. Myself, Moses D. Gale, chairman, P. H. Keenan, 7th ward, S. 
McGrane, 20th ward, Alexander Ward, 22d ward, Anthony Miller, 13th 
ward, and Hugh O’Brien, 14th ward. I asked those gentlemen if they 
had any persons whom they wished to be employed by the committee, 
and they said they would send down the names of some parties. That 
is all the meeting that the committee ever had. 

3334. Q. Did you have an office % 

A. We had. I would state that the business of the naturalization com¬ 
mittee at Tammany Hall has always devolved upon the chairman, as 
persons are not very anxious to devote their whole time to a business 
when they do not have compensation. We had an office at the corner 
of Centre street and Try on Bow, in the basement. It was in a lager-beer 
saloon, kept by a man named Pfeffe, at No. 1 Centre street. I found 
great difficulty in getting a place. 

3335 . Q. Who were in the management and control of the business of 
that office ? 

A. I employed the men to set the machinery at work. I employed a 
Mr. Mulligan—I cannot give his first name. Most of the others were 
strangers to me, employed on the recommendation of members of the 
general committee. There was a branch office established at Tammany 
Hall. 


310 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3336. Q. How many persons were employed at tliis particular office, 
Ho. 1 Centre street? 

A. I think in the neighborhood of twenty. 

3337. Q. When you employed those persons what orders did you give 
them, and what did you employ them for ! 

A. I employed them as they had always been employed before, to be 
in attendance there to fill up naturalization blanks for parties who desired 
to procure their naturafization papers under the auspices of Tammany 
Hall—in other words, to facilitate the naturalization of all persons who 
were entitled to get out their papers and whose design and intention it 
was to sup])ort the democratic candidates at the approaching election. 

3338. Q. State as specifically as you can in what mode it was that that 
aid was to be given. 

A. As chairman of the committee^ I supplied the committee with all 
the blank naturalization papers and had them all arranged. I stationed 
the men at the desks. The duty of those who were employed as clerks 
to do the writing was, when a party came and stated that he wanted to 
get out his papers, to fill oiit the blanks all ready for the party to appear 
before the court with his witness. He would give the name of his wit¬ 
ness, state what description of paper he wanted to get, whether as a 
minor or his second paper. The clerk would fill out the application with 
the name of the applicant and the witness, and then send a messenger 
over with them to the court to facilitate them in getting through. 

3339. Q. How was the cost paid—the cost of court fees ? 

A. The practice always has been to furnish an order in the shape of a 
ticket upon the clerk of the court, who usually charged it against the 
naturalization committee of Tammany Hall. The usual practice has 
been for the clerks to make up their statements and send them to me, 
and I would then make a draft upon the chairman of the finance com¬ 
mittee for so much money in ])ayment. 

3340. Q. Hid you have the naturalization blanks printed yourself? 

A. I had them printed myself, with the exception of a small supply 

which I obtained on the first clay the committee transacted business, 
from the clerk of one of the courts. I could not get them in time. 

3341. Q. Where did you have them inlnted ? 

A. By Bickford & Co., in Hassau street. 

3342. Q. State whether during the progress of this business of facili¬ 
tating naturalization under your supervision, you know of any fraud 
having been practiced, either in the selling of fraudulent certificates of 
naturalization, or in the procurement of them from the court by fraud 
in the testimony of witnesses, or by persons falsely personating men who 
desired to be naturalized ? 

A. I do not. I would state that after I made this arrangement of 
clerks already given in the room, I left it to Mr. Mulligan to pick out 
those best qualified to do the writing—in other words, those who were 
the readiest penmen—to fill out the blanks. Others were directed to be 
in attendance at the rooms, and to give any information which parties 
might require, to go with them to the court, and to put them in line and 
show them where they had to stand and what they had to do. My per¬ 
sonal attention to the business of the committee was very limited. My 
official duties required the greater portion of my time. 1 had managed 
this naturalization business for some years before, and had always pur¬ 
sued that course. The business was left in charge of other individuals 
during my absence. I told them what tlieir business was; that they 
had nothing to do with any outside arrangements, but were simply to 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


311 


lUl up papers and to discliarge their duties properly; that I was respon¬ 
sible to Tammany Hall for what was done. The great object that I had 
in view was to prevent any fraud being practiced on Tammany Hallj in 
other words, to see to it that the Tammany organization did not liave to 
pay for the naturalization of parties who did not intend to support the 
democratic candidates. I know of no instance of any fraud having been 
committed. I know of no instance in which a false or fraudulent paper 
has been taken out. I never have been approached on that subject in 
the whole course of my life, or while I was connected with the natural¬ 
ization committee, except in one instance, and that was last year^ when 
a man tried to convince me that he knew me personally in the year 1841. 
I told him he was undoubtedly mistaken, because in that year I was not 
a resident of the city of New York, but of Orleans county, in this State. 
I heard of nothing of the kind in the last election, except what I heard 
of the Rosenberg affair through the newspapers. 

3343. Q. State what you know of the idace where Rosenberg carried 
on his business. 

A. It is a x>lace in Centre street, above where the Tammany Hall office 
was. Mr. Rosenberg had nothing to do with our office. I did not employ 
him, but if he came in at any time asking for a few blanks, as I believe 
he did on one or two occasions, he got them. 

3344. Q. After the Rosenberg case, did you use any further efforts or 
give any directions to avoid the frauds with which he was charged, in 
connection with any committee over which you had control ? 

A. As soon as I heard of that Rosenberg affair I went to the rooms 
and called Mr. Mulligan and the other men and said, ^‘Boys, has there 
been anything going on here contrary to the directions I have given 
They said, “No, sir; nothing of the kind.” I said, “My design has been 
to conduct this thing so as to have it entirely satisfactory to Tammany 
Hall, and to do my duty as a member of the committee. You know what 
my instructions were. If any of you have done wrong, or know of any¬ 
thing wrong, let me know and I will stop it at once.” 

3345. Q. How long have you lived in the city of New York 

A. I was born in the city of New York, and have only remained out of 
it 10 years during my life. I returned to it from the west in 1844 or 1845. 

3346. Q. Have you been all that time identified with the democratic 
party 

A. I have been. 

3347. Q. Has your connection with it been active or otherwise ? 

A. I have always taken an active part in i)olitics, to my extreme regret 
now. 

3348. Q. Have you had good opportunities by observation to judge of 
the number of ]:)ersons of foreign birth who were seeking naturalization 
in different years from time to time*? 

A. 1 have. 

3340. Q. State whether it is true or not that in years of a presidential 
election there is a much greater ratio of men of foreign birth naturalized 
than there is in any other year. 

A. There is; there is more excitement and more interest taken in the 
presidential election always. 

3350. Q. Is it true or not that during the war an unusual proportion 
of the foreign population failed to be naturalized through fear of being 
put into the military service ? 

A. I should answer that question in the affirmative. It was my observa¬ 
tion that there was not so much desire to become naturalized during that 
time on account of liability to military duty, and that subsequently to 


312 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


that there Avas a great rush to he naturalized. In the year 18G7 there 
was a great number of naturalizations, more than I had any idea there 
would t3e. 

By the Chairman : 

3351. Q. Do you know that there were various offices over the city for 
the purpose of filling up blanks and i)rocuring naturalization papers of 
Tammany Hall ? 

A. I do. 

3352. Q. How many such offices were there ? 

A. One was established at Tammany Hall under my direction. I put 
a member of the general committee in charge there, for the convenience 
of parties in that portion of the city. After the committee had got fairly 
to work, a branch office was established by a member of the organization 
in the 17th ward. I also established a branch office in my own ward, 
the lOtli ward, under the direction of Mr. A. C. H. Bogert. Very little 
was done there, however. It is a German neighborhood, and my impres¬ 
sion was that it Avould divide the crowd. Mr. Bogert attended there and 
filled out the blanks when there was any application. 

3353. Q. Were there any other offices ? 

A. I think not. 

3354. Q. Did you liaA^e printed naturalization blanks in all these places ? 

A. I did. 

3355. Q. Were they procured by the committee! 

A. Yes, sir. There were no blanks got from the clerk’s office, except 
the first day, as a matter of accommodation. 

3356. Q. Did you furnish blanks also to Bosenberg’s office ! 

A. I think that on one or two occasions they came from his office to 
get some blanks. 

3357. Q. The tickets that were used to be delivered to the clerks of the 
courts to pay for naturalization were red tickets ! 

A. They were red, printed tickets, with my name stamped upon them. 

3358. Q. Were the red tickets that were used in Rosenberg’s office paid 
for by the money of the organization ! 

A. I do not know that. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3359. Q. Did you furnish the German naturalization committee ANuth 
tickets ! 

A. I furnished them on the application of any party, provided I was 
satisfied that they would be used for the purpose of naturalizing persons 
who desired to vote the democratic ticket; and what I had to guard 
against was that Tammany Hall should not be saddled with naturalizing 
persons aaRo would not Amte AAdth the party. An attempt Avas made to 
commit a fraud on Tammany Hall by getting these tickets through the 
democratic agency and furnishing them to the republican organization. 
But, to the credit of the gentleman avIio conducted that organization, 
(Mr. Peter Cook,) he refused to huA^e anything to do with it, and informed 
me at once that such an attemi)t Avas being made. 

By the Chairman : 

3360. Q. Did you furnish to the German democratic naturalization 
committee those red tickets ! 

A. I presume they Avere furnished; I did not refuse any one the tick¬ 
ets ; they were valueless until they got into the hands of tlie clerks of the 
courts, and then they became a charge against the committee. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 313 

3361. Q. Do you know Low many tickets were paid for by the Tam¬ 
many organization ? 

A. My impression is that there were over 40,000 tiekets fiirnisLed to 
the committee. How many were left I do not know. There were a great 
many used that amounted to nothing. A man would come, pretending 
he was going to get 100 men naturalized. I would cut him down and 
give him 25 tickets, and x)robably he would get one man naturalized. 

3362. Q. How many sets of naturalization blanks did you procure 
and furnish I 

A. That I cannot say; I certified Mr. Pickford’s bill and referred it 
to the finance committee. Blanks were ordered as they were wanted. I 
should think there were several thousand of them. I was not able to 
give any personal attention to the business, as I had my official duties 
to attend to. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3363. Q. What were your offieial duties? 

A. I am one of the judges of a district court in this city. 

By the Chairman : 

3364. Q. Do you know G. W. Herman ? 

A. Yes, sir; he is one of the supervisors of the city and county of New 
York, and a member of the Tammany national committee. 

3365. Q. Do you know that he was also chairman of the German nat¬ 
uralization committee ? 

A. I have heard it said so; I have no personal knowledge of the fact. 

3366. Q. Do you know Patrick H. Keenan ? 

A. I do. 

3367. Q. Does he live at 169 Henry street? 

A. I do not know. 

3368. Q. He was one of your national committee ? 

A. He was. 

3369. Q. He was oneof the coroners of the city andcounty of New York? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3370. Q. Do you know anything of the number of persons registered 
as voters from 169 Henry street ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3371. Q. How many tickets did Tammany Hall redeem from the vari¬ 
ous ofSces of the clerks ? 

A. I do not knoAv; I have not yet settled with the clerks of the courts. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3372. Q. »You said that a large number were naturalized in 1867—can 
you state about how many ? 

A. My impression is that there were 10,000 naturalized in this city. 

3373. Q. How many were naturalized this year ? 

A. I cannot tell you until I receive vouchers from the clerks’ offices. 

3374. Q. Have you any way of making a calculation ? 

A. I merely kept an account of tickets which I delivered. My plan 
was to furnish tickets only on the order of members of the general com¬ 
mittee, and hold them responsible if the tickets were misapplied. 

3375. Q. Gan you form any estimate of the number of naturalizations 
this year ? 

A. No, sir; I cannot. 


314 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Dickey : 

3376. Q. You furnislied tickets to tlie members of the general com¬ 
mittee at large ^ 

A. Yes, sir; the fact of their being members of the organization was 
sufficient protection to me in my delivering the tickets. 

3377. Q. And they were furnished to the number of 40,000? 

A. Yes, sir; in the neigliborhood of 40,000, or over; probably one-third 
or one-half of them were wasted. 

3378. Q. Was there any organization that furnished tickets, except the 
republican organization and Tammany Hall, at the last election ? 

A. No, sir; the general committee of Tammany Hall lias been always 
liberal enough to furnish any outside democratic organization with facili¬ 
ties to get their naturalizations. I have heard of other offices being 
started, but I suppose they were on individual account. I had a man 
make application to me recently to pay him $00 or $70 on account of a 
person who said he was authorized to open a naturalization office, and 
who had come to this man’s place and borrowed money of him, and ran 
up a bill of $00 or $70. 

By Mr. Hopkins ; 

3379. Q. What proportion of the men naturalized went there with 
tickets, either from your organization or from the republican ? 

A. I cannot form any estimate; I paid no attention to it. 

3380. Q. Were you ever present in court during the time that nat¬ 
uralization was going on ? 

A. I was on one occasion before Judge McCunn, in the superior court; 
it was in the latter part of October; there were some six or eight men 
in the court-room being naturalized; I have a distinct recollection of it 
because I sat on the bench with Judge McOunn; there could not have 
been a dozen in the room at the time; this was after 1 o’clock in the day. 

3381. Q. Did you see him init a batch through ? 

A. I saw him go through the usual forms of naturalization, asking 
witness Jones if he knew applicant Smith, and how long he had known 
him. 

3382. Q. How long would it take the judge to examine and put through 
an applicant when you saw him ? 

A. A couple of minutes, I suppose. 

3383. Q. At the rate he put these men through do you think he could 
put through a thousand in a day ? 

A. I do not know what a man may do if he is hurried; I should think 
he might do it by going there early and staying late. 

New York, Saturday, January 2, 1809. 

David Crowley recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3384. Question. Do you know William H. Hendricks, who was aAvitness 
here ? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

3385. State Avhether you have made imiuiry for persons who he alleged 
in his testimony Avere registered as voters on fictitious names. 

A. Yes, sir; I made iiupiiry for the following persons at the following 
places: James Darling, No. 00 Mott street; George Bennett, No. 02 
Bayard street; James Goodwin, No. 70 Mott street; James Walsh, No. 
142 Sullivan street; Charles Waters, No. 09 Houston street; Da\dd 
Somers, No. 09 Houston street; Wm. H. Travis, Nos. 117 Spring 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


315 


street, and 84 Greene street; Gordon McKay, No. 505 Broadway. Tl:e 
only x)erson whom I could lind anything about was this man from 595 
Broadway; I learned that there had been such a man there; I made 
inquiry at all of the other i)laces, but I could not lind or hear anything 
of such Iversons; No. 117 Spring street is, I believe, the house of Peter 
Mitchell, who ran for assembly on the democratic ticket at the last election. 

New York, Saturday, January 2, 1809. 

William H. Greene sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

3386. I am imtrolman in the 7th iwecinct; I am a member of the 
metropolitan police, and have resided in this city since 1852; shortly 
before the State election I was transferred to the Gth j^reciiict, and was 
again sent back to the 7th. 

3380J. Q. State what you know of persons registering as voters prior 
to the last election from the houses of William M. Tweed, Police Justice 
Shandley, and Coroner Keenan. 

A. On the first or second day of the meeting of the board of registra¬ 
tion in the 6th district of the 7th ward, I was stationed at the place 
of registry from 8 o’clock in the morning until 1 in the afternoon; 
during that time a gang came there from the Bowery; I knew several 
of them x)ersonally by name; I knew that they did not live in the ward, 
much less in the district; there were some 20 or 21 of them; the follow¬ 
ing were registered from 109 Henry street, (Coroner Keenan’s house:) 
Henry Austin, George W. Baldwin, George Brown, Eobert A. Jones, 
Lewis Leight, H. J. Lawrence, Charles Meyer, William Muiphy, Dennis 
O’Neil, John Eeilley, John Saunders. 

The following names are registered from No. 107 Henry street, (the 
house of Police Justice Shandley:) George Bennett, Thomas Fitzgerald, 
George Morgan, James Weaver, George Williams. 

The following are registered from 197 Henry street, (the house of 
William M. Tweed:) Eobert Gardner, Florence S. Gerald, Thomas Greene, 
Franklin Thomas, Thomas Boyd. 

1 knew the best portion of these men. There are several of them who 
have got several aliases. None of them live in the district where they 
were registered. Here is a photograph of one of them who gave the 
name of Henry Lawrence. He has an alias of Charles Williams, and 
an alias of ‘^Nipsey.” He was the leader of the gang. 1 got this pic¬ 
ture at the station-house, where they have got pictures of all of these 
celebrated men who live by their wits. 

3387. Q. State how this picture was taken. 

A. “Nipsey” objected to having his likeness taken and made all kinds 
of faces, and two men had to hold him, so as to get his likeness as accu¬ 
rate as possible. He registered from 109 Henry street. Coroner Keenan’s 
house. He is a celebrated pickpocket. He has stolen fortunes, and has 
been arrested several times, but somehow or other he always slips through 
and is never prosecuted. 

3388. Q. Do you know what political j^arty he acts with ? 

A. Yes, sir; the democratic. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3389. Q. Did the board ask these men, when they came to register, any 
questions ? 

A. Yes sir. 

3390. Q. Did they swear them ? 


316 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. That man Lawrence was not sworn. The registrars did not know 
these men at all, until I pointed them out. The thing went so far that 
I said to the registrars, Now this thing is played out. Here, by George, 
are thieves from the Bowery coming to register from houses where they do 
not live, and I think you ought to put a stop to it.” One of the registrars 
spoke up and said, ^^'Wedl lay for them on election day.” There is always 
a proclamation issued by the mayor, offering $100 for the apprehension 
of illegal voters, and the registrars thought they would ‘Gay” for these 
men until election day. 

3391. Q. Did any of this gang swear in ? 

A. One or two of them were sworn; Meyer, and Baldwin, and Murphy, 
and Gardner were sworn, I think; but this man Lawrence was not sworn, 
because he was supposed to be a native. I think he is an Englishman, 
but lie passes for a native. Gardner also registered in the 4th district 
of the same ward, I think at No. 2 Pike street. Another pickpocket 
who was with these men goes under the name of “John Beilly;” his 
name is Patsey Nolan. He lives in Oxford street, and is now under 
arrest for stealing a diamond pin. 

3392. Q. These men were known as repeaters ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3393. Q. Eepeaters are generally of that class? 

A. Yes, sir; they are of the lower order, and they are generally men 
who have no character, and who would as soon take a false oath as not. 
I spoke to this man Lawrence after he registered, and said to him, “ I 
did not know you lived up here.” “ O, yes,” said he, “ I have lived here 
for two years.” One of the men has no permanent residence, and hangs 
out at the New England Hotel, and at a place in East Broadway, north 
of Catharine street. No. 9, I think; in fact, he lives all over. 

3394. Q. Did any of these men have their lodging or residence in the 
house from where they registered ? 

A. No, sir; Henry A. Jones goes to Keenan’s house a good deal, but 
he does not live there. He is a hatter by trade, and a pretty honorable 
kind of a man. A few days after that I was notified to go down into the 
6th ward to do duty. I do not know what I had done to be changed; 
I had done nothing wrong, but the thought struck me that it was for 
being a little efficient about the registry. 

3395. Q. Do you know whether you were transferred at the instance 
of Police Justice Shandley? 

A. I do know that perfectly well, because I was told so by Commis¬ 
sioner Acton and by Shandley himself. Shandley came down and said 
lie would get me oft the police, and would kick my damned head off, call¬ 
ing me a damned big bull-head. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3396. Q. Was that because you reported these cases? 

A. No ; I asked him what it was for, and he said, “I know you of old.” 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3397. Q. You state that the officers of the board of registration did 
not know these persons to be thieves and “runners?” 

A. No, sir; they did not until I told them. 

3398. Q. And you did not tell them until after the men were regis¬ 
tered ? 

A. After they were registered. 

3399. Q. And then the registrars said they Avould look out for them 
when they came to vote ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


317 


A. Yes, sir, on election day. One of the democratic rgistrars said, 
“Well, that is no great credit to Mr. Keenan to have a thief register 
from his house.” 

3400* Q. Do you know that these men voted ^ 

A. One of them voted and was arrested by one of my associates 5 his 
name is George Williams. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3401. Q. Were you transferred between the time of registration and 
the day of election 

A. Yes, sir. 

3402. Q. On the complaint of Police Justice E. J. Shandley ? 

A. Yes, sir. A few days after the election I was transferred back 
again. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3403. Q. What ticket did you vote at the last election ? 

A. I did not have a chance to vote. I am a republican, but I did not 
have a chance to vote. I was at the 6 th ward station-house, and my 
polling place was up at the 7th ward. 

Kew York, Saturday j January 2, 1869. 

Joseph Meeks sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

[Messrs. Lawrence, Dickey, and Hopkins protest against the examina¬ 
tion of Meeks and other officers of the court, because their examination 
will, under recent acts of OongTess, relieve them from prosecution; but 
they will not now interfere with the discretion of Mr. Kerr in calling 
witnesses. This memorandum was ordered to be inserted in the pro¬ 
ceedings.] 

To Mr. Kerr : 

3404. I am a deputy clerk of the superior court in this city. I have 
acted in that capacity since the first of July, 1862. The cierk is Mr. 
James M. Sweeney. 

3404J. Q. During the month of October last what duties did you per¬ 
form in the business of naturalization ? 

A. 1 signed the name of James M. Sweeney, clerk, to the certificate^ 
of naturalization; I have the power under the statute to sign his name 
without saying that it is done by me as deputy. 

3405. Q. Did any other clerk or deputy in your office undertake to dis¬ 
charge any of these duties during the same time? 

A. Not that I kiiow of. 

3406. Q. Look at the applications for naturalization made by Maxi¬ 
milian Boeck, William Malia, John Wallace, Joseph Bush, Daniel Sulli¬ 
van, James Montgomery, and Michael Kerwin, and state by whom the 
name of the clerk is signed tp those apiilications ? 

A. In the application of Daniel Sullivan and of Joseph Rush the name 
of the clerk is signed by Mr. Westlake; in the application of John Wal¬ 
lace and William Malia the name of the clerk is signed by Mr. Thomp¬ 
son j in the application of Maximilian Boeck and Michael Kerwin the 
name of the clerk is signed by Mr. Earley; in the application of James 
Montgomery the clerk’s name is signed by Mr. Gillespie. All of these 
gentlemen are clerks employed in our office. Mr. Thompson is natural¬ 
ization clerk; Mr. Gillespie is assistant naturalization clerk; Mr. Earley 
is a general clerk in the office, without any special duties, and Mr. West- 


318 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


lake is general term clerk, and ke assists during natiiralization in tke 
up-stairs office. 

3407. Q. By wliose direction was it that most of this business was 
done by you 

A. By the direction of Mr. Sweeney, clerk of the court. 

3408. Q. What reason did he assign for imposing that duty on you 
specifically ! 

A. I have had general charge of the office, and the clerical duties 
connected with the office, ever since I have been deputy clerk of the 
court. . 4 suggested to Mr. Sweeney that there should be a uniform sig¬ 
nature to these naturalization certificates, and that, as he might be called 
u])on to attend to other duties, I should act in his place and sign all the 
certificates, so that there might be one uniform signature to them. 

3409. Q. Tell the committee in your own way, and fully, the manner, 
in which this business of naturalization was conducted in the superior 
court so far as you have observed the process, first stating what oppor¬ 
tunities you had for observation. 

A. I had the entire charge of the issuing of cei’tificates, and all the 
clerks engaged in that business were under my supervision. Owing to 
the smallness of the office of the superior court clerk, and not being 
willing to let naturalization interfere with the general business of the 
office, we procured vacant rooms in the City Hall—rooms that had lately 
been occupied by the sheriff*. They consisted of three rooms. The 
middle one was used as the clerk’s office proper. I had a desk con¬ 
structed on one side of tlie room, behind which we placed five clerks; 
and behind that 4 had another desk at wliich we placed two clerks. I 
had a desiv at one end of the room overlooking the entire office. At my 
left hand was placed the seal of the court, fastened to the window-sill. 
There were two officers of the court stationed to preserve order, and 
three iiolice officers to keep the lines straight and to preserve order 
generally. As the apxdiiaints appeared, coming from the court, they 
were formed in line, and one of the officers of our court took from them 
the papers and handed them to the live clerks stationed at the desk. I 
supplied the clerks with certificates of naturalization as they needed 
them, and the clerks would fill them up. Tlie'ii they were handed to the 
clerk in charge of the seal, who would seal them and hand them to the 
applicants. Tliis was in the City Hall, in the old sheriff’s office down 
stairs on the first floor. Tlie two clerks employed at the desk Avere 
engaged in tilling uj) the dates, so as to facilitate the issuing of certifi¬ 
cates. Tlie court Avhere the judges sat Avas not, as a general thing, in 
the City Hall. The court did sit one night in the aldermen’s chamber. 
One night, towards the close of the business, two courts sat—one in the 
aldermen’s chamber and one in the councibnen’s chamber. The superior 
court business is dmded up into half a dozen places, as'it has had 
no proper accommodations. The court has held sessions in the room 
over the engine-house, and in several rooms in the brown-stone building. 

By the Chairman : 

3440. Q, Was the court ever held in the aldermen’s room for any 
other purpose than for naturalization during 48G81 

A. No, sir; but before that it has been held there for the trial of 
causes. 


To Mr. ICerr : 

3441. After the parties came in the officers would collect their 
papers and hand them to the clerks, and they Avould fill in the certificates 
as signed by me, and then the officer Avould hand them over to the clerk 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 319 

who sealed them. The clerk would then fill up their names and hand 
them to the parties. 

3411^. Q. whom Avere these applications brought, from the place 
where the judges sat, to that office ? 

A. They Avere brought by the parties themselves. I Avas there the 
first day, I believe, and there were some brought over by some other 
parties, but I stoi)ped that. I belicA’e Mr. Cook brought OA^er some. I 
do not knoAV but that some were brought by others. 1 issued an order, 
howcA’er, the next morning, that the papers must be brought by the 
parties tliemselA^es, and after that the thing was stopped. 

3412. Q. State aa here you kept the blank certificates of naturalization 
before anything Avas done with them. 

A. In the naturalization office. 

3413. Q. Did you ever suffer any blank certificates of naturalization 
to go out of your office to be used in naturalization offices about the city 
for any purpose % 

A. All the blank certificates of naturalization were under my charge 
and control, and no person ever receiA^ed any blank certificates of natu¬ 
ralization for any puipose whatever. I never signed any ahead, and I 
iieA^er kept any over when the naturalization was through. If I should 
haA e signed any ahead, I destroyed them. 

3414. Q. Look at the certificate of naturalization contained in the tes¬ 
timony of Maximilian Boeck, and state in Avhose liandAvriting tbe Avritteu 
portion of it is. 

A. The figures, ^‘19,” are Avritten by John A. Thompson; the letters, 
“sixty-eight,” by Mr. Gillespie; the name, “Maximilian Boeck,” and the 
figures, “19,” by Mr. Thompson, and the Avords, “October, sixty-eight,” 
and “ ninety-third.” This is not the usual form of certificate issued by 
the coiu’t. The usual certificate is a smaller paper than this. The clerks 
charge a little extra for this form. Mr. Gillespie, Avho has charge of 
these forms, filled up the blaid^SAvith “sixty-eight” and “October, sixty- 
eight,” so as to ansAver for that month. On the 19th the paper Avas 
handed to Mr. Thompson, and he AAWote in the figures “19” and the 
maids name. It Avas then sent to me and signed. That is my signature 
of Mr. SAA’eeney’s name. 

3415. Q. State Avhether you did, at any time, under any circumstances, 
or whether you suffered any of your deputies to, issue any certificates of 
naturalization to any iierson without first having received the order of 
the court therefor. 

A. Ncaxu', under any circumstances. 

34IG. Q. State to Avhat extent you had an opportunity to obseiwe the 
manner in Avhich this business Avas done in the court by the court. 

A. I had little or none, because I Avas engaged all day in the clerk’s 
office. 

3417. Did you eA^er know or observe the manner in which business 
was transacted by the court in these naturalization matters"? 

A. Only such knoAvledge as I obtained AAdien I took a recess for a little 
while and I Avent into the court-room for a fcAV minutes. What I saw of 
it Avas this: the men would be admitted into the room and form into line; 
an officer AAmuld collect the applications from the parties aiid place them 
on the judge’s desk; the judge Avould then call the appli^nt and his 
Avitness before him and examine them as to the matters contained in the 
afiidaATt; if satisfactory to him, he Avould sign the order for naturaliza¬ 
tion ; the parties as they Avere brought up before the judge would be 
SAVorn to testify the truth as to all questions put to them touching the 
application for'naturalization; after they passed the judge the applicants 


320 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


would tlieu have the oath of allegiance administered to them; then the 
parties would bring over the applications signed by the judge’s initials 
to the clerk’s office. 

3418. Q. State how the judge indicated his approval of the application. 

A. If the application was admitted, the judge would put his initials 

upon it; or if the application Avas refused, the judge would destroy the 
paper. 

3419. Q. To what extent did he do the latter ? 

A. That I cannot tell. I remember that one night he did a wholesale 
tearing up, but as a general thing I did not know anything about it. 
The applications Maximilian Boeck, and Michael Kerwin, and Daniel 
Sullivan are signed by the initials of Judge McOunn. The orders in the 
applications of James Montgomery and Joseph Eusli are signed by the 
initials of Samuel B. Garvin. The orders in the application of John 
Wallace and William Malia are signed by the initials of John M. Bar- 
boiu*. Messrs. McCunn, Barbour, and Gaiwin are judges of the superior 
court. 

3420. Q. State as nearly as possible what proportion of this business 
was i)erformed by the seA^eral judges of that court"? 

A. Judge McCunn did tlie greatest part of it; Judge Gar\dn the next. 
These two judges Avere naturaliziug; Judge Jones and Judge Barbour 
assisted. They AA^ere holding term, and Avhen they got out of court they 
came over to assist; but the bulk of it was done by Judges Garvin and 
McOunn. Judge Barbour did some, but not much. Judge Morrell did 
none. He Avas in Europe from June until the 3d of November. 

3421. Q. Look at the certificates of naturalization attached to the tes¬ 
timony of AndreAV B. Leigner and state by aaEoui the AAU’iting part of it 
was executed ? 

xl. The figures and words AAufitten in the application of A. B. Leigner, 
with the exception of the clerk’s signature, Avere.written by Edward B. 
Heath, one of the clerks in the superior court emj)loyed in naturalization 
in the room Avhich I have designated. The signature of the clerk Avas 
written by me. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3422. Q. Are there any other clerks but you authorized by statute to 
Avrite the name Jauies W. Sweeney to these certificates 

A. The signing the name of Mr. Sweeney to these applications is a 
mei e clerical matter. It is not a certificate ; it is merely an apxfiication. 

Mr. Dickey. It is a certificate that the Avitness has been sworn ? 

Witness. It is required as a mere court paper, which any clerk can 
sign. My construction has been that all certificates must be signed by 
the clerk or the deputy; but I never looked upon these applications as 
certificates, but merely as court papers. 

3423. Q. The clerks who signed these were employed in the clerk’s 
office/? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3424. Q. They were not in court Avhen the process of naturalization 
was going on? 

A. No, sir. 

3425. Q. Then hoAv came they to certify that the persons were sworn 
in open court"? 

A. Because they had the certificate of the judge to that effect. 

3420. Q. Then the clerk’s signature Avas not to the papers at the time 
the party took the oath? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


321 


3427. Q. But was subsequently signed in another room? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3428. Q. You have said bow tlie middle room of these three rooms was 
occupied; what was done in the otlier two rooms ? 

A. The other two rooms were used as passage rooms for ingress and 
egress. i 

3420. Q. Were there any desks in these rooms ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

3430. Q. Was there any writing done there ? 

A. No, sir. 

3431. Q. What was the basement room used for ? 

A. That used to be the room for the sheriffs dex)uties. It was not 
used last October, except as a lounging room. 

3432. Q. These axq)lications were not signed by you until they came 
from the court ? 

A. Some We?e; soifie were not j some were made out in the office. 

3433. Q. By your clerks ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3434. Q. None of those papers that you have examined were made 
out by your clerks ? 

A. I cannot say that they were. 

3435. Q. Then the first that any of you clerks were able to see of these 
api)lications not marie out in your office was when they were brought by 
the parties with the initials of the judge, and then you attested them in 
your office ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3436. Q. And that was done by any of the five clerks who ha|)X)ened 
to be there ? 

A. Yes, sir; it was done by the clerks in the office. 

3437. Q. And the same parties who signed Mr. Sweeney’s name to 
them filled iq) the certificates, did tliey ? 

A. Ye«, sir. 

3438. Q. Then none of them were actually attested in open court ? 

A. They were not attested in open court any more than any other 

certicate issued from the clerk’s office is. It simply attests that the man 
was sicorn in open court. 

3439. Q. How many of these papers did you issue on any one day last 
October? 

A. We averaged some days 300, and some days 500; and one day, 
when we had the entire force of judges on, we had about 2,000. 

3440. Q. Hid you naturalize 25,000 in 30 days ? 

A. No, sir. 

3441. Q. How many did you naturalize in the 30 days preceding the 
last day ? 

A. To the best of my knowledge we naturalized about 18,000 during 
the month of October. We commenced on the first and closed on the 
23d. I have not counted them, but to the best of my knowledge I make 
the number about 18,000 for that month. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3442. Q. I understood you to say that there were not 25,000. 

A. I do not think there were. 

3443. Q. I understood you to swear positively that there were not 
25,000. 

A. I would not swear that there was not that number. 

21 T 


322 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Dickey : 

3444. Q. You said that they averaged 300 a day. 

A. I believe that they averaged from 300 to 500 a day, and sometimes 
more. 

3445. Q. After the first of October did you issue less than 580 a day ? 

A. There may have been days when Ave did not do as many as that. 

[The figures contained in Westlake’s testimony were here shown to the 
witness.] I do not know what figures they are. I cannot SAA^ear posi¬ 
tively as to the AA^ork done on each day. 

3440. Q. All the certificates were signed by you, I suppose ? 

A. Yes, sir; but I took no memorandum ; I haA^e been giving my esti¬ 
mate, and I should not suppose there Avere any more than 18,000 for the 
month of October. 

3447. Q. This paper shows that there were 20,000 certificates issued in 

October. ^ 

A. I do not SAvear that the paper is not right. * • 

3448. Q. How many hours during the day did this court sit % 

A. It opened at 10 o’clock in the morning and adjourned about 0 o’clock; 
then met again at 7 and sat until 9 or 10 o’clock. 

3449. Q. How many night sessions were held in that court 1 

A. We did not have many night sessions. 

3450. Q. Then the court did not really sit after 7 o’clock % 

, A. Not as a general thing. 

3451. Q. Did these judges hold separate and distinct courts ? 

A. Judge McGunu had the loAver room and Judge Garvin had the 
room above. 

3452. Q. How many days did both judges sit ? 

A. That I cannot tell; I knoAv the fact only that they sat at these 
times. 

3453. Q. Were there any means taken to identify the party who brought 
the application as being the party Avho appc'ared i n court I Was he brought 
OA^er in charge of an officer, or did he bring his own j)aper ! 

A. He brought his oavii iiaper. 

3454. Q. Then you do not know that the party who presented the 
ipaper to you was the same that appeared in court *? 

A. No, sir; we had no means of knowing that. 

3455. Q. How many of these applications were presented by one and 
the same man ? 

A. I do not know of any, except as I said the first day, when i)arties 
brought OA^er two or three and that was stopped. 

3456. Q. Did you look to see whether the same man w^as not dupli¬ 
cating himself 

A. Yes, sir. 

3457. Q. How do you account for the excess betAveen the 18,000 in 
your estimate and the 26,000 as appears by Mr. Westlake’s testimony? 

A. My OAvn is a mere estimate, and the other is an actual count. 

3458. Q. Were the witnesses ever present in your office ? 

A. They used to come at first, and Ave used to drive them out. 

3459. Q. Then the certificates that the witness was examined in open 
court was only deiWed from the initials of the judge; you neAer saw the 
witnesses ? 

A. We did see them when they came in, but we had nothing to do 
with them after they had passed the judge. 

By the Chairman : 

3460. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Patrick Gough ? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


323 


3461. Q. Do you know Joliu McCaffrey ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3462. Q. Did you examine these aiiplications as they came in approved 
by the judge ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3463. Q. Did you notice the fact that one man was a witness on the part 
of a number of them ! 

A. I did not. 

3464. Q. Would it have escaped your notice if it were so! 

A. *lt might. What I was most particular about was the signature 
of the court. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3465. Q. Did you examine to see whether the papers were all signed ! 

A. Yes, sir; and if any papers were imperfect I threw them out. 

3466. Q. Are there not in your office papers with the affidavits blank ! 

A. I do not know. I took it as the ground of my action that the clerk 

could not go behind the act of the judge; that the clerk’s duties are 
merely clerical, and that when a judge directs the clerk to issue a certi¬ 
ficate of naturalization he is bound to do it. 

3467. Q. Suppose parties neglect to sign the affidavit! 

A. In that case we kept the iiapers and sent them back. 

3468. Q. Did you do so ! 

A. We did so in several instances. 

3469. Q. Are there not cases in the office where that was not done ! 

A. I do not know. ^ 

By Mr. Hopkins : * 

3470. Q. Did you scrutinize any of the other signatures at all! 

A. No, sir. 

3471. Q. Look at this application of Daniel Sullivan, and state wliether 
the signature and the filling np are not all in the same handwriting. 

A. 1 do not think they are in the same handwriting; I am not an 
exiiert in handwriting. 

By Mr. E^err : 

3472. Q. Were you always in the office while this business of naturali¬ 
zation was being transacted ! 

A. Yes, sir; I was there from 10 in the morning until evening. 

3473. Have you the means of knowing how late the court sat each 
night! 

A. I have the means of knowing, because I sat until the court 
adjourned; but as to what particular days the court sat in the evening, 
and what particular days it adjourned at 6 o’clock, I cannot now state. 
It sat quite a number of times in the evening, but it was not an habitual 
thing. There were not constant night sessions as there were daily ses¬ 
sions. 

By the Chairman: 

3474. Q. You have said that you have sometimes returned applications 
that had the initials of the judge endorsed on them, when they were not 
signed by the witnesses ! 

A. I destroyed them. 

3475. Q. Was there any order of the judge about naturalization except 
the mere fact of his initials on the paper! 

A. No, sir. 


324 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3476. Q. Where were tlie names of tlie applicant and the witnesses 
signed to the application and the affidavit 

A. They were signed outside, before they went into the court. 

3477. Q. They were not signed in court! 

A. No, vsir. 

3478. Q. Nor in the room occupied by you ! 

A. No, sir. 

3479. Q. Tlien the name of the applicant and the name of the witness, 
as a general thing, were not signed in the court-room nor in the clerk^s 
room occupied by you, but in outside places in the city having no con¬ 
nection with the court! 

A. Yes, sir; the larger portion of them were so signed. 

. 3480. The name ‘‘ James M. Sweeney, clerk,’’ was not signed in the 
court room, but after the papers came back from the court-room into the 
room occupied by you, and was signed by the different clerks there ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

3481. Q. Will you produce to the committee the law which authorizes 
the deputy clerk to sign the name of the clerk to papers ! 

A. I will. 

3482. Q. How many seals were there in the court! 

A. Two. 

3483. Q. Where were they kept! 

• A. Both of them in my safe. 

3484. Q. Where was the seal affixed to the certificates of naturalization ! 

A. In the room down stairs. I had entire charge of the seals, and 

locked them up myself at night. I unlocked the safe in the morning, 
and was the only imrson who had access to the seals. We had two seals, 
one for the naturahzation office and one for the general office. 

•By Mr. HiciOiY: 

3485. Q. How*many distinctive branches of the superior court sat in 
one day for the naturalization of parties! 

A. Four; there were four judges of the same court sitting in different 
rooms at the same time. « 

By Mr. Eoss : 

3486. Q. Hid you ever leave your seals when you went out of the office 
so that others could have access to them! 

A. No, sir. 

3487. Q. No one could have access to them without your knowledge! 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

3488. Q. When you or other clerks signed the name of James M. 
Sweeney to the affidavits, on the application for naturalization, you did 
not see the witnesses! 

A. No, sir. 

3489. Q. The witnesses did not appear in court! 

A. O, yes, they did j but we were not in the court-room. 

New York, Saturday^ January 2,1869. 

A. Oakey Hall recalled and examination continued. 

By Mr. Kerr: 

3490. Question. AVhen we adjourned on Thursday we were talking 
about that meeting of democratic inspectors. 

Answer. That meeting assembled in pursuance to a circular, which I 
now presentj the circular is as follows: 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 325 

Sir : As one of the registrars and inspectors, you are respectfully notified of the following 
resolution: 

“Tammany Hall General Committee, 

“ October 19, 1868. 

“At the regular meeting, of this date, it was unanimously resolved that a committee of 
three be appointed by the chair to call a meeting of the democratic registrars and inspectors, 
for consultation, &c., &c., &c., with said committee and each other. 

“ The chair appointed Messrs. Fox, Purser, and Hall, such committee. 

“WM. M. TWEED, Chairman. 

“Wm. Hitciiman, 

“John Houghtalin, 

“ Secretaries.” 

In pursuance of said resolution, the committee respectfully and urgently request of you to 
attend for the above purpose, in the main hall of Tammany Hall, on the afternoon of Sun- 
da}’’, the jibth instant, at 3 o’clock punctually, and to bring this invitation with you as your 
voucher of admission. ' 

JOHN FOX, 

GEO. H. PURSER, 

A. OAKEY HALL, 

Committee. 

3491. Q. Did tlie inspectors meet on that call? 

A. The inspectors met on that afternoon, and not only the inspectors 
but a g^ood number of citizens. 

3492. Q. State in substance what transpired there. 

A. The iirincipal object of the meeting on that occasion was to have 
a clear understanding in regard to the effect of naturalization certificates. 
The October elections in Philadelpliia had developed the fact that a ques¬ 
tion had been raised as to how far naturalization certificates were iwima 
facie or conclusive proof with the inspectors. I stated to the inspectors, 
among other things, that I had the day before addressed a letter to Judge 
Davies, ex-judge of the court of appeals, and who was a very prominent 
republican politician, and that whatever response 1 should receive would 
be submitted, and I would recommend them to be guided by it. An 
answer was received from Judge Davies. I hand to the committee a 
copy of the correspondence which Avas sent by mail or b^^ private'hands 
to each inspector. 

The correspondence is as follows: 

REGISTRATION LAW. 

Interesting correspondence between the district attorney and Mon. Menry 
E. Davies.) ex-judge of the court of appeals. 

OPINION OF JUDGE DAVIES. 

City and County of New York, 

District Attorney's Office, October 24, 1868. 

My Dear Sir : My official opinion has been asked upon the following question, {as it is 
repeated in the opinion it is here omitted.) > 

I prefer, as I have been an active partisan during the canvass, to be guided by the pro¬ 
fessional opinion of one who, like yourself, is aloof from politics, and whose calm judgment 
ought not to be questioned. Please furnish me with it. 

With great respect, your obedient servant, 

A. OAKEY HALL. 

Hon. Henry E. Davies. 


New York, October 28, 1868. 

149 Broadway. 

Hon. A. Oakey Hall : 

Dear Sir : Your note of yesterday requests my opinion upon the following question, viz : 
“If a naturalized citizen, who claims before a board of registry the rights of an elector 
under chapters 740 of laws of 1865, and 812 of laws of 1866, produces before said board a 



326 


ELECTION EEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


certificate of naturalization from a court of competent jurisdiction, and makes proof, to the 
satisfaction of the board, that be is the identical person named in said certificate, wliat, in 
such case, will be the legal effect upon said board of said certificate, and what legal rights do 
such production and proof confer upon said elector respecting bis right to have his name 
inscribed upon the registry, assuming also that all other legal rights to said inscription exist?” 

Before proceeding to the consideration of the question, it is needful to refer to the existing 
provisions of the acts referred to. 

Section ], of the act of J865, declares that the board, after its organization, “shall then 
proceed to make a list of all persons qualified and entitled to vote at the ensuing election in 
the election district of which they are inspectors.” 

Section 4 of the same act also declares that “any person not born in the United States, 
on applying to have his name placed on the registry, shall prove that he is a citizen of the 
United States by producing a certificate of naturalization from a court of competent jurisdic¬ 
tion; nor shall any proof of his being a citizen be received unless he shall first show to the 
satisfaction of the board of registry that he is unable to produce such certificate.” 

The act of 1866 is amendatory and supplementary to that of 1865. 

Section 2 of this act declares “that no person shall be placed on such register if he shall 
be objected to by one of the inspectors or by a qualified voter of the city within which the 
election district is situated, unless he shall be known, or proved to the satisfaction of such 
inspectors, to be at the time a qualified voter of such election district: nor shall the name of 
any person be placed or retained on such register without the concurrence of three of the four 
inspectors, nor accept in case of compliance with section 7 hereof.” 

No person born out of the United States shall be placed on such register, unless he shall, 
to the personal knowledge of three of the inspectors, have been duly naturalized, or shall 
prove his naturalization, as provided in the act hereby amended. [Such provisions are 
found in section 4 of the act of 3865, as follows: “And any person not born in the United 
States, on applying to have his name placed on the registry, shall prove that he is a citizen 
of the United States by producing a certificate of naturalization from a court of competent 
jurisdiction; nor shall any other proof of his being a citizen be received, unless he shall 
first show, to the satisfaction of the board of registry, that he is unable to produce such 
certificate.”] 

When the question is raised upon the naturalization of a person, proof shall be made to 
the satisfaction of the inspectors, by his own oath or otherwise, that the person claiming to be 
placed on the register is the identical person named in the certificate he produces. 

Section 7 of the act of J866 declares that “in the cities of New York and Brooklyn the 
name of no person shall be placed upon said register, unless he shall appear in person before 
the said inspectors, and prove to their satisfaction his right to vote at the next election, in the 
election district in which he claims the right to vote.” 


OPINION. 

First. If three inspectors have personal knowledge that the applicant has been duly 
naturalized, it is their clear and imperative duty to register his name, if he possesses the 
other requisite qualifications. 

Second. If they have not such knowledge, then the right of the applicant to be registered 
is to be established in the following manner: 

1. By the production of a certificate of naturalization issued to the applicant by a court 
of competent jurisdiction, and all courts of record are such courts. 

2. If he is unable to produce such certificate, then the board are to be satisfied by other proof 
(and the oath of the applicant should be taken as prima facie sufficient evidence) that the 
applicant has been duly naturalized by a court of competent jurisdiction. 

Third. The production of the record of the court, being an cxeynplificution thereof under the 
seal of the court, and generally known as a certificate of naturalization, is conclusive evidence 
of the facts therein stated; and also conclusive evidence that all the preliminaries required by 
law to establish a right to naturalization have been complied icith. This was adjudged by the 
court of appeals in this State, in the case of McCautry vs. Marsh, 1 Sheldon, 266; and in 
Stark vs. Chesapeake Insurance Company, 7 Cranch, 420; Eitche vs. Putnam, 13 Wend., 
524; Spratt fs. Spratt, 4 Peters, 393. 

Fourth. It follows that where the applicant produces the record of the court establishing 
the fact of his naturalization, the only inquiries open and remaining for the board to make, 
and upon which they are to be satisfied, are: 

1st. Is the record produced the actual record issued to the applicant by a court of competent 
jurisdiction? and 

2d. Is the applicant the real person described in the record or certificate, and upon whose 
right to citizenship the court has adjudicated? 

If these facts are established to the satisfaction of the inspectors, they have no legal right 
to rejuse to register the name of the applicant, assuming he has the other requisite qualifications. 

Three inspectors are competent and necessary to decide all questions. 

HENRY E. DAVIES. 


ELEC^'TON FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


327 


AVttness continued: I had no doubt, and so answered them, tliat 
when a man applied to be registered and ])roduced a naturalization cer- 
tilicate, and when there was no doubt of its being the original seal of the 
court and signature of the clerk, it was conclusive, and that the inspector 
could not go behind it. I selected Judge Davies to get an opinion from 
because he had been and was a very prominent republican, and because 
his opinion would be of more service than my own, for I Avas a politician 
as well as a lawyer, and he Avas a lawyer Avithout being a politician, 
except in his natural affinities toAvard the x)arty Avith Avhich he acted. He 
gaAm an opinion, which I furnish to the committee, and it is to the effect 
that the certificate of naturalization was conclusiA^e ui)onthe inspector. 

3493. Q. I understood you to say that you addressed a meeting assem¬ 
bled at Tammany Hall under that call. 

A. Yes, sir; and I also ansAvered more than a hundred questions, I 
should think, that were asked by different inspectors about the carrying 
out of the peculiar and rather blind expressions of our registration 
and election laAv. There Avere a good many republicans present. The 
intention of the meeting was to have it private, but I recognized seweral 
gentlemen there, one of them from the United States marshars office, and 
1 Amry x)olitely told them that it was a private meeting, and that if they 
Avished to go they could, and that if they AAushed to stay they could. The 
main object of the meeting Avas to consult as to the effect of naturalization 
certificates. The meeting occupied, I should think, about an hour. Another 
reason of the meeting Avas to say that instructions Avould be pre})ared 
for the inspectors and sent to them. The year before a pamplilet instruct¬ 
ing them as to their duties was distributed by the board of police to each 
inspector and canvasser, by order of the board, and was x)repared by one 
of the commissioners, one of the clerks, and myself, AAdio am counsel to 
the x>olice board. This year the board, in its discretion, agreed not to 
distribute them. The republican x)arty reprinted the same thing in sub¬ 
stance, Avitli some amendments taking different views on some matters, 
and Ave rex)rinted it exactly without changing it, and Avith a xn^eface. 
We thought to liaA^e got it in timetohaA^e distributed it at that meeting, 
but it Avas not ready and had to be sent through the x^ost office. 

3494. Q. Was it sent to the insx^ectors and canvassers before the day 
of election 

A. O, yes; and before the registration was comxdeted. . 

3495. Q. State AAffiether it is practicable, considering the organization 
of the election boards and boards of canvassers, and xnffice force, and of 
Augilance committees, to x)ractice frauds on the ballot-box, in the count¬ 
ing or by manix)ulating ballots. 

A. I do not think it is x^ossible where there are only two tickets, but 
Avhere there are three tickets it is very x^ossible and A^ery x)robable—that 
is to say, that if two persons are running for the office of governor, it 
is wholly imxmssible to cheat; but if three x^ersons are running for the 
assembly, or if six are running, as is sometimes the case here, it is very 
easy, by collusion among all the canvassers and the poll clerks, to x>re- 
sent one of the tAvo candidates between AAdiom the fight lies Avith the 
portion of the vote Avhich has been really cast for one of the minor ones, 
Avho could not be elected. 

3490. Q. That can be done by talnx^ering with the ballots and trans¬ 
ferring them from one box to another. 

A. Yo, sir; they would have to do it after the ballots have been 
destroyed, and Avould hav^'e to alter the tallies. For instance, if A. B. 
had 109 Amtes, B. C. had 90 Amtes, another 30, another 20, it AAmuld be 
A^ery easy to diminish the Amtes of the lowest two by fiA^e or ten and add 


328 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tliein to the vote of one of the others; but there would have to be a sort 
of consent or collusion with the candidate himself. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3497. Q. In a ward where one candidate gets 500 votes and another 
candidate gets 350, Avhat is to prevent the transfer of votes from one 
candidate to the other ? 

A. I do not think that could be done, because men are alwayspresent 
watching. The canvass is very pubT^ and well watched, and an alter¬ 
ation wonld show in the general result; that is to say, it would look 
very odd for Horatio Seymour to get 100 votes on the electoral ticket 
and a man on the same ticket to get only 80, because in this city the 
machinery runs pretty regularly. 

3498. Q. Just that sort of discrepancy arose in this city last year, did 
it not 1 

A. I have known such instances, but they are very few. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3499. Q. By whom are the ballots destroyed ? 

A. The canvassers for the precinct; the statute obliges them to 
destroy them. The reason for the statute arises from the fact that it 
had been shown several years ago that the ballots when removed had 
been tampered with. 

3500. Q. Where are the returns of the registers required by law to be 
kept between the time of registration and the time of voting ? 

A. There are certainly three meetings of thfe registers in this city, and 
I)erhaps four. One copy of the list made at the first meeting is to be 
kept by each of the inspectors, and carefully preserved by him ‘for use 
on the other days of their meeting for revision and correction.’’ One 
coi)y is to be filed with the police commissioners. This disposes of five 
copies. The sixth copy of the list is, immediately after its completion, 
to be posted in some conspicuous place in the room in wdiich the meeting 
is held, so as to be accessible to any elector who may desire to examine 
it or make copies thereof; and the seventh cojiy is to be filed in the 
bureau of elections. Upon the final adjournment each of the inspectors 
keeps a copy of the registry, now fully completed, and files a fifth with 
the county clerk, a sixth in the bureau of elections, in the ofiice of the 
chief clerk of the metropolitan yiolice.” 

3501. Q. Do you know of any irregularity in the keeping or use of 
these returns prior to the last election? 

A. Ido not know of any irregularity, except from the aflidavits Avhich 
I have obtained by official inquiry. 

3502. Q. W^hat was that? 

A. Such as taking the lists to political committees a^t headquarters. 

3503. (^. Gould those lists have been in any w ay manipulated to the 
injury of the election by the committee to wdiich they may have been 
delivered ? 

A. It might have been done, but would have been very difficult. The 
most that could have been done w^ould have been to iiianipulate them, 
if all the poll registers had been in collusion. Such a thing as that is 
pretty difficult. 

By Mr. EOSS: 

3504. Q. Wffis it to the democratic organization that these lists were 
taken? 

A. I only know of their being taken to the Fifth Avenue committee. 
W"e did not want them. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 329 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

3505. Q. Yon only know tliis from what yon heard ? 

A. I heard two men testify to it. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3506. Q. They were taken there to he canvassed, I suppose ? 

A. I do not know what the object was. It is sufficient to say that it 
is just as snsceptible of an innocent implication as of a gniltyj and is as 
susceptible of a guilty one as of an innocent one. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3507. Q. Keferring back to yonr testimony on Thursday, in reference 
to these circulars, I understood yon to say that circulars were signed 
without the knowledge of the parties with whose names they were signed "? 

A. Yes, sir; I have brought one or two other circulars to which Mr. 
Tweed’s name was signed and which I believe he never saw. 

3508. Q. Do yon know a judge of the supreme court in this State 
named James *? 

A. Very well. 

3509. Q. Where is his district ? 

A. It is one of the northeastern districts. Oswego is in his district, 
and so is St. Lawrence. 

3510. Q. Is it remote from the city of Kew York ? 

A. It conld not very well be more remote; it is geographically, and 
morally, and politically remote. 

3511. Q. Do yon know of Judge James being here on the day of elec¬ 
tion ; and if so, for what pnrpose ? 

A. Judge James was here on the day of election, and I believe the day 
before. He held a court at the Metropolitan Hotel. I had official notice 
of the fact given me by the police authorities that he would be here to 
issue orders of arrest and to issue writs of habeas corpus. 

3512. Q. In pnrsnance of what law of the State of New York did he 
come here to hold court in this city ? 

A. There is no law allowing him to do so, and there is no law forbid¬ 
ding it. It is probably constitutional, because a judge of the supreme 
court in this State has jurisdiction everywhere in the State; bnt the 
practice has always been until the fends between the Central railroad and 
the Erie road, and the last election, for a judge never to execute an order 
out of his own district, or to hold court out of his own district, except on 
the request of the judges of the district into which he goes. It was 
regarded, as it was undoubtedly, a precautionary selection on the part of 
the minority party of this city. They only possessed one magistrate in 
the whole city. Justice Kelly; all the rest were democrats. Justice Kelly 
had power to issue orders of arrest, but not writs of habeas corims. Judge 
James did issue several orders of arrest, of which I afterwards had official 
notice, and the papers which he forwarded to me I sent to the court of 
special sessions for action, where they belonged. He issued one writ of 
habeas corpus., and under that discharged an inspector of election.. Ko 
notice of it was given to the attorney for the people, and consequently 
the people were not represented. I am the man to whom notice should 
have been given. The notice should be preliminary to the hearing, and 
it is a misdemeanor for a judge to hear a writ without notice to the i^arty 
interested. In that case I had no such notice before the hearing. 

3513. Q. State whether there exists in the laws of the State of Kew 
York, either general or special, relating to this county, any law that 
makes it the duty of the superintendent of the police to cause to be made 
a census of the disqualified electors of this city prior to an election ? 


330 


ELECTION ERAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


A. There is no siicli la^y. 

3514. Q. Do you know of any attempt being made by the superin¬ 
tendent of police, prior to the last election, to have such a census taken ? 

A. There was an order issued some time ago, when the board consisted 
of three republicans to one democrat, that the superintendent should 
take a census for the coming election. The board was equally divided 
at the last election, and the two democrats forbade the superintendent 
taking the census on the ground that it took a large number of policemen 
from their duty, but he claimed to act under the prior order, which w^as 
not rescinded, and he was understood to have taken such a census. 

3515. Q. Do you know whether that order for the census was regarded 
as having legal validity*? 

A. Judge Bosworth and Mr. Brennan, the two democratic commission¬ 
ers, thought that a prior order relating to one election could not be under¬ 
stood as apidying to another election, without new action j Mr. Acton 
and Mr. Mannerie thought it did, and the superintendent went under his 
old order. 

3510. Q. yon have stated that there is no law giving the board authority 
to order such a census? 

A. Ko, sir. 

3517. Q. Do you know as a matter of fact how that census was 
attempted to be taken? 

A. Yes, sir. I have two books in my office and they have all the rest 
up there. One or more policemen were detailed to ma]> out each election 
district, and to go from house to house and ask at the door who lived in 
the house over 21 years of age ? The supi)osition was that an answer would 
be given. If given, it w^as taken down, and if refused, that was stated. 
The object of it was to compare it w ith the register’s book as a check. 
The avowed object was to prevent, and if carried out as avowed it would 
decidedly prevent, fraud. But whoever could get sight of these books 
could perpetrate ver^^ extensive frauds by giving assumed names of men 
absent from the city, or non-voters, and use their name and residence to 
vote on illegally. 

3518. Q. Who had the custody of these books after they were made? 

A. Practically, this year the superintendent of police had control of 

them, because the board did not treat them as records. 

3519. Q. From your knowledge of politics in this city for the last ten 
years, and from the habits of persons of foreign birth in i)rocuring 
naturalization, I ask you to state whether it is a tact or not, that during 
the years of the war such i)ersons, in a greater proportion than hitherto, 
declined or failed to become citizens of the United States? 

A. I know that fact as a citizen, and as an official, and as a member of 
committees to raise troox^s in this city. I know that both x)arties com¬ 
plained, especially the democratic party, of the abstaining of Germans 
and Irishmen, and other foreigners, from naturalizing, lest they should be 
subject to the draft, and of x^ersons destroying their naturalization certifi¬ 
cates on the same ground. The records of the courts will show that 
during the years 18(>2, 1803, 1804, 1805, naturalizations were compara¬ 
tively few,A\ hile the arrivals at this port in the fe^Y years previously had 
been very great. 

By the Chairman : 

3520. Q. You say that the democratic members of the police board 
refused to make an order to require the superintendent of the x>olice to 
cause the census to be made in the year 1808 ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 331 

3521. Q. If a faithful census had been made by competent oflicers, 
would it not have furnished the means of detecting fraudulent voting ? 

A. To a great extent it would j and yet it would be also liable to per¬ 
version. 

3522. Q. If it was kept in the hands of i)roper officers ? 

A. Of non-partisan officers. 

By Mr. Dickey^ : 

3523. Q. Or of honest partisan officers ? 

A. That would be a very singular phrase in this city to be applied to 
either party. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3524. Q. Using that phrase in that very peculiar form, is it possible 
for there to be an honest partisan officer? 

A. I mean in reference to keeping the custody of these records. I do 
not mean to say that there cannot be absolutely such a thing as an honest 
partisan officer, but I mean that such a phrase as that in reference to 
such custody would be very queer indeed. It would be a queer phrase 
to use in relation to the custody of such papers, to expect any very ben¬ 
eficial result from it. 

By the Chairman: 

3525. Q. You say that a census would furnish the means of fraudulent 
voting by enabling repeaters to vote on real names, or aliases, or others 
not entitled to vote. Would not a registration containing real names of 
hona fide residents enable repeaters to vote upon the names of persons 
entitled to vote, but who did not in fact vote, especially towards the 
close of the polls ? 

A. Yes, sir. It is proper for me to add, that the obtaining such a 
census in the city of Kew York can only be partial, exceedingly partial; 
because the answer is not obligatory, and persons would refuse to answer. 
XVith all these immense tenement houses, where there are perhaps a 
hundred voters living, and where removals within a few days before the 
election are very numerous, such a census must be partial. 

352G. Q. Would not the same difficulty apply to the registry laws? 

A. No, sir; because when persons come to register at their new resi¬ 
dence they are obliged first to take their names from the registry at their 
old residence. 

3527. Q. How many police officers are there in this city ? 

A. I think about 2,000. 

3528. Q. Is that a comi)etent force to preserve peace and order ? 

A. No, sir; it ought to be double; this city ought to have 4,000 iiolice- 
men. 

3529. Q. Are not police officers charged by law with the duty of pre¬ 
venting the violation of the election laws? 

A. That is one of their general duties. 

3530. Q. Are they not authorized by law, as a necessary incident of 
that power, to adopt any means that conduces to that end ? 

A. No, sir, except statutory means. 

3531. Q. Do you say, as a lawyer, that when power is conferred upon 
officers they cannot adopt the necessary means conducing to that end ? 

A. I say that where general powers are conferred upon an officer in 
such general terms as to prevent frauds at elections,” they can only do 
it by following the directions or implication of some statute. 

3532. Q. In the case of such a statute, is it not an implication that 
the officer may adopt the necessary means to enable him to accomplish 
the purpose which he is authorized to accomplish ? 


332 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir, in x)articular cases coining under liis personal supervision. 
But tlie point I was getting at is, that the police department can only, 
under the orders to prevent fraud, emidoy legislative means of prevent¬ 
ing fraud. 

35 : 13 . Q. Do yon not know that the democratic neAVspapers and some 
leading democratic politicians, publicly and otherwise, advised the peo¬ 
ple, and especially democrats, not to furnish the names of persons to the 
police force engaged in taking the census prior to the last election ? 

A. I can answer that very pertinently^, by saying that, as a democratic 
editor and a democratic politician, I, myself, gave such advice for the 
reason that I deemed such action by the police a dangerous precedent. 

3534. Q. Was not such census taken a year ago under the order of the 
police board f 

A. Yes, sir, when the board was composed of three republicans to one 
democrat; and the same advice was given then. The advice was also 
given for the reason that we considered that the less the police depart¬ 
ment had to do with political machinery of any kind or description the 
better; and as a party we had deprecated the placing of the election 
machinery of the city in the hands of the police board, and taking it 
away from the people. 

3535. Q. Do you know the reputation of Henry E. Davies, John K. 
Porter, Henry Hilton, James Emott, and William Fullerton, as lawy^ers 
and men of integrity ? 

A. Yes, sir; in my judgment there are no better lawyers or'men of 
more integrity in the city of Yew York than those gentlemen. 

353C). Q. State if they gave an opinion as to the duty of an inspector 
of registry end election. 

A. Yes, sir. I am one of the regular counsel to the board of police, 
and JMr. Kennedy exi)ressly declined to refer the matters embraced in 
the opinion to myself or my partner, Mr. Vanderpoel, because we were 
democrats. He said he would take the opinion of lawyers who were 
republican. 

3537. Q. Will you produce the opinion these gentlemen gave ? 

A. Yes, sir. The opinion is as follows: 

Attention is called to the following' opinion, signed by Henry E. Davies, late chief justice 
of the court of appeals, John K. Porter, late judge of the court of appeals, Henry Hilton, 
late judge of the court of common pleas, and William Fullerton and James Emott, late 
justices of the supreme court. 


New York, October 28, 1868. 

Dear Sir: We have examined the law as to registry and elections, and have arrived at 
the following conclusions: 

First. We are of the opinion that the inspectors of registry, commonly called the registers, 
must be “satisfied” that any person claiming to be registered is a legal voter in the district 
where he claims to be registered, and in seeking to satisfy themselves they may gather evi¬ 
dence from the statements of the applicant, and from other sources. If, eitlier from an exami¬ 
nation of a person who presents to them a paper purporting to be a certificate of naturaliza¬ 
tion, or from other evidence, they are not satisfied that the applicant is the person to whom 
the certificate was issued, or are not satisfied that he is entitled to its possession, in any such 
case it is the duty of the inspectors to refuse to register such persons. 

Second. As the inspectors must be “satisfied ” of the right of the applicant to be registered, 
his mere claim to be so registered, apart from his oath or trom other evidence, does not in 
any way establish his right. Inspectors in receiving or rejecting names act quasi judicially, 
and must act fairly upon evidence satisfactory to their own minds. 

Third. We are of the opinion that the oath of an applicant for registry is not conclusive 
as to his right to be registered, and that consequently, even if an applicant offers to take, 
and does take, the legal oaths, the inspectors should still refuse to register him if from evi¬ 
dence they are satisfied that he is not a legal voter within the election district. 

Fourth. We are of tire opinion that no mandamus can be legally issued to compel an 
inspector to act in a particular manner indicated by a court or judge. Inspectors act judi- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


333 


cially in passing- upon the right of persons to he registered and to vote. If ore is issued, tlie 
inspectors are entitled to an opportunity to consult counsel before taking any action, as it is 
to be presumed that it has been iinprovideutly issued by the court, and that on the attention 
of the court being dirfected to the facts it will be recalled. Writs of peremptory mandamus 
cannot lawfully be issued or granted rx parte; if there is no alternative writ in the first 
instance, the parry is entitled to a notice or order to show cause, and to be heard on such 
notice. If any order were granted against a register, on such application, it would be appeal- 
able and should be carried at once to the highest court. A writ of peremptory mandamus 
granted without notice and without an opportunity to oppose it is entirely void ; the writ 
must be founded on proofs and allegations of fact made under oath, and then may be denied 
and disproved under oath. Inspectors should, therefore, when one is served upon them, con¬ 
tinue to perform their duties and send for counsel to advise them. We should, however, add 
that, in our opinion, no paper which shall interrupt the proceedings of the board can, if issued, 
be legally served while the inspectors are engaged in the performance of their duties, and 
that if any attempt is made to break up the board, or to interrupt its proceedings, it is com¬ 
petent for the board, with the concurrence of three of the inspectors, to order the police to 
arrest the person so interrupting, and the police are bound to obey such order. 

Fifth. We are of the opinion that no name can be placed upon the registry unless three 
of the inspectors are present and all three concur in placing it there. 

Sixth. We are of the opinion that no register who in good faith observes the provisions 
of the law can incur any responsibility, either civil or criminal, even though he may honestly 
err in weighing the evidence upon any application for registration. 

Seventh. It is clear that registers must meet at 8 o’clock a. m. of Friday and Saturday, 
October 30 and October 31, and must adjourn at 9 o’clock p. m. on each day. They cannot 
sit beyond that hour on eitlier day. 

Your obedient servants, 


HENRY E DAVIES, 
JOHN K. PORTER, 
HENRY HILTON, 
WILLIAM FULLERTON, 
JAMES EMOTT. 


John A. Kennedy, Esq., Superintendent. 


3538. Q. Who is Sauiuel North % 

A. Saninel North is a citizen of Chenango county, secretary of our 
deinccratic State conunittee; I do not think he holds any office. 

3539. Q. State if he was arrested by the niilitary anthorities during 
the war; and if so, for what, and how long he was held in custody'? 

A. He is the Saninel North wlio was arrested during the progress of 
the presidential elec^tion of 18GT, but why arrested I do not know. 

3540. Q. Was it by tlie military authorities ? 

A. That is a nice question. 1 belieA^e the colonel himself claims to 
jirofess not to know who arrested him, why he was arrested, or anything 
about it. 

3541. Q. How long was he held in custody? 

• A. 1 do not know, but my imiiression is that it was several months; 
and mjAmiiression also is that he was finally discharged without trial. 

3542. ’ Q. Yon have stated that a bench warrant was issued for the 
arrest of Wesley Allen. Do yon knoAv, as a matter of fact, whether that 
warrant ever reached the hands of the police officer ? 

A. I know, as a matter of fact, that the party to whom I gave the 
warrant stated to me that it had been left at the station-house at which 
Captain Mills commands, with his name written on it; and after the 
election Captain Mills arrested the man. 

3543. Q. Do yon know whether it reached the hands of Captain Mills 
until the day before the arrest was made ? 

A. 1 only knoAV it was left at the station-house some two weeks before 
the election, directed to him. 

3544. Q. Did yon ever call the attention of the superintendent of 
police, Kennedy, to the fact that this warrant had been issued ? 

A. I do not know. 

3545. Q. Do you not know that some law or regulation requires that 


334 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


all such warrants shall first pass through the hands of the superintendent 
of police ? 

A. No, sir; there is no such regulation, and there could he no such 
regulation. The law of the State is that any police officer shall execute 
a warrant, and the practice of my office for seven years, unchallenged 
hy any instructions to me to tlie contrary, has been to send them to the 
station-houses, addressed to private patrolmen, sergeants, and captains; 
and I understand the discipline of the force requires that each person 
shall take it, unless there is some objection, to the superintendent, to 
get his orders. 

3546. Q. Did you cause the attention of the superintendent of police 
to be called to the fact that this warrant had been issued ? 

A. It was issued in the ordinary way, as we issue all warrants directed 
to special officers who take an interest in cases. 

3547. Q. At this meeting of the democratic inspectors of election, did 
you ad^dse that when a person had a certificate of naturalization, it was 
satisfactory evidence of his right to be registered as a voter ? 

A. As conclusive, if they had no doubt it had the seal of the court 
and the signature of the court. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3548. Q. What did you consider the necessity of giving such advice 
just at that particular time 

A. Because, at previous elections, so much trouble and difficulty had 
arisen from the fact that it required the concurrence of three inspectors 
to put a man’s name on the registry; and, therefore, if the board were 
to vote two and two, it did not go on ; and the board is divided two and 
two, politically. We understood instructions were given to the repub¬ 
lican inspectors to object to all naturalization papers. 

3549. Q. At what date was this meeting held ? 

A. On the Sunday afternoon prior to the election. 

3550. Q. Before that time had there not been a great deal of excite¬ 
ment in the city in reference to naturalization papers being scattered 
round; and had not several men been arrested for delivering i)j^x3ers 
charged to have been fraudulently obtained % 

A. There had been two arrests made by the United States marshal. 
I know of no others. 

3551. Q. AVas Eosenberg one of them? 

A. Yes ; I heard he was one of them. 

3552. Q. This meeting, you say, had no connection with the excite¬ 
ment in regard to those cases at all ? 

, A. Not the slightest. I do not think the subject was referred to, 
except, I believe, a reference was made to it by some of the crowd, and 
something was said by me about the marshal putting up a stool-pigeon 
game to frighten naturalized citizens. I think 1 used that expression. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3553. Q. Was there a meeting also of the democratic canvassers? 

A. Yes, sir. I produce to the committee the circular calling that 
meeting, and the ticket of admission to it. 

The circular and ticket produced by the witness are as follows : 

Rooms of Tammany Hall General Committee, 

New York, October 28, 1868. 

Sir: As one of the democratic canvassers, you are respectfully and urgently invited to 
meet witb the committee appointed by the Tammany Hall general committee, for conference 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 335 

as to legal rights, in the main hall of Tammany Hall, on Sunday next, the first day of Novem¬ 
ber, at three o’clock p. m. 

The enclosed ticket must be presented at the door, as without it you cannot enter. 

Very truly yours, 

JOHN FOX, 

GEORGE H. PURSER, 

A. OAKEY HALL, 

Committee. 

[Card, with engraving of “Tammany Hall” on one side, and “Admit the bearer; Nov¬ 
ember I, 1868—3 p. m.,” on the other.] 

3554. Q. At wliafc date was tliat meeting ? 

A. The canvassers are not appointed until very shortly before the 
election, and this meeting was held on the Sunday afternoon before the 
election. 

3555. Q. At that meeting what instructions did you give to the demo¬ 
cratic canvassers as to counting the votes ! 

A. I read them the statute directing that, in case of the electoral ticket 
for President and yice-President, each name on the ticket must be can¬ 
vassed, and the tickets not counted as a whole. One of my objects in 
calling attention to that fact was to prolong the count as far as possible, 
so that the interior could not hear from the city of New York as early 
as they had done at former elections. 

355G. Q. So that the result should be announced as late as possible ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3557. Q. Your object, then, was to get the returns from the country 
before they got the riiturns from New York ? 

A. No; our object was to prevent their getting the New York vote; 
it was nothing to us to get their vote, except as we opened the wires and 
made them send their vote. 

3558. Q. The etfect of it, then, was that you would get the vote from 
the couiitr}" before they could get the vote from the city ? 

A. That would be one eftect. 

3550. Q. Was there a change in that respect from the practice of for¬ 
mer years? 

A. No, sir; no change in the practice, except to some extent. I have 
been an inspector myself; and a great many inspectors would always 
canvass each name on the electoral ticket. Some would do so because 
there are always bets as to who shall run highest on the ticket, and who 
shall run the lowest. We had another object in this, and that was we 
thought the vote would be rather close, and that we might elect some of 
our electors and might not elect others. The tickets are not always cor¬ 
rectly printed. It often happens that two or three names are left off the 
ticket, and it would not do, therefore, to count each ticket as having 
upon it 33 names, when it might only have 30 or 31. 

3560. Q. As soon as the result from the country began to be announced 
in the city, did they not then stop canvassing separate names on the 
ticket, and count them as a whole ? 

A. No, sir, I think not. As I understand it, the superintendent of 
police arbitrarily interfered with the sworn canvassers in the discharge 
of their duties, and directed them to liurry up their count. 

3561. Q. How much later was it before you returned the result in this 
city this year than it was at the last presidential election? 

A. It Avas about three hours later than usual. 

3562. Q. At what time was the result announced in the city ? 

A. I think about half-past eight. 

3563. Q. How much of the State had you heard from at that time ? 

A. We had heard, I guess, from about one-tliird of it. 


336 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Chairman: 

35G4. Q. When you say that yon advised the democratic canvassers to 
canvass all the names of electors, in the electoral vote for President and 
Vice-President, yon mean that the name of each elector on every ticket 
Mas to he read over 

A. Yes, sir, agreeahly to the schedule furnished them, on which sched¬ 
ule was the pame of every elector. 

35G5. Q. Does the law prescribe which ballot-box shall be opened first 
and counted 1 

A. Yes, sir; the iiresidential ballot-boxes. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

35GG. Q. Do you mean to say that by half-past eight you had ascer¬ 
tained the vote of the several wards ? 

A. Yes, sir, I think the full result was in; the substantial result was 
in by that time, and the polls closed at six minutes before five o’clock. 

By the Chairman : 

35G7. Q. Ito you not know that the practice at former presidential 
elections in canvassing the electoral vote was simi)ly to coimt each ticket 
as a whole without reading the names of each elector 

A. Yes, sir; it had been. My attention was first called to this matter 
in 18G4, when the result was very close. I wish to disavow the remotest 
intention on our part of in any way advising the canvassers in the city 
of New York as to the state of the country polls; and as a matter of fact 
I state that no one single canvasser in the city of New York knew what 
was the country poll, excepting as he may have heard it was announced 
at Tammany Hall or Cooper Institute. Allow me also to state that these 
meetings of inspectors and canvassers are not unusual. It so happens 
that I addressed a meeting of inspectors, of the first republican party, 
too, of which I was a member. 

35G8. Q. Will you produce to the committee the law as to the canvass¬ 
ing of the electoral votes ? 

A. The law of 4855, chapter 513, provides for the canvass in the State 
of New York, and the order in which they shall be canvassed; amended 
in 185G b}" chapter 79. The law in relation to electors is in First Devised 
Statutes, page 435. It is as follows: 

And tlie result, being found, the inspectors shall surely attach to a statement of such can¬ 
vass one ballot of each kind, found to have been given for the officers to be chosen at such 
election, any or either of them, except those given for electors of President or Vice-Presi- 
dent. *» * * * if # # * # 

When the electors of President and Vice-President shall be chosen at any election, the 
inspectors shall make a separate canvass and statement of the votes given, and for electors 
in the order prescribed in the last preceding section. 

Will ;you allow me to add also that at the meetiug of inspectors I sub¬ 
mitted to them the ophiioii of the attorney general of the State, which 
I now present to the committee. 

The following is the paper presented: 

Opinion of the attorney general on the duties of hoards of registry and inspection. 

The attorney general of this State having been interrogated as to tlie duty of boards of 
registry and inspection, answers under date of October J9, as follows : 

State of New York, Attorney General’s Office, 

Albany^ October J9, 1868. 

Gentlemen: Absence from the city has prevented me from answering the inquiries con¬ 
tained in your letter of September 30 until the present moment. 

The law does not require a naturalized citizen in any case to present his certificate of nat¬ 
uralization to the board of inspectors on offering his vote on election day. Such board has 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


337 


no legal antliovity to require it. On offering liis vote, if cliallenged, lie is only required to 
take, first, tlie preliminary oath, and answer all questions authorized to be put to him under 
that oath. It is immaterial as to his ultimate right to vote, how he answers such questions, if 
he does not refuse to answer such. He is, although the challenge be not withdrawn, still 
entitled to vote, if he will take, second, the general oath, which must be administered ; and 
his vote cannot, on taking such oath, for any cause be rejected. 

The object of the preliminary oath is to elicit facts upon which the person offering his vote 
may be advised as to his rights. But such advice is not controlling. The right is with the 
elector, to judge of his own qualifications as a voter; and if he is willing to take the general 
oath his vote must be received by the board. 

The board, when met to make registration of voters, have a right to require the produc¬ 
tion of the naturalization papers of a naturalized citizen offering himself for registry. You 
ask “if the inspectors have the right arbitrarily to reject the voter because of a mere suspi¬ 
cion that the papers were wrong?” If the papers are in form and have the signature of 
the clerk and the seal of the court impressed, I am of opinion that the board has no legal 
power to disregard them. 

If they should assume that the papers were spurious in any case and reject them, and 
refuse to register the name, they would do so at their peril and render themselves liable, if 
the person rejected was a legal voter. 

It is very difficult to imagine a case in which it would be a prudent or a proper exercise of 
official duty to do so. 

The principle is fundamental, as applied to all judicial proceedings, that the seal of the 
court from which the record emanates implies the absolute verity of the record and makes it 
conclusive. 

A certificate of naturalization under the seal of a court of competent jurisdiction I do not 
believe can be disregarded at the mere caprice of the board ; and it would be an arbitrary 
and illegal exercise of power to assume that the seal so impressed was forged or surrepti¬ 
tiously affixed. * 

Respectfully, yours, 


Messrs Norton and Montange. 


M. B. CHAMPLAIN, 

Attorney General. 


New York, January 2, 1809. 

John H. McOunn s^YO^n and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 
Bv Mr. Kerr : 

3oG0. Question. AYliat is your official position ? 

Answer. I am at present one of the judges of the superior court of 
this city. 

3570. Q. Were you one of the judges of the court during the year 
1808 ? 


A. YYs ; I have been one of its judges for the last five years. 

3571. Q. Who were your associates during the year! 

A. Chief Justice Kobertson, now deceased, Judge Garwn, Judge 
Monell, Judge Barbour, and Judge Jones. 

3572. Q. Is your court a court of record, that has i)Ower to naturalize 
persons of foreign birth ‘f 

A. Yes, sir. 

3573. Q. It has appeared in evidence here that . during the month of 
October last, from the 1st to the 23d, inclusive, a number of persons 
were naturalized in the suiierior court of the city, and county.of New 
York. I hand you a statement of the numbers naturalized upon .each 
day during that month, as furnished by the clerk of that court, aud I 
ask you to detail to the committee, in your own way, soinewliat speci¬ 
fically, the manner in which this naturalization was conducted in your 
court, and, so far as you know, in the court when held by any one of 
your associates. 

A. Judge Garvin and myself were the principal judges engaged in 
naturalization. I always took my seat at 12 o’clock, and sometimes 
before 12, and Ave imrsued the ordinary course pursued in the court from 
the time that I first knew it. Judge Garvin sat froni the time the court 
was opened in the morning, about 10 o’clock, until 12 o’cloclv, and I 


22 T 


338 


ELECTION ERAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


would then relieve him. I sat one night until 11 or 12 o’clock. It was 
a night when we were very much i^ressed, and I desired to afford every 
facility to those who were clamoring for tlieir papers. 

3571. Q. Begin at the time when an applicant came into your court¬ 
room, and state how you transacted this business, step by step. 

A. Well, the paper was made out by the clerk of the court, or by 
some oue. The applicant himself, with his paper already made out, 
came in and presented it to the court, and the applicant for the right of 
citizenship and his witness were both sworn together, and then they 
passed along to the clerk who administered the oath of citizenship to the 
man claiming the boon of citizenship. 

3575. Q. The oath of citizenship was not administered by the court ? 

A. O, yes; in the presence of the court. 

3576. Q. Then you did not know the origin of the apidications'? 

A. AYe did not as a rule. They can come in almost any form ; they 
have printed forms, the only forms in ffict that we have ever acted upon, 
but they can bring the api)lication in a written form. 

3777. Q; . State with what particularity and care, during those hurried 
days, you were in the habit of examining parties and their witnesses. 

A. O, we were very careful ; I was very careful, and so Avas Judge 
Garvin. 

3578. Q’: What Avas the usual course ? 

A. The applicant and his Avitness Avere brought up before me and 
sworn. First I Avould put the ordinary questions to the person applying 
for his papers, to see AAdiether he Avas a proper and fit sulqect for receiv¬ 
ing the rights of citizenship. After examining the applicant himself, I 
would then examine the Avitness, to knoAV how long he had knoAvn the 
man in this country. That Avas done A^ery speedily, of course. AWien 
we have our Park filled Avith persons Avho are endeaA^oring to get a 
chance to exercise the right to vote upon such an occasion as a presi¬ 
dential election, of coui'se it cannot be expected Ave Avould take that 
time that would be taken if there Avere only two or three applicants a 
day. Yery few applications for citizenship had been made in our court 
from the time the war began until the present time, comparatiA^ely 
speaking. 

3579. Q. In the course of your administration of this duty, did you 
confer the right of citizenship upon nearly all who applied for it ? 

A. No, sir; a large proportion of these I rejected. 

3580. Q. What did you do Avhen you rejected a man? 

A. I would tear up the papers, so that the papers could not again get 
before another judge, and tliroAv the pieces at my feet. 

3581. Q. Did you dispose in that way of any considerable number ? 

A. I may have rejected, (and I am quite sure that Judge GarAun did, 

for I was on the bench with him when he Avas naturalizing, before his 
hour was up,) at the lowest calculation, from fi\^e to ten per cent. 

3582. Q. State to the committee Avhether, in the time you were giAung 
to that business, you had an opportunity of detecting the fact that A 
B, for instance, was coming in there as a Avitness for half a dozen per¬ 
sons or for a dozen. 

A. Yes, sir; I saAV many such, and when I caught a man at thait once 
I never Avould receive his application again. I can retain faces in my 
memory as long as any other person of my age. I quickly detected these 
])ersons, and not only that, but I put them under arrest when I found 
them coming back a second time. 

3583. Q. AYhere did you hold your court during the time you were 
doing this business ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


339 


A. Principally in tlie superior court room. There were two or three 
evenings wlien there was a great press, and when four judges were sit¬ 
ting, that I held court in the board of conncilinen’s room; at other times 
I sat in the superior court room. 

3584. Q. During all this time where was tlie clerk’s desk, with refer¬ 
ence to the place Avhere you sat and did business 1 

A. Immediately upon my right. 

3585. Q. AYhere were Mr. Meeks and Mr. Sweeney ! 

A. Their offices were in the old City Hall, and our court-rooms are in 
the brown-stone building on Chambers street. 

3580. Q. How many clerks did you generally have in the court-room ! 

A. Two, one upon each side of me. 

3587. Q. AVhat were their duties 1 

A. One was to swear the applicants and their witnesses, and to help 
me in detecting frauds that might be attempted to be perpetrated. I 
never administered the oath unless the principal and the witness were 
together, and my positive instructions to the clerks Avere not to deliver 
any papers to a human being but the person applying for the right to 
be a citizen. 

3588. Q. Did you ever administer the oath of citizenship to any per¬ 
sons in squads or singly who were outside of your court room. 

A. Never in my life, nor to squads in the court-room. I would be a 
foolish man, when Ave had such splendid honest material there to make 
citizens out of, and who deemed it an honor to become such, to resort 
to anything that Avas tricky or mean or contenq)tible. 

3580. Q. Do you belie\'e, from your knoAAdedge of the circumstances 
and the surroundings of those rooms, it to liaA^e been possible that at 
any time any number of persons could have come into your court-room, 
and could there, under any pretext or by any trick or (Wice, haA^e gone 
through the process of naturalization Avithout themseh^es having been 
l)ersonally present before you ? 

A. I should think not. They could not do it a second time before me, 
and I do not think they could the first time. Two strangers might come 
in with their i^apers made out, and might SAvear to them, and might go 
through all the examination, but they would liaA^e to be A^ery skilled men 
to do it. 

3590. Q. Suppose that ten men should come up here now and SArear 
that they had each been naturalized in the superior court presided OA^er 
by Judge McCunn, in the city and county of Ncav York, without them¬ 
selves having been inside his court-room 

A. They Avould be liars of the first water, or perhaps I had better 
modify that, and say that it Avould be imx)ossible, unless they were more 
than human. 

3591. Q. You made it a rule, then, absolutely to have or to suppose 
that you had, all persons applying for naturalization in their own projAer 
Iverson before you Avith their Avituesses 'i 

A. Yes, sir; in every instance. 

3592. Q. Hoav did you indicate to the clerks whose duty it was to hand 
to the applicants their final certificates the fact that you had passed upon 
their applications ? 

A. 1 signed my initials to the application and handed it to an officer, 
and the officer passed it to the clerk, and the clerk SAVore in the appli¬ 
cant and directed him to go to the clerk’s office and get his certificate of 
citizenship. 

3593. Q. Look at the application of Daniel Sullivan and state whether 
the order for the certificate to issue in that case was signed by you, and 
if so, hoAV ? 


340 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. It was signed by me; tliese are my genuine initials; that is tlie 
way in wliich I have been in the habit of making the order since I liave 
been upon the bench, and 1 believe it is the way in which all 1113 " associ¬ 
ates do it. 

3594. Q. Are you aware of a siiniler practice prevailing in the other 
courts of record here ? 

A. 1 do not know. 1 know that when I was naturalized myself, 23 
3 'ears siiu'c, that was the rule. 

3595. Q. Look at the application of IMichael Kerwin, and state if that 
is your signature upon it. 

A. Yes, sir; I remember that man, Kerwiii; and I remember Sullivan 
also. 

3590. Q. Look at the application of Maximilian Boeck, and state if 
jmur signature to that is genuine. 

A. I think it is. 

3597. Q. Examine the paper and state whether, in your judgment, 
these several names (not yours and the clerk’s, but the other names) 
are not all executed b\" the same hand. 

A. They ai)pear to be all the same, but in such a case I would subject 
all the parties to a severe cross-examination. When I found papers like 
these in the same handwriting, 1 would ask the applicant for citizen- 
shi}), and his Avitness, if the signatures Avere theirs, and if the^vsaid they 
AA^ere, I took it for granted that it AAais true. The initials ui)on this paper 
ot Maximilian Boeck do not look like m 3 ’ signature, but tlie 3 ’ ma 3 ’ haA’e 
been signed by me AAath a ucav pen. 

3598. Q. It appears that on the 14th day of October there Avere 
naturalized in the superior court 2,109 persons; can 3 ’ou tell about Iioav 
long 3 mu and 3 ’our associates, aaTio sat at all on tliat da 3 y were in ses¬ 
sion ? 

A. Yes; I can tell 3^11 all about that da3^ Judge Garvin came doAA’ii 
that morning earl3’ and oi^ened his branch of the court. He stated to 
me the night before that there was a A’eiy great pressure of people to 
get their papers, and that 1 had better come doA\m earl3’ and open 
another l)rauch of the court. I came doAvn the next morning about 10 
o’clock and opened another branch of the court on the same tloor. The 
court-room aa'us croAA’ded to suffocation, and 1113’doing so did not seem 
to relieve the court at all. Judge Barbour A\ais up stairs holding another 
branch of the court in the general term room, and Judge Jones AA’as also 
holding court in the little special term room, so that upon that da3’ we 
had four judges naturalizing. 1 sat that night later than on any other 
night; 1 felt it my duty to do so; I look upon the boon of citizenship 
as a veiy grcait boon; and I luiA’c no doubt that those applying for it 
look upon it in the same light. 

3599. Q. Hoav late did 3 ’ou sit that night! 

A. I think till after 11 o’clock. 

3009. Q. Do 3 ’ou knoAv hoAV long the other judges sat? 

A. I think 1 can tell you. dudge Garvin aa'us Avorn out, I think, about 

I o’clock in the da 3 \ He had come down there veiy early. Judge 
Jones I think sat till about 2 o’clock, and Judge Barbour until about the 
same hour, until the 3 " broke the pressure. I remained in session until 

II at night. 

3001. Q. Do 3 ’ou recollect the date of the institution of the proceed¬ 
ings against Kosenberg? 

A. I do not. I recollect that I refused men coming from there asAA’it- 
nesses re])eatedl 3 ’—men who I sup])osed AA ere connected with that office. 

3002. Q. From the 5th to the 13th of October, inclusiA’e, there Avere 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


341 


from 1,425 to 1,8G8 persons naturalized in a day—state wlietlier you 
have any distinct recollection of the number of judges who co-operated 
in the business of naturalization ui)on those days. 

A. No; I cannot tell; one day Ave had live judges sitting, and I 
believe I forgot to mention that Chief Justice ilobertson naturalized 
some persons on the 14th; as a general thing he did not do much of that 
Avork. He Avas an old man and we tried to keep tlie rough Avork of the 
profession away from him. 

3003. Q. Hid you at any time during this business exclude the public 
from the room in Avdiich you AA’ere doing it 1 

A. Never. On the contrary, Avhen a reporter for the press came in, 
I always offered him eA^ery facility in the Avorld. We Avere doing this 
naturalization honestly and properly, and we did not care for the Avorld 
seeing us. When I saAv it charged in the papers that Ave had excluded 
some reporters, 1 felt xeiy indignant indeed. 

3004. Q. Ho you knoNv anything about a a isit made to Noav York by 
Judge James, a non-resident judge of the supreme court of this State ? 

A. I Avill state all I knoAV about it. Since I have had the honor to be 
a judge of the superior court I have refrained from interfering actively 
in elections, and I liaA^e remained at home after voting. This year I 
Amted early, and then returned to my home and stayed there. While at 
home 1 was called for by some of my servants, stating that some men 
Avanted to see me. I called them up in my library, and they told me that 
a man by the name of McLoughlin—I may be mistaken in the name, but 
he Avas an Irishman—had been arrested, and they stated the facts attend¬ 
ing his arrest in a very concise AAmy. They said that a certain judge Avas 
staying at the Metropolitan Hotel, and that this man had been taken 
there and Avas about to be sent someAvhere else. I said I knew Judge 
James, and kneAA^ him to be a good-hearted man, AAiio Avould not perpe¬ 
trate any Avrong against even the humblest citizen, and that I Avould go 
and see him. I Avent doAvn to the Metropolitan Hotel and inquired for 
Judge James, and they told me he Avas up-stairs, I think in room No. 101. 
I Aveiit up-stairs to that room and knocked at the door, and some person 
opened the door and saAv Avho Avas there, because I am as Avell knoAvii 
here as the toA\m pump. He announced the fact inside, and I suppose 
Judge James permitted me to enter. I did so, and represented to Judge 
James what I supposed Avas the correct theory of this arrest. This man 
]\[cLoughlin,if that A\ms his name, had moA^ed from the district in Avhich 
he IHed into another district, or his district had been dhided and lie 
Avas uncertain in AAdiich district he ought to A^ote. He inquired of the 
inspectors in Avhich district he should Amte, and they told him in sucii 
and such a district. He Amted in that district, and left the polling booth 
to go elseAvhere, and he Avas arrested and brought doAvn for voting in an 
improper district. The man had not Amted before, and liad only Aa)ted 
once and in that district. I stated these facts to Judge James, and he 
said at once that the man must be liberated, and he did liberate him. 
While I Avas there one of my constituents, no doubt, Avas brought in, 
and he said, “Judge, I am not guilty in this matter at all.” 

3005. Q. Was he an Irishman ? 

A. No, sir; he Avas a iiatiA^e and “to the manor born,” but he kneAV me 
A^ery Avell. He said, “ I am not guilty, and if his honor Avill send a police 
olhcer with me I Avill convince him that I am not guilty.” I reiieated 
Avhat he had said to me to Judge James, and Judge James felt inclined 
to send an officer Avith him, but Mr. Jay Avas there, and Mr. Hliss and 
Judge Hilton, and others (as Charles Lamb AAmuld say) “ Avho did not 
belong to us,” and the judge finally said that he could not aiford time for 


342 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


a police officer to go witli tlie man. I tlien said, “ I sliall feel it incum¬ 
bent u})on me, if application is made to me, to issue a writ for tliis man, 
to get him out,” and I left; and I think Judge James left immediately 
after. That night or the next morning I issued a writ to bring up all 
Judge James’s prisoners before me, and, after notifying him at the place 
where he had been and ascertaining that he had left for parts unknown, 
I discharged the squad arrested by him that day—and that ended the 
matter. I would say, in explanation, that I know Judge James to be a 
pure and high-minded man. 

By the Chairman : 

3606. Q. You have spoken of a squad having been arrested by him; 
do you mean that he arrested or ordered many men to be arrested ! 

A. They were arrested under his warrants as a magistrate. 

3607. Q. Was he authorized to issue such warrants I 

A. O, yes; we are all magistrates. 

3608. Q. Were you present when Judge James released an election 
officer named S. S. Urmy? 

A. I was there when some man was released. Some application was 
made while I was there, but I paid no attention to it; I was chatting 
with Mr. Jay and Judge Hilton. 

3609. Q. From what you heard and saw, was the release properly made ? 

A. AVell, I cannot speak of the release at all. 

3610. Q. Has a judge power to discharge upon a habeas corpus f 

A. He has power to inquire and discharge for x)roi)er reasons. 

3611. Q. When an ai)plication is made in i^roper form, does a judge 
have power to discharge upon Jiaheas corpus without giving notice to the 
district attorney ? 

A. Yes, I think he is bound by law to give notice to the district 
attorney of his county; the statute requires it. 

3612. Q. Suppose the district attorney is not to be found, is the man 
to be kept in custody? 

A. Yo; but the statute provides for the means of serving the notice; 
it declares exx)licitly that there shall be written notice served ui^on the 
district attorney, and the service of the paper is regulated by the statute. 

3613. Q. Is the man to be kept in custody two days before he can 
have a hearing ? 

A. I think not. I have always been inclined to stretch the rule 
against that law, and I am one of the magistrates of this city who have 
done that. Sometimes, when I hnd a man really in distress and an 
innocent man, I stretch the law and let him go. I think the rule of law 
not imperative on the judge. 

3614. Q. Do you recollect naturalizing in your court, on the 7th of 
October, 1868, Daniel Sullivan ? 

A. I think I do. I see my initials to his paper, and I have no doubt 
at all that he underwent a strict cross examination. I think I remember 
the instance. 

3615. Q_. Do you remember naturalizing Maximilian Boeck in your 
court on the 12th of October? 

A. I remember a man by the name of Boeck, whom I refused to 
naturalize, but I am inclined to think I naturalized this man; I think 
these are my initials upon his paper, although the signature is not my 
ordinary one. 

3616. Q. Do you remember naturalizing Michael Kerwin on the 16th 
of October ? 

A. 1 think I do. In every case where I found the parties had not 


ELECTIOJ^ FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 343 

signed tlie papers tliemselves, but bad made their crosses or marks, I 
paid particular attention to a strict examination. 

3017 Q. Do you remember naturalizing in your court, on the Sth of 
October, Josei)h Eush ? 

A. Not without looking at the paper. 

3018. Q. Do you remember naturalizing in your court, on the 25th of 
October, James Montgomery and John Wallace'^ 

A. The names are familiar, but I do not know without looking at the 
papers. 

3019. Q. Are you personally acquainted with a man by the name of 
Daniel Sullivan'? 

A. 0-, yes, and half a dozen of them. 

3020. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. Well, I cannot tell you. 

3021. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A. I have known one Sullivan for 27 years. 

3022. Q. Are you personally acquainted witli Michael Kerwin ? 

A. I do not remember. I know plenty of Kerwins; one of them is a 
reporter and a friend of mine. I remember naturalizing a man by the 
name of Kerwin, from the reason that I have known a man who is a 
newspaper reporter by the name of Kerwin. 

3023. Q. Of what country are you a native ? 

A. I am an Irishman from the ends of my hair to my toe-nails. 

3024. Q. How long have you been in the United States ? 

A. Since 1843. 

3025. Q. Do you knoAV Maximilian Boeck personally ? 

A. The name is familiar to me. I rejected a man by the name of Boeck, 
and that has stamped the name on my mind. Whether this Maximilian 
Boeck is the one I rejected, or not, I cannot tell. I am inclined to think 
that I naturalized this man, frdm my signature to the paper. 

3020. Q. Do you say that you rejected from 5 to 10 per cent, of the 
applications made ? 

A. At least that. 

3027. Q. Were from 5 to 10 per cent, of the applications made by per¬ 
sons who, from evidence you had before you, were not entitled to natu¬ 
ralization ? 

A. They were made by persons who supposed themselves entitled to 
naturalization and were not. I will tell you how it was. Witnesses 
would come up for the purpose of testifying they had known applicants for 
two or three years before the application was made, but it would turn out 
in the cross-examination that they did not know the i)arties long enough. 
They supposed, being ignorant persons, that they had known them long 
enough, but upon close examination it would turn out that they had not, 
and the principal part of the refusals and of the papers being rejected 
was on that account. The man applying for the papers might have been 
long enough in the country, still the witness would not have known him 
long enough, and I would get out of patience and tear their papers up 
and tell them to pass along, because they were consuming time that was 
valuable. 

3028. Q. MBiat proportion of the persons naturalized did you know 
personally ? 

A. O, a great many ; I have a wonderful recollection of faces, and I 
am pretty well known here among my own people and among the Ger¬ 
mans, and we naturalized a great many Germans. 

3029. Q. Were a great many naturalized whom you did not know f 

A. Of course, a vast number j but I knew a great many. 


344 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3030. Was it the case tliat, if yon did not know them^ when they came 
np presenting themselves as applicants by given names, you took it for 
granted they were the men they represented thejnselves to bef 

A. No, I did not 5 I gave them a very close cross-examination. When 
I saAv that a man was honest and that the application Avas an honest one, 
perhaps I would pass them with a A^ery ordinary examination. 

3031. Q. You say that the applicant and Avitnesses Avere all SAVorn at 
one time f 

A. No; not all at one time, but the applicant and witness alone. I 
never SAvore a batch. I administered the oath individually in CA^ery 
instance to the applicant and the A\dtness. 

3032. Q. In what form did you SAvear the parties ? 

A. To my invariable question, “HaA^e you read the affidaAutr' the 
answer woidd be,;,“Yes, sir.^^ ‘‘Do you understand the contents thereof!” 
“Yes, sir.’^ Then, if the Avitness SAvore Avith uplifted hands, I Avould 
administer this oath: “ You do solemnly swear, in the presence of the 
CATr-living God, that these affidavits you haA^e subscribed are true;’’ or, 
if the Avituess SAvore on the book, “You solemnly swear that the affidavits 
you have subscribed are true.” That was the end of the formula, and 
then the cross-examination AAOuld begin: “Hoav long have you known 
this man in this country!” “ So many years.” “Do you knoAv that he 
came here under the age of 18!” Well, if a man besitated for a moment, 
I Avould tear uia the pai)ers and tell him to pass along; but, if the answer 
was, “I liaA^e known him from his boyhood,” or “from when he Avas 16 
years old in this country,” I Avould then ask, “Do you know him to be a 
mail of good moral character and attached to the Constitution of the 
United States of America!” If he said, “Yes,” I would then turn to 
the applicant himself and ask him, “How long liaA^e you been in this 
country!” and, if I doubted the man, from his ansAver, 1 Avould ask him 
AAdiat sliix) he came OA^ei* in, and from which port, for I haA^e knowledge 
of almost all the steamships and packets, and if I found that the man 
prevaricated, then I AAmuld destroy the application. 

3033. Q. Suppose it was not the application of a minor, but of an adult, 
what would be the process of naturalization! 

A. He has his first certificate then, and it is only a question AAffiether 
he has been in this country all the time since; or if he has been abroad, 
whether it was AAdtli the intention of residing abroad. The applicant 
and his Avitness, in such a case, would be sworn in the same way that I 
liaA^e already stated. I Avould ask then: “HaA^e ^mu read the affidaAits!” 
and if they said they had not, I Avould go on and read the affidavits; if 
they said “ Yes,” I Avould SAvear them to the truth of the affidavits. After 
that I would ask the witness “Hoav long liaAX you knoAvn this man in 
this country!” and “Is he a man of good moral character!” &c. That 
Avas all. 

3634. Q. You put the inquiry whether they had read the papers, 
before you administered the oath ! 

A. I did. 

3635. Q. And then you swore them that the affidavits were true ! 

A. Yes, sir, I did; I never missed that. 

3637. Q. The blank applications were filled up before the applicants 
and witnesses came into the court! 

A. O, yes. 

3638. Q. Did the applicants or the witnesses, or either of them, sign 
the papers in court! 

A. Sometimes they would, but as a general rule they did not. 

3630. Q. You have said that you arrested some parties; for Avhat did 
you arrest them ! 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


345 


A. Some for testifying or attempting to testify to the identity of men 
they had not known long enough. I did it for the purpose of deterring 
those in my presence from attem])ting to perpetrate frauds. 

3040. Q. How many did you arrest 

A. Over 50. 

3041. Q. Can you name some of them? 

A. I cannot at tins moment. 

3042. Q. How long were they detained in custody? 

A. All day, and then I would let them go. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3043. Q. Did you not often find that persons attempted to he natur¬ 
alized under the minor form who were not entitled to be ? 

A. Plenty of them. I found men attempting to be naturalized who 
had been born here; for what purpose I cannot tell you. 1 could detect 
them from their conversation, and I arrested many such men. 

3044 Q. Were they trying to be naturalized under otlier names than 
their own ? 

A. Undoubtedly. Some of them would say: “ They will not allow me 
to vote,’' and I would answer, cannot help that; you cannot be natu¬ 
ralized, for you were born here.” 

3045. Q. Then you may have naturalized natives to the manor born” 
under assumed names ? 

A. Very few. I do not suppose there is another judge in town who 
knows so many of the class of persons that you are speaking of as I do. 
That class of young men you speak of are nearly all i)oliticians, and they 
make it their business to know every man in the ward and his where¬ 
abouts and business, and are consummate politicians. These are the 
men who come in to be witnesses, and honestly witnesses. Sometimes 
I would stop them and say: ‘‘You cannot be a witness in this case,” 
and they would ask “Why not? I have known this man for 20 years.” 
Well, perhaps the man would say it in such a way as would convince 
me at once tliat it was true. 

3040. Q. Did you examine the handwriting of the subscribing wit¬ 
nesses? 

A. Sometimes I did, and would make them sign their names in my 
presence. 

3047. Q. How often did you do that ? 

A. Frequently. 

3048. Q. Did you detect any of them ? 

A. No, sir; 1 did not. 

3049. Q. From an examiuation of the papers there seem to be some 
signed by the same parties; did you detect anythiiig of that kind? 

A. I did once in a while, and then, for the purpose of relieving the 
court, I would say, “Is this your siguature?” Sometimes the man would 
sajq “It is not my signature;” but, if the man acknowledges it to be 
his signature, whether he signed it or not, it is his signature in law. 

3050. Q. Tlien the court did not inquire whether he had really writ¬ 
ten it? 

A. Yes, sir; I usually did. When I detected the fiict that the signa¬ 
tures were all in one handwriting, I would ask, “Did you authorize this 
man to sign the paper?” and he would say “Yes.” 

3051. Q. From the number of persons you naturalized, must not your 
cross-examinations have been exceedingly brief? 

A. A man can cross-examine a great maiiy witnesses between 9 in the 
morning and 11 at night. I can examine Dvo a minute. 


346 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3652. Q. And naturalize them ^ 

A. Yes, sir; and do it as honestly as you can, or any other man living. 
A man with a quick, keen eye, and who understands human nature, 
cannot he cheated if he gets half a minute at a corrupt and bad witness. 

By the Chairman : 

3653. Q. Did any one witness tippear before your court in a great num¬ 
ber of cases 

A. Yes, I think there were one or two who undertook to appear; I 
stopped them. 

3654. Q. Who were they ? 

A. I think a man by the name of Murphy, and a man by the name of 
McCaffrey. 

3655. Q. Do you know Patrick Goff? 

A. Yes; I stopped him. 

3656. Q. Do you know John McCaffrey ? 

A. Yes, sir; I stopped him after the name got familiar to my ear. 

3657. Q. He was a deputy sheriff, was he not ? 

A. I do not know. 

3658. Q. Do you know how many persons had been naturalized on his 
testimony before you stopped him ? 

A. I do not. 

3659. Q. Do'you know for how many he had been a witness before you 
stopped him ? 

A. He cannot have been for many with me. 

3660. Q. When you stopped him was anything done witb the certifi¬ 
cates that had been granted previously upon his testimony 

A. I cannot tell that; I had signed my name to some of them. 

3661. Q. Did the court take any steps to revoke those previously 
signed upon his testimony ? 

A. I do not know but that I may have sent over to the clerk to stop 
such iiapers. 

3662. Q. AYhere the papers had been already delivered, did you take 
any steps to have them cancelled ? 

A. I think I did upon several occasions. 

3663. Q. How were they cancelled ? 

A. After the clerk got them; of course, not after the certificates were 
granted. 

3664. Q. Has not the court power to set aside certificates of naturali¬ 
zation procured by fraud ? 

A. Yes; I have done it. 

3665. Q. Cannot you make an order annulling a certificate of naturali¬ 
zation without having i)ossession of the certificate ? 

A. I suppose we can; we can grant an order declaring that the persons 
naturalized shall not vote; but they go to the registry and are registered 
and vote, and that is an end of the story. 

3666. Q. You have stated that you released certain persons arrested 
on election day by Judge James. How were they released ? 

A. Upon habeas corpus. 

3667. Q. Were they released the same day ? 

A. O, no; I granted the writ the same day, but did not release them 
until I found out that Judge Janies did not intend to do anything more 
in the matter. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3668. Q. About how many ]iersons had McCaffrey sworn to as witness 
before you stopped him ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


347 


A. I really cannot tell. 

3009. Q. Six, eight, or ten ? 

A. O, more than that, a great many more than that. McCaffrey was 
one of those Avard politicians ANdio had been born in the A^\ard and resided 
in it. He knoAA^s e\'erybody in the Avard, and eA^ery foreigner avIio comes 
into the Avard, and such a man is capable of testifying to any number of 
them if he knoATS the fact. 

3070. Q. Then Avhy did you stop him? 

A. He A\\as carrying the thing to extremes—he had gone beyond rea¬ 
sonable bounds. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3071. Q. Hoav^ could certificates of naturalization be procured by per¬ 
sons aaTio had not been before the court ? 

A. By forgery only. 

3072. Q. Sux)pose men testify that they haA^e got papers that Arere 
sent to them in a diffeient A^a^y? 

A. They must have been represented in court by some one elsej it is 
impossible for the court alAAaiys to guard against that. 

Neav York, January 2, 1800. 

George W. Walling SAvorn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3073. Question. State Avhat office you hold in the city of 'New York. 

Answer. I am one of the inspectors of the metropolitan lAolice force. 

3074. Q. ^Naine some of the duties of inspectors. 

A. It is my duty, at the proper time, to be at the police headquarters, 
and for the balance of the time to supeiwise certain districts and Ausit 
them. 

3075. Q. State what you know in relation to “repeaters,” as they are 
called, or fraudulent Acting, at the last i)residential election in this city; 
and Avhether you arrested any parties or seized any x)apers in connection 
therewith. 

A. On the Friday night preAuous to the election, the night of the 30th 
of October, Superintendent Kennedy sent for me to meet him at the 
Fifth AA^enue Hotel. I met him there, and he introduced me to a young 
man, whose name I do not knoAv, and told me that this jmnng man kneAV 
something about parties aaIio were registering for the purpose of “re¬ 
peating.” I talked AAuth him and directed him to meet me the next 
morning at 8 o’clock—Saturday, the 31st of October. I left him then, 
and Avent to the station-house to get six men from Captain Campbell, 
captain of the 18th precinct, in citizens’ dress. I met the young man 
tlie next morning, and he then stated to me that a man by the name of 
William Varley, alias Beddy, the blacksmith, had charge of a company 
of “repeaters,” who had been registering from Catharine street, and he 
believed they were going the next day to 29 East BroadAvay to register. 
I went near that vicinity, and from time to time I sent these officers 
that were now Avith me to Avatch number 29 East Broadway. They 
came back and reported seA^eral times that they saw no one, until 
about dinner time, between 12 and 1 o’clock, when Ave separated, and I 
directed them to meet me again after dinner. We got back probably 
near 2 o’clock. I sent them around again, and they came back and 
reported that they had seen several men come out fron 29 East Broad¬ 
Avay and go to a place of registry, and go into a place of registry. Of 
course, the officers did not follow them in, for they miglit liaA^e susi3ected 
something. They folloAved the men; I saAV them, after coming ovit of 


348 


ELECTION FRAUDS JN NEW YORK. 


the registiy, g'o hack to 29 East Broadway again, and then leave 20 East 
Broadway and go to anotlier district, and go in tliere, and then come 
hack again. 

3070. Q. What was the first district they went to? 

A. I think it Avas the 1st district of the 7th Avard. The officers came 
hack and reported to me, “It is all right; they are noAv registering.” 
AVe then separated. Some aA' eirt np East BroadAAmy and some doAvii. One 
of the officers told me that he had seed a man standing on the stoop of 
the house avIio appeared to he on the look-out. AVell, aa^o rushed into 
the house, 'No. 29 East Broadway, and as Ave rushed in the man aaTio Avms 
standing at the step rushed in also. There Avere seA^en iiersons there 
besides him; he made the eighth. I directed the officers to seize all the 
hooks. AVe seized a hook that AA^as on a table, at Avhich a young man Avas 
sitting, and AA*e took the eight iiersons Avhom we found there, Avith the 
hook, to the police headquarters. The hook is here, and I uoav produce 
it. 1 think it is marked “1st, 3d, and 0th districts of the 7th Avard.” 

By Air. Kerr : 

3677. Q. AVho were those men wlio had charge of the hook? 

A. The man AA^atching on the stoop Avas a deputy sheriff; I do not recol¬ 
lect his name now. All the names are entered at our headquarters. 
One of the parties arrested there A^as a party Avhom I kneAA^ veiy well 
by reputation as a pickpocket. I do not know the name he gaA^e at 
headquarters. 

3078. Q. AA^ere the persons you arrested there officers of election? 

A. Ko, sir; they did not claim to he. They stated that it AAms the roll 
of a club; that AAms the statement of the parties. 

3079. Q. Did they tell you AAdiat the club Avas organized to do? 

A. Ko; they did not say. 

3080. Q. AA^hat was the business of the fellows you arrested? 

A. I knew but one of them positAely. He is a pickpocket, or has 
that reputation. The deputy AAms on the stoop. He AA’ent in as they 
rushed in. 

3681. Q. Do you knoAV that he had anything to do AAith it? 

A. I cannot say anything about that. He Avas on the stoop and the 
officers reported to me that he had been on the stoop for some time, 
AA’atching. 

3082. Q. Did you arrest him AAdth the others ? 

A. I did. 

3083. Q. AVhat did he say Avhen he was arrested ? 

A. AVell, he denied being connected Avith the party. 

3084. Q. Did you take him to headquarters ? 

A. Yes, we took the AAdiole eight. 

3085. Q. AVhat AA^as done AAuth them ? 

A. They were discharged that night on luibeas czrims. 

By Air. Dickey : 

3086. Q. AVho granted the habeas corpus f 

A. AVell, I can only inform you from what I learned. I will state the 
circumstances. We took the men to police headquarters. I Avished to 
find Keddy, the blacksmith, Avhom I knew well and Avanted to go to his 
place to arrest him, or to look for any books that I might find there. 
As I Avas going out I met Counsellor HoAve, and he requested me to 
take the prisoners before the police court. It was near 4 o’clock and 
the court had not closed. I said there AAms another party I Avished to 
get, and I immediately left the building and Avent doAvn to Beddy the 
blacksmith’s place. I did not find him, but I searched his place, and at 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


349 


liis place I got tlic book and the papers wliicli I now produce. Wlien I 
returned to police headcpiarters it was after court hour. Counsellor 
Howe had stated that unless I took the prisoners immediately before 
the police court he Avoiild habeas them. 

By the Chairman : 

3G87. Q. You say the parties arrested were released on habeas corpus 
the same night ? 

A. I found them released on habeas corpus the next morning. 

3088. (^. Were they held to bail, or discharged? 

A. They were discharged. 

3089. Q. By whom ? 

A. Judge Barnard. 

3090. Q. Were they ke])t in custody two days ? 

A. 'No, sir; I went to the police headquarters the next morning to 
take them before the ])olice court, and then I learned they had been dis¬ 
charged over night. The book wldcli I took from 29 East Broadway, and 
which I have produced, is afour-quirebook, in a board cover, leather bind¬ 
ing, and of the usual size of foolscap paper. I delivered it tlie same night 
to the superintendent. At the first part of the book several leaves 
have been torn out, and also several leaves have been torn out towards 
the last i)art of the book. There are i)ages on which names and num¬ 
bers of streets are left. The book is in the same condition now that it 
was when I took iiossession of it. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3091. Where has this book been since you captured it ? 

A. I iiresume in the custody of John A. Kennedy, superintendent of 
police. I have seen it in his custody at difierent times. I saw it in his 
office the night before last. 

3092. Q. When you first got the book did you make a critical exami- 
liation of it and its contents ? 

A. I think I examined the list of names, and noticed the districts, &c., 
and numbers. 

3093. Q. How many pages of names were there at the time you got it ? 

A. I cannot say; I made no memorandum. 

3094. Q. How many districts did they contain ! 

A. Three, I think. 

3095. Q. Which district^; were they ? 

A. I recollect the 1st and 0th distinctly, and I think the 3d, but I 
am not positive Avhether it was the 2d or 3d. 

3090. Q. Do you know how many names were in the book ? 

A. I believe one hundred and twenty-six,* I am not positive. 

3097. Q. Was the book when you got it exactly as it is now"? Were 
the numbers of streets carried out as they are here ! 

A. Yes, sir. I have no doubt about that at all. 

3098. Q. Did you make any particular memorandum of the number of 
names or the names themselves at the time ? 

A. No, sir. I delivered it over to Suiierintendent Kennedy. I casu¬ 
ally ran over the names and 1 thinlv I counted them, but I am not posi¬ 
tive about it. 

3099. Q. How long have you been connected with the police of this 
city I 

A. Twenty-one years on the 24th of last month ; I have been a patrol¬ 
man and captain of ])olice, and part of the time I was captain of the 
detective force at police headquarters. 


350 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3700. Q. How many of tliese persons wliose names are on the hook 
did you know i)ersonally ? 

A. I did not look over them with a view to ascertain. 

3701. Q. Did you have any distinct recollection that you knew any of 
them'? 

A. Noj sir. I did not recollect particularly that I knew any of the 
names. 

3702. Q. Are the names of the parties you arrested on the hook ? 

A. I do not know. 

3703. Q. What hecame of the part of the hook that has been torn out ? 

A. I do not know f it was torn before I got it. 

To the Chairman : 

Witness. The hook which I have produced, and which I got at 
Eeddy the blacksmith’s, is similar in size and binding to the first hook 
which 1 produced, and has also a number of leaves torn out of it from 
the front part of the hook. The paper is different from that of the other 
l)ook, in this, that the other hook is white paper, ledger form, with top 
ruling and ruling at the sides, while this is blue paper with only cross¬ 
ruling. The first two leaves which are left in tliis hook not torn out 
have names written on them and numbers of streets, and slips have been 
cut out so that the first leaf is nearly all cut away. Out of the second 
leaf two slips have heeii cut. The next page has fifteen names with 
numbers of streets on it, headed “Sixth Ward, N'inth District.” Then 
after a few pages there is another page with names and numbers of 
streets on it, with part of the top and bottom of the leaf cut off. Then 
follows a page nearly all cut out. In the book are seventeen slips of 
white paper with marginal endings, similar to the first book. Some of 
the slips have names only on them, while others have names and num¬ 
bers of streets; most of them names only. I present a specimen of each 
sort of slip. Tliese slips have evidently been cut out of the book first 
produced, or one like it. The slips presented are as follows: 

“ Georg NTolan, 

“ 44 Maiket street.” 

“ Edward Eeardin.” 

Witness. In this latter book there are also upon separate slips of 
paper other names and numbers, and some papers of no importance. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3704. Q. State whether at the time you got this second book you care¬ 
fully examined it and made any memorandum of its contents with a view 
to identify it hereafter, or whether you just handed it, after a general 
examination, to Superintendent Kennedy. 

A. I handed it to Superintendent Kennedy after a cursory examina¬ 
tion. 

3705. Q. Since then you have had no custody of either of the books? 

A. Ko, sir; I have seen them. 

370G. Q. Do you know the number of names in this last book? 

A. I do not. 

3707. Q. Do you know the persons whose names are in it ? 

A. I know William Yarley. 

3708. Q. Do you find the folioviug entries in the book? “Grand 

Army of the Eeimblic. Many men of many-.” “ Early and Often 

Association will hold their third annual ball.” 

■ A. Yes, sir. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


351 


By Mr. Dickey : 

* 3709. Q. What became of Yarley ! 

A. He was not arrested; he was not in either place. Varley kept a 
drinking saloon. 

New York, January 2, 1800. 

Howard T. Marston sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

3710. Question. State if you iirepared certain statistical tables from 
official sources and otherwise; and if so, what they are. 

Answer. Yes, sir, I have ; and I now present them to the committee. 

3711. Q. Make such a statement as will enable the committee to un¬ 
derstand what the tables are, and the results that they establish. 

A. I made an abstract of the total number of men enrolled in the city 
and county of New York for 18G3-’G1, and noted the exceptions; whicli 
exhibit I have marked A.” 

3712. I then made an abstract from the census of 18G5, showing the 
total population by counties; also the total number of votes in the 
State—the native and naturalized in separate columns; also the num¬ 
ber of aliens. I then added four per cent, per year for three years, to 
find the whole number of estimated voters in the State. I then gave 
the republican and democratic and total vote of the State for 18G8, as 
published in the daily journals; then the per cent, of votes to voters, 
and the per cent, of voters to total population; and the per cent, of 
aliens to total population ; which exhibit is marked ‘‘B.’’ 

3713. I then made an abstract of the actual number of votes polled 
from 18G5 to 1868—the vote for secretary of state, President, governor, 
&c., in their order; that is, the vote for President when it occurred, and 
then for governor ; otherwise, for secretary of state. And also the per 
cent, of increase for three presidential terms, commencing with 185G 
and endiilg Avith 1868; which exhibit is marked C.” 

3714. I then made an abstract of the male population of l!^ew York 
city by wards, showing the Avhites and colored in separate columns; 
which exhibit is marked ‘HI.” 

3715. I then made an abstract of the comparatiA^e population of the 
city of New York from 1790 to 1865 inclusiA^e, by aa aids, showing the 
actual increase of numbers, the time of formation of the different 
AAnrds, and from what taken ; all of which is official, and from the State 
census ; AAdiich exhibit is marked “ E.” 

3716. I then made and examined personally an abstract of the total 
l)opulation of the State of New York, by counties, from the censuses 
for the years 1845-’50-’55-’60, and 1865; Avhich exhibit is marked “F.” 

3717. I then had made and examined personally an abstract of the 
number and nativity of the male population of New York city; Avhich 
exhibit is marked “G.” 

3718. I then made an abstract showing the number of votes polled 
in excess of the registry of the different Avards and districts of the city 
of Ncav York; which exhibit is marked “K.” 

3719. I then had made and personally examined an abstract showing 
the total male population of the 6th AAMrd—census of 1860 and 1865; 
AAddch exhibit is marked “ L.” 

3720. I then had made and personally examined an abstract showing 
the total number of votes polled by wards and districts in the city of 
New York, at the NoA^ember election of 1868; AAdiich exhibit is marked 
“ M.” 


S52 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3721. I then liad made and personally examined an abstract showing 
the total number of votes registered^ and by wards and districts, in tl^ 
city of N’ew York, for the November election of 1808 ,* which exhibit is 
marked N.” 

3722. I then made an abstract from the census of 1805, showing the 
number of votes ; then added four per cent, per year for three years: I 
then gave the actual vote of 1808; I then added four and a half per 
cent, per year since, to the census of 1805; which exhibit is marked 

3723. I then made an abstract showing the number of voters in the 
State of New York, by counties, for the years 1835-’45-’55, and 1805, 
taken from the State censuses for those years j which is shown in col¬ 
umns numbers 1, 2, 3, and 4 of Exhibit O. 

3724. From these columns I computed the rate of increase per year 
for the last 10 years and the last 30 years. These are given iu numbers 
7, 8, 0, 10, 11, and 12 of the same exldbit. 

3725. I then took the annual rate of increase for 30 years, and com¬ 
puted the number of voters in each county in 1808 at such rate of 
increase for each county; that is shown in number 5 of the same 
exhibit. 

3720. I then made the same computation, using the annual rate of 
increase for each comity, as shown in the last ten years; that is shown 
in number 0 of the same exhibit. 

3727. I copied from the census the percentage of voters to the total 
po]iulation, as given in the last four State censuses j which is shown in 
numbers, 13, 14, 15, and 10 of the same exhibit. 

3728. I then made an estimate of the nmnber of voters in the State, 
by counties, using as my basis the annual rate of increase for that par¬ 
ticular decade, as shown by these tables j this is shown in numbers 17, 
18, 19, and 20 of the same exhibit. 

3729. I then took from the Tribune Almanacs the total number of 
votes actually polled during the same years j which is shown in numbers 
21, 22, 23, and 24 of the same exhibit. 

3730. Q. State if these tables are correct. 

A. They are correct, to the best of my knowledge and belief, as I com¬ 
puted them carefully, and have compared them and looked them over. 

By Mr. Kerr ; 

3731. Q. How long have you lived in the city of New York? 

A. I came here last April or May. 

3732. Q. Mhere did you live before ? 

A. In New Hampshire. 

3733. Q. Wliat is your business here ? 

A. I am a lawyer by profession. 

3734. Q. What are your xmlitics ? 

A. I am a democrat. 

3735. Q. For whom did you vote at the last election? 

A. I did not vote at all; I had not been in the city long enough. 

3736. Q. With whom did you co-operate in the last presidential elec¬ 
tion ? 

A. With the democratic party. 

3737. Q. Upon whose procurement did you make these various tables? 

A. I was employed to do it by the Union League committee. 

3738. Q. How did you get at the number of persons enrolled in 18G3-’64? 

A. I took it, I think, although I cannot swear positively, from the 

enrolment as published in the ‘‘ Tran script” at the Astor library. • 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


353 


By tlie Chairman : 

3739. Q. Did you make any political speeches during the recent pres¬ 
idential canvass 1 

A. I did. 

3740. Q. Where! 

A. Some in this city; some in other parts of the State; and some in 
the first district of Maine, just before the congressional election in the 
fall. Shaw and Lynch were the candidates for Congress. 

3741. Q. For which jiarty did you make those speeches ! 

A. For the democratic party. 


A .—The number of men enrolled in the city of New York, 1863-’64. 


Wards. 

Number 

enrolled. 

Wards. 

Number 

enrolled. 

First. 

3, 049 
1,210 
1,700 

4, 803 
5,516 
4,096 
7,608 
7,719 

8,425 
7,510 

10,835 
3,912 

Thirteenth. 

5,621 
5,724 
5,706 
8,522 
15,811 
9, 331 
7, 104 
10,819 
7,534 
8,497 

Second.... 

Fourteenth. 

Third. 

Fifteenth........ 

Fourth. 

Sixteenth...... 

Fifth. 

Seventeenth .... 

Sixth.. .. 

Eio’hteenth... 

Seventh . 

Nineteenth. 

Eighth. 

Twentieth. 

Ninth . 

Twenty-first. 

Tenth... 

Twenty-second. 

Eleventh. 

Total... 

151,052 

Twelfth. 




The following are the recognized causes of exemption from enrolment: 

1. Being over 45 years of age. 

2. Being under 20 years of age. 

3. Being an alien, and never having voted or declared his intention to become a citizen. 

4. Having furnished a substitute in anticipation of the draft. 

5. Having been drafted and paid commutation. 

6. Having been dratted and furnished a substitute. 

7. Having been drafted and received a certificate of permanent physical disability. 

8. Being permanently physically disqualified. 

9. Having served two years in the army or navy during the present war, and been hon 
orably discharged. 

23 T 




































Comparison of the vote of New York of 1865-’68. 


354 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


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of 1868. 

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Democratic 
vote of 1868. 

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Republican 
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Aliens. 

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Votes in the State in 1865. 

Total. 

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Total popu¬ 
lation. 

115, 504 
40, 285 
37, 933 
43.158 
55, 730 
58, 499 
31, 923 
.38,360 
45,713 
44.905 
24,815 
41,638 

65, 192 
155,773 

28, 644 
28,145 
24,512 
31,219 
31,710 
2, 653 
.39, 154 

66, 448 
311, 090 

■ 27,840 
37, 555 
42, .506 
104, 235 
31,447 
726, .386 
49. 283 
102,713 
92, 972 
43,316 
70, 165 
28, 603 
76, 200 
48,616 
14, 845 

Counties. 

Albany . 

Allegany . 

Broome . 

Cattaraugus . 

Cayuga . 

Chautauqua . 

Chemung . 

Chenango . 

Clinton . 

Columbia . 

Cortland . 

Delaware . 

Dutchess . 

Erie . 

Essex . 

Franklin. 

Fulton . 

Genesee . 

Greene . 

.. 

Herkimer . 

Jefferson . 

Kings . 

Lewis . 

Livingston. 

Madison. 

Monroe . 

Montgoniery. 

New York. 

Niagara. 

Oneida. 

Onondaga. 

Ontario . 

Orange. 

Orleans. 

Oswego. 

Otsego. 

Putnam. 



















































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


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355 






























































IVliole number of votes polled from 1855 to 1868, inclusive^ showing the rate per cent, of increase for three presidential terms. 


356 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


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ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


357 


«P500'*'Olf50i^CI«CR5T'03OMC000O>(MCJ<0M 

16.3 

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13.2 

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of Y 

HP 

00 * 

Oit^t^CC—'iOlC»Ct>*Q0^COQ0—iM 
C^^<N:7;COOtOrf'H'»55^ — — C^tOciSo^feooy 
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K o(f CO cc o rr to iri CO CO to to' co* cT oT iff lO ^ 

^ ^ ^ ^ 1 ^ 

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222 

CO + 

CO 

iGS^99'^’'5^®'»'“^'*''oooaoQOTC05tcu-t^c*io»'»< 
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718, 841 

;»a500^i^o—'U-oito — 03—<ioeoTf — cdSJico 
tDrHr-H{^03MC»C0 — Ot^(JI(MCIO03Q0'»'C*5—>3050 

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570, 067+ 

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730, 732 
-(11) 

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Queens. 

Kensselaer. 

Richmond. 

Rockland. 

Saratoga. 

Schenectady. 

Schuyler. 

Schoharie. 

Seneca. 

St. Lawrence. 

Suffolk. 

Sullivan. 

Steuben. 

Tioga. 

Tompkins. 

Ulster. 

Warren. 

Washington. 

Wayne. 

Wyoming. 

Westchester. 

Yates. 

Total. 


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358 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


D .—Male lyopulalion of New Yorh city—From the census of 1860. 


Wards. 

Males, 

white. 

Males, 

colored 

• 

First. 

9,155 

58 

Second . 

1,437 

47 

Third. 

1,970 

22 

Fourth. 

12,152 

48 

Fifth. 

10,815 

652 

Sixth. 

13,319 

146 

Seventh . 

19,720 

59 

Eighth. 

17,713 

1,261 

Ninth. 

20,664 

168 

Tenth. 

14,411 

85 

Eleventh.. 

29,165 

92 

Twelfth. 

14,319 

135 

Thirteenth.. 

16,189 

267 

Fourteenth. 

12,956 

441 


Wards. 

Males, 

white. 

Males, 

colored. 

Fifteenth. 

12,429 

.332 

Sixteenth.. 

20,748 

239 

Seventeenth. 

35,055 

127 

Eighteenth. 

25, 244 

128 

Nineteenth. 

13,793 

236 

Twentieth. 

31,687 

623 

Twenty-first. 

22,155 

155 

Twenty-second. 

31,812 

70 

Total. 

386,908 

5, 391 

Includes. 

4,614 

77 

Under 20 years__ 

175,278 


Over 20 years ___ 

216,243 















































Comparative population of the city of New York from 1790 to 1865. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 




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360 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


F .—Population of New York city from 1845 to 1865. 


Wards. 


First. 

Second. 

Third. 

Fourth. 

Fifth. 

Sixth.-. 

Seventh. 

Eighth . 

Ninth. 

Tenth. 

Eleventh . 

Twelfth. 

Thirteenth. 

Fourteenth. 

Fifteenth. 

Sixteenth.. 

Seventeenth.. 

Eighteenth.. 

Nineteenth . 

Twentieth. 

Twenty-first. 

Twenty-second. 

Total population 


When 

formed. 


1791 

1791 

1791 

1791 

1791 

1791 

1791 

1803 

1803 

1808 

1825 

1825 

1827 

1827 

1832 

1836 

1837 
1846 

1850 

1851 
1853 
1853 


From what taken. 


16th ward 
12th ward 
16th ward 
18th ward 
19th ward 


1845. 


12, 230 
6, 962 

11,900 
21, OUO 
20, 362 

19, 343 
25, 556 
30, 900 
30, 907 

20, 993 
27, 259 

13, 378 
22,411 
21,103 
19, 422 
40, 350 
27,147 


371,223 


1850. 


19, 7.54 
6, 665 
10, 355 

23, 250 

22, 686 

24, 698 
32, 690 
34,612 
40, 657 
23,316 
43, 758 
10, 451 
28, 246 
2.5, 196 
22, 564 
52, 882 
4.3, 766 
31,546 
18, 465 


515, 547 


1855. 


13, 486 
.3, 249 
7, 909 
22, 895 
21,617 

25, 562 
34.422 
34, 052 
39, 982 
26,378 
52, 979 
17, 6.56 

26, 597 
24, 754 
24, 046 
39, 82.3 
59, 548 
39,415 
17, 866 
47, 055 
27,914 
22, 605 


629, 810 


1860. 


18,148 

2, 506 

3, 757 
21,944 
22, 337 

26, 696 
39, 982 
39, 406 
44, 385 

29, 004 
59, 571 

30, 651 
32, 917 
28, 080 

27, 587 
4.5, 176 
72, 953 
.57, 462 
32, 795 
67,519 
49,017 
61, 725 


813, 669 


1865. 


9, 852 
1,194 
3, 367 

17, 3.52 

18, 205 

19, 754 
36, 962 
30, 098 

38, 504 
31,537 
58, 953 
28, 259 
26, 388 
23, 382 
25, 572 
41,972 
79, 56.3 
47, 613 

39, 945 
61,884 
.38, 669 
47, 361 


726, 386 


G .—Number and nativity of male population of New York city—Census of I860. 

NATIVE. 


Males, white. 209,014 

Males, colored. 5, 237 

- 214, 251 


FOREIGN. 


Males, white. 182, 462 

Males, colored. 228 


- 182, 690 


Total males 


.396, 941 


NATIVITY OF FOREIGN WHITE MALES. 


Germany 
Ireland.. 
England. 
Scotland 


63, 811 
86,580 
14, 113 
4,941 


Franco .... 
All others . 

Total 


4,172 
8, 845 

182, 462 














































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 361 


n .—Censns of 1865 estimated at four jjer centum increase for three years 
compared ivith the achial vote of November, 1868. 


Wards. 

Census. 

Census of 1865 
increased at 
the rate of 4 
per cent, for 
three years. 

Actual vote 
polled in No¬ 
vember, 1868. 

Census of 1865 
increased at 
the rate of 4|- 
per cent, per 
year for three 
years. 

First. 

1865. 

1,906 

1868. 

2, 135 

1868. 

3,206 

1868. 

2,163 

Second . 

i>77 

310 

450 

314 

Third. 

744 

833 

1,072 

844 

Fourth. 

3,088 

3,458 

4, 312 

3,505 

Fifth. 

3, ‘295 

3,690 

3,583 

3,740 

Sixth. 

4,145 

4,64*2 

5,401 

4,705 

Seventh . 

6, 150 

6,868 

8,211 

6,991 

Eighth. 

5, 499 

6,159 

6,803 

6,241 

Ninth . 

9,999 

8,958 

9, 379 

9, 079 

Tenth. 

5,46*2 

6,117 

5,993 

6,199 

Eleventh. 

9, *2*2*2 

10,328 

10,343 

10,468 

Twelfth. 

4,7‘20 

5,286 

6,6*26 

5, 357 

Thirteenth. 

4,799 

5,375 

4,843 

5,759 

5,447 

Fourteenth. 

4, 324 

5, ‘2.52 

4,908 

Fifteenth . 

.5.313 

5,951 

5,097 

6,030 

Sixteenth. 

6, 989 

7,8*27 

8,193 

7,933 

Seventeenth . 

13,301 

14,897 

14,828 

15,097 

Eighteenth. 

8,576 

9,605 

10,211 

9,734 

Nineteenth. 

7,286 

8,160 

9,582 

8, ‘280 

Twentieth. 

10,643 

11,920 

11,851 

12, 080 

Twenty-first. 

7, 064 

7,912 

9,871 

8,018 

Twenty-second. 

8,113 

9, 087 

10,0.37 

9,208 

Total. 

128,975 

144, 38*2 

*156,060 

146,341 


* The actual vote of 1868 at the November election, as given in the transcript by wards severally, is 156,060. 
The recapitulation shows a total of 156,050, a mistake of 10 votes, as shown by the above footing. 

156,060 — 144,382 = 11,678. 


K .—Excess of vote over registry—November election. 


District. 


Sixth. 

Eleventh_ 

Thirteentli ... 
Twenty-first . 
Twenty-third 

I’hirtieth. 

First. 


Total 


Ward. 

Regis¬ 

tered. 

Vote. 

Excess. 

Fifth. 

520 

588 

68 

Sixth. 

863 

864 

1 

Eighteenth. 

513 

517 

4 

Nineteenth .... 

180 

190 

10 

Nineteenth. 

179 

2*27 

48 

Ninementh. 

285 

305 

20 

Twenty-second ___ ...... 

885 

900 

16 





167 





L .—Total male population, Sixth ward, census 1860 and 1865. 


1860. 

White. 

Colored. 

1865. 

White. 

Colored. 


13,319 

146 

-13,465 


9,574 

143 

-9,717 


Loss in male population, as shown by census 


3,748 






































































M.— Vote of New York hy districts and wards, at the November election, 1863. 


362 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YOKK. 




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Registration of Neio York county, by districts and wards, November election, 1868, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


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363 


RECAPITULATION BY WARDS. 

iKt ward. 3,539 4th ward. 4,928 7th ward_ 9,035 10th ward... 6,433 13th ward... 6,200 16th ward... 8,760 19th ward.. 10,504 22d ward_ 10,922 

2d ward. 498 5th ward. 3,790 8th ward_ 7,5.38 11th ward... 11,219 14th ward... 5,775 17th ward... 15,836 20th ward.. 13,044 - 

3d ward. 1,152 6th ward. 5,686 9th ward.... 10,282 12th ward... 7,262 15th ward... 5,628 18th ward... 11,027 21st ward.. 11,161 Total. 170,222 






























































































































































































































364 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


O .—Actual and estimated number 


Counties. 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

Actual number of voters- 

-official. 

Estimated number of 

voters according to 

No, 11, for 1868. 

Estimated number of 

voters according to 

No. 12, for 1868. 

Rate percent.ofincrease 

from 1835 to ’45. 

Rate percent.ofincrease 

from 1845 to ’55. 

Rate per cent, of increase 

from 1855 to ’65. 

Per cent, of increase for 

30 years. 

Average annual increase 

for past 30 years. 

Average annual increase 

1 for past 10 years. 

1835. 

1845. 

1855. 

1865. 

Albany. 

10, 941 

15, 878 

18,616 

24, 723 

27, 096 

27,170 

45. 1 

17.2 

33.0 

95 0 

3.2 

3.3 

Alleganv. 

7,013 

8, 754 

9, 884 

10, 088 

10,481 

10, 693 

25.0 

1.3.0 

02.0 

40,0 

1.3 

0.2 

Broome. 

4,102 

5,814 

8, 282 

9, 562 

10, 509 

9, 992 

42.0 

42.0 

15.0 

99. 0 

3.3 

1.5 

Cattaraugus.. 

5, 030 

6,588 

8, 651 

10, 3.34 

11,171 

10, 954 

31.0 

31. 0 

20.0 

82.0 

2.7 

2.0 

Cayuga . 

10, 058 

11,140 

11,526 

13,590 

13, 997 

14,323 

11.0 

03.0 

18,0 

32.0 

1.0 

1.8 

Chautauqua.. 

9,012 

10, 159 

11,912 

14, 228 

14,911 

14,996 

12.8 

17.0 

18.5 

48.3 

1.6 

1.8 

flhemiing_ 


5,191 

5, 859 

7 450 

*7,919 

8, 053 


12. 9 

27.0 

*43, 0 

*2. 1 

2.7 

Chenango .... 

8, 681 

9, 393 

9, 700 

10 ; .336 

10 ; 522 

10 ; 5.53 

08.0 

03.0 

07.0 

18.0 

0.6 

0.7 

Clinton. 

3, 304 

5, 306 

6, 374 

8,052 

8, 922 

8, 680 

61.0 

20.0 

26. 4 

107. 4 

3.6 

2.6 

Columbia .... 

8, 534 

9,444 

9, 412 

10, 635 

10, 890 

11,049 

11.0 

00.0 

13.0 

24.0 

0.8 

1.3 

Cortland. 

5, 057 

5,741 

5,902 

6, 592 

6, 770 

6, 829 

13.5 

03.0 

12.0 

28.5 

0.9 

1.2 

Delaware .... 

6, 875 

8,190 

9. 065 

10, .582 

11,058 

11, 121 

19. 0 

10.5 

16.7 

46.2 

1.5 

1.7 

Dutchess. 

10,611 

12, 149 

12, 498 

15,119 

15, 709 

16,026 

15. 0 

03.0 

21.0 

39.0 

1.3 

2.0 

Erie. 

9, 974 

14, 631 

21,743 

29,441 

33, 239 

32, 620 

46. 0 

49.0 

36. 0 

131.0 

4.3 

3.6 

Essex. 

4,157 

5, 286 

5, 652 

6, 121 

6, 378 

6, 268 

27.0 

07.0 

08. 0 

42. 0 

1.4 

0.8 

Franklin. 

2, 083 

3, 356 

4, 462 

5, 505 

6, 149 

5, 884 

61.0 

33.0 

23.4 

i 17. 4 

3.9 

2.3 

Fulton. 


4, 203 

5 066 

5 895 

*6, 012 

6. 180 


20. 5 

16.3 

*40. 0 

*2. 0 

1. 6 

Genesee . 

11,808 

6, 509 

6, 477 

7^465 

i, 264 

7, 801 

-45.0 

00.0 

15.2 

-29. 8 

-0.9 

1,5 

Greene. 

6, 257 

6, 884 

6, 952 

7, 745 

7, 908 

8,000 

10.0 

01. 0 

11.0 

22.0 

0.7 

1.1 

Hamilton__ 


428 

599 

657 

*708 

674 


40. 0 

09. 0 

* 5:1 0 

*2. 6 

0. 9 

Herkimer .... 

7,699 

8, 552 

8, 578 

9, 720 

9, 953 

10,099 

11.0 

00.0 

13.0 

24.0 

0.8 

1.3 

J efferson. 

10,498 

13, 772 

14, 206 

15, 526 

16, 178 

15,945 

31. 0 

03. 0 

09.0 

4.3.0 

1.4 

0. 9 

Kings. 

5, 107 

12, 896 

32, 627 

58, 224 

80, 9.31 

71,848 

152.0 

15.3. 0 

78.0 

383.0 

13.0 

7.8 

Lewis. 

3, 161 

4,287 

5,284 

6, 677 

7, 238 

7, 197 

36.0 

23.0 

26.0 

85.0 

2.8 

2.6 

Livingston_ 

6,486 

7,300 

8,136 

9,055 

9,354 

9, 354 

12.0 

11.0 

11.0 

34.0 

1. 1 

1.1 

Madison. 

8, 757 

9,615 

9, 974 

11,160 

11,461 

11,561 

10.0 

04.0 

12. 0 

26. 0 

0.9 

1,2 

Monroe. 

11, 151 

14, 231 

17,272 

21,777 

23, 410 

23, 475 

27.6 

21.4 

26.0 

75.0 

2.5 

2.6 

Montgomery . 

9, 932 

6, 592 

6, 786 

7, 694 

8, 248 

7, 694 

-33.7 

0.1.0 

13. 4 

-7.3 

2.4 

1.3 

New York.... 

43, 091 

63, 927 

88, 877 

128, 975 

146, 000 

146, 386 

48.3 

39.0 

45.2 

132.5 

4.4 

4.5 

Niagara . 

5, 000 

6, 784 

8, 257 

10,222 

11,049 

10, 957 

35.7 

22. 0 

24.0 

81.7 

2.7 

2.4 

Oneida . 

14, 426 

17, 435 

20, 946 

24, 489 

25, 884 

25, 564 

21.0 

20. 1 

16.6 

57.7 

1.9 

1,6 

Onondaga.... 

12,409 

15, 812 

16, 993 

21, 409 

22, 9.50 

23, 078 

27.0 

07.0 

26.6 

70.6 

2.4 

2.6 

Ontario. 

8, 334 

9,405 

9,147 

10, 487 

10,738 

10, 927 

13.0 

-03.0 

14.6 

24.6 

0.8 

1.4 

Orange. 

8, 873 

10, 590 

11, .301 

14, 977 

1.5, 830 

16,414 

19.0 

07.0 

32.0 

58.0 

1.9 

3.2 

Orleans. 

4,696 

5, 759 

5, 704 

6, 956 

7, 269 

7,415 

22.5 

00.0 

22.0 

44.5 

1.5 

2.2 

Oswego. 

7,467 

10, 310 

14, 609 

17, 061 

18, 698 

17, 931 

38.0 

41.6 

16.7 

96. 3 

3.2 

1.7 

Otsego. 

10, 434 

11,745 

12, 177 

12, 954 

13,226 

1.3, 197 

12.5 

04.0 

06. 0 

22.5 

0.7 

0.6 

Putnam. 

2, 409 

3,009 

3, 037 

3,445 

3, 579 

3, .579 

25. 0 

00.0 

1.3.4 

38,4 

1.3 

1.3 

Queens. 

4, 797 

6, 168 

8, 187 

11,801 

13, 040 

13, 359 

28.5 

33.0 

44.0 

105.5 

3.5 

4.4 

Rensselaer .. . 

11,019 

13, 437 

14, 9.33 

19, 098 

20,244 

20, 644 

22.0 

11.0 

27.3 

60.3 

2,0 

2.7 

Richmond .... 

1,476 

2,608 

3, 795 

5, 627 

6, 268 

6, 437 

77.0 

45.5 

48.0 

171. 0 

5.7 

4.8 

Rockland .... 

2, 076 

2, 772 

3, .580 

4,319 

4, 669 

4, .578 

33.0 

29.0 

20. 6 

82.6 

2.7 

2.0 

St. Lawrence . 

7,234 

11, 885 

1.3, 984 

16, 764 

18,474 

17,719 

64. 5 

18. 0 

19.8 

102. 0 

3.4 

1.9 

Saratoga. 

8,011 

9, 582 

10, .377 

11,782 

12, 241 

12,241 

19.0 

08.0 

13.0 

40.0 

1.3 

1.3 

Schenectady.. 

3,290 

3, 365 

.3, 790 

4, 870 

5, 074 

5, 279 

02.0 

13.0 

28. 0 

43.0 

1.4 

2.8 

Schoharie .... 

5, 781 

7, 053 

7, 376 

8, 083 

8,374 

8, .301 

22.0 

04.5 

09.0 

35.5 

1.2 

0.9 

Schuyler. 



4, 377 

4,874 


5, 0.34 



11 0 



1 1 

Seneca . 

4, 690 

5, 459 

5 ; 395 

6, 643 

6, 902 

7 ; 101 

16.5 

-01.0 

23.0 

28.5 

1.3 

2.3 

Steuben. 

8, 177 

11,212 

14, 151 

15, 766 

16, 948 

16, 286 

37.0 

26.2 

11.4 

75. 0 

2.5 

1.1 

Suffolk. 

6, 034 

7, 767 

7, 939 

9, 961 

10, 499 

10, 678 

28.7 

02,0 

24.0 

54. 7 

1.8 

2.4 

Sullivan. 

2, 903 

4,019 

5, 727 

7,473 

8,302 

8, 145 

38.0 

42. 5 

30. 0 

110.5 

3. 7 

3.0 

Tioga . 

7, 110 

4, 933 

6,181 

7,214 

7, 235 

7, 581 

-42.0 

2.5.0 

16. 7 

0.3 

0.1 

1.7 

Tompkins.... 

7, 809 

8, 668 

7, 456 

7,999 

8, 239 

8, 166 

11.0 

-14.0 

07.0 

4.0 

1.0 

0.7 

Ulster. 

8,313 

10, 546 

13, 097 

16, 224 

17,440 

17, 392 

27.0 

24.0 

24. 0 

75.0 

2.5 

2.4 

Warren. 

2, 544 

3, 373 

4, 165 

4,740 

.5, no 

4,936 

33.0 

23.2 

13,7 

80.0 

2.6 

1.4 

Washington .. 

8, 181 

9, 203 

9, 355 

10, 767 

11,058 

11,251 

12.0 

01.6 

14.5 

28.0 

0.9 

1.5 

Wayne. 

7, 496 

9, 348 

10, 205 

11, 4,56 

11,971 

11,868 

25.0 

09.0 

12. 0 

46.0 

1.5 

1.2 

Westchester.. 

7. 772 

9, 858 

14, 245 

20, 479 

22,813 

23, 182 

27.0 

44.0 

43.7 

115.0 

3.8 

4.4 

Wyoming .... 


5, 767 

7, 064 

7, 533 

*7,871 

7, 691 


22.0 

06.6 

*30.0 

*1.5 

0,7 

Yates. 

3, 894 

4, 822 

4, 474 

5, 082 

5,234 

5, 280 

23.6 

-07. 2 

13.6 

29.0 

1.0 

1.3 

Total .... 

422, 034 

539, 379 

652, 322 

823, 484 



28.0 

21.0 

26.5 

75.5 

2.5 

2.6 


Estimate for twenty years. 



























































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


365 


of votes and voters, Sfc. —1868. 


1.3 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

oo 

23 

24 

OflScial per cent, of voters to total 
population. 

Estimated number of voters for four 
presidential terms. 

Tribune Almanac.—Actual nura- 
berof votes polled for four pres¬ 
idential terms. 

1835. 

1845. 

1855. 

1865. 

1856. 

1860. 

1864. 

1868. 

1856. 

1860. 

1864. 

1868. 

18. 30 
25. 89 

20.31 
20 . 12 
20. 44 
20.07 

21.29 

15.92 
20. 94 
20. 92 
20 . 18 
20. 93 

17.31 
20 . 08 

16. 65 

20.15 
20. 73 

21.28 

19. 77 

15.93 

19. 64 

20 . 86 
20. 98 

19. 19 

20. 53 
1.5. 95 

18. 87 
18. 60 
20.37 
20. 39 

19. 67 

20 . 51 
19.53 

20. 69 

21. 72 
19. 88 
19. 85 

19. 19 
21.41 

17. 24 
21.07 
20.27 

20 . 28 

20. 73 

19. 73 
21.34 

21. 14 
20.91 

20. 54 
2 .1. 80 

21. 14 
20 . 80 

19. 83 

20. 04 

19.61 

20. 55 
27. 87 
22. 53 
21.43 
22. 43 
21.86 
21.91 

2.3.54 

16. 96 
22.49 
22. 89 
22 . 14 
22. 04 
18. 66 

21 . (!6 

17. 95 
22 . 62 
22. 55 

21.54 
22.74 

22. 85 
21. 19 
16.39 
21.20 

21. 99 

23. 46 
20.07 
on OQ 

fri 

19. 63 
20.56 
22.53 

22. 07 

20. 25 
22. 24 
21.28 
2.3. 25 

22. 69 
19. 37 

21. 55 

19. 08 

20 . 17 

19. 07 

23. 34 

21.85 

21. 71 

21.86 
21.69 

22 . 47 
21.46 
21.97 
22 . 80 

21. 13 

22 . 62 
22. 69 
21. 98 

20. 07 
21.42 
23.21 

17.95 
2;l. 04 
22. 59 
21. 85 

21.56 
22.31 
21.52 
24. 30 

19. .57 

21. 19 
24. 50 

22 . 80 

20 . 60 

16. 42 

19. 79 
17.50 

21.96 

20. 87 

22. 32 

23. 11 

22. 23 
21.71 
15.07 

20. 94 

21. 44 

22 . 82 

17. 92 
21.99 
14. 11 

16. 95 
19. 43 

19. 56 

21. 43 

18. 57 

20 . 10 
21.09 
24.48 
21.80 

17. 68 

18. 85 

17. 74 

18. 34 

18. 65 
21.02 

19. 36 

22 . 00 

23. 30 
21.27 
22. 47 

18. 40 

19. 43 

22. 92 

23. 63 
18.68 
21. 17 
21.06 
21.81 
17. 6.5 
21.96 

21.57 

21.40 

25. 01 
25.26 
23.94 
24. 38 
24.32 
23. 33 

26. 94 

17.61 
23. 68 
26. 57 
2.5. 41 

23. 19 
18. 89 
21.36 
19.55 

24. 04 
23.91 
24. 42 
24. 76 

22. 27 

23. 36 

18. 72 
23.98 

24. 11 
26 25 

20. 89 
24. 46 
17. 75 

20.74 
23. 84 

23. 02 

24.21 

21 . 10 

24. .32 

22. 38 
26. 64 

23.21 
20. 34 
21.65 

19. 94 

20. 77 
20. 69 

23. 61 
23 31 

24. 23 
26. 43 

25. 34 
23. 66 
23. 23 
22.51 

25.61 

26. 06 
21.44 

22. 43 

23. 28 

24. 11 
20. 23 

21.75 
26. 27 

19, 230 
9, 903 
8,406 

8 , 809 

11.7.33 
12 , 126 

6 , 017 

9, 768 
6 , 539 
9, 534 
5, 972 
9,219 

12, 747 
22, 525 
5, 697 

4, .564 

5, 147 

6 , 574 

7, 028 
604 

8 , 689 

14.3.33 
35, 171 

5, 431 
8 , 225 

10,093 
17,721 

6 , 874 
92, 876 

8 , 455 
21,281 
17, .370 

9, 275 
11 , 662 

5, 829 

14, 8.57 

12, 250 
3,076 
8 , 547 

15, 336 
3, 977 
3, 651 

14,249 
10 , 512 

3, 8!)6 

7, 442 

4, 425 

5, 519 
14,306 

8 , 129 
5, 898 
6,286 
7, 508 

13, 411 

4, 223 

9, 495 
10, .327 

14, 871 

7, 113 
4, 532 

21,687 
9, 982 

8 , 90.3 

9, 500 
12, 563 

12, 984 

6 . 649 
10, 233 

7, 202 
10, 013 

6 , 256 
9, 835 

13, 747 
25, 656 

5, 878 

4, 975 

5 471 

6 , 962 

7, 334 
625 

9, 135 
14,845 
4.5, 351 

5, 970 

8 , .583 
10. .572 
19,517 

7, 227 
108, 874 

9, 247 
22,621 
19, 134 

9, 787 

13, 109 

6 , 331 

15, 851 
12, 542 

3, 234 
9, 988 

16, 948 

4, 705 
.3, 938 

15,312 
11,051 
4, ,320 

7, 701 
4,617 
6,015 

14, 929 

8 , 891 

6 , 586 
6 , 706 
7,716 

14, 668 

4, 456 

9, 786 
10,817 

17, .378 
7,311 

5, 029 

23, 908 
10 , 068 

9, 132 
9,714 
1.3, 346 
1.3, 972 
7, 249 
10, 119 
7, 843 
10, 497 
6,513 
10, 403 
14,817 
28, 482 

6 , 073 
5, 379 

5, 801 

7, 354 

7, 660 
652 

9, 594 

I. 5, 387 
53, 683 

6 , 501 

8 , 956 

II, 027 
21,211 

7, 594 
123, 172 

9, 977 

24, (198 
20, 853 
10,341 
14,498 

6 , 803 
16, 771 
12, 877 

3, 401 
11,282 

18, ,583 

5, 3.57 

4. 233 
16,446 
11,629 

4, 734 
8,011 
4, 821 

6 , 491 
15, .593 

9, 722 

7, 249 
7, 092 
7, 944 

15, 835 

4, 674 
10 , 606 
11,319 

19, 578 
7, 481 

5, 016 

27,170 
10, 69.3 
9, 992 

10, 954 
14, 323 

14, 996 
8,053 

10,553 
8 , 680 
11,049 

6 , 829 

11 , 121 
16, 026 
32, 620 

6 , 268 

5, 884 

6 , 180 

7, 801 
8,000 

674 
10, 099 

15, 945 
71, 848 

7, 197 
9, 354 
11,561 
23. 475 

7, 994 
146, ,386 

10, 957 
25, 564 
23, 078 
10, 927 
16,414 
7,415 
17, 931 
13,197 

3, 579 
13, 3.59 
20, 644 

6 , 437 
4,578 

17,719 
12 , 241 
5, 279 

8 , 301 
5, 034 

7, 101 

16, 286 
10, 678 

8,145 

7, 581 

8 , 166 
17, 392 

4, 9.39 
11,251 
11,868 
23,182 

7, 691 

5, 280 

18, 068 
9, 041 

7, 194 
7,917 

10, 776 
10, 901 
5,219 

8 , 934 
6 , 104 
8,819 
5, 405 

8 , 483 
11,564 
19, 957 

5, 03.3 
4,214 

*5, 001 

6 , 134 

6 , 043 
516 

7, 954 

12, 803 
30 667 

4, 656 
7, 228 

9, 038 

15, 337 

6 , 274 
79, 606 

7, 755 
19,159 

16, 022 

8 , 382 

10, 394 

5, 552 

13, 104 

11, 197 

2, 538 

6 , 801 
14,116 

3, 232 
3, 131 

12, 980 

9, 551 
3, 714 
6 , 843 
3, 984 
5, 053 

12, .521 
6,418 
5,310 

5, 920 
6,919 

11, 665 

3, 943 

8 , 654 

9, 223 

12 , 691 

6 , 548 

4, 260 

20, 980 

8 , 97.3 
7, 430 

9, 364 
11,876 
12, 154 

5, 427 
9, .371 

7, 231 

9, 830 
5, 605 
8,213 

12, 834 
23, 315 

5, 247 

4, 5VD 
*6, 008 

6 . 920 
6 , 671 

8 , 664 
14, 327 
36, 466 

5, 531 

8 , 439 

9, 505 
18, 099 

6 , 781 
95, 583 

8 , 733 
21,519 
18,465 

9, 398 
11,909 

6 , 105 

14, 490 
11,604 

2, 568 

8 , 141 
16, 885 

3, 778 

3, 779 

15, 331 
10, 4.52 

4,148 

7, 492 
4,259 
6,015 

1.3, 273 
7, 275 
6 , 114 

6 , .503 

7, 374 

13, 027 
4,689 

9, 655 
10,606 

14, 852 
6 , 888 

4, 480 

23, 140 
8 , 801 

8 , 142 
9,081 

11,942 

12, 692 

6 , 401 
9,585 

7, 017 
10 , 116 

6 , 046 

9, 546 

13, 844 
26, 431 

5, 388 

4, 676 
*5, 859 

6 , 802 

6 , 984 

9. 294 

14, 434 
46, 564 

5, 989 
8,133 
9, 930 

19,310 

7, 427 
110,390 

9, 126 
22, 964 
19, 709 
9, 398 
13,417 

6 , 213 

15, 031 
12.198 

3, 061 
9, 684 
18, 5.36 
4,438 
3, 732 

14.912 
10, 624 

4,572 

7, 680 
4,469 

5, 947 

13.912 

8 , .332 

6 , 508 
6 , 798 
7,514 

14, 666 
4,568 

9, 863 
10,514 

16, 962 
6 , 691 
4,729 

26, 217 
9, 378 
9,612 
10 , 021 

I. 3, 141 

13, 828 
7,416 
9, 968 
7, 922 

II, 015 

6 , 191 
9, 909 

15, 691 
30, 276 

5, 756 

5, 667 
*6,812 

7,101 

7, 401 

9.455 

14, .304 
67, 545 

6 , 6.50 
8,288 

10, 234 

21.701 

7, 791 
1.56, 0.54 

9, 81.3 
23, 869 
21, 343 
9, 945 

16, 008 
6 , 350 

15, 671 
12, 643 

3. 285 
11,361 
20, 932 

5, 240 

4, 628 
15, 829 

11.702 
4, 806 

8 , 020 
4, 871 

6 . 094 

15, l(i8 
8 , 774 

6 , 949 
7,514 

7, 746 

16, 568 
4, 950 

10, 725 
10,727 
21,308 
6,817 
4, 886 

19. 77 

20.71 

19. 18 i 21.51 

! 





596, 486 

675, 156 

730, 732 

849, 826 






With Hamilton, 





















































366 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 4,18G9. 

Henry Donovan sworn and examined. 

To tlie Chairman : 

3742. I was chairman of the board of insi^ectors of the 13th precinct, 
22d ward, city of New York, at the last State election. On election day 
Michael Connolly, one of the police justices of the city, and candidate at 
that election for register of the county ot New York, came in the polling 
place and in a very overbearing and officious manner said I was not 
conducting the election properly j that I was delaying it, and he tried 
in various ways to intimidate me. 1 told him he was disturbing the 
peace and interfering with the election, and was amenable to arrest, even 
if he was i^olice justice. He left then, and in about 20 minutes after¬ 
wards he returned, and going into the room where the inspectors were, 
and reaching his hand over to the desk of Mr. Evans, the democratic 
inspector, he took his polling-book containing the names of persons regis¬ 
tered and entitled to vote. I remonstrated with him; told him nobody 
was allowed to have that book but the inspector. He kept the book, 
however, and commenced reading off, in a loud voice and looking tow¬ 
ards the crowd standing outside, the names of the persons who had not 
voted, and saying to the crowd, What have you fellows been about f 
this cha]) (meaning me) has been scaring awaj’ a good many,” &c. 
Among the names he called out was William D. Conover. After a while 
Clonnolly left, and a little while afterwards and about 10 minutes before 
the closing of the polls a man came up and presented a ballot and gave 
the name of William D. Conover. I knew he was not the man. I was 
about to swear him, when the crowd cried out, ‘‘Johnny, don’t swear j 
don’t swear to spite him.” He then refused to swear and went away. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

The man didn’t vote. I know William D. Conover, and know the man 
who ofiered to vote in his name was not Conover. I am a republican. 
Judge Connolly is a democrat; has recently been elected register on the 
democratic ticket ; he lives in the same district that I do. 

New York, January 4,1869. 

Nathaniel K. Mills sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

3743. I held the office of captain of the 8th precinct metropolitan police, 
in this city, during the year 1868. In the latter part of October, 1868, 
Assistant District Attorney Hutchins sent for me and said he had a 
bench warrant for the arrest of the notorious thief Wesley Allen which 
he wanted me to enforce, but that he wanted it kept strictly private, and 
he enjoined me to tell nobody that I had it. I had arrested Allen some¬ 
time before on a charge of larceny, for stealing some $300 from a woman 
in Canal street, but the jury not agreeing, he was released on his own 
recognizance. So soon as I received the warrant I kept a strict look-out 
for Allen; saying to nobody that I had the warrant; not even reporting 
it to the superintendent, as perhaps I should have done. I made a vi«*- 
orous search for Allen everywhere, going over to Brooklyn, where his 
mother lived, and to other places where he frequented. It was not till 
the 16th of November that I saw him. He was standing on the corner of 
Prince and Mercer streets with a number of other notorious thieves. I 
went over and arrested him ; he seemed somewhat surprised, and told 
me that the matter had been fixed up in the district attorney’s office. 1 
told him I had heard nothing about it, and took him to the station-house. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


367 


and tlie next day to the district attorney-s office. He had bail waiting 
for him there, but no bail was received, and he was sent to the Tombs. 
He was there, I understand, nearly a month, when he was set at liberty, 
and is now at large. He has been to State’s x>rison twice j the second 
time for stealing a watch from a gentleman by the name of Williams. 
He was pardoned out for this offieuce. He was pardoned by Governor 
Henton ; the alleged reason for issuing the pardon was some informality 
in the trial. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3744. I did not communicate the fact of my having the warrant for 
Allen’s arrest to a single human being. I exercised the greatest care to 
let no one know of it. About a week before I arrested Allen, my ser¬ 
geant called my attention to a paragrax^h in the Police Gazette, stating 
that I had a warrant for Allen’s arrest. I was astonished, for I had not 
told a living soul of it. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

A little while after Allen had been pardoned out I met him on the 
street and asked him how it was he was there; how he got out of prison. 
He said he had been pardoned out and intended to act on the square” 
hereafter. Some time afterwards I met Mr. Hall and I asked him how it 
was Wesley Allen had been x^ardoned. He said he was satisfied that 
Allen was not the man who robbed Williams ; that he had united with 
others in asking his x>ardon. This occurred about two and a half or 
three years ago. 1 vote generally with the republican party, but I exer¬ 
cise my judgment and vote for any ticket I like. 

Kew York, January 4, 1869. 

John B. McKean sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3745. Question. What has been your business for the half dozen years 
last past i 

Answer. I have been a clerk in the supreme court, circuit Part 1st. 

3746. Q. Who has been the chief clerk ? 

A. Gharles E. Loew. 

3747. Q. What were your sx)ecial duties, if you had any assigned you, 
during the month of October last in connection with the business of 
naturalizalion f 

A. The only thing connected with naturalization that I had was to 
sign Mr. Loew’s name to the certificates of naturalization issued by the 
siixireme court. 

3748. Q. Did you do that duty % 

A. I did. 

3749. Q. So far as you know did any other deputy x^erform any 
material x)art in that duty during that month ! 

A. No person but me signed the name of Mr. Loew to these x^axiers. 

3750. Q. Who had charge during this time and was employed in 
making the imx^ression ux)on the certificates of naturalization of the 
official seal of the court % 

A. 1 did that. 

3751. Q. Then you both executed the name of the clerk and iinx^ressed 
the official seal on the certificates “? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3752. Q. Tell the committee whether that official seal was out of your 
custody at any time; and if so, for how long during the month of October. 


368 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. There are two seals of the court; one of them is in the county 
clerk’s oflice, and the other was in my i)ossession during the time the^ 
naturalization certificates were issued; I had it for the purpose of 
placing the seal upon the certificates, and every evening when I left I 
locked it up in the safe. 

3753. Q. During the time that this business was transacting were you 
much in the court in the presence of the judge by whom these certifi¬ 
cates were issued? 

A. Yes, sir, most of the time. 

3754. Q. Where was it that you attached the impression of this seal 
and signed the name of C. E. Loew to these papers ? 

A. At my desk in the court-room. 

3755. Q. How many clerks, or deputy clerks, were there in the court¬ 
room during the time the court was sitting in the discharge of this duty 
of naturalization ? 

A. I could not say exactly; Mr. Heymaii was always with me, and Mr. 
Koch was there frequently. 

‘3750. Q. What did these other clerks do when the court ordered a 
certificate of naturalization to be issued ? 

A. Mr. Heyman would fill in the name of the applicant in the certifi¬ 
cate and then hand the certificate and the order of the court to me, and 
1 signed Mr. Loew’s name to it; in the morning when we commenced 
business we impressed the seal upon the certificates. 

3757. Q. You then sometimes attached the impression of the seal on 
these certificates in advance of their being filled in with the names ? 

A. Yes, sir ; they were impressed in blank. 

3758. Q. Did you ever attach the signature of 0. E. Loew to any of 
them before the name was filled in ? 

A. Kever; I never signed Mr. Loew’s name to those certificates until 
the name was filled in and the order of the court was issued. 

3759. Q. What were the duties of the other deputy clerks in this 
room ? 

A. The officers of the court would collect the applications from all the 
applicants in the court room and hand them to the judges, or rather to 
the clerk, Mr. Loew, or one of his deputies, sometimes Mr. Koch and 
sometimes Mr. Kent, and they would call off the names of the applicants 
and the judge would examine them and swear them in and then issue 
his order; no person had anything to do with the certificates outside the 
court-room except filling in the dates, which was done in the county 
clerk’s office. 

3760. Q. How often would an officer collect the apx)lications ? 

A. Generally as soon as the court room was filled. 

3761. Q. What number of persons would this court room hold ? 

A. I presume there have been in the room about one hundred; I do not 
know exactly how many, but I should judge about this number. 

3762. Q. State how many were permitted at any one time to come 
before the judge to be passed upon. 

A. The usual number, I presume, was six or eight, sometimes three 
or four; it would depend very much upon the applications whether they 
were correct or not; after the officer would collect the applications they 
would be hauded to the clerk, who would examine them, and probably 
out of a batch of twenty or thirty no more than four or five would be 
correct and in legal form ; I do not suppose more than four or five would 
be sworn in at any one time. 

3763. Q. State whether the applicants were always, or only some¬ 
times, accompanied by their witnesses. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 369 

A. Very frequently the witnesses would be absent and the application 
Tvould be thrown aside until the witnesses came. 

3764. Q. Did the court ever pass upon and order a naturalization in 
the absence of the witness as well as the applicant t 

A. No, sir. 

3765. Q. State whether you know of any persons having been called 
up and naturalized without the witness being present in open court. 

A. No, sir; no one that I know of. 

3766. Q. State if you know, or have had reason to believe, that per¬ 
sons were naturalized, or were declared to be naturalized, who were never 
themselves before the court. 

A. No, sir; I never had reason to suppose that such was the case. 

3767. Q. Was it not so charged at the time this naturalization was 
going on that such improper conduct was being practiced f 

A. Yes, sir; a good deal was said in the papers about it. 

3768. Q. Did you ever have your attention called to it? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3769. Q. Were such practices ever done in the court to your knowledge ? 

A. No such thing was ever done with my knowledge; I was in the 

court all the time, and all this business was done under my eyes. 

3770. Q. How long have you been clerk of that court? 

A. About seven years. 

3771. Q. How many times, if at all, within your knowledge did Judge 
Barnard order the court room to be cleared of the public generally, and 
of the attorneys practicing in the court, during the time this business 
was being done ? 

A. That I could not say; I know he has ordered the room to be cleared 
several times. 

3772. Q. Did you ever know of his ordering any person to be put under 
arrest? 

A. No, sir. 

3773. Q. Have you ever seen anybody taken by violence or physical 
force out of the court-room ? 

A. No, sir. 

3774. Q. Do you know an attorney in this city by the name of Lever- 
son? 

A. I believe there is such an attorney; I do not know him personally. 

3775. Q. Did you as clerk or as deputy, having special charge of the 
business to which you have referred, have knowledge or have reason to 
believe that frauds were being practiced ui)on the court, or upon the 
officers of the court, by outside parties procuring papers to be made up 
by persons to be naturalized who were not entitled to be naturalized at 
all? 

A. I did not have such knowledge. 

3776. Q. Did you not hear of this pretended naturalization office at 
No. 6 Centre street ? 

A. I did not know of it until I saw of the arrest of Mr. Kosenberg. 

3777. Q. Did you, during the time all this naturalization business was 
being transacted, and with the observation you had in the discharge of 
the duties of your desk, not know that applications to the number of 
five or six at one time would be passed upon the testimony of one man 
as witness ? 

A. No, sir; I have seen one man testify to the identity of two or more, 
perhaps. 

3778. Q. Have you not seen that done to a considerable extent where 
24 T 


370 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


applications to tlie number of five, or six, or eight, have been identified 
by one witness ? 

A. No, sir; I cannot sta.te positively, because I paid very little atten¬ 
tion to the calling off of the names as to who were the principals or 
witnesses, but with the cursory look I had of the papers I do not think 
such a thing occurred. 

3779. Q. In passing upon those papers, so far as you had that duty to 
do, did you or did you not discover, or have reason to believe, that large 
numbers of these applications were filled both with reference to the dates 
and the names of witnesses to the applicants in one hand, so that neither 
the witness signed his own name nor the applicant his name, but some 
one person filled up the whole blank ^ 

A. No, sir. 

3780. Q. What did the court in the naturalization of each person do? 

A. When they were called up and had answered to all their names, 

and their i^apers were all correct, the court would generally state to 
them what they were about to swear to; sometimes he would swear 
them himself; at other times he would direct the county clerk, or ’one 
of his deputies, to administer the oath; he would often exifiain to them 
the nature of the oath, and cross-examine them on various points. 

3781. Q. To what extent did he usually make any verbal examination 
of the applicant or witness ? 

A. I have heard him very often examine them as to where they for¬ 
merly lived, and other questions of like character; but I was engaged 
myself all day long, and paid but little attention to the cases until they 
came to my desk. 

3782. Q. What is your impression as to the number who were natural¬ 
ized during the month of October in that court ? 

A. I could not say with any degree of accuracy; the number, I think, 
has been very greatly exaggerated, however. 

3783. Q. I hand you the applications of Henry Smith, Miohael Dunn, 
James McCarty, Frederick Henney, Joseph Herbert, and James Grann, 
and ask you to look at the signatures of 0. E. Loew to each of them 
and state, if you can, by whom it was executed ? 

A. I cannot say positively; I think it is Mr. Heyman's handwriting. 
I saw Heyman’s handwriting so seldom that I would not like to swear 
positively that it is his handwriting. 

3784. Q. Are you familiar with the signature in full, or by initials, of 
Judge Barnard ? 

A. I am. 

3785. Q. I ask you to look at the signature to the order of each of the 
same applications, and state by whom it was executed ? 

A. By Judge Barnard. 

378G. Q. By the initials G. G. B. ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3787. Q. So far as you know, is that the manner in which the judges 
of that court indicate their orders ? 

A. I think, with few exceptions, he signs his initials—always to natu¬ 
ralization orders, and generally to other oi ders. 

3788. Q. I hand you now the applications of James B. Smith, Samuel 
Eeynolds, John Winkens, Henry Sterne, Charles Fehling, August Lang- 
ner, Patrick Dufly, and Patrick Eafferty, and ask you to state by whom 
the signature ‘‘C. E. Loew” to each of them, and by whom the initials 
“ G. G. B.” to each of the orders upon them, is executed ? 

A. I recognize the signature of C. E. Loew to Mr. Duffy^s application 
to be in Mr. Kent’s handwriting; the other I should not be positive about. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 371 

I think they are made by Heyman. The initials on each of the orders 
on the applications are executed by Judge Barnard. 

3789. Q. I hand you now the final certificates of naturalization issued 
by the su]>reme court to Patrick O’Brien, John J. Mercer, Antonio 
Gomez, Alexander McCann, Adolph Slechelseine, referred to in the testi¬ 
mony of W. T. Simms, and ask you to examine and state by whom the 
signature of the clerk, 0. E. Loew,toeachof said certificates is executed? 

A. They are all written by me. 

3790. Q. So far as you know, did you attach the impressions of the 
seal to these certificates ? 

A. I am pretty sure I did so, but whether I attached the seal at the 
time I attached the signature, I could not say. 

3791. Q. Was it the practice in yoim office for you or Mr. Loeworany 
other of the clerks to deliver these final certificates to any other person 
than the applicants themselves ? 

A. No, sir; in all cases I delivered them to the applicants personally, 
or to the officers of the court. 

3792. Q. You cannot say whether the officer delivered it to the appli¬ 
cant or to some friend of his ? 

A. No, sir 5 I coidd not. I presume he did his duty. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3793. Q. Did you deliver any papers to Mr. Walton? 

A. No, sir. 

3794. Q. Did you know him ? 

A. I did. 

3795. Q. When did you commence using naturalization certificates ? 

A. The 6th of October, I believe. 

3796. Q. At what hour did your court begin? 

A. At 10 o’clock in the morning. 

3797. Q. At what time did you meet for the purpose of naturalization ? 

A. The judge commenced naturalizing at 6 o’clock in the evening, 

and would sit for that business exclusively until 10 or 11 o’clock at 
night 5 he would also naturalize during the day in the interim of other 
business. 

3798. Q. You say he ordered the court-room to be cleared frequently ? 

A. Yes, sir; after they commenced naturalizing in the evening, the 

room was crowded to such an extent that they broke the door and the 
entire railing in the court room which separated the audience from the 
members of the bar and the officers, and the officers were instructed to 
allow no person in the court but applicants for naturalization and their 
witnesses. 

3799. Q. How often was the room cleared in the course of the evening? 

A. Sometimes once or twice. 

3800. Q. How many persons were naturalized in that court in one 
day ? 

A. I could not state positively ; I do not think it varied over four or 
five hundred, probably not that. 

3801. Q. Do you know any of the witnesses that appeared there to 
identify applicants for naturalization ? 

A. I believe I do, one or two. 

3802. Q. Who are they ? 

A. I do not know that I can recall their names just now. 

3803. Q. Do you know a man by the name of McCaffrey ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3804. Q. How many times did you see him witnessing applications 
for naturalization ? 


372 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I could not say. 

3805. Q. Some two or tliree hundred ? 

A. No, sir. 

3806. Q. You saw him there frequently*? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3807. Q. What is his business ? 

A. I do not know j I thiuk he was attached to the sheriff’s office in 
some capacity. 

3808. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Patrick Goff’*? 

A. I have known him since this naturalization business began j I did 
not know him before. 

3809. Q. Was he a frequent witness there*? 

A. He was there very frequently. 

3810. Q. Was he a frequent witness? 

A. That I cannot say; I believe there are two brothers. 

3811. Q. Were they both there in connection with naturalization? 

A. I could not say. 

3812. Q. You say that after the applications were examined the clerk 
administered the oath ; was it administered to them separately, or was 
it administered to them in groui^s ? 

A. Usually in groups of three, four, or five. 

3813. Q. How many Bibles were there in use to swear witnesses ? 

A. There were three in the court-room. 

3814. Q. Did the usher go out in the room and hand the Bible to the 
witnesses ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3815. Q. What means had the judge of distinguishing the principal 
from the witness when they were all together ? 

A. The i)rincipals were always sworn in first and the witnesses after¬ 
wards 5 but it is proi^er for me to state that sitting at my desk I did not 
usually pay much attention to what was going on in the court room in 
regard to the swearing in. I presume 1 know less about administering 
the oath than my other attache of the court present at the time, simpty 
from the fact that my duties engrossed my .entire attention. 

3816. Q. Would not the i>rincipals and witnesses be called ui) together 
and sworn in in a gi’oup ? 

A. The names of the principals would be called first and the wit¬ 
nesses afterwards; they would put their hands on the Bible and be 
sworn in, the i)rincipals first and the witnesses afterwards. 

3817. Q. What way had the judge, when both had hold of the book, of 
distinguishing the principal from the witness and the witness from the 
principal ? 

A. From the simple fact that the principals retired after they had 
sworn and before the witnesses were sworn. 

By the Chairman : 

3818. Q. When a witness and applicant were called up together did 
not Judge Barnard administer the oath to them substantially in this 
form: “You, the principal and witness, solemnly swear that the affidavit 
to which you have subscribed your name is true’^ ? 

A. No, sir. 

3819. Q. How, then, was the form ? 

A. The form of the oath is printed on the application, and the judge 
read it from that. 

3820. Q. And the principal and witness were sworn at the same time ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 373 

3821. Q. And that was all the examination made of the witness and 
of the applicant—jlist administering the oath in that form? 

A. No, sir; in many cases they were examined as to their residence, 
and almost invariably the nature of the oath was explained to them. 

3822. Q. You signed all the certificates of naturalization of the suxireme 
court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3823. Q. In the court room ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3824. Q. Judge Barnard was the only judge that granted certificates 
of naturalization in that court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3825. Q. Did you receive red tickets in iiayment of naturalization fees ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3826. Q. In one case 300 red tickets were presented and an equal 
number of certificates of naturalization issued ; will you state if the per¬ 
sons to whom they were delivered Avere the persons to be naturalized, 
or were they delivered to some other person to be distributed to them ? 

A. I do not recollect of ever receiving 300 tickets at that time; there 
was lie AW such a thing occurred. 

3827. Q. Could you or the judge know personally any considerable 
number of the apjilicants or of the witnesses ? 

A. I did not know a single axiplicant personally, and I do not suppose 
the judge did. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

3828. Q. You say you receiA^ed red tickets for cost of naturalization 
liapers ; did you receive nothing else ? 

A. Yes, sir; I recehxd white tickets. 

3829. Q. Then you were paid by red or white tickets, and in a great 
many cases received no tickets ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

3830. Q. Do you know how many white tickets were received and 
how many red tickets ? 

A. I don’t. I think the number of white tickets Avas smaller than the 
rest of them ; about one in three were white. 

3831. Q. Did you sign any certificates of naturalization outside the 
court-room ? 

A. No, sir; never. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3832. Q. You say you imxiressed the seal upon the certificates of 
naturalization iiajiers before they were filled out; who had custody of 
these papers ? 

A. Every morning a batch of blanks Avoiild be receiA^ed from the 
county clerk’s office with the dates filled in ; I would then take a suf¬ 
ficient number which I thought Avould last us that day, attach the seals 
to them, and use them as I wanted. 

3833. Q. What security had you that the seal was not used by any 
one except yourself % 

A. No one could get at it. 

3834. Q. Where did you keep it ? 

A. In the safe at night, and in my desk during the day. 

3835. Q. Did you not leave the desk occasionally, so that the seal 
might be used by other parties % 

A. I very seldom left the desk so that anybody could get to the seal 
except one of the other clerks. 

3836. Q. Then it might be used by other clerks in the court room? 


374 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I suppose when I went out to dinner it might he used; I was but 
very seldom out during the day. » 

ByMr. Eoss: 

3837. Q. How did you manage when a large number of persons were 
naturalized at one time to furnish them with their final certificates—was 
that always done at the time, or did they come back for them the follow¬ 
ing day 

A. It was done as far as possible at the time, but there were some 
cases where the certificates were not given them until the following 
morning. 

3838. Q. Did you not sometimes give them to persons other than the 
applicants themselves ? 

A. Eo, sir; not to my knowledge. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

3839. Q. Could you tell whether the person you gave them to was the 
same i:)er8on that was naturalized or not f 

A. I had no way of telling them except that they answered to their 
names and gave their proper residence. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3840. Q. Was this filling of the dates all done by one clerk ? 

A. No, sir; I think not. 

By Mr. Lawrence : 

3841. Q. I hand you now five certificates about which you have 
already testified, namely, the certificates of Patrick O’Brien, John J. 
Mercer, Antonio Gomez, Alexander McCann, and Adolph Slechelseine j 
in whose handwriting is the name of the applicant 

A. Mr. Heyman’s, I think; I am almost positive it is. 

3842. Q. In whose handwriting are the dates ? 

A. I have no knowledge. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3843. Q. Have those red and white tickets been redeemed ? 

A. I do not know; I sent them to the county clerk’s ofiice. 

James Irving sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Lawrence : 

3844: I am one of the detective police attached to the metropolitan 
police headquarters. No. 300 Mulberry street. I am acquainted with the 
tacts attendant the arrest by Inspector Walling of Daniel Hanna, James O. 
Hara, Samuel Fitzgerald, Thomas AVenhold, James Watson, and Thomas 
Seymour. They Avere arrested about 2 or 3 o’clock in the afternoon 
of the 31st of October, on the charge of attempting to illegally reg¬ 
ister. They were confined at the police headquarters. I w^as in charge 
of these headquarters about 7 or 8 o’clock that night, when Mr. Howe, 
attorney-at-law in this city, came in and asked for the superinten¬ 
dent. I told him he was not in, but that I Avas on duty and was in 
charge of the building. He then serA^ed on me a writ of habeas corpus 
to produce the bodies of these men before Judge Barnard of the supreme 
court, at his house. No. 23 West Thirty-third street. I took the prisoners 
up to the judge’s house between 8 and 9 o’clock that CA^ening. Detec¬ 
tive Coyle accompanied me. He remained outside on the sidewalk 
with the prisoners, eight in number, and I went in the house. There I 
found Counsellor Howe; he took the Avrit from me and endorsed thereon: 

These persons being charged with no offence on the annexed return, I 
order their discharge. Dated October 31st.” He handed this to the ser¬ 
vant girl, who took it up stairs to Judge Barnard’s room, and she soon 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


375 


came down again with the judge’s signature attached to it. He then 
handed it to me and asked me if I was satisfied that that was the judge’s 
signature. I said, Yes.” He then went out on the sidewalk and handed 
it to Detective Coyle, who released the prisoners. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3845. I made no return to the writ, as I had not time; I was required 
to bring the prisoners to Judge Barnard forthwith. They were discharged 
between 8 and 9 o’clock on the evening of the 31st of October. Neither 
I nor Officer Coyle saw Judge Barnard or had any communication with 
him. No notice was given the district attorney, as there was not time; 
we had to bring the bodies before Judge Barnard immediately. No steps 
were afterwards taken to my knowledge for the rearrest of these men. 
All judges of courts and police justices have power to issue warrants for 
the arrest of persons charged with crime and to hear accusations against 
persons charged with crime. If a policeman sees a crime committed he 
can arrest the offender without a warrant, otherwise he can do nothing 
unless he has a warrant. 

To the Chairman : 

3846. All the police justices in the city except Justice Kelly are demo¬ 
crats. The shield of deputy sheriff was taken from James O. Hara at the 
police headquarters, also some orders of arrest that were on his person. 

To Mr. Ross: 

3847. The writ of habeas corpus was issued by Judge Barnard. I did 
not go into his room, nor did Detective Coyle. 1 handed the writ to 
Counsellor Howe, who made the endorsement on it and handed it to the 
servant girl. She took it up stairs, and soon came down with it signed 
by Judge Barnard. 

To the Chairman : 

3848. Mr. Howe is a democrat. 

To Mr. Ross: 

3849. I do not know wdiether there were any other officers or counsel 
in Judge Barnard’s room at the time he signed the endorsement. 

Annexed is a copy of the writ referred to, the part in italics being 
printed in the original: 

The people of the State of JTeiv Yorh to John A. Kennedy, superin¬ 
tendent of tlie metropolitan police of the city of New York, and to 
Inspector Walling of said police force, and to any person having the 
custody of below-named relators— Greeting: L. S. We command you that 
you have the bodies o/Alexander Morrison, Daniel Hanna, Janies O’Hara, 
Lawrence Fitzgerald, Thomas Weinhold, James Watson, William 
Edwards, and Thomas Seymour, by you imprisoned and detained^ as it is 
said, together with the time and cause of such imprisonment and detention, 
by whatsoever name they shall be called or charged, before the honorable 
George G. Barnard, justice of our supreme court, at the oftice of said 
Justice Barnard, No. 23 West Twenty-first street, in the city of New 
York, this 31st day of October, 1868, at 7 o’clock in the evening, to do 
and receive what shall then and there be considered concerning them, and 
have you then there this writ. 

Witness Honorable George G. Barnard, justice of our supreme court, 
the 3l6‘^ day of October, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight. 

WILLIAM J. HOWE, 

Attorney, 138 Leonard street. 

CHARLES E. LOEW, Clerh. 


376 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


On the back of this writ is the following, in writing: 

I hereby allow the within writ. October 31, 1808. 

GEOEGE G. BAENAED, 

Justice of the Supreme Court. 


The prisoners being charged with no offence on the annexed return, I 
order them discharged. October 31, 1868. 

GEOEGE G. BAENTAED, 

Justice of the Supreme Court. 


John Coyle sworn and examined. 

3850. I am acquainted with the handwriting of Judge George G. Bar¬ 
nard, of the supreme court of this city. I identify his signature to the 
allowance of the writ of habeas corpus and the order for the discharge of 
Daniel Hanna, James O’Hara, Samuel Fitzgerald, Thomas Wenhold, 
James Watson, and Thomas Sejunour. I am a detective of the metro¬ 
politan police department. I remained on the sidewalk with the pris¬ 
oners while Detective Irving went in with the writ of habeas corpus. 
After he had been in a little while Counsellor Howe came out and pro¬ 
duced the writ and asked me if I was satisfied that that was Judge Bar¬ 
nard’s signature. I said ‘‘Yes,” and discharged the prisoners. 

To Mr. EOSS: 

3851. The men were arrested after registering themselves at different 
polling i^laces, probably forty or fifty times. 

Isaac Heyman sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

3852. I am recording clerk and copyist in the county clerk’s office. 1 
have been so since the 1st of January, 1868. Mr. Loew, the county clerk, 
sent me to the supreme court to assist Mr. McKean in filling in the 
names of apifiicants for naturalization in the certificates as we received 
the orders from the judge. I was present in the court-room every day 
while this naturalization was going on. I was there from 10 in the 
morning until the court closed in the evening The court would gener¬ 
ally sit until 11 or 12 o’clock at night. The court would generally 
transact its regular business until 12 or 1 o’clock; after that, until 
4 or 5 o’clock, it would take up cases of naturalization, and then com¬ 
mencing again at 6, it would do nothing but attend to naturali¬ 
zation business until 12 o’clock. There was no adjournment during 
the day except for a few minutes. I could not state the number of 
persons naturalized definitely. My business was to fill in the name 
in the body of the certificate as I received the order from the judge. I 
sat to the right of the judge, a little below him, and to the right of me 
sat Mr. McKean. The applications would be handed first to the officers 
of the court. As soon as they had gathered a sufficient number they 
would call off' the names, and the applicants would come in and the 
applications would be handed up to the bench. Mr. Koch or Mr. Kent, 
who sat on the bench next to Judge Barnard, would call off the names 
of the applicants and witnesses, when the judge would swear them in. 
He swore them in by reading to each of them the oath that is appended 
to the application. After the principal and witness were both sworn he 
would sign orders for the application so granted. The orders would 
come down to me and I would fill in the names of the applicant in the 
certificate of naturalization. Mr. Scudder Avould generally hand the 
orders of the judge to me. The judge would frequently cross-question 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


377 


tlie principal and witness, asking them if they understood the nature of^ 
an oath, and such questions as that. He would often ask them how' 
long they had resided in the country, how long the witness had known 
the principal, and similar questions. The court generally took its time 
in passing upon the applications. I could not state precisely how much 
time he devoted to each ai^plication, hut I think he gave as much atten¬ 
tion as would enable him to obtain an intelligent idea of the character 
of the principal and witness, and to ascertain whether they were entitled 
to certificates of naturalization. He would reject quite a number. 
Whenever an ai)plicant did not come up to the requirements he would 
tear up the certificates and not issue the order. I could not form an 
idea how many he would reject in a day, but it was very often 
done. I think he would reject one out of every batch of applications. 
I could not state how many applications were in a batch 5 it varied con¬ 
siderably, probably eight or ten 5 the highest I think was twelve appli¬ 
cations. The judge sometimes administered the oath himself, and some¬ 
times he directed Mr. Loew to administer it. Mr. Loew was x>i’esent in 
the court nearly every evening all the evening, and sometimes during 
the day, but not so much. I am under the impression the judge would 
swear in the api)licants for naturalization singly and not in groui)s. 
He did so generally whenever 1 paid attention to it. I was engaged 
nearly all the time in filling out the certificates, and of course could not 
pay much attention to other ^proceedings in the court. As a general 
rule as fast as I filled out one batch of certificates and passed them over 
to Mr. McKean another batch would be ready for me to fill out, so that 
my time was comjpletely occuipied all the day. My oipportunities for 
scrutinizing the papers were not very good. I do not recollect that the 
court Avas cleared ofqpersons more than once. I liaA^e no recollection of 
any jperson being excluded by force. I am not acquainted with Mr. 
Leverson. I never heard that the court made any order for the exclusion 
of persons not applicants for naturalization or their witnesses. I could 
not approximate to the number of the apxplications that they passed in 
one day. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3853. I did not mark these aipplications filed. I ]presume that each 
day’s apxplications are kept separated, so that the number passed each 
day could be ascertained definitely by actual count. 

To Mr. Kerr ; 

3854. The applications were not filled up except in the signatures of 
the clerk by one of tlie clerks of the court. I do not know where they 
were gotten ipp; I had not time to scrutinize these applications or to 
examine them Avitli any care to ascertain whether any fraud was being 
committed or anything of that kind. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3855. I know one Patrick McCaffrey; was an attache of the sheriff’s 
office. I think he is a special deputy sheriff. I haA^e seen him Avearing 
a deiputy sheriff’s seal, and haA^e also seen him about the sheriff’s office. 

I know him by sight. I recognize the signature of 0. E. Loew to the 
applications for naturalization of Hugh Smith, J. McDunn, James Mc¬ 
Carty, Fred. Hennessey, and Joseph Herbert and James BroAvn, as my 
handAAufiting. I never signed any certificates of naturalization in blank 
unless it Avas by direct order of the court. I attached the name of C. E. 
Loew to these papers after the order for the naturalization of the apxpli- 


378 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


cants was made. After the order was made I would often sign a batch 
of them at a time^ but none were touched before the judge’s order was 
made. I recognize the signature of 0. E. Loew to the applications for 
naturalization of Thomas Schmidt, Henry Baum, Tliomas Surridge, 
John Doolan, John Donnelly, and August Muller, as my handwriting. 
I recognize the signature of 0. E. Loew to the applications of Sebas¬ 
tian Schneider, William Schmidt, Gotleib Kaffenberger, Jacob Schalfer, 
August Betzler, John Noelsch, and William Malia, as my handwriting. 
I recognize the handwriting of the signature of 0. E. Loew to the appli¬ 
cation of William Lucas as that of Joseph Koch. I recognize the hand- 
\Yriting of the signature of 0. E. Loew to the application of Charles 
Warneck as that of 0. H. Kent, and the signatures of C. E. Loew to the 
applications of John Winkens, Henry Sterne, and Charles Eehling, as my 
handwriting. The signature of 0. E. Loew to the applications of August 
A. Lenninger is in Mr. Koch’s handwriting. The signature of 0. E. 
Loew to the application of Duffy is in Mr. Kent’s handwriting. The 
signature of 0. E. Loew to the application of Patrick Bafferty, James 
E. Smith, and Samuel Eeynolds, is in the handwriting of Mr. Daniel 
Scudder, clerk of the supreme court. Part 3d. Mr. McKean, Mr. Koch, 
Mr. Scudder, and myself, used to sign the name of Mr. Loew to the appli¬ 
cations. . 

To Mr. Kerr : 

3856. I was not aware during the time this naturalization was going 
on that great frauds were being perpetrated upon the courts or upon 
the law by parties coming there under one device or another and obtain¬ 
ing these papers. My time was taken up so much that I had not even 
time to read the newspapers. T have paid very little attention to mat¬ 
ters outside of my business. I had no personal knowledge directly or 
indirectly that frauds were being practiced either by Judge Barnard 
corruptly, or by persons coming before him who were not entitled to natu¬ 
ralization, or by witnesses coming to testify to persons who were not 
entitled, in any other way. Considering the great haste and speed with 
which this naturalization business was conducted, and the great pressure 
ui^on the court and the employes of the court, frauds might have been 
committed by outside parties without the knowledge of the attaches of 
the court or without their being aware of it. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3857. The orders for naturalization came down to me from the judge 
in batches of eight, ten, or twelve—sometimes even less. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

3858. I could not from my desk see the judge attaching his signature 
to the orders. I could, however, hear the motion of his pen. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

3850. The file-marks upon the applications were put upon them as 
soon as we could get leisure time; but it was not generally done before 
the certificate of naturalization was issued, but done after the party 
had gone away. The applications were put into a safe, and the endorse¬ 
ment was put on whenever the clerical force had leisure. It was not 
generally done on the same day the certificates were issued. I could 
not tell how long after, but just as soon after as we could get leisure to 
do it. The handwriting of the endorsement of the application handed to 
me 1 think is that of Mr. Morse, in the county clerk’s office. Sometimes 
the endorsements were put on by the clerks of the court, and at other 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


379 


times by clerks in tbe county clerk’s office. I may have kno^vn some of 
the witnesses that appeared to identify applicants for naturalization, but 
I cannot recall any of their names now. I have seen McCaffrey there 
as a witness. I do not think I have seen him there more than twice. I 
am not acquainted with Patrick Goff. I never examined the applica¬ 
tions to see whether the signatures of the principal and witness were all 
in the same handwriting 5 I had no time to do it. All the clerks in court 
were so much engrossed with their particular duties that they had no 
time to make any such examination. In the evening the doors would 
be thrown open to admit applicants and witnesses for naturalization, 
and when the room was filled the door would be closed until those in the 
room had gone through; the doors would then be opened and the room 
again filled. I suppose the room would be filled 10 or 12 times in the 
course of the evening. The court-room I suppose held from 150 to 200 
persons. 

To the Chairman : 

3860. I was present in the court during aU the time naturalization was 
going on. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

3861. I know Supervisor Hermann, who, I believe, had something to 
do with the so-called German democratic association, No. 6 Centre street; 
and I also know Counsellor Joachimsen. I do not know Eosenberg nor 
Goldstein. I think I saw Eosenberg in the court-room once or twice 
before he was arrested; and on one occasion he asked me for some 
blanks, and I referred him to the county clerk’s office. 

New York, January 4, 1869. 

James O’Brien sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

To Mr. KjERR: 

3862. I am sheriff of the city and county of New York, and have been 
so since the 1st of January, 1868. I know Patrick McCaffrey and I know 
John McCaffrey. The latter was appointed by Sheriff Kelly. Patrick 
McCaffrey was never deputy sheriff; he was a special deputy, serving 
summonses. John McCaffrey ceased to be sheriff on the 1st of July, 
1868, and has not since been acting in that capacity, or in any other 
capacity under the sheriff—not a day. Patrick McCaffrey was a special 
deputy to serve summons. I dismissed him about six months ago on 
the representations of some country lawyers, to whom he applied for $5 
for serving subpoenas. I have seen him hanging about the courts during 
the time that naturalization business was going on. 1 do not know what 
his business was. 

To Mr. Hickey : 

3863. I appointed from 1,500 to 2,000 deputies on the election day last 
November. They were sworn in the day before. I feared there would 
be some trouble, and I thought it would be no harm to have these men 
as assistant police. 

3864. Q. Were you requested to appoint them by any of the metro¬ 
politan police ? 

A. No, sir. 

3865. Q. They did not call on you for any aid ? 

A. No, sir. 

3866. Q. IVhere were they located ? 


380 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. All over tlie city. They came in voluntarily and asked to he 
appointed special deputy sheriffs. They said that policemen were going 
to prevent voters from voting, and they wanted to see that every citizen 
got his vote in. They were recommended by other parties—by such 
men as Congressman Fox. 

38G7. Q. Did yon have personal knowledge of the men yon swore in ? 

A. I know a good many of them, some eight or nine hundred. 

3868. Q. How many of them came and asked to be sworn in as deputy 
sheriffs ? 

A. All of them. 

3869. Q. What did they say was the object ? 

A. They thought there was going to be some disturbance, and that 
there was not sufficient force in the metropolitan police department to 
keep the peace. They volunteered their services to aid the police. I 
had the power to deputize men to keep the i)eace. 

3870. Q. Was that done the year before ? 

A. No, sir. 

3871. Q. Is it usual to do it I 

A. It has been done heretofore. 

3872. Q. Since the organization of the metropolitan police ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3873. Q. When ? 

A. I cannot recollect. I think that under Sheriff Kelly, the term 
before last, there were men organized. 

3874. Q. What do you mean by organized ? 

A. Men who volunteer their services to act as deputy sheriffs to keep 
the peace at the polls. 

3875. Q. Was there any requisition from the mayor of the city for the 
appointment of these deputy sheriffs 

A. The mayor issued a proclamation something similar. 

3876. Q. Djd he call on the sheriff' to appoint deputies “? 

A. It was talked of, but they did not think it was prudent for me to 
do it. 

3877. Q. Then these appointments were made against the opinion of 
Mayor Hoffman ? 

A. Not against his opinion, he did not say anything about it. 

3878. Q. You had no requisition from the mayor? 

A. No, sir. 

3879. Q. Nor from the governor ? 

A. No, sir. 

3880. Q. Nor from the police authorities ? 

A. No, sir. 

3881. Q. Did you have any requisition from any political organization ? 

A. No, sir. 

3882. Q. What political position did Congressman Fox occupy ? 

A. None at all; only he thought that the United States marshal was 
going round to try to prevent legal voters from voting, and he wanted to 
prevent him from interfering with the votes. It was threatened that 
they were going to appoint a good many deputy marshals, and we thought 
that we would do the same thing. 

3883. Q. Did the marshal appoint any deputy marshals? 

A. I believe he did j I am not certain. 

3884. Q. Did those officers of yours make any arrests ? 

A. Not that I know of. I did not order them to make any arrests, 
only that if they saw a quarrel they would try and prevent it. 

3885. Q. Had they authority to make arrests for the disturbance of 
the peace ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 381 

A. Yes, sir. I heard of one arrest that they made, but I do not know 
how it occurred. 

3886. Q. There were no arrests reported to you ? 

A. NTo, sir. 

3887. Q. How were these men distributed over the city. Did you 
make any arrangements for distribution at any particular points 

A. 170, sir. There was one ward, the 7th, where it was thought 
that there would be great difficulty, and some 300 or 400 men were sent 
there. There w^ere also some in the 1st ward. ^ 

3888. Q. What is the proportion of voters politically, inthe7thAvard'? 

A. There are about 4,000 or 5,000 democratic majority in that ward. I 

do not know that the republicans have got more than 800 or 1,000 voters 
there. 

3889. Q. And you appointed 300 deputy sheriffs in that ward ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3890. Q. Did you apprehend that those 800 or 1,000 republicans were 
going to disturb the peace of the ward? 

A. I did not expect they would; but I thought there might be some 
trouble from the United States marshal trying to prevent the large dem¬ 
ocratic vote being cast. 

3891. Q. Then those deputy sheriffs were appointed to meet any pos¬ 
sible deputies the United States marshal might appoint ? 

A. I ordered them to arrest any one who interfered with the voting. 

3892. Q. What was the political complexion of these deputy sheriffs; 
were they all democrats ? 

A. Uot that I know of j everybody that came along and asked to be 
appointed, I appointed. 

3893. Q. Can you name any republican whom you appointed ? 

A. Yes, sir j I can name Charles S. Spencer. He asked to be one, and 
I told him yes j that I would appoint any respectable citizen. 

3894. Q. Do you know that Charles S. Spencer was sworn in as a 
deputy sheriff? 

A. I do not know it. He was in there that day, and I told my under- 
sheriff, who is a notary public, to swear them all in. 

3895. Q. Were the men all paid by the city and county ofl7ew York? 

A. Hone of them were. 

3896. Q. They did this service for nothing? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

3897. Q. You determined to appoint the deputies on the advice or 
after consultation with some of the leading democrats of the city ? 

A. I had no consultation at all with them. 

3898. Q. And no advice from them ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

3899. Q. Do you know of any republican being appointed deputy 
sheriff, except Mr. Spencer ? 

A. I do not know. Half of them may have been republicans for all I 
know. 

3900. Q. Can you name any republican who was appointed except Mr. 
Spencer ? 

A. I cannot. 

3901. Q. Was not the only object in appointing these men to see that 
men claiming the right to vote should be permitted to vote ? 

A. Ho, sir; but if there was any disturbance around the polls they 
were to q^iell it. 


382 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3002. Q. Did some of these deputies arrest Mr. Urmy, an election 
officer ? 

A. Yes, sir; that is the person who I understood was arrested. 

3903. Q. Do you know anything of a Jackson club in this city ? 

A. Yes, sirj it is a democratic club at the corner of Thirty-second 
street and Second avenue. I have been a member of it since its organi¬ 
zation last Jidy. 

3904. Q. How many deputy sheriffs did you appoint in the 6th and 8th 
wards ? 

A. I cannot recollect; I appointed some in both those wards. I 
appointed some on the recommendation of Senator Norton, who said he 
expected some disturbance around there. He is a senator in the State 
senate. I appointed all that he sent to me. 

3905. Q. You say that some deputy sheriffs were appointed some years 
ago for election day. Was not that in 1864, during the war, when a riot 
was anticipated ? 

A. I cannot recollect. 

3906. Q. Do you know of any deputies having been appointed at any 
other time % 

A. I am not a very old politician ; I do not recollect back. I have 
heard of them being appointed at other times. I do not know of it 
myself. 

3907. Q. How long have you resided in this city ? 

A. About 20 years. 

3908. Q. Did you reside in the city the year before you were elected 
sheriff? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3909. Q. And the year before that ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3910. Q. And for how many years before that ? 

A. I have been residing in the one ward about 20 years. 

3911. Q. Have you resided out of it at any time ? 

A. No, sir, never. 

3912. Q. Have you been out of it any considerable period during that 
time ? 

A. No, sir, excepting a month or so in the country during the summer. 
I have been alderman from that ward for two terms, from 1864 up to the 
present date. 1 was alderman when I was elected sheriff. My vacancy 
runs out now. 

3913. Q. Has there been any period when you have been out of the 
ward for more than a month ? 

A. No, sir. 

3914. Q. What ward is that ? 

A. The 21st ward. 

3915. Q. Do you know of any person who has been convicted, except 
in a single instance, for any violation of the election laws in this city, or 
for any illegal voting, within the last five years ? 

A. I have heard of some being convicted. 

3916. Q. Were any of the deputies whom you appointed men who had 
been imprisoned in the penitentiary ? 

A. I do not know. 

3917. Q. Are you acquainted with any of the officers of the penitentiary ? 

A. I may know them if I saw them. 

3918. Q. Where did you get acquainted with them ? 

A. I do not know. 

3919. Q. Did you have at any time any personal acquaintance with 
them ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YOUK. 


383 


A. Not that I remember. 

3920. Q. You have had no opportunity of getting acquainted with them? 

A. ~I may know them. 

3921. Q. Where? 

A, By meeting them back and forward in the city. 

3922. Q. You had no other opportunity? 

A. None that I know of. 

3923. Q. Have you ever been sentenced for any offence yourself ? 

A. I decline to answer. The books of record are over there and can 
be found. 

3924. Q. You say that you have never been out of the ward in which 
you reside longer than one month any time within 20 years? 

A. Yes, sir 5 not over one month any time in 20 years. 

New York, Monday^ January 4, 18G9. 

Edwin E. I^ent sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

3925. I am an attorney and counsellor-at-law, and am clerk in equity 
in the supreme court of the State and county. I have been acting in 
that capacity over three years; first under William 0. Conner, and after 
Mr. Loew came into office he continued me. 

3926. Q. During the days wdien the business of naturalization was 
carried on in the supreme court before Judge Barnard, in October last, 
what were your special duties in connection with that business ? 

A. To attend as clerk in the court. One part of the time I was exam¬ 
ining applications as they came up; at other times I would call out the 
names of the applicant and the witness; and at other times I assisted in 
blotting the papers when my throat was worn out by calling the names. 

3927. Q. What proportion of the time were you in court while this 
business was being transacted? 

A. From beginning to end. As a general thing my position was at 
the left of the judge. I called off' the name of the applicant, and then 
the name of the witness on the same paper, to see if they were present. 
If they answered, the Witness was placed on one side of the room and the 
applicant on another, preparatory to being sworn. Then the oath was 
administered, either by the judge or by the county clerk. 

3928. Q. After the oath was administered to them, respectively, what 
was done ? 

A. Sometimes they were examined, and then the applicant was 
required to step aside. The paper was then passed from the judge to 
one of the ofiicers of the court, who handed it to Mr. Heyman, who filled 
in the name of the applicant in the certificate and then handed it to Mr. 
McKean, the only person authorized to sign the county clerk’s name to 
such papers. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3929. Q. State whether the witness and the applicants, were sworn 
separately or together. 

A. Separately. 

3930. Q. And were examined separately ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3931. Q. How many were sworn at a time? 

A. I should judge from 8 to 10 applicants, and the same number of 
witnesses. It may have been less or it may have been more. Not many 
of them could get at the Bible at one time. 


384 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3932. Q. State the degree of caution, if any, that was exercised by the 
court and its officers to prevent fraud. 

A. At the beginning Mr. Loew told us that we would be held respon 
sible for everything that was done. He said that most likely there 
would be attempts at fraud made, and he did not wish his name to be 
coupled with them in any respect. He said that if anything was done 
wrong he would discharge the clerk or persons in his employ who did it. 
It was by reason of that that Mr. McKean was the only person allowed 
to sign his name, Mr. Heyman the only person allowed to fill in the name 
of the applicant, and Edward Koch and myself called out the names of 
the parties. The papers as a general thing were either examined by one 
of the officers of the court or by one of the clerks, and if they were 
found not to be filled up as they should be they were torn up and 
destroyed. 

3932J. Q. What proportion of applicants were refused and their iiapers 
destro^^ed 

A. I should think that over one-half of them were rejected. 

3933. Q. AVhat was done with the cases of rejected applications ? 

A. The papers were torn up and thrown away, and the parties were 
ordered to leave the court-room. I know that several times the clerks 
told men that it was understood that parties were trying to get papers 
through improperly, and that if they caught any of them at it they would 
‘‘send them up,” which means to Sing Sing. 

3934. Q. State generally whether the court apparently tried to prevent 
fraud in procuring naturalization papers. 

A. To the best of my knowledge there was all due diligence used. 

3935. Q. And still, for all the diligence that was used, some persons 
might have got through papers who were not entitled to them ? 

A. Kot to my knowledge; anything that could have been done in that 
respect would have been by persons coming there under false represen¬ 
tations and committing perjury. It was not done to our knowledge, for 
if we had discovered it we would have used every endeavor to appre¬ 
hend the parties. It certainly could have been done in that way. If a 
party came there and the witness swore that he knew him to be so-and- 
so, and the applicant swore that he was so-and-so, and had resided here 
so long, and had declared his intentions to become a citizen, there was 
no way to prevent fraud. 

3930. Q. Were these questions asked ? 

A. These questions were asked every time. 

3937. Q. Do you know any case in which the witnesses or the parties 
were not present and where naturalization was granted by the court? 

A. Ko, sir; I know of no such case. 

3938. Q. If there had been any number of this class of cases, were you 
so situated that you would have known it? 

A. I should most decidedly have noticed it. I did my best to prevent 
anything wrong, expecting that the press would create a great hubbub 
about it. 

3939. Q. Could persons be naturalized there without going into the 
court-room? 

A. No, sir 5 the law requires it to be done in open court. 

3940. Q. And there was no j)erson naturalized otherwise to your 
knoAvledge? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

3941. Q. If any fraudulent naturalization papers have got into circu¬ 
lation, what is your h>q)othesis in regard to how it could have been done? 

A. The only way I can think that the thing could be done was, as I have 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 385 

Stated, by persons coming and committing deliberate perjnry, pretend¬ 
ing to be persons wlio they were not. 

3942. Q. Do you think that that could have been carried on a long 
time without being noticed by yourself or by the judge? 

A. I do not think so. 

3943. Q. Do you know of any instance in which the judge ordered the 
room cleared of bystanders or of attorneys ? 

A. There was some instances like this: where the applicants and wit¬ 
nesses were called, and Avent inside the railing, and where the clerk 
informed the judge that there were no more applications in correct form, 
the judge would inform the parties outside the railing that they should 
leave the room as there were no more applications before the court. 
The object of that was because the crowd was so large, and in order that 
room might be made for other persons Avho were entitled to be naturalized. 

3944. Q. Do you know anything of an attorney named Leverson being 
in your court during the time of naturalization ? 

A. I do not know such a person by name. 

3945. Q. Do you know any instance of any attorney or reporter for 
the press being turned out? 

A. Ko, sir; there were reporters there, and they were given seats at 
the table in front of the desk, and given paper, pens, and ink. 

3946. Q. State if ever fifty or a hundred i^ersons were sworn in at the 
same time. 

A. Ko, sir; not to my knowledge, and 1 was there from beginning to 
end. It would be impossible to get that number of men inside the rail¬ 
ing. When I stated that eight or ten were sworn at a time, I think that 
was the largest number. 

By the Chairman : 

3947. Q. The applicants and the Avitnesses did not sign the applica¬ 
tions in court? 

A. The applications Avere signed before they were brought into court. 
There was a table inside the railing Avhere quite a number of them were 
also signed; but when the papers were handed to us they were all signed, 

3948. Q. Did Judge Barnard swear the applicants and the witnesses 
substantially in this form: ^Wou SAvear that the affidavits to which you 
have subscribed your names are true?’’ 

A. Never. 

3949. Q. In what form did he swear them? 

A. There is a form attached to the apifiication, where the applicant 
swears that he is over 21 years of age; that he has been a resident of 
the State so long; that it has been his hona fide intention to become a 
citizen; and that oath Avas read from the instrument, or words to the 
same effect. 

3950. Q. I haA^e before me the application of Hugh Smith, containing 
an afiidaAfit in this form: ^^Hugh Smith, the above-named applicant, 
being duly sworn, says he resides at 318 East Thirty-first street, in this 
city; that he has arrived at the age of 21 years; that he has resided in 
the United States for three years next preceding his arrival at that age, 
and has continued to reside therein until the present time; that he has 
resided five years within the United States, including the thre^ years of 
his minority, and one year immediately jireceding his application Avithin 
the State of New York; and that for three years next preceding this 
application it has been his hona fide intention to become a citizen of the 
United States.” Did the judge administer that oath ? 

25 T 


386 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOKK. 


A. Either the judge, or the clerk at his direction, administered it in 
those exact words—the entire thing. 

3951. Q. Before the judge administered this oath to the appliiiant, did 
he put any questions to him f 

A. In some instances he would ask him what his name was, and if it 
corresponded he asked him how he spelled it; and he generally put 
other questions to him. In a number of instances the applicant as well 
as the witness was examined before being sworn to test the actual truth 
of their statement. 

3952. Q. But as a general rule were they so examined f 

A. It was as general one way as the other. 

3953. Q. State what proportion of the apjilicants and witnesses were 
examined before they were sworii. 

A. That I cannot state. 

3954. Q. Were one-fourth of the aijplicants examined before they 
sworn ? 

A. They may have or may not have been. 

3955. .Q. Were one-fourtli of the witnesses examined before', they were 
sworn ? 

A. I cannot state. 

3956. Q. Were one-tenth of the applicants examined before they were 
sworn? 

A. I cannot state. 

3957. Q. Were one-tenth of the witnesses examined before they were 
sworn ? 

A. O, yes, sir. There may have been one-half of them examined, or 
there may have been more, or there may have been less. 

3958. Q. After the examination without being sworn, the oath was 
administered to them in the form in the i)rinted blanks? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3959. Q. Can you form any estimate of the number of persons that 
were naturalized each day in October last? 

A. I cannot. 

3960. Q. You say that Mr. Loew cautioned you about fraudulent natu¬ 
ralizations? 

A. He cautioned us about any illegal or ungentlemanly acts, or any 
thing that would bring his name into disrepute. 

3961. Q. It was generally understood in court and by the officers that 
there was danger of illegal proceedings? 

A. Yo, sir; I do not suppose that it ever entered into his mind that 
there was any danger of it. 

3962. Q. You say that certain rei)orters were furnished seats? 

A. Yes, sir; that I know. 

3963. Q. Who were they? 

A. I cannot state; I was told they were reporters, and I saw them sit¬ 
ting there taking minutes. I cannot give any of their names, and cannot 
tell where they can be found. One was a man about 27 or 28 years of 
age, and sat there an entire evening. On the following evening there 
were two of them there. These were two instances that I am positive of. 

3964. Q. Ho you recollect any others ? 

A. I do not. I heard that there were others, but I did not see any 
others\ My attention was called to the fact that they were reporters. 

3965. Q. Hid you know that they were reporters for democratic news¬ 
papers ? 

A. I did not. 

3966. Q. Were there many persons naturalized that evening? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


387 


A. The usual number. 

39G7. Q. AVliat was the usual number if 

A. That I do not know. 

By Mr. Boss: 

39G8. Q. When an applicant came to be naturalized what was the first 
thing lie did? 

A. He handed his paper to an officer of the court, who took it to one 
of the clerks sitting near the judge. 

3909. Q. Probably to you? ^ 

A. Probably to me. The clerk would examine the paper to see if it 
was filled out correctly. If it was not correct the paper was torn in two 
and thrown on the flooi*. 

3970. Q. Did the clerks do that as well as the judge? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3971. Q. While the clerk was making this examination, where was the 
applicant and w itness? 

A. Outside the railing. 

3972. Q. At what period did they come inside the railing ? 

A. When their names w^ere called and the application was handed to 
the judge. Then the judge examined them and marked his approval on 
the back of the application. 

3973. Q. Were they sworn as soon as they came inside the railing ? 

A. No, sir 5 as a general thing the judge asked them some questions 

before the oath was administered. The applicants were on one side and 
the witnesses on the other. The applicants were sworn first and then 
the witnesses. It was uniform that all the applicants should be on one 
side and all the witnesses on the other. 

3974. Q. After the oath was administered did the judge ask any ques¬ 
tions? 

A. Sometimes he did and sometimes he did not. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3975. Q. What proportion of time was Mr. Loew in court during 
naturalization ? 

A. All the time. He may have'been absent oucti or twice, but not 
to my knowdedge. To the best of my knowledge and belief lie was pre¬ 
sent every evening while naturalization was going on. 

3970. Q. He wms present attending to his duties? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3977. Q. Did he have his desk and seal in that room or in some other 
one? 

A. In that room. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

3978. Q. Did you notice that in many instances the same man was 
witness for a great number of applicants? 

A. No, sir; I would have notified the court if I had noticed, and I 
think I sliould have noticed it if it had occurred. 

3979. Q. Then you are prepared to swear that was not the custom in 
your court? 

A. Not to my knowledge. Had I noticed it I would certainly have 
reported it to the court. 

3980. Q. Whom have you counselled with in reference to your testimony 
before this committee? 

A. With no one. 


388 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


3981. Q. Have you had any consultation with Loew f 
A. No, sir. 

3982. Q. With any of the other clerks! 

A. No, sir; we may have spoken about the examination going on; but 
there has been nothing stated about the testimony either one way or 
another. 


New York, January 4, 1869. 

Henry A^andervoort ^worn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

3983. I am clerk of the court of general sessions and oyer and ter¬ 
miner. I have been acting as deputy and clerk for nearly thirty-nine 
years. I am acquainted with Janie's O’Brien, sheriff of this city and 
county. 

3984. Q. State if he was ever sentenced for any offence in your court. 

A. I cannot say of my own personal knoAvledge that he was the per¬ 
son, but there was a James O’Brien convicted of misdemeanor some years 
ago. 

3985. Q. Ho you know whether Sheriff O’Brien is reputed to be the 
same person! 

A. I cannot speak of my own personal knowledge. 

[AVitness produced a copy of the record in the case of the people of the 
State of New York against James O’Brien, which is annexed to his testi¬ 
mony as follows: 


At a court of general sessions of the peace, holden in and for tlie 
city and county of New York, at the City Hall of the said city, on Mon¬ 
day, the 18th day of January, In the year of our Lord 1858. 

Present, the honorable George G. Barnard, recorder of the city 
of New Y^ork, justice of the sessions. 


The People of the State of 
New York 
vs. 

James Obrien. 


] On conviction by verdict of riot and 
assault and battery on some person 
1 unknown, November 7, 1857. 


AVhereupon it is ordered and adjudged by the court, that the said 
James O’Brien, for the misdemeanor aforesaid, whereof he is convicted, 
be imprisoned in the penitentiary of the city of New York for the teiin 
of six months. 

(A true extract from the minutes.) 

HENEY A-ANHEEYOOET, Cleric. 


New Y"ork general sessions of the peace. The people of the State of. 
New York vs. James O’Brien. Copy of sentence. January 18, 1858. * 
Penitentiary, six months.] 


New Y^ork, ilfonJni/, January 4, 1869. 

Dennis Shea sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

3986. I was an inspector of registry at the presidential election in the 
4th district, 4th ward. AYe refused registration to some 40 persons, 
probably one-half of them being on the ground of illegal naturaliza¬ 
tion papers. About 20 of them stated that they had never gone to 
the court, had never declared their intention to become citizens, and 
had got their papers through outside parties. I knew a great number 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


389 


of the persons wlio registered and voted in that district. 1 have lived 
in the district four years. It is a district composed in great part of 
sailor boarding-lioiises. And this year from these boarding-houses there 
were registered over double the number of any previous year. I judge 
that the greater proportion of the increase Avere men not entitled to 
vote, or that Amtes Avere given on the names of men Avho Avxn^e registered 
and had gone to sea before election day. 

Q. What proportion of men atIio Amted Avere sworn? 

A. We probably SAVore 50. I had checked them on my registry book 
and SAVore them all on election day, but they Avould SAvear pretty much 
anything. 

Q. Do you knoAV the political status of the men controlling tliese 
sailor boarding-houses ? 

A. Yes, sir, I do pretty Avell. Jeremiah O’Brien is one of them. His 
mother keeps a sailors’ boarding-house at 'No. 70 OliA^er street. He was 
a councilman at that time. I think that about 15 Amtes Avere polled 
from that house, almost all sailors. Thomas Wilds keeps a sailors’ 
boarding-house at No. 100.^- Cherry street. The principal increase in 
this district came from sailor boarding-houses.^ Their politics are demo¬ 
cratic. There Avere 28 republican Amtes i)oiled in the district, all told. 
There were registered 510 or 550, and the whole A'ote polled vras 480. 

Q. State AAdiether any clerks of the courts of this city Avere interested 
in these boarding-houses. 

A. I do not know Avhether they are clerks; but they are either court 
officers or clerks. Mr. Wilds is a court officer or clerk in one of the 
courts; Jeremiah O’Brien was a councilman; in fact, all the workers in 
the district AA^ere composed of the members of the Tammany general 
committee. Mr. Churchill keeps another sailors’ boarding-house at No. 
08 OlAer street. He is a democrat, but I do not know that he holds any 
position. 

By Mr. Boss: 

3987. Q. Is there any hiAV here against democrats keeping boarding¬ 
houses ? 

A. I do not suppose there is. There are republicans keeping boarding¬ 
houses in tlie district, too; but I do not know any of them to colonize. 

By Mr. Hopkins ; 

3988. What AAms the A ote in that precinct a year ago? 

A. I am not positiA^e; but it neAW ran up as high as 400. 


By Air. Boss: 

3989. Q. How many republican A'otes Avere giA^en in the precinct ? 

A. Twenty-eight, I think. 

3990. Q. Were you one of the 28? 

A. No, sir. 

3991. Q. You are a republican ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

3992. (,). Were there any persons Avho Amted there Avho were not legal 
voters ? 

A. Not to my ])ositiA"e knoAvledge. If I were aAAmre of it the}' could not 
A^ote. 

3993. Q. I think you said you challenged everybody AAdioin you 
suspected ? 

A. Everybody; and I made three or four arrests. 

3994. Q. Did the rest of the board co-operate Avith you to prevent 
fraud ? 


390 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir. 

3995. Q. Sailors liave a right to vote here under the laws 1 

A. Yes, sir. 

3996. Q. And there is no law" against their voting the democratic 
ticket ? 

A. I think not. 

3997. Q. And they do generally vote the democratic ticket"/ 

A. I have no i^ersonal knowledge what they vote. 

3998. Q. You do not know of any illegal ^ otes being given in that 
precincts 

A. I cannot swear to any. 

By the Chairman : 

3999. Q. Did any democrat make any challenge either at the time of 
registration or on the day of election ? 

A. No, sir; no democrat made any challenge. The republicans had a 
challenger there expressly for the purpose of challenging illegal voters; 
but some democrats in the morning made a fight with him, coinpelled 
him to go into the street,*and beat him there. He did not receive the 
proper jirotection from the police, and we were compelled to do the chab 
lenging ourselves. His name is Francis Burns. 

Q. Who were your democratic colleagues ? 

A. .Tides Malay and Bartholomew Cronin. 

New York, Motidayj January 4,1869. 

Edward B. Heath sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

4000. I am docket clerk in the office of the superior court. 1 was not 
in court during.the naturalization business of last fall. I was in an office 
which is in a separate building from the court-room. I was assigned to 
assist the clerks in naturalization. We had a separate room in the City 
Hall—the old sheriffs office. As the imrties who had passed the court 
came over there from the court-room, at the corner of Chambers and 
Centre streets, we made out their certificates as each applicant'come for¬ 
ward. My duty was to fill up the certificates. There were sorbe four or 
five clerks emxdoyed in filling u}) certificates. As the apidicant handed 
in his papers we examined them and saw that they were correct, then 
filled up the certificate and had it signed and sealed and handed to him. 
Mr. Meeks signed the clerlUs name to the certificate, and had charge of 
the seals. There was no opportunity for any one else to have access to 
the seal. 

4001. Q. To whom were the certificates delivered after they were made 
out? 

A. Each certificate was delivered to the party in person. 

4002. Q. Did jmu see in the court or among the officers any dis])osition 
to get through fraudulent naturalization papers? 

A. I never did; not in a single instance. 

4003. Q. You do not know anything of the kind ? 

A. No, sir. 

4004. Q. Were you ever in court during its sessions ? 

A. I was there once or twice for about half an hour when naturaliza¬ 
tion business was being transacted before Judge Garvin. 

4005. Q. State the process which the judge had for naturalization. 

A. Each applicant brought his paper in his handand the witness with 

him. As he (jame into the court-room the clerk took the papers and 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


391 


then called the name of the applicant and swore him that he would give 
a correct statement to the judge. The applicant then passed before the 
judge and the witness was questioned by the Judge as to how long he 
had known the applicant, as to his character, &c. If the judge was 
satisfied, the applicant passed along to the clerk and took the oath of 
allegiance. 

400G. Q. So far as you were able to observe were the applicant and 
witnesses always present in court and sworn ? 

A. Yes, sir ; they were both there, and were sworn every time so far 
as I was able to observe. 

4007. Q. Were you ever in Judge McCunn’s court? 

A. No, sir. 

4008. Q. Have you any knowledge of any fraudulent natmalization 
papers having got out in any way ? 

A. None whatever. 

4000. Q. Is there anything further that you know in reference to the 
business of naturalization that would throw any light upon the sabject 
beibre the committee ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey ; 

4010. Q. You examined the ai)plications pretty closely to see if they 
were correct ? 

A. To see that the signatures of the parties were attached to them 
and the initials of the judge. I know that we were always satisfied that 
the papers were correct. 

4011. Q. In form or in substance ? 

A. Correct in substance. 

4012. Q. Look at the application of Maximilian Boeck and see whether 
you think it is correct ? 

A. I believe that paper to be correct. 

4013. Q. Is it not all written by the same person ? 

A. I cannot say. 

4014. Q. Look at the application of William Malia and state whether 
it is not all in the same handwriting ? 

A. I cannot tell. 

4015. Q. Did you criticize the applications to see whether they were 
or were not signed by different parties ? 

A. In almost every instance I questioned the iiarties closely as to how 
they got their paiiers. / 

4016. Q. How' do you know that the parties who presented the i^apers 
to you were the same parties who appeared before the judge ? 

A. I had no means of knowing that any more than asMng the ques¬ 
tion of the party presenting it, whether it was his paper and whether he 
had been before the judge, and he would always answer the questions 
correctly. 

4017. Q. The only evidence you had was the declaration of the party ? 

A. I did not see him in court. 

4018. Q. How did you know that he was the same party who had 
been in court ? 

A. I was very well satisfied in my own mind he was, from the fact 
that the papers came directly from the court. The applicant brought 
them himself, and in a great many instances the witness came with him. 

4019. Q. Do you say that all the papers given out were given to the 
parties themselves ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


392 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4020. Q. Aud not to other parties to deliver them ! 

A. No, sir; not in any instance that I know. 

4021. Q. Do you know Henry Waltman, a member of the legislature ? 

A. I know him by sight. 

4022. Q. Do you know of his getting any papers for other parties ? 

A. No, sir; I do not; he never got any from me. I never delivered 

any paper except to the party. 

4023. Q. Was there any case where a paper was left by a party who 
could not wait for his certificate ? 

A. No, sir. 

New York, January 4, 1809. 

John M. Lawrence sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4024. Question. State what you knoAV of persons Acting more than 
once at polling xfiaces in this city at the last presidential election. 

Witness. Am I bound to criminate myself? 

The Chairman. Anything you may state here Avill not be used 
against you. 

Witness. At the time the board of registrars met, I registered from 
my OAvn residence. No. 132 Wooster street, and on my own name. I was 
called on by a friend of mine who is a friend of Senator Norton’s, and 
was asked to register my own name at two or three difierent places, No. 
531 Broome street and No. 54 SulliAmn street, Avhich I did. I did not 
vote at those tAvo places, but I gaA^e the address to those persons. 

4025. Q. State if you received any slips. 

A. I received a slip in Hudson street, between Dominick and Spring, 
at a place called ^‘Moran’s,” which was the Tammany Hall headquarters 
of the 8th Avard. A man gaA^e me a card there with the name on and 
the address, on Avhich I Am ted. I do not recollect the name. It was in 
the 12th district of the 8th Avard, in Spring street, around the corner 
from Hudson. I tore up the card before I went in to Amte it. That is 
all the slip I had. 

402G. Q. State if any others Avere ottered you. 

A. I Avas Avanted to take some more, but on account of my looks 
being so conspicuous, I refused. 

4027. Q. What persons congregated at that place of Moran’s just 
X^rior to the presidential election ? 

A. There were quite a number there, but 1 cannot mention their 
names. 

4028. Q. Did you see any i)erson residing in Moran’s rooms, oA'er the 
room Avhere he sold whiskey ? 

A. I Avas iieAmr in the house more than once or tAvice to my knowledge. 
The front room Avas used for election purposes, as a room for folding 
ballots, &c., and in the back room there aatis a bed, but I do not know 
Avho used it. 

4029. Q. State Avhether you a oted the democratic or the republican 
ticket at the last presidential election. 

A. I voted a split ticket. I Amted for John A. GrisAvold for gOAmrnor, 
and for Horatio Seymour for President. I chucked the Hoffman ballot 
out both times. The straight democratic ticket Avas given me, but I 
would not vote it. 

To Mr. Boss: 

4030. I have lived in this city ever [since 1 Avas born. This was the 
first time I ever engaged in repeating. I Amted twice at the last presi- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


393 


(lential election, once on my own name and once on a fictitious name. 
I voted both times in the same Avard, but at different election precincts. 
I was not sworn. 

Q. Who was this man that spoke to you first on the subjects 

A. His name is Win. H. Dwyer. 

Q. Where does he live? 

A. I cannot tell; he lives all over, He stops principally at TayloUs 
Hotel at the foot of Desbrosses street. It Avas through his instigation 
that I registered tAAuce illegally. It was not through his instigation that 
I A-oted illegally. He had nothing to do Avith th<at at all, he merely got 
me to register. 

Q. What business are you engaged in? 

A. I am not doing anything at present. I have been in a Avholesale 
drug-house as shipping and receiving clerk. I got out of business last 
spring and went to Galifornia, and returned about September. I am not 
married. 

Q. HaA^e you been coimcted of any criminal oftence ? 

A. ilo, sir; I aaiis nCA^er arrested in my life. 

Q. To Avhom did you first communicate this illegal registering and 
voting ? 

A. Dwyer first kneAv about it. He Avas with me at the time I regis¬ 
tered. VVdien I Amted illegall}^ Senator Norton Avas at the polls. He 
may have seen me vote. He IvueAV me by sight. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4031. Q. Do you know any others who A^oted illegal votes in that way? 

A. Yes, sir; there are two Avhom I knoAV A^oted illegally. 

4032. Q. Eepeaters Avith you ? 

A. They went along after I did. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

(J. You haA^e not ansAvered that (piestion as to Avhom you first commu¬ 
nicated the fact of your illegal registry or illegal A^oting. 

A. I told it to a man named Michael Brady. He asked me Avhat I 
AA^as doing around there. I said I had registered at 531. He said, “You 
had better look out, you will get yourself into trouble.” Then I told 
him I had registered in another place, but I said I was not going to A’^ote; 
that I had simply put down my name and furnished slips gHing the 
name and the address. 

4033. Q. W^hom did you next talk to in reference to it ? 

A. I cannot ansAA^er that question. 

4034. Q. How AAms information of it brought to this committee? 

A. By Brady, through the Union League. 

4035. Q. Brady is a republican, is he? 

A. Yes, sir; he is the man avIio furnished me Avitli the Griswold tickets. 
I saw him before I had voted and he gave me a full republican ticket and 
wanted me to Amte it, and I would not do that. 

403G. Q. You told him then that you AA^re not a legal A’oter? 

A. He kneAV before that I had registered three times, once legally and 
tAvice illegally. 

4037. Q. And it Avas after you told him that that he gave you the 
ticket? 

A. It Avas on election day that he gave me the ticket early in the 
morning, and I had told him before that about my illegal regixstering. 
He gave me a full set of republican tickets and wanted me to A ote for 
Grant and Colfax; I told him that I would not do that, but that I Avould 
vote for Sevmour and Blair. I had a democratic ticket and a republican 


394 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ticket. 1 took Hoffman’s name out of the democratic ticket and pub in 
Griswold’s. I voted the republican State ticket with the exception of 
assemblyman and congressman. I voted for a democratic assemblyman 
and for a democratic congressman, John Fox. 

4038. Q. And the balance was the republican ticket? 

A. With the exception of the presidential ticket. 

4039. Q. Hid you talk with anybody in this room with reference D) 
your testimony? 

A. No, sir. Mr. Havenport, the clerk, asked my name, and I gave it 
to him. 

4040. Q. Ho you know who subpoenaed you to come here? 

A. Michael Brady requested me to come here. 

4041. Q. Hid you ever have any talk with Mr. Norton on the subject? 

A. No, sir. 

4042. Q. He did not know about your illegal registering and voting? 

A. 1 cannot say that he did. 

By the Chairman : 

4043. Q When you were first requested to register illegally state the 
reason assigned for the request. 

A. He said that he would do something forme afterwards; that he 
expected to obtain something by it, and that after election he would do 
vsomething for me. I told him if I registered 1 woidd not vote He said, 
^^you need not vote; go and register, and if they accept your name it is 
all that is necessary.” 

4044. Q. Hid he state Avhat he was to get? 

A. He expected some position in some court, I believe. 1 cannot say 
positively who he was to get it from. 

4045 Ho you know Hwyer’s relations to Senator Norton? 

A. They were very friendly. I saw them talking very familiarly. His 
politics are republican. Brady lives in Dominick street between Varick 
and Clark. 

By Mr. Hickey : 

4040. Q. You stated that you knew' tw o others to have voted illegally J 
where did they get their tickets? 

A. I do not kuow\ 

4047. Q. Hid you see any cards given to any other person to vote on? 

A. Yes, sir. I saw four or five cards given out, and I saw^ the same 

person with 20 or 30 in his hand still. I did not know the name of that 
party. Each card simply contained a name and an address. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4048. Q. How large is Moran’s house? 

A. It is a two-story and attic house. 

I By the Chairman : 

4049. Q. State the names of the two other persons avIio you think voted 
illegally. 

A. Their names are Thomas Boj le and John Hadden. I had seen them 
at the club-room. Michael Norton, the State senator, is the democratic 
leader in the 8th ward. He was elected senator on the democratic 
ticket a year ago last fall. 

4050. Q. Hid you ever see Norton in the club-room? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 have seen Michael Norton in the club-room and seen 
him in the reading-room; I also saw Peter Mitchel in the club-room. 

4051. Q. Were they there at any time when these slips were being 
handed out? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 395 

A. They were there at the time the tickets were folded, hut I did not 
•see them there when the slips were handed out. 

By Mr. noPKiNS: 

4052. Q. AYas this place of Moraivs considered a sort of headquarters 
for repeaters! 

A. I do not believe it was; it was considered the Tammany Hall head¬ 
quarters of the 8th ward. 

4053. Q. And repeaters went there pretty freely! 

A. They j?o all over; they are ])rincipally found around liquor stores. 

Kew York, Monday^ January 4, 1860. 

Author McKenna sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4054. I was an inspector in the 5th district of the 1st ward at the last 
presidential election. This bundle of cards now presented to me contains 
the names of non-residents of the district who came and presented them¬ 
selves for registration in the 9th election district of the 6th ward. The 
cards that are marked with an X indicate that the persons lived there; 
those marked with an O indicate that the person did not live there; 
those that are not marked at all indicate that 1 could not ascertain 
correctly whether they lived there or not. 

4055. Q. Can you furnish to the committee a list of ])ersons who voted 
in that district and who did not reside there! 

A. I present a list of names that were placed on the registry of jjersous 
who did not live in the district. It can be ascertained by referring to 
the poll-books how many of them voted. 

4056. Q. How did you ascertain whetlier those i)ersons lived at the 
places designated or not! 

A. 1 took these cards to the several houses indicated, and impiired in 
each house as to tlie persons who lived there. 

4057. Q. State if you made any effort to ascertain the names of persons 
so registered in the Bowery. 

A. I did; but I was threatened by James Barclay, who told me that 
if I carried this thing out he would send me home on the morning of 
election on a shutter. 

4058. Q. State what you know of illegal registering in the election 
districts. 

A. I know of illegal voting in the 6th district of the 6th ward. I know 
several persons who were deprived of their vote by the fact that others 
had voted on their names. I can mention the names of William Sheehan 
and William Conroy, of Mulberry street. 

4059. Q. Do you know any instance in which any democratic inspector 
challenged a vote! 

A. No, sir; none. In tlie 2d district of the 7th Avard there was no 
check-book kept. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4060. Q. AYho Avere your colleagues in the district where you were 
inspector! 

A. 1 do not know their names at present; they Avere strangers to me. 
1 Avas not thereon registration day. I was appointed in the place of 
Mr. Colters. 

4061. Q. PIoAv many voters were registered at that precinct! 

A. Nine hundred. 

4062. i}. Hoav did they stand politically! 


396 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. They ^ye^e pretty well divided; the democratic vote was in the 
majority. 

4063. Q. Did you swear any votes on election day ? 

A. Yes, sir; about 20. 

4064. Q. How many were rejected when they were sworn ? 

A. None; they were all taken. Their oath was sufiicient. 

4065. Q. Did you agree to take their votes? 

A. Certainly. 

4066. Q. Then all the persons who voted, the board unanimously agreed 
to accept as voters? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4067. Q. AVere there any illegal votes given at your precinct? 

A. There were two. One was given from 68 South street. 1 do not 
know the name of the person; he was a non-resident. He did not live 
in the place he registered from. I was not present at the registration in 
the 9th district of the 6th ward. 

4068. Q. This list, which you presented to the committee, did you 
make out ? 

A. No, sir. 

4069. Q. AVho made it? 

A. The clerk of the Union League club; I do not know his name. 
The list is a copy from these cards; I was present when he made it out. 
I got these cards from the registry; I got a copy and compared it with 
the registry afterwards. I did not do the writing on the cards; that 
was done by the clerks in the Union League rooms. They took the 
names from the registry; the registry was huug ui> in the 9th election 
district, 6th ward. I made out no list myself, but I compared it and 
found it correct. 

4070. Q. You found all these names on the registry? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4071. Q. And then you went round to hunt up the men ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4072. Q. And you could not find any of them? 

A. O, yes; I found a good many of them. I found those with the X 
on the card; those with the O were non-residents who did not live in 
the building at all. 

4073. Q. AYlien did you do this? 

A. The day previous to the election, I went into each room in each 
building and asked who lived there. I found a good many men there. 

4074. Q. AVas there any refusal to give you the names? 

A. There was at one house. It took me about 10 hours to do this. 

4075. Q. By Avhom were you employed to do it? 

A. By myself. 

4076. Q. How much pay did you get for it? 

A. AA^hat was honest and just—stopping a gang of thieves. 

4077. Q. AYhen did you obtain these cards? 

A. Three days before the election. 

4078. Q. AATiere have they been since? 

A. I had a copy of them made to give to the inspectors of election. 
I turned them over to Colonel Beeny, inspector of the district. I have 
not had possession of them since. 

4079. Q. How long have these cards been out of your possession? 

A. Since the night before election. But 1 have a duplicate of the Os 
on the ])aper which I handed to the committee. Tlie list is as follows: 


ELECTIOI^ FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mott street. 

50 Teranee Mulligan. 

58 Peter Murray. 

00 Patrick Farrell. 

00 William Lord. 

04 George Ames. 

04 Owen Hart. 

05 James Hart. 

00 Michael Cusick. 

80 William Clay. 

Canal street. 

154 William Banty. 

150 James Stewart. 

150 William Bishop, 

102 Philip Emrick. 

Elizabeth street. 

11 Thomas Ellis. 

11 Morris Devy. 

Bayard street. 

50 George Burns. 

50 Edward Haye. 

50 Charles McKeon. 

50 David Jones. 

48 Lewis Light. 

00 William Gray. 

00 George McGennis. 

00 John Simpson. 

GO John Nugent. 

04 Andrew Dempsey. 

64 William Farrington. 

64 William Howe. 

04 Martin McGowen. 

06 Aben Haley. 

66 Harris Kaffman. 

66 David Murphy. 

66 Michael McCaffrey. 

66 John Harris. 

06 William S. Kelley. 

70 Walter Brice. 

70 Henry Rice. 

70 John Rooney. 

70 James Romaine. 

70 John Smith. 

70 Henry Weheredtz. 

Mott street. 

70 George Lydan. 

70 Lewis Tiebout. 

70 Lazarius Cohn. 

72 George Buckley. 

72 Thomas Connolly. 

72 James Mahon. 

74 George Hill. 

74 Henry Sammis. 

76 George Nehrobes. 

76 Philip Moebler. 

76 Jacob Schneider. 

78 Luke Gilnatin. 

78 Mike Lynch. 


' 56 Michael Spencer, 
j 50 Bernard Silverblatt. 

] 58 Peter Brennan. 

58 Henry Chadwick. 

58 William Devoy. 

58 John Hines. 

58 John Warren. 

66 Bryan Foley. 

I 06 James Feely. 

00 George Heany. 

; 68 Jos. Gray. 

68 John .Tames. 

I 68 Patrick McGolduck. 

I 68 James Burns. 

I 68 John McHugh. 

! 68 Andrew Rooney. 

I 08 Philip Spellman. 

I 70 John Gold. 

Bowery. 

: 44 George Cuddy. 

44 Peter Banevan. 

44 Eciward Cuddy. 

44 Andrew McIntyre. 

44 John McCarty. 

Bayard street. 

j 62 George Bennett, 
i 62 John Gauson. 

I 62 Michael Kame. 

62 William Stevenson. 

40 AVilliam H. Cook. 

Canal street. 

168 George B. Davis. 

J68 Robert Callahan. 

178 John Fevorer. 

J78 Luky Casey. 

178 George Fleming. 

J78 Thomas Walsh. 

Thomas Wallace. 

Elizabeth street 

1 9 Peter Develin. 

I 9 George Meade. / 

Mott street. 

\ 

I 52 Patrick Loftus. 

I 50 F. Curley, 
i 60 John Maas. 

: 60 James Darling, 

j 60 Morris Harris, 
j 60 F. Rooney. 

! 60 James Goodwin. 

I 66 John Galliger. 

I Bayard street. 

\ 

i 64 Patrick Flynn, 
i 64 Daniel Wall. 

! 66 John Murphy. 

: 66 Charles O’Dine. 

68 Peter Derlin. 

68 John Groom ley. 


397 




398 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Elizabeth street. 

18 Mike Flynn. 

J8 Thomas Green. 

18 William Harvey. 

18 William Hennessy. 

18 James Harris. 

24 Patrick Duffy. 

24 James Ouncan. 

24 James Fitzgerald. 

24 ,Tos. Granner. 

24 Max. J. Sencke. 

24 William Mitchell. 

24 William Simpson. 

24 Thomas J. Sweeny. 

! 24 Samuel Thompson. 

27 Gotleib Dorn. 

Xew York, January 5, 

John Lee sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4080. 1 reside in Hastings-on-tlie-Hiidson, Westchester county, New 
York; on the 26th of August last I went, in company with six or seven 
others, to White Plains, the county seat of Westchester, to obtain our 
citizen papers; we went into the court-house and saw the clerk of the 
court; he took down our names and said we might sign for one another; 
he pointed out where we should sign on the book, and we put our names 
down; after this was done he told us we would have the papers in a few 
minutes; in about half an hour we got the papers; I took the oath of 
allegiance to the United States; that is all the oath that was adminis¬ 
tered that I remember of; I saw' nobod^^ there but the clerk of the 
court; there was no examination of any witnesses; the certificates of 
naturalization were delivered to us; I have not my certificate now; I 
burned mine up; the name of the clerk of the court is J. Malcolm Smith. 

To Mr. Dickey': 

4081. The reason I burned my certificate up w as because I understood 
that it was illegal; I have been in the United States for 17 jears; 1 
think the others have been in this country for different periods—I could 
not state how^ long; I had known some twm or three of them for over 
five years; others I had not known for more than three months; I do 
not know wdiat political party Malcolm Siuitli belongs to; I act with the 
democratic party; the other parties who were with me voted, 1 believe, 
the democratic ticket. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

4082. I do not know' whether the court w'as in session at that time or 
not; I had been in the country long enough to entitle me to naturaliza¬ 
tion; I had not my first papers out; I could net siy whether I came 
here before 1 was 18 or not; I could not say of my owui knowledge 
whether any of the other parties voted or not; Hastings-on-the-Hudson 
is about 20 miles from here; the names of the other parties that w'ere 
with me w ere Hugh AYard, Barney AVard, John Carberry, AVilliam King, 
David AAYlsh,and Patrick Hurley; that is all that 1 remember now; 
they all lived in Hastings; I do not know' whether any of tliem had 
declared their intentions previously or not. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4083. I do not know that anybody advised me to go to White Plains; 
Air. Thomas Smith told me that I might go there to get papers; he is a 
democrat and squire of the town; he did not press me i)articularly to 
go and get my papers. 


Bayard street. 

68 Adolph Hopstock. 

68 James McMahon. 

68 Edward Payne. 

68 Alike West. 

68 Hugli Downey. 

^ 68 Thomas Darigan. 

68 John Franklin. 

68 James Lawler. 

68 James Smith. 

70 William Collins. 

70 William Smith. 

Canal street. 

178 John Stevens. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


399 


To Mr. lioss: 

4084. He said uothiiig to me about getting papers illegally, nor held 
out any such idea. 

To the Chairman : 

4085. Some of the other men Avere Avorking for me; my horse was 
hired to go over to White Plains; Mr. Thomas Smith hired it; I did not 
pay anything for my papers; some of the others, I believe, paid for 
theirs; I promised Mr. Smith to pay for them, but have not. 

To Mr. Hickey: 

4080. Mr. Smith met us at White Plains, in the court-house. 

Meav York, January 5, J 8G1). 

John Kodgers SAvorii and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4087. I live in Hastings-on the-Hudson; I ha\^e been in the United 
States two years the I5th of next May; I went to White Plains and got 
a certificate of naturalization; I don’t recollect taking any oath there; 
he told me to hold up my hand and said something; there Avas no judge 
present at the time—only the clerk; I cannot tell the day of the month or 
even the month; John Lee was with me at the time I got the certificate; 
it was in the year 1808 some time. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4088. I cannot tell my age ; I cannot say Avhether I am over 21 oi' not; 
I do not know who went witness for me. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4089. I cannot say what year I came to this ODuntry; I believe it Avas 
in May, 1807; I came from the county of Cork; I do not know hoAV old 
1 was Avlien 1 came to this country; I have lived in Hastings-on-the- 
Hudson for nine months; previousljM li\^ed at Dobb’s Ferry; I lived 
there six months; before that I lived in Dutchess county; that was the 
first place I came to after I left Ireland; I could not say what I did 
when I Avent into the court-room; I had ncA^er seen the clerk before ; I 
do not know his name; there were several persons in the room at -the 
time; I could not say positively Avhether he Avas clerk or judge; I do 
not know Avhether John Lee Avas a Avitness for me or not; John Lee did 
not come to this country Avith me; I do not knoAv hoAv long he has been 
here; I do not know Avliat he swore to on the occasion ; I do not know 
what I swore to; I didn’t know Avhat I SAvore to until after I came out; 
I have been told since that I swore allegiance to the United States and 
abjured all allegiance to all foreign poAvers, especially that of Great 
Britain; I do not knoAv hoAv far White Plains is from Hastings; 1 do not 
know how long it took me to go there; I A^oted at the last presidential 
election. 

To the Chairman : 

4090. I A^oted, I belieA^, for Seymour; I paid for my certificate of nat¬ 
uralization ; I paid it to Thomas Smith; my certificate is at home now. 

ToMr. Daaves: 

4091. I do not know for what office Seymour was running; I could not 
say Avhether 1 voted for anybody else or not; Thomas Smith gave me 
the ticket, I think. 


400 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


David Welsh s\yoiti and examined. 

4092. I liv^e in Hastings-on-tlie-lludson. I have been six years in the 
United States; I do not know how old I am; I believe I was over 21 
years of age when I came to this country; I think I am over 27 now. I 
got my citizen papers at AVhite Plains j I think it was some time in the 
month of June last; I never got my first papers, and never declared my 
intention to become a citizen j there were six or seven altogether with 
me when I got my certificate of naturalization; John Lee w^as one, John 
Eodgers another, Barney Ward another, and John Carberry another; I 
paid $1 for my papers; I paid it to Thomas Smith; I voted at the last 
presidential election; I voted for Seymour and Blair. 

To Mr. Hopkins: 

4093. I got my papers at the same time that John Lee did. 

To Mr. PtOSS : 

4094. I do not know what I paid $1 to Thomas Smith for; I do not 
know whether it was for Smith or for the clerk; I thought I gave it to 
him; I suj^posed it was to pay the expenses of my naturalization. 

New York, January 5, 1869. 

Matthew Fitzgerald sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

4096. I live in Hastings-on-the-nudson; I have been in the United 
States going on four years; T am about 36 years of age; I have never 
declared my intention to become a citizen; I have got my full citizen 
papers ; I got them in the City Hall in NTew York city last April; I paid 
60 or 80 cents, I think, for them; I voted at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion, at Dobb’s Ferry; I voted the democratic ticket; I have not my 
naturalization papers with me; there was a witness with me when I got 
my papers; Thomas Smith, I believe, was the witness; he Avent up with 
me to swear allegiance to the United States; I took no other oath but 
that; I cannot say Avliether the witness was sworn or not. 

To Mr. ICerr : 

4097. I did not live in this city at the time I got my papers; I lived in 
Hastings; I came down to the city on purpose to get them; it is about 22 
miles from 17ew York to Hastings. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4098. Thomas Smith came with me to get the papers; I would not be 
positwe whether he was the witness or not. 

New Y^ork, January 5, 1869. 

William Lawler sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4099. I live in Hastings-on-the-Hudson; have been 10 years in the 
United States; I have not declared my intention to become a citizen; 1 
got my certificate of naturalization some time last August, I think the 
26th; I got it at White Plains; I appeared before the clerk and took an 
oath of allegiance and obedience to the laws of the United States; that 
was the only oath 1 took; 1 voted for Seymour and Blair at the last presi¬ 
dential election; I paid $1 to Mr. Thomas Smith for the papers; before 
I got my papers out Mr. Smith wanted to know if I was going to get 
my papers; I told him yes; John Lee was Avitli me; Ave went to White 
Plains; we Avent witness for one another; there Avere others with us; I 
do not remember now for whom I was witness. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


401 


To Mr. Kerr : 

4100. I could not tell wliether tlie court was in session when I got my 
paimrs or not; I \yent into the clerk’s office in the court-house; 1 could 
not tell what I paid $1 to Mr. Smith for; I believe it was for my apx^li- 
cation; the man who swore me was clerk of the court. 

Thomas Smith sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4101. I live in Hastings-on-the-Hudson. I am one of the coroners of 
Westchester county, and also justice of the peace. I know nothing in 
particular of the issue of certificates of naturalization by the clerk of 
Westchester county. J. Malcolm Smith is clerk of the countj. He is 
also clerk of the court. 1 brought some parties to White Plains to be 
naturalized. I did nothing more than to take them into the clerk’s room 
and introduce them. I think Mr. John Lee was one of them, although 
there were several; I cannot recollect their names. I think AVelsh was 
there. I do not know John Rodgers or Patrick Hurley. I think William 
Lawler was there. This was some time in October last; I am not certain, 
however. There were several certificates of naturalization issued to 
parties; I could not state their names; I took no notice of it. I went to 
White Plains in my own wagon. I may have, perhaps, introduced as 
many as 30 people. I do not know whether all got papers or not. I 
believe they all went into the same room. I saw an oath administered 
to them. The deputy clerk administered the oath. It was in the county 
clerk’s office. The judge was sitting up stairs on the bench. The oath 
was not administered in the court room. It was once, I believe, admin¬ 
istered in the court-room while the court was not in session. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4102. The parties paid one dollar to me for expenses of wagon-hire, &c., 
and bringing them to White Plains. I do not know whether anything 
was paid for the papers themselves. I never x)aid anything for the 
papers to the clerk. At the time the oath was administered by the 
deputy clerk I never saw any other official in the office. I never used 
any tickets on which to procure certificates of naturalization. 

To Mr. ILerr : 

4103. I think the expenses of naturalization were paid by each of the 
different clubs. Both democrats and republicans would come to me to 
get their papers. I never asked them their x)olitical opinions. I never 
saw any of the i)arties that went with me have any white or red tickets 
with them. I have never aided any person in procuring naturalization 
papers whom I knew was not entitled to be naturalized. I would not do 
such a thing. 1 was informed that there was one person avIio got his 
papers out fraudulently; that he had not been in the country long 
enough to entitle him to it. I went to him and told him that it was 
wrong; that he had better give up the papers. He refused to give me 
up the papers, however. His name is Car berry. The distance from 
White Plains to Hastings is about eight miles. I did not lend any 
wagons to go to White Plains; I drove my own wagon. I frecpiently 
have occasion to go to White Plains on official business. When I Avas 
there at White Plains the persons to be naturalized A\muld go into the 
clerk’s room. The clerk would take doAvn their names, administer the 
oath to them, and ask them questions. The name of the judge of the 
court is Robert Cochran. 

20 T 


402 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


To Mr. Hopkins : 

4104. I have come with parties to New York city. I do not know 
whetlier I came witli Mr. Fitzgerald or not. I have not been a ^yitness 
in many cases of naturalization. I have been to parties applying for 
naturalization in the courts of New York. I cannot say how many, but 
very few. I know Fitzgerald. He is a neighbor of mine. I am not 
certain Avhether 1 came to this city Avith him or not. 

To the Chairman : 

4105. Both Malcolm Smith and Judge Cochran act with the demo¬ 
cratic party. 

Neav York, January 5, 18G0. 

John Carberry SAvorn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

410G. I live in Hastings-on-the-Hudson. I have been in the United 
States tAvo years next May. I guess I am about 1^1 years of age. I have 
XArocured a certificate of naturalization. I cannot exactly state the time. 
It was just about the beginning of the fall of 18G8. Thomas Smith A\^as 
with me at the time I obtained it, and others aaTioui I did not knoAV. I 
got the pa])ers from Thomas Smith. I got them at White Plains. I 
Avent before the clerk. I did not go before any judge. I did not \"ote at 
the last presidential election. I jjaid one dollar to Thomas Smith. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4107. I had no right to vote at the last election. I do not know 
whether I got my first papers or my citizen papers. I did not attempt 
to A ote. 


New York, January 5, 18G9. 

Edavard J. Shandley^ sworn and examined, (called at the instance 
of Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4108. I reside at No. 1G7 Henry street. I have been a police magis¬ 
trate during the last seven years, and was clerk of the court for some 
time previously. I voted at the last presidential election in the Gth dis¬ 
trict of the 7th AAvard. The polling place Avas at No. 19 New Canal street. 
I Avas about the polling place pretty much all election day. I do not 
know of any parties voting there not entitled to vote. I understood 
that some parties had registered from my residence. I AA^ent to the cap¬ 
tain of police of my precinct and so informed him, and told the regis¬ 
trars if anybody came there and tried to vote as from my place of resi¬ 
dence, other than the parties whose names I gaA^e them, to arrest them. 
During the day there Avas a party came in and tried to vote from my 
house. I was outside the polling place at the time. As soon as I 
heard of it I Avent in and had him arrested and taken to the station- 
house. I don’t know the name of this man. The board of inspectors 
seemed to do all they possibly could to prevent illegal voting, so far as I 
could see. I do not knoAv Avhether the man who registered as living at 
my house voted or not. As soon as I heard that he attempted to vote, 
I directed the inspectors to have the man arrested and taken to the 
station-house. I had no hand in haAfing this man register as from my 
house. I do not knoAV of any other parties voting at that precinct who 
were not entitled to vote. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


403 


To Mr. Kerr : 

4109. Aly office of justice is not at my residence. I do not know how 
many persons attempted to vote as living at my house. There were only 
three voters at my residence, and they were John Sines, Samuel Spies, 
and myself. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4110. 1 do not know a man by the name of John Bennett, or Thomas 
Fitzgerald, or a man by the name of George Morrow, nor one by the 
name of James Weaver, nor one by the name of Charles Edwards. 
There is no other No. 107 Henry street. I saw the notice in the Tribune 
about a number of parties Avho had registered from my house. I took 
it at first as a joke, but after I had inquired about it and found out that 
they had actually registered, I informed the board of registrars and the 
captain of the police of it, and told them to arrest any person who 
attempted to vote as from my residence except those whose names I 
gave them. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4111. I never gave permission to anybody to register from my house. 
I do not think there has been a registrar or inspector in my district who 
did not know who lived in my house. I cannot account for the fact that 
these were registered. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4112. I would not have known anything about it if I had not seen the 
notice of it in the papers. 

To the Chairman; 

4113. The name of the poll-clerk of the Cth ward was Byan. I have 
forgotten his other name. My district in the 7th ward is a very large 
one and has a great many names on the registry list. When I went into 
the polling place on election day one of the inspectors was about to send 
out for a bottle of whiskey. At the time there was a line of about 200 
voters waiting to deposit their ballots. I advised them not to send out 
for any whiskey, and told them that they had plenty of work to do 
that day anu it would take all their time to receive the ballots, but 
that as soon as the polls closed I would give them a first rate supper, a 
bottle of wine, and $5 apiece. After the polls closed they reminded me 
of the promise, and I gave them a dinner and $5 apiece. The dem¬ 
ocratic inspectors refused to receive it. I gave about $30 in all to the 
four poll-clerks. There w^ere about 75 republicans in that line waiting 
to vote, and it was as much of an accommodation to them as it was to 
anybody else. I was present most of the time when the canvass was 
going on. I remember noticing one of the canvasser’s manner of doing 
business. I saAV that it Avas pretty sIoav. I asked him if he had had 
much experience in that line. He explained to me how he was making 
out the canv^ass. He said he was going to canvass in that way if it took 
him all night. I told him that he Avas going the wrong way and that 
he had better do as the others Avere doing, but he said he had his instruc¬ 
tions and would obey them. He had opened his ballots and put them 
in piles and was commencing to call them off by names when this con- 
troA^ersy took place. I do not know what was the method of caiwassing 
electoral tickets prior to 1868. 

To Mr. Hopkins: 

4114. There were about 868 Azotes cast in my district. I think the 
democrats had about some 600 majority. 


404 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


To Mr. Kerr : 

4115. The number of election districts in my ward liad not been 
increased the same as they had been in other wards, so that they were 
considerably larger. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

411G. It is the duty of the board of supervisors or common council to 
regulate the number of election districts in a ward. 

New York, January 5, 18G9. 

T. Easton Bennett sworn and examiued. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4117. I am clerk of the superior court, special term ; have been so for 
four years ; have been connected with the superior court in one capacity 
or another for the last IG or 17 years ; James M. Sweeney is the chief 
clerk. During the time of naturalization my esj^ecial duty in connection 
with it was to swear the witnesses and the ai)plicants. My position in 
the court was at a desk at the right-hand side of the judge, facing the 
witness and applicants, about six or seven feet from the judge, on a plat¬ 
form a little below that on Avliich he sat. I attended ui)on all the judges 
during their term, but chiefly upon Judges Garvin and McCunnj they 
did most of the business of naturalization j the others acted occasion¬ 
ally in the early part of October. We generally commenced business 
about 10 o’clock in the morning and sat until half-past 4 or 5 o’clock; as 
the business increased in the latter part of the month, we commenced 
the session at 9 o’clock and sat until half-past 10 in the evening j I 
would not be there during the entire sitting, but would go out occa¬ 
sionally ; I have been there often till near 12 o’clock at night. When 
the judge would arrive in the morning the room would be generally 
pretty well filled up with applicants and witnesses. An officer re¬ 
ceived from the aiiplicant his papers. When the court was opened 
and the judge was ready the clerk would call off the names of applicants 
and witnesses ; one of the deputy clerks usually called off the names; 
they were then brought ui) and sworn, and the judge examined them; 
he first examined the witness and then examined the applicant, and, if 
satisfactory, they were passed along to my desk; the judge would then 
sign the order and hand it down to me; I would then administer the 
oath, hand the applicant his paper, and direct him to go to No. 18 City 
Hall and get his certificate. The first oath administered to the applicant 
was one reipiiring him to make true answers to all questions put to him 
in regard to naturalization. The second oath was one to support the 
Constitution of the United States, and abjure all allegiance to foreign 
princes, potentates, or sovereignty, especially that of the country from 
which he came. The first question put to the witness by the judge would 
be, “Do you know the applicantF (calling him by name;) “How long 
have you known himf’ “Where does he reside f’ “ Where has he lived 
for the last year f’ These questions being answered, the judge would 
then turn to the applicant and ask him if he had lived so many years in 
the United States, Avhere he had resided for the i)ast year, how long he 
had known the witness, and similar questions. 1 could not approximate 
as to how many applications were granted in a day. One day Judge 
Garvin was down at 9 o’clock, and Judge McCuim came down a little 
after 10; the general term adjourned immediately, and Judges Jones 
and Eobertson held court until near, G o’clock ; we then adjourned to the 
alderman’s room in the City Hall, and held court there until a quarter 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


405 


of 12. About 100 applications were rejected every day; there weteparties 
whom we recognized as being witnesses for two or three different appli¬ 
cants; I do not know that 1 could name any of them at present; I have 
seen them there several times, and their faces have become familiar to me; 
I think the name of one of the witnesses was John Moran; he was born in 
this country, 1 think, of Irish parentage. There was also another man who 
was connected with some one in the mayor’s office; I think he came there 
with white tickets two or three times. And there was another man by the 
name of McCaffrey; I do not know his first name; I cannot recollect any 
of the other names. These men did not come in consecutive days, but would 
come at intervals often enough for us to become familiar with their faces; 
my best recollection is that seven or eight times would be the outside 
which these persons would witness for different parties, possibly as many 
as ten. The judges used all diligence in detecting and preventing frauds 
by asking the witnesses different questions as to their residence and 
intimacy with the applicant, and would cross examine the applicant 
himself, to see whether the witness and principal contradicted each other. 
Judge McOunn detected, on two or three different times, parties who 
were witnesses for repeated applicants; one man he had put under arrest, 
and threatened to commit him, but, as there was no proof, he was dis¬ 
charged. Judge McOunn severely reprimanded him, and told him if he 
saw him in court again he would have him arrested; I think Jndge McOunn 
ordered the commitment of two or three persons, but I do not think the 
order was carried out. The business of the court while I was there was 
done in a regular manner, ^fo person to my knowledge was naturalized 
unless he was present with his witness, and I do not think it could pos¬ 
sibly have been done without my knowledge. Mr. Sweeney gave me strict 
orders at the commencement of the naturalization business to keep a 
strict look out for frauds, and to give the papers to the applicants them¬ 
selves and not to anybody else. The judges also gave me similar orders. 
Judge McOunu told me if I saw anything wrong to let him know about it. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

4118. I could not tell whichjudge granted the applications most rapidly. 
There was very little difference between Judge Garvin and Judge 
McOunn. Judge Jones had rather a roundabout way ot examining wit¬ 
nesses, which took him a longer time. I think 120 applications could be 
granted in an hour; that is my opinion. There are about six questions, 
all told, put to the witness and principal. I think the court could dispose 
of two a minute, besides those that were destroyed. I should j udge there 
were about 300 applications every day rejected. These would be torn 
up. The judges would examine the witnesses and principals while I was 
preparing the papers. 

To Mr. Dawes : 

4119. I think the questions could be put to the parties in about 30 
seconds. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4120. There were two parts of the court in session at the same time, 
one up stairs and one down stairs, while the pressure of naturalization 
was going on. When one judge could not transact the business so as to 
keep the room comparatively clear, another judge would go into another 
room and take off* a part of the crowd and naturalize them. When the 
great rush came there was very little regular court business transacted. 

To the Chairman : 

4121. I had a fair opportunity to judge what was going on in the court¬ 
room. I had to administer to them the oath and to keep a lookout. I 


406 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


think I could administer my oath quicker than the others could admin¬ 
ister their oath, as it was a shorter one than the one administered by the 
judge. I think I could deliver mine in about live seconds. 

4122. Q. It* the judge should testify that any such oath was never 
administered, which would have the best means of knowing, you or the 
judge ? 

A. I can only answer for what I did as clerk. 

4123. Q. I understand you to say that the judge administered an oath 
to the witness to the effect that the witness will well and truly answer 
all questions put to him touching the question of naturalization; now, if 
the judge should say that no such oath was administered at all, which 
would have the best opi)ortunities of knowing, you or the judge? 

A. As I administered the oath myself, I should consider that I had. 

4124. Q. Do you say that such an oath was administered in Judge 
McCunn’s court ? 

A. Yes, sir; I do. I should say here, however, that I more properly 
belong to Judge Garvin’s court than to Judge McCunn’s, because Judge 
Garvin was the judge who was generally down first, and I was the first 
clerk on duty. Judge Garvin remained until 1 o’clock, and I used to 
take a little recess then. 

4125. Q. Has any man been indicted in any State court for perjury or 
fraud in procuring naturalization i^apers, to your knowledge? 

A. I do not know whether there has or not. A man was arrested, I 
believe, but I do not know whether he was indicted. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

412C. Q. In a single case how many oaths did you administer ? 

A. One, in the majority of cases, of the applicant. After he passes 
the judge I swear him in as a citizen of the United States. The clerk on 
the other side swears him to make true answer to all questions put to 
him; which makes two oaths altogether. 

By Mr. IUerr : 

4127. I think there were as many certificates of naturalization granted 
during the Buchanan and Fremont campaign as there were at the last 
election. I think the process of naturalization was the same then as it 
was at the last election. 

4128. Q. According to your observation, it was conducted in previous 
years the same as last fall. 

A. Yes, sir; it was the same under jiidge Duer, Judge Bosworth, and 
Judge Campbell. There was probably a greater rush this year. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

4129. I made no examination of the applications to see whether the 
signatures of both principal and witness were in the same handwriting. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

In regard to the alleged large increase of applicants for naturalization, 
I desire to say that I do not think this increase is any more than can be 
accounted for by natural causes. The war broke out in 1801, and from 
the time it commenced until its close there was constant fear and dread 
throughout the country of conscription. Hence those emigrants that 
arrived here in 1850 and since that date, and would be entitled to their 
papers in 1801 and afterwards, postponed xwocuring them in order to 
avoid the draft. Those emigrants that arrived while the war was going 
on refrained from becoming citizens for the same reason. Many of them 
enlisted without becoming citizens. There has been no election since the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


407 


war closed of sufficient interest to bring ont every vote until the last 
presidential election. I was inncli struck with the large nninber who 
applied for papers during last snminer and fall who had come to this 
country in 1857, 1858, and since then, who were entitled to their papers 
three or fonr years ago, but did not apply for them in consequence of the 
war. Then the large number of aliens who had served in the army and 
were consequently entitled to become citizens without having been in 
the country the usual period, increased the number of applicants last 
year very much. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4130. I do not think there was a larger proportion of minors natural¬ 
ized this year than in previous years. In speaking of naturalization I, 
of course, have knowledge only of what transpired in my court. 

To the Chairman : 

4131. I believe the number of emigrants diminished during the years 
of the war; many of those that did come over no doubt enlisted, and 
quite probably the foreign population in this city was reduced thereby 
to some extent. I do not know how many were naturalized by the court 
of common jileas. Tiie reason why they (lid not naturalize so many this 
year arose, no doubt, from the fact that they had only one judge. We 
had some three or four. 

Kew York, Tuesday^ January 5, 1869, 

Michael Costello sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4132. I held the office of registrar and inspector in the 3d district of 
the 4th ward in the last presidential election. I was appointed to this 
office by the police commissioners, upon the recommendation of a Mr. 
Leask. I went to the polling place of my precinct on the day of registry, 
and was instrumental in stopping a great many men from i^utting their 
names down who held fraudulent naturalization papers. I knew them 
to be professional repeaters. In consequence of my action I was repeat¬ 
edly threatened by the crowd around the registry office. When the 
election came I went down and attended to my duties. I stopped a good 
many votes in the morning. Every person who offered to vote of whom 
I had any doubt I would cliallenge, and in most cases they would not 
swear they were qualified voters. Alderman Coman came into the poll¬ 
ing i)lace in the course of the afternoon and says to me, ^AVhen you are 
done there are 200 voters waiting outside for you, and I am one of them.” 
I told him that I was doing my duty and intended to do it. When I left 
the polling place in the evening after the polls closed I had to be escorted 
by a squad of five policemen, to protect my life. The crowd outside were 
very threatening and used all sorts of vile language towards me. There 
was a republican challenger at the polls at the time they opened, but he 
was soon run out of it. The police put him out. Some one in the crowd 
remarked that he had no right there, and he was taken out. I remon¬ 
strated against it, and told the challenger that he had a perfect right to 
stay there. I acted as challenger myself during the day. I was chair¬ 
man of the board of inspectors. I have been working in the Herald office 
for the last seven months. During the day a policeman handed me a 
letter which was given to me by one of the crowd outside. I opened 
the letter and found that it was signed “James G. Bennett, jr.,” and was 
to the effect that if I did not use every exertion to help elect Gunning S. 
Bedford I would be dismissed from my place. I cannot recollect the exact 


408 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


words of the note, but it was something to that effect. I took the letter 
and put it in my pocket, and after awhile my father came down and said 
he heard I was going to be killed, and he asked me for God’s sake to be 
a little more light. Mr. Leask came into the polling place in the after¬ 
noon, and I handed him the letter signed by Mr. Bennett. He took it 
to the Herald offic.e and showed it to Mr. Bennett, and found it to be a 
forgery. The letter was handed to Detective Young to work up. I have 
not seen it since. Two or three days afterwards I called at the Herald 
office, and understood from the men there that 1 was to be discharged. 
I went up and asked Mr. Bennett about the letter. He said it was a for¬ 
gery. 1 then walked away, and have not been back to the place since. 
During election day I left my poUing place and Avent up to the 6th 
ward, Avhere 1 live, to vote. I was challenged there, and swore in my 
Yote. When I came out I found a crowd of 200 persons, avIio threatened 
me in every manner possible. Among them was ex-Oongressman Jones. 
He came to me and said, “You won’t be done with the police for three 
months to come,” shaking his hand at me in a Amry threatening manner. 
I did not keep any account of the number I challenged on election day; 
I could not CA^en approximate the number. 

To Mr. Kerr: 

I was not struck by anybodj^ at the Gth ward Amting place. Kone 
of the croAvd followed me after I left. 1 have beon engaged in press 
printing for the last five years. For soA^en months xmevious to the elec¬ 
tion I AAmrked in the Herald office. 1 A\as formerly a policeman in the 
old force, and was for a little Avhile on the present force. I resigned my 
idace. I am now one of the bell ringers of the city, appointed by the 
fire commissioners. I Avas not discharged from the Herald officej I 
merely Avent away. I do not know who sent me the letter signed J. G. 
Bennett, jr. I thought at the time that it Avas gen nine. The other officers 
of the board of inspectors of my precinct Avere Dennes McLaughlin, a 
man by the name of Thurston, and another one Avhose name I forget now. 
My life Avas not threatened by any of my colleagues on the board, nor 
was I threatened in any Avay by them ; nor did they deter me from chal¬ 
lenging any Amter. No obstacles were thrown in my way by them, and 
the board acted in perfect harmony. I do not know, of my OAvn knowl¬ 
edge, of any illegal A'otes being cast by any person in my district. There 
Avas one man arrested for Acting twice. I could not say how many I 
challenged during the day; I should think a good many; I could not 
state how many. There were 817 votes registered in that district. I should 
think there Avere GOO or 700 ballots cast that day. The democratic partj^ 
Avas in the nmjority; I could not say hoAv much. I do not think there 
are more than 50 republican Amters in the district. I do not knoAv Avhether 
there Avere many legal democratic votes that Avere not polled. I chal¬ 
lenged Avithout reference to party. WheneA^er a man came up, and I 
thought he Avas not a legal Amter, I would challenge him. I had no list 
with me; did not receive any list from the Loyal League, or from any 
committee. I did not liA^e in the ])recinct of which I Avas • inspector; I 
am pretty well acquainted Avith the people in the district, hoAvever. The 
district Avas probably one of the largest in the city, and requires the 
inspectors to be very active and prompt to enable them to receive all 
the votes during the day. There Avas a crowd around the polls all day. 
Whether they Avere all trying to vote or not I cannot say. I could not 
see the line of voters from AAffiere I stood. I could see quite a croAvd out¬ 
side the door in front of me, and also one or tAvo policemen. The crowd 
extended around the corner of the street, and I could not see them from 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


409 


wliere I stood. The crowd outside did not threaten my republican col¬ 
league, McLanghliii; they seemed to vent all their spite against me. 
McLanglilin was known very well in the ward. In challenging votes I 
did not do so for the purpose of delaying elections and excluding voters. 
I challenged republicans as well as democrats, and made no distinction. 
I was challenged, when I went to vote in my precinct, by a man named 
George Bowdell. I believe he is a democrat. He afterwards followed 
me out of the polling place and threatened to mash my nose. I cannot 
say whether at the time the polls closed there were many outside who 
did not vote during the day. There was a great crowd out there, but I 
cannot say whether they had been waiting to vote or not. 1 have not 
been troubled with the police since I was threatened by ex-Congressman 
Jones. They have not in any way disturbed me. 

To the Chairman : 

4134. I do not think I challenged more than 50 men that day. There 
was a democratic challenger at the polls. I do not think he challenged 
more than two or three persons during the day. 

New York, January 5,1869. 

Henry Beeney recalled. 

To the Chairman : * 

4135. 1 was one of the registrars and inspectors of the 9th district of the 
6 th ward at the last presidential election. 1 would like to make an expla¬ 
nation in relation to tlie testimony 1 gave the otlier day. You as. ed me 
in relation to illegal voting, and in the course of the examination I said 
that of 1113 ^ own knowledge I had known of no person who had vo'ed ille¬ 
gally, and 3 "ou then handed me a little communication which I addressed 
to the committee having in charge the examination of illegal regi; tration. 
It would be proper for me to say just now that I had no personal knowl¬ 
edge of what I stated in that note, but received the information from a 
person who said that he did know it. I took a very active part in the 
prevention of illegal registering, and a great many persons came to me 
with information on different points, which 1 sent to that committee. 
You also asked me in reference to the number of persons registered in 
that district and the number of votes cast. I stated that there were 381 
votes polled. My opinion is that 3 'ou cannot find to-da^^ 200 legal voters 
in that district. My oelief is tliau Limrc are not even ^ou, as Uiio uistrict 
is a very small one, occupying but two blocks, and in the district is the 
Bower,y theatre, occup^ung three or four lots, the repaff sho)) of the 
metropolitan (ire department, and a large imblic school building. In 
all these three buildings there were but two voters registered. In regard 
to the transactions on the da 3 " of election, I would say that the whole 
board of four inspectors were present before the first vote was cast, and 
the 3 " stayed there until the poll closed. I had been advised x>rior to the 
da^^ of election that great frauds had been committed in the registration 
of voters in that district. A Mr, Woodward, who resided in the New 
England Hotel, in that district, had registered his name on the first day. 
On the second day of registry he had his name taken off, and he told me 
that the day he went up there to get his name taken off' that there were 
at least six men who registered themselves three diff'erent times. I was 
absent from the registiy twice that da^y and the registrar I left behind 
was blind in one eye, and wasn’t able to identify the men as they came 
up. On the day of election jiarties came in and offered to vote, who 
apiieared to me were not the parties that had registered on those names. 


410 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Some of them I objected to and challenged, but the democratic inspector, 
Mr. Haggerty, who acted as chairman of the board, held uptlje Bible to 
several of them and said, ‘‘You swear you are a legal voter “ Yes,'^ 
says the man, and then, without doing anything further, Mr. Haggerty 
received the ballot against my protest. 1 ordered the policeman to make 
arrests; he said he would if I could give him a written order from the 
board. Before that could be done the man had gone off. Mr. Haggerty 
then directed the policeman to arrest no one without a written order of 
the board, which requires a majority. 

One person came up and offered to vote under the name of Chadwick. 
When Mr. Chadwick came and registered his name I looked at him 
and asked him if he had a brother in the Union army, whom I had 
known some time ago; he said he had not; this fixed his face in my 
memory, and when this x)erson came up to vote on his name I knew he 
was not tlip. person that registered ; I wanted to challenge the man, but 
the chairman of the board, Mr. Haggerty, looked around to me and said, 
“ You be damned !” and took the vote and put it in the box. I had not 
the power to stop it, but I was confident that the man who voted under 
the name of Chadwick was not the man who registered by that name. 
Again, other parties came up and offered their votes wdiom I had reason 
to believe from the evidence obtained were not legal voters. I chal¬ 
lenged them, but no notice was taken of the challenge. IVIr. Haggerty 
turned to me and said, “ Do you know what I should do with you if I 
was a voter and wanted to vote and you challenged me ? I would drag 
you over that table quicker than lightning.” But the votes were taken, 
and in no instance during the whole day could I get an oath adminis¬ 
tered. Again a man presented himself and wanted to vote on a certain 
name, and on looking at the list I found that the man had voted on that 
name, and I protested against any other vote being received for that 
person. The votes, however, were received and the same answer was 
given to me as before. In one instance three different votes were taken 
on one name, altliough both myself and the other republican inspector, 
Mr. De Voursney, x)rotested against it. 

During the afternoon, when the voting fell off, Mr. Field, one of the 
democratic insj^ectors, went over in a corner with his poll-book, and 
commenced examining it and copying from it, and two or three times I 
noticed that he left the room, and very soon afterwards in would come 
three or tiuir of those young men who were termed “ rei)eaters” and 
voted. I believe from what I saw that he carried out names who had 
not voted and gave them to men outside. There were quite a number of 
men who came to vote in the afternoon who were unable to cast their 
votes because other parties had voted on their names before. I cannot 
state i)ositively the politics of the men whose names were registered 
who had been voted upon by other persons, but I judge from the remarks 
they made that they were i epublicans. 1 desire to say a few words in 
reference to what I mean by “ rej)eaters.” There are in the city of New 
York thousands of young men between the ages of 20 and 24 who have 
no legitimate business or any real abiding x>lace, but live by their wits 
in one way or another. These men on election day form themselves into 
gangs of ten or a dozen, with a captain at their head, and these gangs 
are held resx^onsible for a certain number of votes in the district, and 
they are required to make registry of a certain number of names in each 
district. The matter is all arranged as regularly as clockwork. These 
men are the most dangerous class in the community; they are what are 
termed “ repeaters.” One of them, to my certain knowledge, registered 
twice and would have registered three times, but I was so confident that I 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


411 


had registered him before, that I would not take his name. Another 
man came back to register; I felt convinced in my own mind that he 
had registered before, but I could not say positively under what name 
he had registered; I knew his face and would not register his name the 
second time, because I knew I had registered him before. There were 
but few men sworn on the day of registration. 

To Mr. Dawes: 

4136. I think the registry book will show perhaps ten or fifteen names 
of persons who came to vote, but found that their names had been voted 
upon before. I do not know who these men Avere, because I Avas not a 
resident of that district and not familiar with the people that Amted. 

The board of inspectors consisted of four, two democrats and tAVO 
republicans. The two republicans opposed illegal Acting as much as 
they could, but Ave were OA^erpowered by the force of Mr. Haggerty’s 
will. I protested every time, but he Avould say, You be damned,” and 
take the ballot and put it in the box. Mr. De Voursney and myself pro¬ 
tested repeatedly against many of the votes, but without effect; the 
ballots were receiA^ed and put in the box. I should think there aawc cer¬ 
tainly 100 or 150 receiA’^ed in this way. 1 luiA-e been an inspector in 
some of the most difficult districts in the city of New York; but I never 
saw anything like what 1 saw in my district in the last presidential 
election. Men came up and Amted Avhom I kneAV to be different men 
from the persons Avho registered on the name upon which the vote was 
offered, and their \mtes Avere received against the protest of Mr. De Yours- 
ney and myself. The form of the oath prescribed by statute to be admin¬ 
istered to voters who are challenged is, ‘‘You do SAvear that you will fully 
and truly ansAver all such questions as shall be put to you touching your 
place of residence and qualifications as a A^oter.” 

To Mr. Koss: 

4137. I cannot give the names of any person who A^oted illegally at 
my precinct. 

Neav York, January 5, 1869. 

C. E. WiLBOUB recalled and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4138. I wish to state that in addition to the number of certificates of 
naturalization and applications printed by the New York Printing Com¬ 
pany, of which I gave evidence before, I liaA^e found that on the 16th of 
September Av^e furnished to the supreme court 10,000 applications and 
9,000 certificates, and on the 19fch of September, 10,000 applications. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4139. We did not furnish blank applications to any other parties than 
the clerks of the court; we did not furnish any to the Tammany com¬ 
mittee. 

To Mr. Dawes : 

4140. Q. Is the printing company of which you are president a cor¬ 
poration % 

A. Yes, sir. 

4141. Q. Who are the owners of the printing company! 

[Question objected to by Mr. Eoss, objection overruled.] 

A. I prefer not to answer that question. I had rather not answer it 
without the assent of the stockholders. 

4142. Q. Who were, at the time these blanks were furnished ! 

A. I have the same objection to that question. 


412 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Dawes : 

4143. Q. Who are the stockholders of that company? 

A. I would rather not answer that question. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4144. Q. Is there a regular stock book ? 

A. I am not certain. 

4145. Q. Does the company issue stock ? 

A. I believe it does. 

4146. Q. What is the amount of the capital stock of that corporation? 
A. I tliink $25,000. 

By Mr. Dawes: 

4147. Q. Are there articles of association ? 

A. I think there is a certificate on file in the secretary of state’s office. 

4148. Q. What does that show? 

A. That I cannot remember. 

4149. Q. Do(iS it show who constitute the association ? 

A. I do not remember what it does contain. 

4150. Q. How long has the company been in existence ? 

A. About three or four years. 

4151. Q. How long have you been connected with it? 

A. From the beginning. 

4152. Q. In what capacity? 

A. As president. 

4153. Q. What other officers have you ? 

A. There is a secretary, his name is Cornelius Corson. 

4154. Q. Where is the place of business of this company? 

A. Kos. 81, 83, and 85 Centre street. 

4155. Q. Is there any treasurer of the company ? 

A. There is not. 

4156. Q. What objection have you to testifying as to who constitute 
the members of this corporation? 

A. 1 think it is a private matter. I would not like to give the details 
of the business before any public body. 

4157. Q. Is there anything about the transactions of this company 
that would be imi)roper to be published ? 

A. I do not know that there is. 

4158. Q. Would any of the stockholders object to your giving this 
informaiioii ? 

A. I do not know that they would. 

By the Chairman : 

4159. Q. About what number of stockholders are there in this com¬ 
pany ? 

A. I have the same objection to answering this question as the former 
one. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

4160. Q. Are there directors of this company ? 

A. As to that I do not know. Mr. Corson and myself manage the 
busineo« of tlie company. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4161. Q. Was this company organized under the general law of the 
State, or was it by a special act of incorporation? 

A. Under the general law. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


413 


By the Chairman: 

41G2. Q. I repeat the (piestion as to who are the stockholders of the 
company, and must insist upon an answer. 

[Witness stated that he would consult with the stockholders and give 
ail answer the next day.] 

New York, January 5, 1869. 

Patrick Mack sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4163. I was chairman of the board of registrars and inspectors of the 
5th election district of the 4th ward in the last presidential election. I 
was told that great frauds would be perpetrated by fraudulent naturali¬ 
zation papers, and on the day of election I swore every man who came 
before me of whom 1 had any doubts as to his being a legal voter. I 
had been a resident of the district for nearly 20 years, and knew almost 
every legal voter in the district. It is a small one, consisting only of 
two blocks, and every person presenting a natiunlization paper about 
which I had doubts I would swear if they went to a court and got their 
papers there, and in nineteen cases out of twenty the parties said they 
got their papers from individuals and not from the court at all. I took 
the papers and made a private mark on them. The president of the 
board of aldermen came to me during election day and said tliat I was 
doing wrong. I told him that the police commissioners put me there as 
a republican, and 1 intended to do my duty. About 4 o’clock in the 
afternoon there came to me a writ of mandamus^ issued by Judge Car¬ 
doza, requiring me to appear forthwith. I told my republican colleague 
that I would adjourn the board. The democrats said “no,” they wanted 
the board in session to receive names for registry. One of them went 
up to Judge Cardoza, and came back and told me I need not appear 
before morning. They wanted to get me away, so they could put as 
many names as they wished on the registry book; but when they found 
that I intended to adjourn the board and close up the registry they 
didn’t like it, and so they got it arranged that I need not appear until 
the next morning. I adjourned the board at 6 o’clock, but the democratic 
inspector staid there taking names until 9 o’clock. Tiiey did this without 
any legal warrant or authority whatever. I went ui) to Judge Cardoza 
in the morning. On my way I met several parties who threatened me 
with Ludlow street jail, and I was told to save myself by pleading igno¬ 
rance of the law, which I did. Judge Cardoza compelled me to give the 
papers back and register the men. Many of them 1 knew were not legal 
voters. One of them, a relative of mine, told me on the day of election 
that he had voted that day in the 10th ward, and then came down to vote 
in my district. Strong eftbrts were made to have me removed from the 
chairmanship of the board of inspectors. Mr. Matthew T. Brennan, one 
of the police commissioners, said to me, “ Paddy, you know these men 
are voters.” Says I, “ That don’t make a bit of dilference; I want them 
to prove their right to vote.” He told me that all that was necessary 
was the seal of the court to their papers. I told him that I would make 
them prove their identity. He got very mad at that, and said, “I will 
send after you.” Alderman Coman came to me the next day nnd wanted 
to know why I was so hard on the boys. I told him I was not hard, but 
1 was trying to prevent frauds, if 1 could, and would do everything in 
my power to prevent them. When the poll opened on election day and 
the crowd pressed in, there was a republican cliallenger there, and they 
wanted to put him out. I told them that they could not do it; that he 


414 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


had a perfect right to be there. There were a large number of deputy 
sheriffs around who insisted that he should go out. They made a great 
splurge and ffght over it, but they did not put him out. I had nine or 
ten men arrested that day for attempting to vote illegally, but I could 
not leave the polls to prefer charges against them. It would not have 
done any good any way, because they would have been let out immedi¬ 
ately. Alderman Coman came up to me, after my interview with Bren¬ 
nan, and remonstrated, and told me that I ought not to have spoken to 
Brennan in that Avay; that Brennan was a very bad man to have as an 
enemy, and that it would not be well for me. Says I, I don’t care; I 
will take my chances.” Ooman is president of the board of aldermen, 
and has been acting mayor for the last month. He is a democrat. 

To the Chairman : 

4164. I contended that the republican challenger had a right to be 
there. The deputy sheriff’s said he had no right, and they made a rush 
for him. I grabbed him and put him behind the counter for safety. 
Some of the deputy sheriff’s drew pistols; I drew one and so did the 
challenger, and there was quite a row there for a little while, but no 
shots were fired. The rei)ublican challenger stayed there, however, all 
day. Friiudulent naturalization papers were offered to me many times. 
One man offered me fifty ])apers for $25. I refused to take them, and 
he sent them over to Brooklyn. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4165. This man who offered me the papers I think lives in Eoosevelt 
street. I have forgotten his name. 

To Mr. Boss: 

4166. George W. Morris is the name of my republican colleague on the 
board. The democratic ones were liichard Wall and Joseph Elliott. It 
requires three of the board to exclude a man from voting. The illegal 
votes that were received were received against the protest of both my 
republican colleague and myself, while the democratic inspector said he 
would be damned if he would not receive them anyhow; and he received 
them and put them in the boxes of which he had charge. I told him 
I would be damned if they should put them into the President and 
State boxes, which were in my care, and none Avere receiA^ed in those 
boxes to my knoAvledge. The name of the relatiA^e of mine Avho voted 
in the lOtli Avard is Patrick Harrington. He is a seaman, and I cannot 
tell where he noAV liA^es. I only knoAv from what he told me that he had 
Am ted in the 10th ward. 1 met him, when I AAmnt out to lunch, in the 
line of voters. I believed then that he had Amted before, and I warned 
him against trying to vote again in that precinct. He acknowledged 
that he had voted in the 10th ward, but said that his residence was 
at 56 PooscAmlt street; that he Avould vote there anyhoA\\ I think I 
knoAV of 100 or 200 illegal votes being cast in my'precinct. I can 
think of the names of but a feAv: one is James Weavers, ayIio voted from 
54 KooseAmlt street; he had never gone before the court to get his 
naturalization papers, but presented me Avith a certificate Avhich he had 
bought from some indmdual; I Avas, liOAveAmr, compelled to let him 
vote. Another was Joseph McOorboy, No. 14 Boosevelt street. These 
tAAm men got out the aa rit of mandamus against me. Another Avas Peter 
Miller, living in James street. He had repeated in eAmry district in the 
ward before he came to ours, and in trying to Amte in my district he was 
arrested, but Avas released the next morning. I do not knoAv of my own 
knoAvledge that he voted in any other district, but was told so. I would 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


415 


not like to swear tliat tlie republican cliallauger drew a pistol in the 
melee; upon retlectioii I think that he did not. The police officers sta¬ 
tioned there were all democrats, and 1 could not get them to <lo any¬ 
thing. I sent for a captain of police and told him that. 1 never had 
any of my poll-books in the Union League room or at any republican 
committee, nor any of the election books. I never took them up to the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel. I left a copy of the poll-list at the Union League 
committee rooms. I believe my colleague took it there. 

To the Chairman : 

41G7. I do not know that anybody has been convicted of fraudulent 
voting in this city within the last three years. 

^7ew York, January 5, 1868. 

Louis Jonassoiin sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Hawes : 

4168. I was employed three or four weeks by the German Hemocratic 
Union committee as one of the clerks of naturalization, in the office at No. 
6 Centre street. They ap])ointed Benjamin B. Bosenberg as superintend¬ 
ent, and Mr. Gershom M. Hermann as chairman of this committee. 
This comnuttee held a meeting, and passed a resolution that Mr. 
Julius Hennett should be tirst clerk, and Avhen the pressure should 
come I should be api)ointed second clerk. I took that position 
about three days after the office was reopened. I remained there up to 
the 13th of October, when I left. Mr. Rosenberg and myself were never 
on good terms; Ave were continually quarrelling. I am Axu*y well 
acquainted with the process of naturalization, and the routine of the 
work; he, on the contrary, knew nothing about it, and is an illiterate 
man, but wanted to take charge of the business. Mr. Rosenberg dis¬ 
charged me, but I protested against it, and gave notice to the committee 
of it. After I left 1 ottered my services to Judge McCunn, to assist him 
as an interi)reter of the court while the business of naturalization was 
going on. The office of the naturalization committee of the German Demo¬ 
cratic Union was in the basement of No. 6 Centre street. Before the 
door was a large table which Mr. Rosenberg occupied. My desk Avas 
someAvhat on the left of Mr. Rosenberg. When a man came in he AA^ent 
right directly to Mr. Rosenberg, avIio sat opposite the door. Rosenberg 
would (luestion him and examine his papers. After he wmuld examine 
them he Avould turn them OA^er to me. I Avould make out the papers. 
We first made all the applications out on the blanks furnished by the 
court of ccminon pleas, but they Avere more complicated than those fur¬ 
nished by the superior court, and more troublesome to fill out, and I got 
Mr. Rosenberg to get blanks from the superior court and use them in 
cases of soldiers. The great obstacle to be overcome in making out the 
papers Avas to obtain the Avitnesses. When a man came in Rosenberg 
would question him, ask him hoAv long he had been in the country, and the 
like, and then ask him if he had any Avitnesses Avith him. In some cases 
the man would say “no,” and Rosenberg would say to him that he must 
have one. Rosenberg Avould often say to a man AAffio had no Avitness, 
“Before 1 bite your finger there must be some sugar on it.” He meant 
by this, I suppose, before he Avould do anything for the man in relation 
to furnishing him Avith a witness, he must pay him. Rosenberg 
Avould then call a man by the name of Bernard Lockmann. He Avould 
then take the man into a back room, and after staying there a few min¬ 
utes would come out, and then come to my desk and tell me to make out 


416 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


the application for this man; that he would he the witness in the case, 
and I would make out the application accordingly. He would then take 
the application and go away with the ai^plicant. When Lockniann came 
out with the applicant the clerks would till up the application with his 
name in as witness. I could not say whether that was all Lockmann^s 
business or not. I could not state how many papers Lockniann wit¬ 
nessed in this manner. I should think I prepared at least 25 of them. 
Eosenberg said to the persons coming in about his biting their finger 
with sugar on it to as many as about 50. Sometimes Lockniann would 
be absent, and he would choose some one else. He would not always use 
the metaphor in relation to the finger to all the men ; he would some¬ 
times send them directly to Lockmann for him to talk with them. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4169. I could not hear all that passed between Eosenberg and the men 
that came in. He would talk to them privately, and in a low tone. I 
could not state of my own knowledge whether anybody received com¬ 
pensation tor acting as witness, but I had no doubt in my mind that 
compensation was given for such services, as these men would often take 
us around and treat us, and appeared to be fiush of money. All the work 
I did in the office was honest work. I simply filled up the applications, 
showed the persons where to sign the names, and then handed them to 
the applicants. This Lockmann lias lived in New York 25 years; has been 
in almost every business, and is very generally acquainted. He had once 
a cigar store in Sixth avenue, but never had any settled business. 

To the Chairman : 

4170. Lockmann would come to the office preciselj^ at 8 o’clock in the 
morning, and would stay there until the close of the night session. I do 
not know of any of the clerks acting as witnesses while I was there. I 
was paid for my services by the naturalization committee. I was paid 
by Supervisor Hermann. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4171. Eosenberg had charge of the blanks. He kept them in a small 
closet, and we had not access to them at all. Eosenberg would often 
take blanks up town Avith him in the afternoon. I do not know Avhere 
he carried them to. He would probably take some 50 at a time. 

To the Chairman: 

4172. From the opening of the office there was always a swarm of 
persons hanging around—not only down in the basement, but on the 
sidewalk, who accosted applicants olfering their services as witnesses; 
I do not know their names. Eosenberg would not permit persons with 
whom he had not made a previous arrangement down into the basement, 
and several times, by force, he put them out. He woidd only allow such 
men as were in with him in the basement, and the others he would 
exclude. Eosenberg attended closely to the business down stairs, and 
did not interfere Avith people on the sideAvalk. My time AA^as completely 
occupied all day in making out blanks. I heard very little that passed 
between Eosenberg and the applicants. Judge McCunn and Judge 
Garvin presided at the superior court during the time I acted as inter¬ 
preter there. I acted as interpreter in comparatively fcAv cases in the 
course ot the day. Judge McCunn AAms Awy strong in examining appli¬ 
cants. The manner of conducting the naturalization would be this: 
when the parties entered into the room the officer of the court would 
take the application and hand it to the clerk; the clerk Avould call the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


417 


witfiesses in rotation ; as soon as they appeared before the court the first 
question would be, For whom are you a witness f ’ in some cases the 
witness did not know the name of the applicant, and such a man of 
course would be rejected. If the witness knew the applicant, lie woidd 
be told to point him out, and then he would be asked how long he had 
known the applicant, where he resided, and similar questions. The clerk 
would then call the name of the principal, who would step forward to the 
judge, and the judge would question him as to how long he had been in 
the country, where he had resided, how long he had known the witness, 
and similar ((iiestions; and then, if it was all correct, he would make 
his order on the ])aper and pass it down to the clerk. The most difticult 
eases are those of minors, because the other papers, such as soldiers’ 
applications and cases where declaration of intention had l^een filed, 
would speak for themselves. The applications of minors, I think, con¬ 
stituted the majority of cases. I have not the least knowledge of any 
ease where a ]){irty was naturalized who was not entitled to it. I have 
seen parties there who acted as witness for different ixersonsj I have, 
seen parties act as witness in six or seven difterent cases. 1 acted as 
interpreter of the court from about the 13th of October until the natu¬ 
ralization business closed. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

4173. I mean by Judge McOunn being very strong in examining ax>pli- 
cants, that he would scrutinize every case very carefully and cross-ex¬ 
amine and re-examine the apifiicant. I have seen Judge AfcCunn send 
away at least 20 Irishmen in a day who could not give proper answers 
to the questions he put to them. When an applicant was rejected 
he v/ould tear up the application. No case was passed upon with¬ 
out the principal and witness being in court at the sanu^ time, 
to my knowledge. If there had been such a case 1 would most 
assuredly have known of it. I have not seen the remotest disposi¬ 
tion on the part of the judges of the court to permit persons to be 
naturalized who were not entitled to it. They did manifest a dispo 
sition to expedite business and do it as rapidly as possible. Ijockinmin 
always signed his own name as witness to these applications j lie was 
known in the court, and could not do it otherwise. I had Lm kmann 
arrested for swindling some eighteen years ago, and locked u]) in Eld- 
ridge street jail; I have seen him from time to time since that, but have 
had no conversation with him 5 he is very generally acquainted with the 
people in the city 5 I have acted myself as a witness for two different 
l)arties, but these men I knew of my personal knowledge were entitled 
to citizen papers ; I know of no money being paid to any parties to act 
as witnesses; I have no knowledge that Kosenberg took any money 
except what he was paid by the naturalization committee as salary 
itosenberg never gave me any directions about making out x>apers foi 
Xiersons who were not entitled to naturalization, nor did he ever hold 
out any such impression to any of the clerks; I know of no person being" 
furnished with naturalization who was not present in court and applied 
for them himself; the secretary of the German democratic naturaliza¬ 
tion committee employed me; this committee is a branch of the execu¬ 
tive committee who are elected in ward meetings; I never informed 
this committee that there was anything wrong in Kosenberg’s trans¬ 
actions ; members of the committee would frequently visit the office 
and superintend generally the transaction of business; I do not know 
that there was anything to indicate to any member of the committee 
who visited the place that anything wrong was going on ; they did not 

27 T 


418 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK- 


pay Diiich attention to tlie business j if they had examined it closely they 
might liave discovered something; they never, to my knowledge, gave 
any direction in regard to fraudulent naturalization papers, and 1 have 
no knowledge that they knew that anything of the kind was going on j 
there is a general committee of the German democratic Union party; 
they are in close connection with Tammany Hall; the members of this 
general committee are elected by delegates from the twenty-two wards 
of the city ; this general committee is divided up into sub-committees, as, 
for instance, finance committee, naturalization committee, committee on 
printing j the Tammany Hall naturalization committee had their head¬ 
quarters at No. 1 Centre street; this committee paid me three dollars a 
day for my services, and wdien the night sessions commenced, one dollar 
for each night; my services as interpreter in the superior court I offered 
gratuitously to Judge McCunn. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4174. We used the Tammany tickets; Mr. Hermann, chairman of the 
general naturalization committee, is also a member of the Tammany gen¬ 
eral committee. 

To Mr. Dawes : 

4175. I made the arrangement with Judge McCunn to act as inter- 
l)reter in his court directly upon leaving No. 6 Centre street, probably a 
day or two afterwards; I have been for the past ten or twelve years an 
interpreter in that court, and I considered it my duty to ofter my services 
and help them as much as I could during the pressure of this naturali- 
zatiou business. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

4170. I act with no political party at all. 

To the Chairman : 

4177. The clerk of the court administered the oaths to the principals 
and witnesses; when necessary, I acted as interiireter in explaining the 
nature of the oath to persons who did not understand English ; I cannot 
state with any degree of accuracy how much time the judge devoted to 
each applicant; it would depend a great deal upon the nature of the 
application, whether that of a minor or of a soldier, or of a person who 
had previously declared his intention; I suppose it would take about 
three minutes to examine a minor, and iierhaps a minute or two in the 
case of a soldier, and probably half a minute in the case of a person who 
had his first papers; the majority of the applications, I think, were for 
minors; 1 coidd not state definitely how many would be naturalized in 
an hour, but I should judge about one hundred. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

4178. The parties in interest would take the papers themselves from 
the court-room; after they had passed, the name of the applicant would 
be called, the paper was handed to him and he went to another building 
to get his certificate. 

New York, Wednesday^ January G, 1809. 

Thomas Potter sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Poss.) 

To Mr Koss: 

4179. At the last presidential election I was inspector of election in the 
3d district of the 4th ward. The board of inspectors in that district 
took all the precaution they possibly could to prevent frauds; they 
would examine the papers of a voter and administer the oath to him ; I 


KLECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


419 


did not see any disposition evinced by any of tlie board to get in illegal 
votes; I was one of the democratic inspectors, and I allowed the repub¬ 
lican inspector to challenge as iniicli as he pleased. Before the i>olls 
opened it was voted by the board that no i^erson slionld be allowed to 
challenge except tlie inspectors themselves; it was the proposition of 
the chairman of the board, and he, of course, voted for it. 

4180. Q. Do you know of anybody being run out of the place of reg¬ 
istry because he was a challenger? 

A. We had one removed on the second day of registry. He came in 
there about 9 o’clock at night, just as we were about closing; he was 
pretty drunk and noisy, and we had to call the police to put him out; 
he said when they came that he was a republican challenger; the board 
agreed to put him out. I know Michael Costello; he kept challenging 
every person that came in to vote; he created quite an excitement among 
the crowd outside who were Avaiting to deposit their ballots; I did not 
hear any particular threats used against him. 

4181. Q. Did Costello challenge men known by the board to be legal 
voters I 

A. I believe that he did, and he obstructed the voting in a great mea¬ 
sure in this Avay. 

4182. Q. Do you know of any repeaters A^oting at your precinct? 

A. I do not; I Avas on the lookout for them myself; if anybody had 
attemj)ted to A^ote twice at my polls I would immediately have had him 
arrested; I ha\^e lived in that district for the last 12 years, and I think I 
know almost eA^ery legal voter in that district. The other inspectors 
were from other Avards, and of course knew but very little about the 
voters. 

4183. Q. Do you knoAV Alderman Coman? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4184. Q. Did you hear him make any threats ? 

A. No, sir; he came in the polling place near the close of the day, 
and told Costello not to delay the votes, as there were some fifty or 
sixty outside waiting to deposit their ballots. At the time the polls 
closed I should think there were some forty or fifty who had not A^oted. 

4185. Q. Why did they not get in their votes ? 

A. I think it Avas because of Costello’s challenging; as chairman of 
the board of inspectors he had the handling of the ballots; he Avould 
delay depositing the ballots, keeping them on his desk, &c.; of course 
the croAvd outside was much excited, but they were as much excited 
against the rest of the inspectors as they Avere against Costello. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

4180. Q. Did you challenge anybody yourself that day? 

A. I did not; my colleague, Mr. Thurston, did. Costello and Thurston 
did all the challenging. 

Neav York, Wednesday^ January 0, 1809. 

George Harris SAvoru and examined. 

To the CnAiRiMAN: 

4187. I reside at 110 Thompson street, in this city; I haA-e been in 
the city for 12 months; I am a native of England; I have been in the 
country about four years; I am 35 years of age, and have not been in 
the army. At the last i)residential election I went round to four or five 
different districts and voted two or three times at each place; this mostly 
in the 21st ward. 


420 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4188. Q. For whoiii did you vote ? 

A. I votcid tlie democratic ticket. 

4181). Q. IJjidei' didercat names '/ 

A. Yes, sir. 

‘ 4190. Q. Assumed iiauies'? 

A. That i could not tell you. 

4191. Q. They were not your real name? 

A. No, sir. 

4192. Q. AMuit do you kiiow of a meeting at the itouse of William 
Dorans, lo:> Crosby street? 

A. There were some 20 or 30 of us met there the night before election 5 
we went from there to a house iu Thirty-second street and Second ave¬ 
nue; we stopped there all night. In tlie morning we commenced voting 
about 0 o’clock. 

4193. Q. IJow many times did you vote? 

A. Two or three times in each ])olling place. 

4194. Q. AVhat districts did you and the others vote in ? 

A. In the 4th, hth, 0th, 8 th, and 9th. 

4195. Q. Who gave you these names on which you voted ? 

A. 1 could not tell you; they were furnished us on slips of paper. 
4190. Q. WTiere did you get them? 

A. We got some at the house on Thirty-second street; others were 
given to us in the street. 

4197. Q. State wTio ejigaged you to do this work. 

A. Dorans. 

4198. Q. State what arrangements were mad(^. about compensation. 

A. AYe received no eompeiisation at all. 

4199. Q. AVas Dorans one of the re])eaters? 

A. AYs, sir. 

4200. Q. AVhat w as said among the repeaters when they were together? 
A. Nothing more w\as said than that they were going to A’ote for so- 

and-so, and some general remarks. 

4201. (F State if you received any instructions about voting. 

A. I had a i)aper with the names and numbers of the street froni 
which 1 was to vote; there Avere about 14 of us Avho voted as living at 
the Compton House. 

4202. Q. None of you lived at that ]dacc? 

A. No, sir. 

I>y Mr. lloTKiNS: 

4203. Q. Jlow many were iu tlie ]>arty that w<mt with you? 

A. From 20 to 30. 

4204. (F Did you go together to the different voting places? 

A. Sometimes avc divided; sometimes Ave Aveiit together. 

4205. Q. Did these men vote as many times as you did? 

A. Some of them more, I think. 

4200. Q. .Do you kuoAV Avho kept this liouse im Thirty-second street. 
Avhere you staid tlie night previous to the eleetiou? 

A. 1 do not; it Avas a Ihjuor store. 

4207. Q. j.)id you have any accommodation for sleeping there ? 

A. No, sir; Ave did not sleep much. 

4208. Q. AVas Dorans Avith you up there? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. lioss; 

4209. Q. What is your iuisiness ? 

A. I am a j)edlar. 

4210. Q. Are auui engaged in peddling now? 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


421 


A. 1 am not doing anything now; I have not been peddling for six 
weeks: I peddled brushes, combs, &c.; I have been sick for the last six 
weeks; 1 am married but have no family—have been married 14 years. 

4211. Q. AYlio were these men that went with you? 

A. I knew Dorans and William Davis, that was about all, I think; I 
do not know wliere Davis lives; I knew all the men by sight, but do not 
know where they live; I sometimes voted twice and three times at each 
precinct; I voted twice in the 4th precinct and twice in the 9th; I for¬ 
get how many times we voted in the other precincts; T can’t recollect 
the names under which I voted. 

4212. Q. IIovv many times did you swear in your vote ? 

A. I was not sworn at all. " 

4213. Q. Were you not challenged? 

A. Xo, sir. 

4214. Q. What other men did you see vote that l)elonged to your com 
pany? 

A. Sometimes I would be before them, sometimes after them; I saw 
Dorans vote, and others; Dorans lives in this city; he is an Englishman 
and has been here I believe about four years; he keeps a liquor store at 
IS’o. 103 Crosby street. 

4215. Q. How many men did you see vote that day more than once? 

A. I could not tell you. 

4216. Q. Did you see a half dozen ? 

A Yes, sir; I think I did. 

4217. Q. How many times did they vote ? 

A. Two or three times at each i)lace. 

4218. Q. Were any of the others sworn? 

A. Yot that I know of; I saw them vote. 

4219. Q. Did you know what ticket the other men voted? 

A. Seymour and Ilotfman tickets, I think; I did not see the tickets 
and I could not say of my own knowledge what they voted. 

4220. Q. Who gave you these tickets? 

A. I could not say. 

4221. Q. Y’liat made you go into this business? 

A. Dorans told me that it was for a friend of his, and he Joined me; 
he paid me nothing. 

4222. Q. What are your i)olitics? 

A. I have none. 

4223. Q. Did you know that you were violating a law in voting more 
than once? 

A. Yes, vSir; 1 did. 

4224. Q. Did you not know that it was a criminal oftence for which 
you could be indicted and punished? 

A. I have heard so since. 

4225. Q. Did you imagine that you did right to vote so many times? 

A. I think I had as much right to vote as the others had. 

4226. Q. Who kept the house in Thirty-second street, where you slept? 

A. I do not know; the time we stayed, there were probably about 25 

of us; we slept in the club-room, uiLstairs; the bar was all closed up at 
the time; we did not all sleep in one room; we went up two flights of 
stairs to the club-room; I think about 20 slept in one room; we slept on 
the floor or on chairs; I got some slips containing the names at this 
place, and some outside on the street; 1 do not know who gave them to 
me; Dorans gave me no tickets; it was none of the crowd that went 
around with me. 

4227. Q. Have you ever been prosecuted for this illegal voting? 

A. Yever. 


422 


ELECTION FEAT JDS IN NEW YOEK. 


4228. Q. To whom did you hrst intimate the tact that you )iad been 
voting illegally? 

A. 1 told it first to Colonel Wood. 

4229. Q. mo is he? 

A. He is a deteetive of counterfeit money, attached to the government. 

4230. Q. When did you tell it to him ? 

A. Yesterday. 

4231. Q. Is that the first time you told anybody of it? 

A. Yes, sir; and I should not have told him of it then if it had not 
been for Horans; he sent for Horans and asked him. 

New Yoek, January 6, 1860. 

Heney E. Sweetzek sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Keee : 

4232. Question. Tell the committee whether during the last few years 
your business has made you familiar with political statistics. 

Answer. Yes, sir; it has. 

4233. Q. State whether at my request you have made any statistical 
tables relating to the election. 

A. I have. 

4234. Q. Submit them to the committee, if you ifiease, as a part of your 
testimony, and state further, in making these tables, what sources of in¬ 
formation you used. 

A. The election returns ui) to 1868 I took from the Tribune Almanacf 
those of 18681 took from the official canvass. The population I got from 
the census of the United States and from the New York State census. 

4235. Q. State whether these tables are correct. 

A. Yes, sir; I believe so. 

4236. What is your business? 

A. I am engaged in the newspaper businesw. 

[Witness produced the following statistics, which Avere made part of 
his testimony: 

TABLE No. 1. 

The following table shows the total vote of New York city, and of the 
State outside of the city, from 1850 to 1868, together with the percentage 
of increase or decrease of the A^ote of each year, as compared Avith that 
of the jAreceding years: 

Total vote of New York city and State from 1850 to 18(58. 


New York city. 

New York State, except New York city. 

Year. 

Total vote. 

Increase. 

Decrease. 

Year. 

Total vote. 

Increase. 

1 

Decrease. 

1850. 

36, 552 
42, 790 
57,341 
45, 386 
60, 367 
56, 047 
79, 606 
59, 770 
69, 699 
56, 734 
95, 583 
55, 976 
76, 848 
66,896 
110, 390 
81,868 
114,169 
111,862 
156,078 

Per cent. 

Per cent. 

1850. 

392,414 
359, 277 
439, 624 
311,139 
409, 064 
379, 897 
517, 883 
.380,019 
475,117 
446, 994 
579, 573 
428, 994 
525, 698 
532, 393 
620,331 
492, 385 
605, 026 
586, 266 
693, 688 

Per cent. 

Per cent. 

1851. 

17 

34 


1851. 


7 

1852. 


1852. 

22.9 

1853. 

20 

18.53. 

29.4 

1854 .1 

33 

1854. 

31.4 1 

1855. 

7 

18.5.5_ 

7 

1856. 

42 

1856. 

36.3 

1857. 

25 

1857. 

26.5 

1858 . 

16.5 

1858. 

25 

1859. 

18.5 

1859. 

5.9 

1860. 

68.5 

1860. 

29 

1861. 

41 

1861. 

26 

1862. 

37.5 

1862. 

25.5 
1.3 

16.5 

1863. 

13 

1863. 


1864 . 

65 

1864. 


1865. 

29.75 

1865. 

20.6 

1866. 

39.5 

1866. 

23 

1867 . 

2 

1867. 

3 

1868. 

49. 75 

1868. 

18.3 







































































































[«:LECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


428 


TARLE No. 2. 

Ill nearly every instance of an increase of vote, (as shown by table 
No. 1,) the increase in the vote of New York city exceeds that of the 
vote of the State outside of the city m percentage. The average excess 
from 1851 to 18G7 inclusive (counting only tliose years in which the vote 
of the city exceeds that of the year immediately preceding) is 10.55 jier 
cent. The last two years that show an increase in the vote over the vote 
of the year preceding are 1800 and 1808, and by comparing these two, 
(i. e., the votes of these years,) as is done in the subjoined table, it will 
be seen that the increase in tlie vote of New York city exceeds that of 
the vote of the State outside of the city by nearly the same percentage 
as the average excess in ])ercentage from 1851 to 1807, to wit: 


New York city. 


1868- 


of 1868 over vote of 1866.. 


i 

i 

New Y^oi’k State, except Newl''odc 

city. 

1 

114,169 1 
156,078 1 

1866—'Fotal vote. 

1868—Total vote. 

605,026 
693,638 

Percenta<re of increase in vote 

36.7 ! 

of 1868 over vote of 1866.. 
Add averag-e excess of increase 

14.65 


in vote of city over State.. 

16.55 


Total. 

31.2 


TABLE No. 3. 

By the following table it may be seen that a comparison of the 
ratio of voters to the population of New Y^ork city at each presiden¬ 
tial election from 1852 to 1808, (taking the population as returned by 
the census immediately preceding such elections,) Avith the ratio of votes 
to the population of tlie State, exclusive of Noav York city, shows that 
the city has polled at each such election less votes in proportion to its 
population than has the State excluswe of the city, to wdt: 


New York city. 


New York State, except New York 
city. 


Year. 



Vote. 

Population. ! 

llatij. 

1852. 

57,341 
79, 606 
95, 583 
110,390 
156, 078 

515, 547 

1 to 8. 99 

1856. 

629, 904 
81.3, 669 
813, 669 
726, 386 

1 to 7. 82 

I860. 

1 to 8. 51 

1864 . 

1 to 7. 37 

1868. 

1 to 4. 65 


Year. 



Vote. 

Population. 

Patio. 

1852. 

439,624 

2, 581, 847 

1 to 5.89 

1856. 

517, 883 

2,838, 591 

1 to 5.48 

1860. 

579, .573 

3, 067, 076 

1 to 5.29 

1864. 

620,331 

3, 067, 076 

1 to 4. 94 

1868. 

693, 688 

3,105, 391 

1 to 4.47 


TABLE No. 4. 

In the subjoined table are presented two estimates ot the popula¬ 
tion of New York city and New York State, exclusive of the city in 
1808, the second estimate being based on the United States census ot 
1850, the State censuS' of 1855, and the United States census ot 18^^? 
and the tirst on the foregoing census reports together with the State 
census of 1805, Avhich latter is alleged to be incorrect as respects 
the returns given of New^ York city. With these estimates are given 
the votes at the presidential election of 1808, and the ratio ot votes to 







































424 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


the ])opulali()ii, sliowinji', as in table No. 3, the ratio in New \ork city is 
smaller than that in the State exclusive of the city, viz : 


(A.) 


New York city. 

New York State, except New York city. 

Vote, ] 868. 

i 

* Population, 1868. j 

Katio. 

Vote. 1868. 

: 

*■ Population, 1868. j Ratio. 

156, 078 

765f 790 1 

i 

I to 5 

693, 688 

i 

;5 234,265 i 1 to 4.66 

1 


Kstiinafed from rettinis of 1850, 1855, 1860, and 1865. 

(r».) 



New York city. 


New York State, except New York city. 

Vote, 1868. 

Population,' 1868. 

Katio. 

V ote, 1868. 

*■ Poptilatiou, 1868. i Ratio. 

156, 078 

1,191,211 

1 to 7. 63 

693, 688 

3, 533. 272 1 1 to 5. 09 

i 


* Estimated from census reports of 1850, 1«55, and I860. 


TABLE No. o. 

Ill t lie subjoined table are given the total vote of each New England 
State for President in 1808, the population of each in 1800, and the ratio 
of voters in 1808 to the population in 1800. The ratios thus obtained, 
together with the average ratio of the six New England States, are com¬ 
pared with the ratio of voters in New York city at the jiresidential election 
of 1808 to the population of the city in 1800, to wit: 


. New England. 

New York city. 

.St.itutf. V'ote 1868. 

i 

I 

Population 1 

1860. 1 

! 

Vote 1868. 

Population 

I860. 

Ratio. 

Maine. 113,983 

628, 279 
326, 073 
315, 098 
1,231,066 
174,620 
460,147 

1 to 5.51 

1 to 4.77 

1 to 5.60 

1 to 6.29 




New Hampshire. 68,789 




Vermont. 56,212 




MassachnsettH. 195, 482 




Rhode Island. 19^541 

Connecticut.1 98, 624 

1 to 8. 94 

1 to 4.65 

156, 078 

813, 669 

1 to 5. 21 






Avera(jc ratio of New England compared with that of Xeir York city. 

Average ratio of voters in New England in 1808 to population 

in 1800. 5.90 

Average ratio of voters in New York city in 1808 to ])opulation 

in 1800.‘. T). 21 


TAIU.E No. 0. 

Ill the subjoined table are given the total votes of New Jersey and 
Pennsylvania for President in 3808, their population in 1800, and the 
ratio of voters in 18()8 to the population in 1800. These figures are com¬ 
pared with flic vote of New York city for President in 1808, its ])opula- 
tion in 1800, and the ratio of its voters in 1808 to its ])opu1atiou in 1800, 
to wit : 





























































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


425 


vStates, 


Now Jersey .. 
Pennsylvania. 


\’'ote ]3€'8. 

Population 

1860. 

Ratio. j 

1 

1 

_1 

New York city. 

' Vote 1868. 

L 

Population 

1860. 

Ilivtio. 

162, 645 
655, 662 

672, 035 

2, 906,115 

1 to 4.13 

1 to 4. 58 



! 156,078 

1_ 

813, 669 

1 to 5. 21 


Subjoined is a similar comparison between the vote in 1808 and the 
population in 1800 of IS'ew York city and Philadelphia: 



1 

A"ote 1868. 

Populat’n 

1860. 

i 

1 Ratio. 


A^ote 1868. 

Populat’n 

1860. 

Ratio. 

New York city. 

156,078 

813,699 

1 to 5.21 

1 Philadelphia. 

116,158 

562, 529 

1 to 4. 84 


Yew York, Wednesday^ Jannary 0, 1809. 

James Melville sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4237. I am a native of England. 1 have never been naturalized. I 
am 37 years of age. I live at Yo. 103 Crosby street, at the house of 
William Dorans. On the evening before the presidential election I 
started from Dorans’ place with perhaps 30 other men. We went up to 
Thirty-second street, corner of Second avenue; stayed there all night, 
and began voting early in the morning. I stayed that night in a large 
room over the liquor store. I suppose there were about 30 of our party. 
There were probably 150 in the room altogether. 

4238. Q. AYhat was done during election day"^ 

A. The next morning we began to vote early, between six and seven 
o’clock. AYe voted at the 4th, 5th, 8th, and 9tli precincts in that ward. 
We voted tw ice and sometimes three times at each precinct. We got 
our tickets from parties in this house in Thirty-second street. I could not 
say what names I voted on. They were difterent names given us on a slip 
of paper. I could not say who the i)arties were that gave these slii)s to 
me. These slips Avere furnished the whole party. 

4239. Q. AVhen you had been to these different precincts what did you 
do then? 

A. AYe then Aveiit to the Compton House, in Thirty-fourth street; went 
into the basement and got some tickets, then Avent up Thirty-fourth 
street to different polling jilaces in that street and voted there; then we 
Avent home. 

4240. Q. Can you recollect any names upon which you voted? 

A. Yo, sir; they were all Irish names. 

To Mr. Koss: 

1 haA^e been sick for the past eight months and ha\m not followed any 
business. I have had rheumatics and a sore leg. My leg has been bad 
for four months and have not been able to Avalk about much. 

4241. Q. Was it pretty bad along about the fore part of Yovember? 

A. It has been AA^orse than it Avas, so that I hnYO not been able to walk 

very much. 

4242. Q. AYheu Avas it AAorse? 

A. It was very bad on election day. 































426 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4243. Bid you limp mucli on election day ? 

A. Yes, sir; a good deal. 

4244. Q. AVas it very painful for you to walk tliat day? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4245. Q. Bid you walk mucli that day? 

A. Yes, sir; to all these ditferent places; 1 should think a few miles, 
backwards and forwards. 

4246. Q. AVhat business Avere you engaged iu at this house JSh). 103 
Crosby street? 

A. I am only boarding there; «at least I have a room there and take 
my meals in restaurants. 

4247. Q. AVho were these men that were with you ? 

A. I know them all by sight; I could not recollect all their names. 

4248. Q. Bo they live in the city? 

A. They do; yes, sir. 

4249. Q. State their names as far as you can. 

A. Borans Avas one of them, Harris another; there was also a man by 
the name of Joseph Benson. 

4250. Q. Bo you recollect any other ? 

A. No, sir. 

4251. Q. AAdiere do these men live? 

A. Benson and Harris liA e at BoransA 

4252. Q. AVhat is his first name? 

A. Samuel. 

4253. Q. Bo you knoAv the other men A^ery ay ell? 

A. I know them all, seeing them in public houses and the like. 

4254. Q. AVhat kind of business do they follow ? 

A. All sorts of business. 

4255. Q. State some business they are in. 

A. That is their business; I never interfere AYith other people’s affairs. 
425G. Q. AVhat is Borans’ business? 

A. He keeps a boarding-house, I belieA C. 

4257. Q. Bo you know any of these men to be thieves ? 

A. I do not knoAY anything about them; I never interfere with their 
business. 

4258. Q. AVhat has been your business? 

A. I ha\^e been in no business. 

4259. Q. How long have you been here ? 

A. About three years. 

4260. Q. HaA^e you got a tamily ? 

A. Not in this country; I haA^e one child in England. 1 have had no 
business since I have been in this country. I brought plenty of money 
over with me; a pretty fair share, about £600. 

4261. Q. Bid you ever invest it in anything ? 

A. I liaA^e gambled a good deal. 

4262. Q. Gambled it pretty much all aAvay ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4263. Q. Bid you ever make anything by gambling? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4264. Q. Hoav much have you on hand now ? 

A. I cannot say; 1 have A^ery little. 

4265. Q. Have you ever been arrested for any criminal offence ? 

A. No, sir. 

4266. Q. AVhere have you done your gambling ? 

A. All over New York. 

4267. Q. Bo you know whether these other men that were Avith yon 
were gamblers ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


427 


A. 1 liave nothing* to do with their business. 

42G8. Q. Are they gamblers^ 

A. Tliey do not gamble the same as I do. 

^^’ew York, Wednesday, January 0, 18G0, 

.losEPii Benson sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4260. I am 70 years of age. I am a native of England, i am barkeeper 
at William Dorans’ liquor store, 103 Crosby street. Upon the evening pre¬ 
vious to the presidential election I was attending bar at his store. There 
were some 30 or 10 persons in there that evening drinking and smoking. 
They staid there until about 10 o’clock. They then went up to Thirty- 
second street. They wanted me to go with them, and I told them I 
coidd not. 1 went up there on the day of election, and went out with them 
to vote four or live times. I did not go all around with them, as I was not 
able to go around much. 1 voted at the 4th, 5th, 8th, and 0th precincts. 
They gave me some names upon papers upon which I voted. 

4270. Q. Were you sworn that day? 

A. Uo, sir. 

4271. Q. Were these otlier persons you have spoken of engaged in that 
same business? 

A. They were doing the same thing. I did not know any of them 
except by sight. 1 voted only once at each precinct. 

4272. Q. WHiat business is Dorans engaged in? 

A. He keeps a liquor store. 

4273. Q. Was he a deputy sheriff, or a special deputy sheriff’? 

A. Not that I know of. 

4274. Q. Do you know any other business he was engaged in except 
keeping a liquor store? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4275. Q. Have you been naturalized? 

A. No, sir, I never have. 1 never voted in my life before. 

4276. Q. Who asked you to vote? 

A. Thej^ were all in the store that evening, and said they were going- 
up town, and wanted me to go v/ith them. I would not go, however, as 
they were all drinking and I could not stand it. I went up the next day 
and voted four or five times. 

4277. Q. How many stories has Dorans’house ? 

A. Only two stories above the basement. 

4278. Q. What does he use the upper stories for? 

A. Lodgings. The first story from the floor is a club-room. 

4279. Q. How long have you been engaged in selling liquor tor Dora ns ? 

A. Over a year. 

4280. Q. J)id you know you had no right to vote? 

A. I did, but they said no questions would be asked, and that 1 would 
not be imt under oath. 

4281. Q. Do you know any of the others that voted ? 

A. 1 did not see them vote more than once, because I went away. 

4282- Q. Are these men in the habit of frequenting your house? 

A. Some of them arej others I had not seen before. 

4283. Q. Who gave you the tickets ? 

A. I got them in Thirty-second street. I do not know who gave them 
to me, as 1 was rather boozy at the time. I do not know who keeps this 
house on Thirty-second street. 


428 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4284. Q. Wliat ticket did you vote? 

A. Seyunoiir and Hoffman, 1 think; I did not look at the ticket. 

York, WedneMiay^ January 0, 1809. 

Charles Grant sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

4285. I live at 25 Allen street, in this city; ! am 23 years oi* a^v, and a 
native of this country. 

4280. Q. State if you voted at the last election; if so, Ijow often and 
where? 

A. I voted in the 10th ward, in Crosby street somewhen*. I voted at 
this place six or seven times, to the best of my knowledge. 1 voted also 
in Canal street, near Forsyth street, about the same number of times. 
I also voted in Forsyth street, near Hester, five or six times; in Eldridge 
street, near Canal, five or six times. I also voted in the 0th ward, in 
Bayard street, Ibur or five times, to the best of my knowledge; in the 
7th ward, in East Broadway, about the same number of times. 1 voted 
at about six different places. 

4287. Q. What ticket did you vote? 

A. 1 could not say. 

4288. Q. Who furnished you with the tickets? 

A. I would not like to answer that question. 

4280. Q. Were any slips of paper handed to you with names and 
numbers of streets upon them ? 

A. There were handed me slips of paper containing names upon which 
I was to vote, and the tickets I was to vote were also given me. 

4290. Q. With Ayhich political party did the men act who furnished 
you with the slips? 

A. That I cannot say. A bundle of tickets ^vas handed to me^ and 
among the bundle there was a Conkliug ticket, to enable us to vote with¬ 
out being delayed. I think it was a Conkliug ticket. 

4291. (,). Ho you know how many persons were engaged in that busi¬ 
ness? 

A. Some 20. 

4292. Q. tVhere did they vote? 

A. In the same wards and in the same manner that I did. 

4293. Q. Were they what is knowm as repeaters? 

A. TY the best of my belief they were all repeaters. 

4294. Q. How many went with you around the different precincts? 

A. Some five or six. 

4205. Q. Can you remember any names on which you voted? 

A. One was Michael Corboy, 25 Allen street; another, Michael How 
ard, 25 Allen street. These are all I can recollect just now. 

429G. Q. Hid you not vote on the name of Edw^ard Welch? 

A. Y^es, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4297. Q. In relation to the Conkliug ticket, what do you mean by 
that? 

A. This ticket Avas put into every bundle to enable us to vote without 
being delayed. Conkliug Avas running at the time for mayor. 

4298. Q. Which election are you talking about? 

A. The general election—the presidential election. 

4299. Q. The time that Conkliug ran for mayor? 

A. YqSj sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


429 


4300. Q. You reciollect liaving a Conkliiig ticket at tlie time you voted? 

A. I never looked at the tickets, no more than that the other parties 

who were with me luid a Conkling ticket in their bundle, and as my 
bimdle was like theirs, I supposed I had a Conkling ticket. 

4301. Q. Bid you vote for Conkling ? 

A. That I cannot say. 

4302. Q. Was it the understanding that you were to vok; tiie Conk- 
ling ticket ? 

A. I believe that it was. 1 understood that we voted the Conkling 
ticket that we had in our bundle so as to inevent delay. 

4303. Q. Bid you “ repeat” at the mayor’s election also t 

A. Yes, sir, I did. 

4304. Q. Were the same repeaters with you at the mayor’s election ? 

A. Yes, sir; some were and some were not. 

4305. Q. How many times did you repeat at the mayor’s election ? 

A. 1 cannot say exactly j I should think I repeated about 30 times. 

4306. Q. How many w^ent w ith you at that time ? 

A. At the last election there w^ere some 20 with me. We w ent througii 
three wards—the 6th wnrd, 7th ward, and lOtli ward. 

4307. Q. WTiere did you get your tickets at the mayor’s election ? 

A. There was a man who furnished them to me. 

4308. Q. Where did he live'? 

A. That is more than I know. 

4309. Q. Bo you know any of the other men that W'Cre with you 1 

A. Ko, sir. 

4310. Q. Were you at William Boran’s? 

A. No, sir. 

4311. Q. AYhere Vvere the headquarters of tliese repeaters ? 

A. We met in the Bowery twm or three dools from the Bowery theatre ? 

4312. Q. Bo you recollect anything about the presidential election'? 

A. I am speaking of the last election. 

4313. Q. The frauds you speak of took place at the last eiection w lien 
the mayor was running ? 

A. If I am not mistaken, I repeated at the mayor’s election. 

4314. Q. That is the election you have been talking about, is it iioC? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4315. Q. Then all that you have said in your testimony about repeat¬ 
ing and illegal voting at the presidential election was at the mayor's 
election! 

A. Yes, sir. 

4316. Q. It was at the time you had the Conkling ticket! 

A. Yes, sir. 

4317. Q. Bid you vote the Conkling ticket! 

A. The tickets were given to us in a bundle. I never looked at m,> 
bundle of tickets at all. We had slips of paper w ith the names of the 
residences of voters that were handed to us with the tickets, and w e 
were told that by i3utting a Conkling ticket in our bundle w'(', could get 
through quicker, as there would be no obstruction. 

4318. Q. Bid you show to the republican inspectors wdien you wmnt 
up to the polls the Conkling ticket ? 

A. No, sir, I did not. 

4319. Q. To w^hom did you sliow^ the Conkling ticket to enable you to 
get through quicker ! 

A. I did not show it to anybody. I suppose it was given to us by 
parties interested in that ticket. It was arranged between the inspect¬ 
ors and the other outside parties, I suppose. 


430 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4320. Q. And it was the object of having a Oonkling ticket in that 
bundle to get your tickets in quicker, without delay ? 

A. That was the understanding. It was pretty certain that Hall 
would be elected, and it would not make any difierence whether we 
voted the Oonkling ticket or not. 

4321. Q. What business have you been following 1 ? 

A. I have been in the jewelry business ; I have been in the cheap dol 
lar bazar; I have also followed frame-making. 

4322. Q. State to the committee who gave you tliese tickets. 

A. I would not like to tell his name. 

4323. Q. Is he a republican ^ 

A. That I would not like to say. 

4324. Q. Did he give you a Oonkling ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir; and the others. 

4325. Q. Then, as a matter of fact, you do not know anything about 
the presidential election. This repeating you speak of took place at the 
mayor’s election ? 

A. I believe so. 

4326. Q. You know nothing of repeating at tlie presidential election 

A. iS'o, sir; not of much account. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4327. Q. When you were engaged in repeating at the last presidential 
election, you got your tickets at a place near the Bowery theatre. What 
was the number of the house ? 

A. That I do not know. It was named after William Cuddy, and was 
Ills rendezvous. 

4328. Q. What is William Cuddy ? 

A. That is more than I can tell you. He was elected on the demo¬ 
cratic ticket. 

4329. Q. Did you see William Cuddy there ^ 

A. No, sir; I saw him going through the different election districts. 

New York, Wednesday^ January 6, 1869. 

John P. Thurston sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

4330. I was an election officer at the last presidential election in the 
3d district of the 4th ward. 

4331. Q. Did you see any obstructions thrown in the way of men’s 
voting so that they all did not get their votes in? 

A. Yes, sir. A man by the name of Michael Costello, chairman of 
the board of inspectors, challenged almost every legal voter who pre¬ 
sented himsell^ and would delay them by swearing them and examining 
them. 

4332. Q. He challenged men he knew to be voters ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4333. Q. And in that way retarded, the voting ? 

vY. He delayed it a great deal. 

4334. Q. Was it carried to sucli extent as to leave many i)ersons at 
the polls, at the time they closed in the evening, waiting to deposit their 
votes ? 

A. Yes, sir; there were at least a hundred on the sidewalk who could 
not vote when the polls closed. There was one man in particular by 
the name of McLaughlin, whom I have known for many years to be a 
legal voter. CosteUo also knew him. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


431 


4335. Q. Wliat was Costello’s olyect in doing this? 

A. I do not know any more than that it was to delay voting. 

4336. Q. Did yon and yonr democratic (a)lleague attempt to get any 
illegal votes in ? 

A. No, sir. 

4337. Q. Did yon try to protect the registry and ]m)11s Irom frauds 
being perpetrated upon them ? 

xV. I did. If T knew any man wlio attempted to vote illegally 1 would 
challenge him. 

4338. Q. Do you know anything about repeaters voting at your poll ? 
xi. No, sir. 

4339. Q. Could any ]nan have voted thei e three or four times without 
your knowing it ? 

A. No, sir. 

4340. Q. Are you prepared to say that it was not done at your })oll at 
that time? 

xV. I am; 1 do not think it was practiced. 

4341. Q. Did you hear anybody threaten the lile of Mi’. Costello that 
day ? 

A. I did not. There was (piite a crowd outside the polls all day, and 
there was loud noise and talk. 

4342. Q. Would you have been very apt to have heard it if his life 
had been threatened ? 

A. I think I would. 

4343. Q. Was there anything more than a murmur of discontent on 
a ccount of the voters being delayed in voting ? 

xA. That was all. They were very indignant at being kept there from 
depositing their votes. Especially at dinner time there was a great 
crowd of men came there who wanted to poll their votes without losing 
any time. They were (piite angry at being delayed. 

By the Chairman: 

4344. Q. IIoAV many men were sworn on the day of election ? 

x\. I cannot tell you; I think there were more than a hundred sworn in. 

4345. Q. How many more? 

A. I could not tell you the exact number. 

4346. Q. When you say there were some meji at the polls who were 
not able to vote, do you knoAv that they were men wlio came there for 
the puri)Ose of voting or not ? 

A. There were many men there who I know wanted to vote. 

4347. Q. AVas there a crowd there all day, or was it only between the 
hours of 12 and 1 o’clock ? 

A. There was a great crowd there between those hours. There were 
over a hundred left when the polls closed; a long line that extended 
around the block. 

4348. Q. Could not those men who were there have been able to vote 
if they had come there earlier in the day? 

xV. No, sir; there was a great crowd all day. 

4340-50. Q. Sni^pose you could examine a hundred and twenty men 
an hour, or tw o a minute, could you not have been able to challenge the 
wdiole crowd and still have got in all the votes ? 

A. I could not say. Costello would swear them in, and question them, 
and delay them as long as he could. 

4351. Q. Was he chairman of the board? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4352. Q. You are a democrat ? 

A. Yes, sir; and always shall be. 


432 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 0, 1869. 

James O’JIrien recialled, (at the iiustauce of YFr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr: 

435J. Question. When you were "before the committee the other day 
you were asked a question by the chairman whicli you declined to answer 
in reference to your conviction of an offence: do you now desire to make 
any statement in regard to it ? 

4354. Answer. I do. I did not understand at first the nature of the 
(}uestion that was asked me. It was in regard to whether I had been out 
of the city for any length of time. I think it was in the year 1857, at the 
time King was governor of New York State, I was working in a stone-yard 
in Twenty-ninth street. There were six or seven hundred men at work iii 
this yard. Our boss was at the time a candidate for some office, and a 
squad of us went down one evening to attend a x^rimary election in his 
interest. On our way back there was some little disturbance, and some 
Xmtatoes thrown, or something of that kind j and some 10 or 17 of us 
were arrested and locked ux) that night. The next morning we were let 
out on bail, and about three or four moutlis afterwards we were l)rouglit 
down to the court. None of us had any money or had any friends. We 
were all yoimg and knew very little about courts. We were told to 
plead guilty, and we would be let off if we did. I insisted tliat I was 
not guilty of any crime at all. I had nobody to defend me, and 1 was 
sent up to BlackwelPs island. I was there about a week or two when a 
pardon came for me. I never could find out what ofi'ence 1 was indicted 
for until six or seven years afterwards. At the time 1 was not quite 18 
years of age. Among the number that was arrested there were many 
of very respectable character; men known in the community, but they 
were all sent up. 

4355. Q. Look at this document and see if the names in it and the 
judge correspond with the x)articulars to which you have referi’ed i 

A. 1 think it does. I desire to x>i*esent to the committee a cox^y ol‘ 
the indictment upon which I was convicted. I think I Avas sentenced 
to thirty days’ imprisonment. I was pardoned after being there aboui; 
two weeks. There was nobody hurt in this roAv, and no xiarticulai* dis¬ 
turbance. There was a good deal of excitement, as there is at every 
X>rimary election. It Avas the first one 1 oxor attemhal. 

]3y the Chairman : 

4350. Q. Hoav long have you lived in New York cityf 

A. About twenty years. 

4357. Q. To what extent haA'e you been acquainted Avith the. foreign 
element of New York city'^ 

A. I was brought ux> among them; i liave very general ac(}uaintauce 
with them. 

4358. Q. State to Avhat extent tlie foreign x>ox)ulation of N(.‘w York 
city during the rebellion sympathized with the gOA^ernnient and in the 
X^rosecution of the war. 

A. 1 was among them all the time. 1 think to a great <e\fe!jt they 
ail sympathized with the government. A very large numlnu* of' them 
enlisted in the army, especially in my immediate neighborliood. 

4359. Q. Can you state whether the enlistments' among the foreign 
population were to so great an extent as to Ausibly reduce/the number? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 hardly saw anybody enlist but Germans and Irish. 

4360. Q. Of the others who went to the war, what proportion were 
native-born ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


433 


A. I could not state particularly; 1 should think that there was a large 
proportion who went a\yay. I was a member of the committee of the 
board of aldermen for relieving the wives and children of men who 
enlisted in the army. My opportunities for observation were very good. 

43G1. Q. In what courts are there grand juries empanelled in this 
(dty ? 

A. The general sessions only, 1 believe. L know very little about the 
grand juries. The comndssioners of jurors send the names to us and we 
serve the notices; that is all Ave have to do Avitli it. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

43G2. (}. In reference to this proportion of foreign enlistments in this 
city, of which you liaA^e spoken, do you judge from statistics or from 
actual knowledge ? 

A. Only from the result of general observation. 

The following is the document alluded to in Mr. O’Brieifs testimony: 

City and County^ of Neav York, ss : 

The jurors of the people of the State of New York, in and for the body 
of the city and county of Kew York, upon their oath present, that 
Michael Cannony,late of the twentieth ward of the city of Kcac York, in 
the county of Kew York aforesaid, Patrick Coleman, Patrick Honeyman, 
Patrick Garman, John Cumeskey, John McOardle, John Cummings, 
James O’Brien, and James Donevan, late each of the same placed 
together with twenty other evil-disposed persons, to the jurors aforesaid 
unknown, being rioters, routers, and disturbers of the peace of the peo¬ 
ple of the State of Kew Y^ork, on the 17th day of November, in the year 
of our Lord 1857, at the Avard, city, and county aforesaid, with force 
and arms, unlaAvfully, riotously, routously, and injuriously, did assemble 
and gather together to disturb the peace of the said people, to the great 
terror of the said i^eople, and so being there and tlien assembled and 
gathered together, a very great riot, rout, tumult, and disturbance then 
and there did make, and cause to be made, and in and upon a certain 
person AAiiose name is to the jurors aforesaid unknown, in the peace of 
the,said people, then and there being unlaAvfully, riotously, and routously, 
did make an assault, to the evil example of all others in like case offend¬ 
ing, and against the peace of the people of the State of Kew York and 
their dignitA'. 

A. OAKEY HALL, 

District Attorney. 

Neav York, January G, 18G8. 

James A. Colvin sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

43(>3. During the last presidential election 1 held the office of can 
vasser in the Gtli district of the 7th Avard. I was first appointed 
inspector and afterAvartls changed to canvasser. When I came to the 
polls just before their close on the CAvning of election the poll clerks and 
inspectors were engaged in looking OA^er the Amtes. I commenced talk¬ 
ing Avith them, and in the course of the conversation they told me they 
were inomised $5 apiece and a supper if they would hurry up the vote, 
as there Avere a great many voters outside waiting to deposit their bal¬ 
lots. While I Avas canvassing the A’otes in that i)recinct, in the course 
of the evening. Justice Shandley aams in the room. I proposed to can- 
AMSS the \mtes in the regular Away. The other canvasser, lioweA^er, refused 

28 T 


434 


j:lection fkauds in new york. 


to do it. He said he intended to read off each innne on each electoral 
ticket. I remonstrated with him and told him.tliat would be too long 5 
that the ordinary way would be to look over each ticket, and those tliat 
were not scratched to place in jules of ten or a dozen each. He said, 
however, he would carry it out in his own way, and then called on Jus¬ 
tice Shandley and asked his opinion as to the pro])er mode of canvassing 
votes. Justice Shandley agreed with me and, after talking a little while 
with the other canvasser, said he probably had his instructions as to how 
he would canvass, and tliat he had better go on. The usual mode of 
canvassing votes, heretofore, has been to sort them out into piles of ten 
or twelve and then count the votes from them. It has not been usual to 
canvass each name on the ticket. After we had gone a little way in the 
canvass the other man said that it was slow work, and he agreed to sort 
them out in piles of five each, and after a little while this way he con¬ 
cluded to do it in the regular manner. 

4364. Q. Ho you know, before he concluded to change the mode of 
counting the votes, whether he had any communication with persons 
from the outside ? 

A. I could not say. The poll clerk, wiio w^as in tin* room, liad wliis- 
pered communications with the canvasser and Avith the xiarties outside. 
He wmuld go outside and then come back again. 

4365. Q. What are your politics ! 

A. I am a republican. Thomas Jordan is the name of the other can¬ 
vasser. He is a democrat, I believe. 

4366. Q. State Avhat vou know' of a. vote being cast on the name of 
OwenO’Keilly? 

A. The vote Avas not cast. 1 acted temiiorarily during tlie day as 
inspector. A man came up and ottered to vote on the name of Oaaxui 
O’Eeilly. I told the inspector not to recei\'e the A'ote. I challenged 
the vote and the man refused to be SAA'orn in, but the democratic 
inspector took his vote and deposited it in the box. The other boxes 
were in charge of the democratic inspector. 

4367. Q. HoW' many persons AA’ere challenged at your precinct ? 

A. I could not say. There Avere A'ery fewx While I was there I made 
but very feAv challenges myself. 

4368. Q. Can you state from your obseiA'ation hoAv far it was practica¬ 
ble or safe for iiersons to challenge Amtes*? 

A. I considered myself perfectly safe in challenging in the district 
Avhere I Avas, although several threats Avere throAvn out to me Avhen I did 
challenge. A i>erson outside at one time threatened to give me my 
“belly full” if I did that kind of business. There AA^ere no challenges 
at that precinct, I believe, on the republican side, that I knoAv of, except 
those made hy the tAvo inspectors. There were democratic challenges 1 
knoAAx 

ToMr.KEEii: 

4369. I do not knoAv of my oAvn knoAvledge AAdiether this man Avho 
represented himself as OAA en O’Eeilly AA'as a legal A'oter or not. I w'ould 
not receiA'e his vote into my boxes. The democratic inspectors, hoAA'ever, 
received it in their boxes. They said Ave had no right to reject the vote, 
because the name Avas on the register. I cannot state Avhether there was 
any difference betAveen the place of residence on the register of OAA’en 
O’Eeilly and that gi\^en by the man Avho Avanted to vote on that name. 
I am inclined to think that the residence corresponded. I Avas not 
threatened by anybody except as I have stated. At the time O’Eeilly’s 
vote Avas rejected there Avas considerable noise outside and loud talking. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


435 


4370. Q. You said there was some whispered interview between the 
democratie canvasser and otliers; did you hear what was said between 
them ? 

A. 1 did not. 

4371. Q. Did you liear what was said i)etween this poll clerk and the 
parties outside ? 

A. I do not. 

437l^ Q. You do not know but that it wa^s perfectly proper conver¬ 
sation ? 

A. I do not. 

4373. Q. How many minutes had this other canvasser continued to 
count the votes in the tedious way which you mention^ 

A. It lasted some time; we luwl quite an argument with him to have 
them canvassed in the right way. I could not say how long he was 
canvassing the votes, I do not think he counted more than a few 
ballots, however. We occupied a good deal of the time in arguing with 
him and trying to persuade him to change his mode of counting. My 
recollection is that there were but very few ballots counted in that wa;\\ 
I could not say what his motive was in counting in this manner. 

4374. Q. Did Justice Shandley defend that mode of canvassing? 

A. He did not at the time, but he did subsequently, T believe. 

New York, January 6, 1809. 

Bylvester E. Nolan sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr: 

4375. I am the clerk of the chambers of the superior court; have 
been so for the past year. Have been a clerk for the last eight years. 
My duties during the past year, in regard to naturalization that took 
place in that court, have been to administer the oath to the witness 
previous to his going before the judge to be examined. When the 
witness was examined and the applicant passed, 1 administered the oath 
of allegiance to the applicant. 1 sat to the right-hand side of the judge. 
I was in the court-room generally every day from half-past 10 until 
they got through at night. I was sometimes relieved by other clerks 
to enable me to go out and lunch, but I was never away for any length 
of time. I think Judge McCunn did most of the superior court natur¬ 
alization business; Judge Garvin probably commenced, and Judge 
Jones, Judge Kobertson, and Judge Barbour ixssisted. 

4376. Q. State what degree of care was exercised by the judge whom 
you attended in this business of naturalization to prevent frauds and 
detecting persons in attempting to practice frauds upon the judges of 
the court, or upon the naturalization laws. 

A. The judges always examined the witness as to the affidavit sworn 
to by him, and examined him as to how long he had known the applicant, 
as to where he had lived, mid similar questions. If prompt answers were 
not given, the judge Avould examine him further, and if he equivocated 
in any way, the judge would reject the application. 

4377. Q. To what extent were applications rejected? 

A. To a very great extent; probably some days 200 were rejected. 
Kejected applications were torn up by the judge, and the parties sent 
about their business. 

4378. Q. Did persons freipiently a|)pe«ar as witness for different appli¬ 
cants? 

A. Yes, sir; I have known it to occur very frequently. The same 
parties would act as witness four or five times a day. I cannot give any 


436 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


names of parties wlio so acted, although their faces are ^'ery familiar to 
me. 

4379 . Q. State whether, in view of the maiiner in whicli this business 
was transacted, it could have been practicable for any person to obtain 
naturalization papers without being personally present in court and tak¬ 
ing the oath of allegiance. 

A. It was impossible to do so unless they were falsely personated. I 
never knew it to be done. 

4380. Q. Did you ever hear of the Judges with whom you co-operated 
ill this business "attempting to jmt any persons who were suspected of 
being guilty of improper conduct or improper intentions upon the court 
under arrest, or order them to be put under arre.st ? 

A. I know that Judge McOunn did on several occasions, and has often 
reprimanded persons and told them not to come before him at all. He 
has often cross-examined parties very closely, and not getting straight 
answers to his questions, he would reject the applications and warn the 
witness not to ajqiear before him again; that if he did he would commit 
him. I believe he did commit one or two, but what was done with them 
afterwards I cannot say. 

By the Chairman : 

4381. Q. Do you know of any i>erson being indicted or luinished for 
fraudulent voting, or for any fraud or illegality in relation to elections 
in New York city within the lavSt three years, except in one single 
instance? 

A. I do not know of one instancM? to my own knowle^lge; I have seen 
statements in the papers. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4382. Q. How many persons did you uatimilize in an hour? 

A. 1 presume 120; sometimes more and sometimes less. It would de¬ 
pend a great deal upon whether the witness was an intelligent man and 
gave prompt answers to questions ])ut to him. 

New York, Javnary (>, 1809, 

William W. Woodward sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

-1383. In regard to frauds perpetrated in the presidential election last 
November, 1 will state that when I went to register my name at the 
polling place in the 9th district of the 0th ward, where 1 reside, I no¬ 
ticed parties whom I knew very well registering under assumed names. 
There was a Mr. Gutterman wdio registered himself as Mr. Bariium; a 
Mr. Burdell registered as Mr. Crounce. I also noticed a Mr. Prime, 
who is a notorious character, and has- been in the hands of the police 
frequently, register twice or three times. • I saw another man, whose 
name I cannot recall, register twice. In the case of this man who regis 
tered himself as Barnum, what attracted my attention was that he regis¬ 
tered as living at the New England Hotel, where I reside. 1 knew he 
had not lived there for the last 30 days previously, but had been expelled 
from the place. 

4384. Q. State if the whole four inspectors were present that day, 

A. No, sir; Colonel Beeney was absent at dinner at the time I was 
there; at least 1 was told so by parties present. 

4385. Q. State what mode prevailed previous to the last ele(;tion of 
canvassing electoral votes of President and V^ice-President ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


437 


A. I have been a canvasser for tlie last three or four years, and the 
plan always has been to take each separate box and count the number 
of tickets, placing them in piles of five or tens, and not count each name 
on the ticket separately. 

New York, January 0 , 18G9. 

John Cummings sworn and exnmined. 

To the Chairman : 

438(i. I am 29 years of age; 1 am acquainted Avith the sheriff of this 
county; I have known him for 15 or 16 years, or more; I worked with 
him in a stone-yard some time ago; 1 was indicted Avith him a good many 
years ago for a disturbance in a primary election; I can hardly remember 
the particulars of the row; I was very young at the time; I know that 
I went to a primary meeting at night Avith some 16 or 17 others, and in 
coming aAvay there Avas some disturbance; a good lot of us Avere arrested; 
I AAms sent up for 30 days. 


New York, January (i, 1869. 

Morgan Jones sAvorn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4387. I AAms at the xiolling place at the last presidential election of the 
5th district of the 7th Avard; I liA^e in the 3d district of that ward and 
cast my vote there; during the day I went over to the 6th district; there 
were about 5,300 votes cast in my ward; there Avere probably about 325 
republican; the balance were democratic; the population of the ward is 
about 44,000; I knoAv a man by the name of Michael Costello; he was 
inspector in some district in the 4th ward; I do not knoAV of any threats 
being used against Inm on election day any further than that his Amte 
Avas challenged; I did not see Alderman Coman during election day; I 
ma-de no threats Avhatever against Costello; I did not call him ^^a dirty 
loafer;” I believe he AAms called so by a man by the name of DoAvdell, 
who Avas in the crowd around the polls where Costello Amted; I did not 
say to him that tlie police Avould not be done with him for three months 
to come; I liaAUA not spoken to Costello for fiA^e years; the last time I 
spoke to him Avas when he came to me to ask my influence to get him 
reappointed in the office of receiver of taxes, from which office he had 
been discharged; I Avent there and tried to get him back, but I learned 
at the office that he Avas not a proper man to hold the position, and so I 
dropped him; there was a good deal of challenging in the district in 
which I A'oted, but there were a great number of Amtes that Avere not got 
in for the reason that there were parties there Avho challenged pretty 
nearly eA^erybody Avho came up—challenged them indiscriminately, 
whether they were legal voters or not; every time a man Avas challenged 
it would giA^e rise to quite a controversy between the inspectors, and 
consequently there was a good deal of delay; I Avas at the polls in the 
5th district from 10 o’clock until about 12, and in the afternoon from 3 
to 4; I knoAV of my own knoAvledge that there Avere parties that came to 
the polls to vote and the croAvd being so great they were obliged to go 
away; I know that there Avere in a house that 1 own three persons Avho 
Avere entitled to \mte, and Avho had tried to do so repeatedly, but the 
crowd was so great that they could not do so; in the jirecinct there were 
about 530 democratic votes and 30 or 40 republicans; I should think 
that in the crowd Avdio could not get their ballots in a very large pro¬ 
portion were democrats; one of the inspectors acted as republican 
challenger at tlie polls. 


438 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


To Mr. Dickey: 

. 4388. I think the remarlv about the police made to Costello arose from 
the fact tha^ he came to the polls escorted by four or five policemen. 1 
think some one in the crowd halloed out, “ You will travel with tlie police 
all day; you are trying to kee]) votes out of persons whom you have 
known for years.” 

By the Chairman : 

4389. Q. How many republican wards are there in New Y'ork cityf 

A. There is but one, the 15th, and that goes democratic sometimes. 

4390. Q. Can you state any instance, except one, where any person 
has been indicted for illegal voting, or for any fraud or illegal conduct 
in relation to elections in New Y"ork city, and punished? 

A. I have paid no particular attention to this matter. I know of one 
person who was tried, convicted, and sent to the penitentiary. I was 
present in the court room at the time he was sentenced. Tt was in the 
court of general sessions. 

4391. Q. Don’t you know that the sentence was susi)ended in that 
case? 

A. I do not know. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4392. Q. Do you knoAv what is the general reputation of Costello 
among his neighbors for truth and veracity ? 

A. I think he is a bad fellow; his reputation is bad for truth and 
veracity. 

4393. Q. On that reputation would you believe him under oath? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4394. Q. Whom did you liear say that his reputation for tnith and 
veracity was bad ? 

A. I do not know that I heard anybody say so in particular. 

4395. Q. Whom did you hear in general ? 

A. 1 cannot say that anybody stated so particularly in regard to truth 
and veracity; I cannot name any one at present. 

4396. Q. When did you hear any one speaking in regard to his truth 
and veracity? 

A. During the war he was engaged in the bounty business, and cheated 
some one out of some money. Mr. McLaughlin, the tax receiver of this 
city, said he would not believe him; whether under oath or not 1 do not 
know. 


New YY)RK, January 6, 1869. 

Thomas Kyan sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. ICerr : 

4397. I am chief officer of the superior court. Janies M. Sweeny is 
chief clerk of the court. My duties are to keep order in the court and 
go on errands for the judges, and see that the other officers are attend¬ 
ing to their duties. I was in the superior court room during the month 
of October. I remember when the business of naturalization was being 
done by that court. I was there every day. My duty was to keep the appli- 
cants in line, and to maintain order and pass up their names to the clerk, 
and there was a clerk at each end of the bench who called off the names 
of the witnesses. As soon as the name was called they Avould go up 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


439 


before the court with the ai)i)licaiit. The court would soiuetiines swear 
them and sonietimes the clerk would. They would first swear the wit¬ 
ness to make true answers to such questions as were i)ut to him in regard 
to naturalization. After they were passed the applicant would go to 
the clerk, who would swear him to allegiance to the United States. 

4398. Q. What care Avas practiced by the judges to ])reveiit the per¬ 
petration of frauds upon the naturalization laws 'I 

A. I should think some five or ten per cent, of the applications were 
rejected. The judges Avould ask the witness hoAV long he had known the 
applicant, Avhere he had resided for tlie last year, and where the witness 
had lived, and all such questions. He AAmuld then examine the apidi- 
<^ant critically. Judge Garvin Avould sit in one room and Judge McCunn 
in another. Judge Jones often sat on one of the benches, and would 
often act as clerk and judge both. Judge Barbour held court up stairs. 
The judges, AAdien applications Avere rejected, Avould often reprimand the 
Avitnesvses, telling them not to come again; threatening to send them to 
BlackAvelPs island if they did. I do not think it Avas possible for any 
person to luwe been naturalized in that court without being himself per¬ 
sonally i)resent and being SAVorn. I ncA^er knew of any person being 
naturalized Avithout personally coining into the presence of the court 
and undergoing an examination. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4399. Q. About hoAV many an hour Avould Judge McOunn naturalize 
in the pressure of business ? 

A. I supiiose he would naturalize a couxde of hundred in an hour. 

By the Chairman : 

4400. Q. If the court Avas (a*OAvded could they naturalize more chan 

that ? • 

A. I should j'udge they could naturalize about tAA'o a minute. 

4401. Could any xierson personate the applicant and get his natural¬ 
ization jiapers in that Avay ? 

A. It Avas inqiossible for us to tell Avhether the person Avho presented 
himself wvas the identical man or not. We had to take his statements 
and that of the Avitness. 

4402. Q. Tell Avhen a person iiresented himself for naturalization, uxion 
the ground that he came to the United States under 18 years of age, 
Avhat form of oath or oaths Avere administered to him and aa hat questions 
asked ? 

A. The applicant would present liimself AAdth his Avitness. The judge 
AA'Ould ask the Avitness, ‘HIoav long have you known this man Hoav 
old Avas he Avhen he came to this country ? How long has he been in 
this country'? Where does he li\"e?” Then the Avitness would pass 
along to the clerk and the clerk Avould administer the oath to him. 

4403. Q. Was the oath administered by the clerk after tlie judge had 
exainiued them ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4404. (^. Is tlie oath then administered by the clerk in the form used 
on the printed blanks? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4405. Q. What form is gone through Avith in the case of a person Avho 
lias been in this country fHe years, and avIio has previously declared his 
intention to become a citizen ? 

A. The applicant first makes out tAvo athdaAdts and SAA^ears to them 
and tlien attaclies his papers to them. He then comes into the court 
Avith his Avitness and presents the pa])ers to the clerk. The clerk SAvears 


440 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


in the witness, who goes before the court, and the judge then examines 
him, asking him how long he had known the applicant, where lie had 
lived, and similar questions, and if the answers were satisfactory, the 
oath would be administered to the applicant. The clerk administered 
one oath to the witness to make true answers to such questions as may 
be put to him by the court touching the naturalization. In the case of 
a soldier presenting his application he lias to attach his discharge to his 
application, or if not, affidavit that he has lost it or that it has been sent to 
Washington. The applicant is asked if that is his discharge, how long 
he had served in ‘the army, and the like. The witness would then be 
questioned l)y the Judge and then the oath Avould be administered by 
the clerk. 

Xew York, ^Ye^lnes(la^|, January 0, 1800. 

George Mopcroft sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

1406. I am the clerk of the superintendent of the metropolitan police 
department in this city. The election retui'iis on the night of the presi¬ 
dential election Avere received by telegram from the different precincts 
at the headquarters of the police department. No. 300 Mulberrry street. 
As soon as they were received by the telegraph operator doAvn stairs, 
they would be sent up on a dumb Avaiter to the superintendents room; 
I would then take them and sort them out by districts and wards. I 
do not think the total presidential cammss Avas ascertained until nearly 
1 or 2 o’clock of the niglit after the election. I cannot say hoAv many 
districts AA cre complete before 8 o’clock in the cA^ening. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4407. Q. Do you know of any laAv of the State of Ncav York that 
requires canvassers of election to make returns by telegram of the result 
of the election in their district. 

A. I do not. 

4408. Q. Do you not know that this regulation Avas made for partizan 
purposes by the superintendent of police, and Avas not sanctioned bv 
law? 

A. 1 could not say; 1 understood that tliis requirement Avas established 
by regulation, and not by statute. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4409. Q. Has it been the custom heretofore to send returns of the 
election through the police telegraph to headquarters ! 

A. It has been since I have been connected with the police department, 
which is OA’cr seven years. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4410. Q. What are your politics f 

A. I am a republican. 

4411. Q. Were you at the office of IMr. Kennedy on the evening of 
election day ? 

A. 1 was. 

4412. Q. AV as the republican executWe committee or any members of 
it present that eA ening ? 

A. Not that I knoAV of; 1 am not acquainted with any of them. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

4413. Q. state Avhat was done Avith the despatches when receiA^ed from 
the canvassers. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


441 


A. They are sorted out according to wards and districts, and then 
handed to the superintendent; he reads them over aloud and tlie result 
is taken down by the reporters of the press present. 

4414. Q. State if there is any other mode of getting the entire returns 
from the city for the use of the press as soon as fi’om police headquarters. 

A. There is not. 


^^EW York, Wednesday^ January 0, 1809. 

William »!. Loutrell sworn and examined, (called at the instance 
of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

4415. Question. What ottice did you hold during the presidential 
election ? 

Answer. I was inspector of election for the 12th district, 8th ward, in 
this city. 

4410. Q. How many votes were given in your i)recinct t 

A. Somewhere between 400 and 500; 1 could not state the exact num¬ 
ber; there were about 500 registered; there were about 70 votes less 
cast than were registered. 

4417. Q. You may state to the committee what means you took, if 
any, to prevent illegal registering and illegal voting. 

A. There were a great many challenged by all parties; 1 challenged a 
good many, and the other inspectors did the same. 

4418. Q. State whether there was an apparent effort by the board, so 
far as you observed, to prevent illegal registering and illegal voting. 

A. There was; in fact I think it was carried to excess; I think Mr. 
Belmont, the republican inspector, carried it to excess; he would chal¬ 
lenge almost every man that came up, Avhetherhe knew him to be a legal 
voter or not. 

4419. Q. For what reason did he make these challenges; was it for the 
purpose of obstructing the election ? 

A. I could not say of my own knowledge; I don’t think the man ay as 
tit for the position; he AAms a very neiwous, excitable man; he challenged 
almost eA'erybody Avho came there; Avent through the formality of sweai-- 
ing them in and propounding questions to them; many of them Avere 
old residents of the ward and well known to be legal voters. 

4420. Q. State AYliether his continual challengiiig tended to ])revent 
the legal voters from casting their Amtes. 

A. It did; so much that many of the voters complained to the police 
and tried to liaY'e the matter stopped; he had his oayii way, hoAYeve^, 
and continued challenging all day; he imiieded the election A^ery much. 

4421. Q. Was it apparently done for that ? 

A. Yes, sir; and I think he had been instructed to do so; there AYere 
quite a number of the people at the poll AYhen it closed Avaiting to 
deposit their Amtes, and could not do so. 

4422. Q. State whether anybody, to your knowledge, voted more than 
once at that election in your district. 

A. I did not see anybody Amte there more than once; I gaA^e particu¬ 
lar attention to that thing, as there ayus so much said of repeaters and 
frauds on election. 

4423. Q. I)o you knoAV of anybody Amting four times that day ? 

A. i7o, sir. 

4424. Q. Ho you know a man by the name of McFarland? 

A. I do not. 

•4425. Q. Ho you knoAY a man by the name of George McPherson ? 


442 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do; he acted as one of the board of inspectors; he was there all 
day as far as I know, except wlien he went out of the office to get a 
lunch. 

4420. Q. Do you know whether the poll-books went to the repiildican 
headquarters at the Fifth Avenue Hotel f 

A. NTot to my knowledge. 

4427. Q. State whether McPherson was capable of attending to busi¬ 
ness while he was at the polls. 

A. I think he was. 

4428. Q. Was he drunk! 

A. He was not; I think he was in perfect condition to attend to 
business. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4429. Q. How long was Mr. McPherson absent at lunch! 

A. About an hour, I should think; probably more. 

NTew York, ^Yednesday, January 0, 1809. 

Mathew T. Brennan sworn and examined, (called ])y Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4430. Question. Are you acquainted Vvuth a man by the name of Cos- • 
tello, at present a bell-ringer in this city! 

Answer. I am. 

4431. Q. What is his reputation for truth and veracity in this com 
munity. 

A. I Avould not believe him under oath if he was an interested party. 

4432. Q. Please state whetlier your board kept a tabular record ot the 
number of registered voters in the city of Kew York by wards and elec¬ 
tion districts. 

A. Not that I am aware of. We had a bureau of elections in the 
police headquarters, of which Mr. Hasbrouck is the chief clerk. He 
may have such a record. 

4433. Q. State if you know whether there is any law of the State of 
Kew York that requires the election canvasser on the night of the day 
of election to make a return by telegraph or otherwise to the police head¬ 
quarters of the number of votes in their respective districts. 

A. I know of no such law. I believe it is a regulation made by the 
department. The returns generally come to the station-house of the pre¬ 
cinct, and formerly the reporters would go there to get the returns. 
This impeded the business there very much, and it was arranged that 
#;he returns shoidd be sent by telegraph to police headquarters, and from 
there given to the reporters. 

By the Chairman: 

4434. Q. Where did you vote at the i^residential election! 

A. I voted in the 8th district of the Gth ward. 

4435. Q. Where do you liye! 

A. At Ko. 84 White street. I have a summer residence on the Bloom- 
ingdale road. My family have been sick this winter, and I have staid 
out there a good part of the time. My mother lives at 84 White street. 

I sleej) there occasionally, and generally take my dinners there. Prob¬ 
ably during the last year I have slept there three or four nights. 

4436. Q. Did you consent to the api)ointnient of Costello as an inspec¬ 
tor ! 

A. I suppose I must have done so, as it requires the sanction of the 
board to appoint an inspector. The board is equally divided. Two 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


443 


commissioners are republicans and two are democrats. It was arranged 
that the republicans should suggest the names of one-half of the inspect¬ 
ors and the democrats the other half. Mr. Manniere selected Mr. Cos¬ 
tello, I presume. The names were read over, but I did not pay much 
attention to them, and I presume I voted for him among the rest. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4437. Q. Have you ever made any report to the board that he was not 
a i^roper officer 

A. I have told Mr. Manniere, I think, but I do not believe I have 
made any formal report to the board. 

New York, Wednesday^ January 0, 1869. 

CtEoroe H. Hoffman sworn and examined, (called by Mr. ICerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4438. I reside at 216 East Sixth street. I have resided in this city all 
my life. I am a hack-driv^er by occupation. 1 was engaged in that busi¬ 
ness last October and November. I was so engaged on the 3()th day 
of October. On the evening of that day, about lialf-past 9 o’clock at 
night, I was standing in front of the Fifth Avenue Hotel, when an order 
came from the hotel office for me to drive my coach to the Twenty-third 
street door. I drove there, and presently two men came out and 
got into the coach and directed me to drive to 300 Mulberry street. 
1 drove down there; the men got out and waited on the sidewalk some 
10 or 15 minutes. Some person came up and inquired of them what 
they were Avaiting for. They said Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Acton. In a 
few minutes Mr. Kennedy and Mr. Acton droA^e up, and they all AA^ent 
into police headquarters togetlier. After a AAdiile they came out and 
told me to driA^e around in Mott street, in the rear of police headquar¬ 
ters. I did so, and presently the men came out of the rear door with a 
bundle of books in their arms.^ They looked around up and doAvn the 
street suspiciously, to see if anybody AAms looking, and then put the 
books in the coach. I suspected there A\ms something wrong going on, 
and I A\ms determined to ascertain AAiiat it Avas. I took up one of the 
books and looked at it and found it Avas a registry book, such as is 
used by the registrars of election. I noticed tliat a good many names 
Avere checked—mostly Irish names. One of the men came up and 
snatched the book out of my hand, and told me to get up on my box. 
and not to meddle Avith these things; and he gaA^e strict injunctions 
not to let anybody come near the coach or touch the books. They put 
in 50 to 75 books in the coach, and then ordered me to driA^e back to the 
Fifth AA^enue Hotel. I thought there AAms something AAU'ong in this, 
and I made up my mind to get at it. When A\^e arriA^ed at the Fifth 
AAmnue Hotel the books AA^ere taken out of the coach, taken up stairs, 
and deposited in the rooms of the republican general committee. 1 took 
a couple of the books, unbeknoAAm to anybody, and secreted them in my 
coat. 1 took them for the purpose of shoAving them to the district 
attorney. These books were registry lists. I think they AA^ere origi¬ 
nals; am not positiA^e. They may have been copies. I handed the books 
to George H. Purser, and he said he Avould hand them to the district 
attorney. 

4439. Q. What AA^ere they taken up to that hotel for f 

A. I think they AAmre taken there to be used for party purposes. I 
should think that 40 per cent, of the names AAmre checked. It looked 
a A^ery suspicious circumstance. I thought it proper that it sljould be 
laid before the district attorney. 


444 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By the Chairman : 

4440. Q. Do you know who these men were? 

A. I do not. 

4441. Q. You do not know whether these men belong- to the republi¬ 
can party or not ? 

A. I do not. When they went up-stairs 1 saw they were recognized 
by the people in the room, and they seemed to be much at home. 

" 4442. Q. How large were the books ? 

A. Aboht seven inches wide and 18 inches long, and contained about 
40 i)ages. 

4448. Q. Who is George H. Purser? 

A. I believe he is assistant corporation counsel. 1 gave the books to 
liim to be delivered to the district attorney. 

4444. Q. Did Purser request you to secrete these books ? 

A. He did not. This occurred between 10 and half-past 10 in the 
evening; and the fact that it was so late in the evening made the cir¬ 
cumstances more suspicious. 

4445. Q. Do you not know that party committees are in the habit of 
sitting late in the evening, especially on the eve of an important elec¬ 
tion ? 

A. asTot to my knowledge. 

4446. Q. How do you know that the room to which you carried the 
books in the Fifth Avenue Hotel was occupied by the republican general 
committee f 

A. There was a label over the door, and it was generally known that 
these were the rooms of the republican committee. I asked a servant 
as I was going up where the rooms of the republican committee were. 
He told me room 15, which was the room in which I placed the books. 
1 believed that those books were public property, and that they were 
not taken from police headquarters for any lawful purpose, and 1 felt it 
my duty to do as I did. * 

4447. Q. How do you know that those books were public property ? 

A. I suppose so because they were taken from police headquarters, 

and anything in police headquarters is public property. 

4448. Q. Are all the books there public property ? 

A. I suppose the books pertaining to the election are public property. 
The law creating the metropolitan police department created a bureau 
of elections, which has its office in the police headquarters, and every¬ 
thing there is public property. 

4449. Q. What are your politics ? 

A. I have been a republican all my life. 1 voted for General Grant 
for President and John T. Hoffman for governor. I voted for assembly- 
men and senators about equal. 

4450. Q. In what district and Avard did you vote ? 

A. I voted ill the 9th district of the 7th Avard. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4451. Q. Do you think it Avas exactly fair to purloin those books % 

A. I do undoubtedly. I think it is the right of any citizen, Avhen he 
sees any unlawful action going on, to do all in his power to prevent it. 

4452. Q. Had you any knoAvledge of any fraud ? 

A. I knew these books Avere public property. I Jviiew it to be unhiAv- 
ful to take public property aAvay in that manner. 

4453. Q. Are you a police officer in this city ? 

A. I am not. 

4454. Q. Suppose these registry books, as you say they Avere, Avere copies 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


445 


of the eensius made by outside iiarties, and taken to the police head¬ 
quarters to be compared ^yith the original list; would they be public 
])roperty because they were in the police headquarters ? 

A. I know these books were taken out of headquarters for i)arty pur¬ 
poses—I could not swear positively they were, but I believe so. 

4455. Q. Is it not common for both parties to have a list of voters so 
that they can ascertain and challenge improper voters? 

A. Not to my own knowledge. 

By the Chairman : 

4450. Q. For whom did you vote in 1856! 

A. For Abraham Lincoln. 

4457. Q. Whom did you vote for in 1860! 

A. I was not entitled to a vote. 

4458. Q. Whom did you vote for in 1804! 

A. I voted for Abraham Lincoln. 1 misunderstood your first question . 
1 was not entitled to vote in 1854 or 1856 either. The first vote I cast 
was for Abraham Lincoln. 

4459. Q. Whom did you vote for in 1862! 

A. I did not vote in 1862. 

4460. Q. How do you know that the purpose for which these books 
were taken from police headquarters was a party purpose! 

A. I believed that they would* be used for that. 

4461. Q. Hid you know that! 

A. I did. 

4462. Q. What party purposes! 

A. To benefit the republican party. 

4463. Q. Do 3 ’ou mean to say that a party purpose is always a wrong 
purpose ! 

A. I do in that connection. 

4464. Q. If these books were copies of the census taken there for the 
l)urpose of ascertaining whether persons had been illegally registered, 
and for challenging them if they attempted to vote, would it be a wrong 
purpose? 

A. It Avoiild be if it was given to one party and not to another. 

4465. Q. You think then it is not right for the republican party to 
challenge an illegal voter! 

A. If they are known to be illegal voters, I think it is perfectly right 
for them to do so. 

4466. Q. Do you not think it is proper for the republican party to 
ascertain who are legal voters and who are not! 

A. I think there is no law for it. 

4467. Q. State whether you regard it as improper or illegal to make 
a copy of the registry of voters to ascertain whether those who are 
registered are legal voters or not. 

A. If it is used for party puri)oses I think it is unlaw ful. 

4468. Q. What law^ makes it unlaw ful! 

A. It is a violation of common sense, and. any violation of c.ommon 
sense is unlawful. 

4469. Q. Are you learned in the law ! 

A. I am not. Common sense will teach a man law. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4470. Q. You say you stole tw^o of these books! 

.V. I did not; I secreted them. 

4471; Q. They w ere not your property ! 

A. They were my property; I am a citizen and a tax-iiayer; the^>e 
books belqng to the people, and I am one of them. 


446 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4472. Q. I Tow do you kiiOAV they were the peojd^’s property ? 

A. Because they were taken from the police lieadquarters; everything 
in the police headquarters belongs to the people. 

4473. Q. Do persons generally come to police headquarters when they 
wish to commit crime? 

A. There is a good deal of crime committed there undoubtedly. 

4474. Q. Have you ever heard of these books since you handed them 
to the district attorney? 

A. I have not. 

4475. Q. Has anybody been prosecuted because of the information 
you have furnished? 

A. 1 have heard nothing more than that the district attorney has 
charge of them. 

447 (). Q. Is it the custom of hack-drivers in this city to steal anything 
put in a coach ? 

A. I think not. 

4477. Q. What is your accupation ? 

A. I am doing nothing. 

4478. Q. How long have you been out of occupation ? 

A. About four weeks. 

4470. Q. Were you discharged from your service as a coach-driver? 

A. I was. I met with an accident with my coach, and was discharged 
for that reason. 


New York, Wednesday^ January 6, 1860. 

Samuel B. (tARVIN sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4480. During the last year I have been judge of the superior court of 
this city. In regard to naturalizing applicants for citizenship, I would 
say that I have always exercised great care. My uniform practice has 
been always to call the applicant and witness before me, and then ques¬ 
tion both the witness and the applicant. I would swear the witness and 
the applicant both together. Sometimes the clerk Avould swear them. 
I would then examine the witness in regard to all the statutory require¬ 
ments. If there was any question in my mind as to the age or identity 
of the applicant I would reject the case. After I had examined the 
witness and the applicant thoroughly, and was perfectly satisfied that 
all was right, I would pass the papers to the clerk who sat at my right 
hand, and he would, in my presence, administer the oath of allegiance. 

4481 Q. Can you approximate to the number you have personally 
passed upon in one day ? 

A. It would be exceedingly difficult for me to do so. I would only sit 
in the morning from 10 o’clock, or half past 10, till 12, when I would be 
relieved by Judge McCunn. All my naturalization was done in the 
morning, and it is very difiicult to approximate the number I naturalized. 
The crowd was very great after the 10th of October. 

4482. Q. Did you give any directions to your subordinate officers in 
regard to the prevention of frauds or irregularities in the procurement 
of certificates of naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir; I gave strict directions to the clerks not to naturalize any 
persons who did not come right directly from my presence, so that there 
could be no false personation. I always gave strict directions not to 
deliver the preliminary papers to any one but the applicant himself, and 
to administer to him the oath of allegiance immediately; if the applicant 
did not appear right away, the clerk should lay the papers aside. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


447 


4483. (),. Wlmti)roi)ortioii of applications did yon pass upon favorably^ 

A. I rejected a j>’reat many every day ; 1 suppose from 20 to 50 a day. 

4484. Q. How did tlie number of minors who applied for naturalization 
this year compare with the number who applied the previous year ? 

A. I do not know that there was any larger proportion of minors this 
year than other years. A large number of i)ersons who Avere^mtitled to 
naturalization papers during the war delayed getting them for fear of 
the draft, and they did not procure them until this year. 

4485. Q. AVas it possible, at the time the great rush of naturalization 
was going on, for any i)erson to have secured naturalizatioirin your court, 
without having been himself present? 

A. No, sir; he could not, unless a false personation or ])ei;jury was 
committed. Of course against this I could not protect myself. 

By the Chairman: 

4486. Q. Suppose an applicant appeared in your court during the last 
year and claimed his certificate on the ground of his having arrived in 
the United States, under the age of 18, Avliat oaths and questions would 
you put to him f 

A. I would first swear the witness and applicant to make true answers 
to all questions I should put them in regard to the application then 
pending; then 1 would ask witness how long he had known the appli¬ 
cant, how old he Avas, AAdiere he had lived for the past year, and Avhere 
the ap])licant had resided. Of the applicant I would ask, how old are 
you ; hoAV old Avere you Avhen you came to this country; hoAV long hawe 
you been in this country. Putting the tAA’o things together, I could tell 
whether he came here before he Avas 18 years of age. I Avoidd then ask 
him the formal question as to Avhether he aams a man of good moral 
character. This- comxdied with all the requirements of the act of Con¬ 
gress. 1 AAamld folloAV the laAv strictly. I would sometimes Amry the 
(piestions—sometimes asking them through an interpreter. 

4487. Q. You administered the oath to the applicant and Avitness at 
the same time ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4488. Q. AVas any other oath administered in the process of naturali¬ 
zation, except the oath you have mentioned? 

A. Not in the preliminary examination; there was a final oath of 
allegiance. I would also make them swear that the affidavits to which 
they had subscribed Avere true. I Avould also ask the applicant if he had 
read the affidavits or knew their contents. 

4489. Q. State Avhether there was a large number of persons applying 
for naturalization Avho could not read or speak the English language. 

xV. I do not think there were. I think, as a general thing, they could 
speak the English language; whether they could read or not I could 
not say. 

4490. Q. AAms the affidavit read to them ? 

A. I asked them if they knew the contents of the affidavit; they said 
yes; and then I AA’ould SAA car them if it was true. 

4491. Q. You first administered the general oath that he Avould true 
answers make, &c., and if the application was satisfactory, the oath of 
allegiance Avould be administered. 

A. Yes, sir. 

4492. Q. Is not f he oath prescribed by act of Congress and the common 
law oath in these words : “ You solemnly SAvear that you will speak the 
truth, the Avhole truth, and nothing but the truth, in this examination: 
so help you God ?^^ 

A. I (ioffit know, sir,hoAv that is. 


448 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


4493. Describe the i)rocess of luituraliziug a person wlio had pre- 
N'ioiisly declared his intention to become a citizen. 

A. i would swear the witness and applicant in; then examine his 
papers to see if the declaration was corre(d, or whether the proper time 
had elapsed; ask him if he was the man described in that paper; ask 
the witnesa^liow long he had known the applicant; where he resided^ 
&c. If there was the slightest erpiivocation or dodging, I would examine 
them more at length. I would then ask them the usual question as to 
whether they were men of good moral character. In cases of soldiers 
applying for certificates, I would require them to show their discharge. 
Ithiidv in every case of naturalization the discharge was always attached 
to the application. I have an indistinct recollection that there was one 
case—that of a one-armed soldier, who appeared there before Judge 
McCunn and myself. He did not have his discharge with him, but pre¬ 
sented pretty clear proof that he had served in tlie army, and he was 
])assed. 

4494. Q. State what proportion of naturalization certificates were 
gi’anted to persons claiming to have arrived in the United States after 
the age of 18 years. 

A. I should think tlie majority of the applicants w'ere such; that is 
my iiiqiression. 

Xew York, ^yednesday^ Januury G, 18G1>. 

(hiAKLES E. WiLROUR recalled and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4495. Since my examination yesterday, I have seen all the stockholders 
of the ISTew York Printing Company, and none of them have any objection 
to my stating their names. They agreed with me in not perceiving the 
relevancy of the question. The stockholders are live in number, each 
owning $5,000 worth of stock. There are three democrats and two 
republicans. The democrats are AVm. M. Tweed, a Tammany man, I 
believe; James-M. Sweeney, clerk of the superior court, also a Tammany 
man ; Cornelius Corson, a Mozart democrat. The republicans are myself, 
whom I count as a radical, and James I>. Taylor, also a radical. I have 
been a radical since I was old enough to know anything. Mr. Taylor is 
a republican who has given as much money to the republican party as 
any man in this city who has never been a candidate for office. Mr.. 
Corson and myself manage the business almost entire. Mr. Taylor is 
largely interested in the stock of the Yew York times. I have an interest 
in the Tribune Association. 1 wa.s enqdoyed on the Yew York Tril)une 
for 10 years. 

New York, January 7,1809. 

William Dorans sworn and examined, (called l)y Mr. Koss.) 

P>y Mr. POSS: 

4490. Question. Where do you live f 

Answer. At 103 Crosby street, Yew York. 

4497. Q. What is your business ! 

A. I keep a public house at that place. 1 am a glass-blower by trade. 

4498. Q. Did you vote at the last presidential election ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

4499. Q. AVhat are your politics ? 

A. I am a democrat. 

4500. (>). Do you know of any illegal voting in the last presidential 
etection ? 

A. I do. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


449 


4501. Q. Did you vote at that election yourself? 

A. I did. 

4502. Q. Are you wliat is generally termed a “repeater!” 

A. I am. 

4503. Q. How many times did you vote ! 

A. I voted from 10 to 15 times. 

5504. Q. Who engaged you in that business ! 

A. It was merely a little si)ort of our own. Nobody engaged me; I 
received nothing for doing it. 

4505. Q. What was the extent of this repeating^ so far as you know; 
how many engaged with you! 

A. From 20 to 30. 

4506. Q. Have you communicated this fact to anybody, that you yere 
engaged in repeating ! 

A. No, sir; I have not. 

4507. Q. Did you talk with Colonel Wood about it! 

A. They talked with my friends about, and they put it on me. 

4508. Q. Have you not talked with anybody else about it! 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

4509. Q. How often did these 30 men that were with you vote ! 

A. About the same number of times that I did, 

4510. Q. In what wards did they vote ! 

A. It was in Thirty-first, Thirty-second, and Thirty-fourth streets. The 
night before we voted we Avere at the corner of Thirty-second street and 
Second avenue. 

4511. Q. The night before election ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

4512. Q. AVhat is that place ! 

A. It is a liquor shop. I do not know the name of the man who 
keeps it. 

4513. Q. Is there any club-room there ! 

A. It is a large room. I do not know whether it is a club-room or not. 

4514. Q. What furniture is there in that room ? 

A. Tables, chairs, a carpet, &c. 

4515. Q. How many iieople were at that place the night previous to 
election ! 

A. A great many. I should think there were 300 there altogether. 
By Mr. Hopkins: 

4516. Q. Did you understand from what they said that they were all 
engaged in this business of repeating ! 

A. I could not say that. I did not have communication with all of 
them, although they were all sitting around drinking and smoking and 
talking about matters in general. 

By the Chairman: 

4517. Q. State who procured the names upon which you were to vote. 
A. The names were given to us on slips of paper. 

4518. Q. Where did you get these slips ! 

A. We got the first lot at the liquor shop, and when we had used them 
up we were supplied with another batch. 

4519. Q. Where did you get the ballots ! 

A. Tlie same man that gave us the papers gave ns the ballots. I 
never opened them; I do not know what they were. 

29 T 


450 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


4520. Q. Don’t you know tliat that place on tlie corner of Thirty- 
second street and Second avenue Avas called the Jackson club ? 

A. I cannot recollect at present. 

By the Chairman ; 

4521. Q. Can you give the names of some of the persons who were 
with you ? 

A. I know of but two or three; one man’s name was Melville, another 
Bartlett. I think there was a man by the name of Smith, and another 
by the name of Harris. 

4522. Q. Where does Melville live ? 

A. At 103 Crosby street. 

^ By Mr. KOSS: 

4523. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. I do not know. I think it was a democratic ticket; I did not open 
the tickets. 

By Mr. Hopkins»: 

4524. Q. You were at the head of their gang, were you not ? 

A. Well, they met at my house and I went AA ith them. 

By the Cpiairman : 

4525. Q. Who advised you to do all this ? 

A. Nobody advised me in i)articular; there was a crowd in my liquor 
shop that evening and thej" asked me to join them, and I went Avith them. 

4526. Q. What friends did you expect to help by repeating in that 
manner? 

A. Nobody at all. 

4527. Q. Did you talk with some of the candidates about it? 

A. No, sir; when I Avas at the club-room in Thirty-second street they 
talked over about a good many candidates. I think they mentioned a 
man by the name of Field, and said he was a good fellow, and we ought 
to do a little something for him. 


New York, January 7,1869. 

George Mabee sworn and examined.- 
By the CHAiRikiAN: 

4528. Question. State if you have examined the poll-lists of the differ¬ 
ent election precincts of this city of the last presidential election. 

Answer. I have. 

4539. Q. What ones ? 

A. I have examined the 1st, 3d, 4th, 6th, and 7th districts in the 7th 
ward. 

4532. Q. State if you have examined the list of names contained in 
the repeater’s book seized by Inspector Walling, and ascertained from 
an examination of the poll-books hoAv many and which of the men whose 
names are on said list voted ? 

A. I have. The names marked with a on said list, which I pro¬ 
duce, and which is a copy of the book seized by Inspector Walling, are 
those who voted at the presidential election. 

To Mr. Boss: 

4533. Q. You copied this list ? 

A. No, sir; I did not. 

4534. Q. Who copied it ? 

A. A Mr. Toulon. 


ELECTIO?^ FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 451 

4535. Q. You were present wlien lie copied it ? 

A. No, sir; but I examined it this afternoon and found it correct. 

4530. Q. Who had iiossession of this list that you comiiared? 

A. Major strong. I examined the book that was said to be seized by 
Inspector Walling, and found that the names on this list corresponded 
with those on that book. I also examined the iioll-list in the county 
clerk’s office and found that the men on the annexed list, whose name 
Aras marked Avith a had voted. 

4537. Q. Did you mark these names AAuth a 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the OHAiR:\rAN: 

4538. Q. State whether you have examined the registry list and ascer¬ 
tained Avhether the other names on the list you liaA^e iiresented are also 
on the registry list. 

A. I did; all the names on this list were on the registry list. 


V Peter McGovern .... 

FIRST DISTRICT, 

16 East Broadway. 

V Edward Wilson .... 

16 

L i 

Edward Thomas.... 

14 

n 

Stephen H. Malouey 

39 

«( 

Thomas Nugent.... 

39 

* 

Thomas Malouey... 

39 

i ( 

Charles Li 1 ley. 

40 

i i 

John Mulliii. 

73 

i i 

V James Moore. 

73 

i { 

V Thomas Delaney ... 

39 

(( 

V William McCoby... 

16 

i i 

James Lambert. 

18 

i i 

George Lake . 

40 

a 

V Robert Corcoran .... 

16 

it 

John Mullin . 

73 

t i 

Thomas Nolan . 

16 

it 

V Robert Smith. 

39 

t i 

James McGuire . 

16 

i i 

V George F. Wilson .. 

16 

a 

John Coles . 

20 

t i 

vJohn Spink . 

63 

t i 

V Frank Derain . 

39 

i i 

James Husheien .... 

39 

i t 

V James Smith . 

THIRD DISTRICT, 

28 Market street. 

James B. Wilson. .. 

28 

it \ 

John 0. Connor - 

28 

ti 

V Benjamin Craig.... 

28 

i i 

Joseph Roberts. 

38 

i t 

James Hanely. 

26 

i t 

John McCabe. 

18 

t i 

V Thomas 0. Doniiel. 

18 

11 

Henry Hoy. 

38 

38 

i t 

James Henry. 

i t 

V James Morris. 

108 East Broadway. 

V James Sanders . 

108 

i t 

V James Sterling . 

108 

i i 

V Charles Wilson . 

92 

i t 

George Wilson . 

92 

i i 

James Watson . 

108 


V William Lamb. 

80 

t i 

Samuel Davis . 

80 

i t 

Thomas Park . 

80 

i i 

Thomas Nolan . 

90 

i i 

John Hayse . 

90 

i t 

V Izzy Lazarus . 

80 



SEVENTH AVARD. 


Michael AA^halen.... 

66 East Broadway. 

V Harrison Sutton.... 

29 

V James Thompson — 

39 

V James Leonard. 

38 

V Thomas Craig. 

43 Henry street. 

V George Gillespie.... 

44 

George Varely. 

44 

V Thomas Smith..... 

34 

V George S. Clark- 

42 

Thomas Cullin. 

45 

V William Cullin. 

45 

William A^arely. 

44 “ 

V James Thompson... 

42 

James Johnson. 

40 

William Craig. 

43 

V George Drake. 

34 

Thomas Smith. 

34 

V Thomas Vareley.... 

44 ' “ 

V Edward Condon.... 

44 

V Timothy Harrington 

37 

John Fitzsimmons.. 

54 

John Dull'. 

13 Market street. 

John Reilly. 

13 

SEVENTH AVARD. 

John McCaferty.... 

90 East Broadway 

Michael Smith. 

80 

Charles Fisher. 

90 

James Carr. 

92 

James AVatson. 

108 

V William Opp. 

JOS 

Charles Sinclair.... 

117 

Thomas AVatson.... 

108 

V George Know Is .... 

87 

AA'illiam Cluse. 

80 

AA’’iHiam Knowls.... 

87 

Henry AValker. 

80 

Patrick IMcGovern.. 

■ 80 

V John Sullivan. 

82 

Henry Shannon .... 

80 

Harris Hoseu. 

80 Henry street. 

80 

John Dolan. 

James McDerinot... 

96 

Thomas Murphy .. - 

106 

AA'illiam Hoye. 

98 “ 

Charles Grant. 

92 “ 

George M. Mitchell.. 

7& “ 





















































452 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Edward Thomas.... 

76 Henry street. 

VThomas Henessey.. 

831- Division street. 

James Flinn. 

73 

U 

V Myer W oil. 

83i 

Henry Walker. 

80. 

ii 

V Charles Williams .. 


V Charles Conner. 

80 

a 

George Thomas.... 

8^ 

Thomas Hushion.... 

80 

a 

V William Brown.... 

83| “ 

V Abraham Brown .... 

92 

a 




FOURTH DISTRICT 

SEVENTH WARD. 


Richard Thompson.. 

54 Monroe street. 

V George Gilbert. 

50 Market street. 

George Robinson.... 

54 


Francis Gibins. 

50 

Thomas Hushon .... 

64 


William Fowler.... 

42 

■V Edwin Thomas. 

50 Market street. 

George Laffey. 

48 

John Sullivan. 

42 

i i 

Thomas Sharnely .. 

54 


SIXTH 

DISTRICT, 

SEVENTH WARD. 


v Henry Williams .... 

173 East Broadway. 

Henry Austin. 

169 Henry street. 

Henry Jackson. 

120 

( ( 

James Weaver. 

167 “ 

George H. Brown... 

163 

i i 

V George Brown. 

169 

V George Brown. 

163 

i i 

John Reily. 

169 

Joseph Scanlin, 2 Nos. 



George Parson. 

197 

on registry, 163, 165 



Henry Lawrence... 

J69 

w Thomas Nolan .. 

173 

i i 

V Frank Thomas. 

197 

V William Nolan. 

173 

H 

George Williams_ 

167 

V Thomas Scanlin. 

163 

n 

Robert Garner. 

197 

Edward Kiely. 

120 

i i 

Florence F. Gerald. 

197 “ 

Thomas Scanlin. 

163 

i ( 

William Hushen_ 

122 

V John Wilson. 

111 Henry street. 

George White. 

169 

G.W. Baldwin (sw’n) 

169 

4 i 

V Charles Myers. 

169 

George H. Foster- 

122 

i 4 

V William Murphy.. 

169 

George Foster. 

122 

4 4 

Thomas Boyde. 

197 “ 

Jno. Wilson. 

111 

44 

John Bennet. 

167 

William Lilly. 

122 

44 

George Morgan .... 

167 

T William Gallager.... 

122 

4 4 

Thomas Hushon.... 

124 

V John Saunders. 

169 

4 4 

Daniel Stamely.... 

122 

William Stephens... 

111 

44 

V John Smith. 

150 

Thomas Fitfegerald.. 

167 

44 

George Green. 

173 Madison street. 

V Lewis Light. 

169 

44 




SEVENTH DISTRICT, SEVENTH WARD. 


Charles Pratt. 

227 Henry street. 

Henry Hunkey .... 

227 Henry street. 

George Martin. 

227 

4 4 

Richard Parr, jr.... 

227 

William Hunt. 

227 

44 

V Andrew Morrison .. 

227 

Henry Carlton. 

227 

4 4 




William Dorans recalled and examined. 


By tlie Chairman : 

4539. Question. Are you acquainted witli Sheriff James O’Brien of this 
city 

Answer. Yes, sir; I have seen him. 

4540. Q. State wliether any oflicer of this county was with these men 
who were eng^aged in repeating as you have stated, and who staid at 
the liquor shop, in Thirty-second street, the night before election. 

A. Not that I know of. I saw Sheriff O’Brien on the day of election. 

4541. Q. Where did you breakfast on the morning of election^ 

A. I took breakfast at the sheriff’s house. 

4542. Q. AVas the sheriff there f 

A. I did not see the sheriff there; it was about 4 o’clock in the morn¬ 
ing. 

4543. Q. Do you recollect the number of the house ? 

A. No, sir; I do not. It was very dark when I went there. 

4544. Q. AVhat street was it on 

A. I could not be positive whether it was on Thirty-third or Thirty- 
fourth street; it was near Second avenue. 

Q. Who took you to this place ? 















































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


453 


A. Some oue in the shop asked me to go there and get breakfast. 

4545. Q. How many took breakfast with you there ? 

A. A good many. 

4546. Q. Where did yon see Sheriff O’Brien on tiie day of election ? 

A. I saw him ride down Second avenue in a street car. 

4547. Q. Do yon know Sheriff* O’Brien’s brother ^ 

A. I have seen him. 

4548. Q. Did yon see him before the day of election ? 

A. I saw him the night before the election in the liquor shop, on 
Thirty-second street; I did not see him the day of election. 

4549. Q. Did yon see the sheriff the night before election ? 

A. 170, sir. 

4550. Q. Were yon promised any pay for your services as a repeater? 
A. No, sir. 

4551. Q. Did yon get any ? 

A. No, sir ; in fact, I was out of pocket by it. 

4552. Q. Have you been a deputy sheriff or a special deputy sheriff ? 
A. No, sir. 

4553. Q. Do yon know where No. 307 East Thirty-third street is! 

A. I should think it would be at the right-hand side of Second avenue. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4554. Q. Do yon know where Sheriff O’Brien lives ? 

A. No, sir; he lives up in the direction of Thirty-second or Thirty- 
third street. They called the place O’Brien’s where we got breakfast. 
I could not say positively whether it was the sheriff’s brother’s place or 
his own. 

4555. Q. Did the sheriff’s brotlier have anything to do with the 
repeaters ? 

A. I did not see him have anything to do with the repeating. I had 
no conversation with him the night I was with him in the liquor shop. 

4556. Q. Do you know whether Sheriff* O’Brien has more than one 
brother ? 

A. I do not know. 

4557. Q. You do not know what house you took breakfast at ? 

A. I do not know any more than that it was O’Brien’s; whether it was 
the sheriff’s house or not I could not say. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4558. Q. How many took breakfast there that morning ? 

A. About 40 or 50. 

4559. Q. Did you start from O’Brien’s house on your tour of voting ? 
A. We returned to Thirty-second street; there we stopped a little 

while and then started out, stopping at many places, eating and drink¬ 
ing, &c. 

4560. Q. Wliat time did you start out to vote ? 

A. It was about daylight. 

4561. Q. Did you see Sheriff O’Brien or his brother, while you were 
at breakfast at the house ? 

A. No, sir. 

4562. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge whether he lived there? 
A. I do not. 

4563. Q. Who did you see in the house ? 

A. There was such a crowd there that I didn’t know who belonged to> 
the house or who did not. 


454 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 7, 18G0. 

William H. Bogart recalled. 

By tlie Chairman : 

4564. Question. Bo you know any tiling of a list of names furnished 
by William H. Hendrick of hctitious persons registered for the purpose 
of voting at the last presidential election of this city % 

Answer. No, sir. 

4565. Q. Have you examined any of the registry lists of the last 
presidential election of this city ? 

A. I have. I present to the committee a list of names witli the elec¬ 
tion districts and of the names found upon the registry lists for certain 
houses in these districts. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4566. Q. From what registry list did you take these names ? 

A. From the registry list at police headquarters. 

4567. Q. Did you copy them yourself f 

A. Yes, sir. ' 


TENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


Thos. Longe, 142 Sullivan, v 


NINTH DISTRICT, SIXTH WARD. 


Patrick Coleman, v 62 Bayard. 

August Ilernsdorfif, v “ 

Michle Kean, v “ 

Jas. White, v 60 Mott. 


Mathews Phipps, 
Thos. Fitzgerald, 
Daniel Nugent, 
Edwd. McIntyre, 


These names on poll-list and not on registry. 


V 

V 

V 

V 


60 3Iott. 

4 ( 
it 

a 


84 Green street, first district, eighth ward. 


1. Andrews, Andrew v 

2. Cram, James J. 

3. Cavenagh, Francis v 

4. Dunphy, Edward v 

T). Green, Howard 

6. Hogan Michael C. v 

7. Hogan, Edward v 

8. Henderson John v 


9. Moore, Nathaniel 

10. Mitchell, Peter v 

11. Mitchell, William v 

12. Smith, James v 

13. Travis, William H. v 

14. Williams, Isaac v 

15. Worden, James v 


142 Sullivan street, tenth district, eighth ward. 


1. Benson, August v 

2. Butler, William 

3. Hill, Andrew v 

4. Hamson, Charles v 

5. Hepburn, George v 

6. Halpin, John v 

7. Larkin, George v 

8. Lee, James v 

9. Munday, William v 

10. Merrifield, John v 

11. Norton, Peter v 

12. Nicol, Joseph v 

595 Broadway, 

1. Blauvelt, Daniel v 

2. Barnard, John H. 

3. Brown, George S. v 

4. Dennis, Jerome v 

5. Harrison, John L. v 

6. Lowell, B. F. v 


13. Newman, Daniel v 

14. O’Keefe, Patrick v 

15. O’Brien, Michael v 

16. Reynols, John J. v 

17. Ryan, Thomas v 

18. Right, William v 

19. Slater, Henry B. v 

20. Thompson, John v 

21. Williams, George v 

22. Welsh, James v 

23. Wallace, Thomas v 

24. Zander, John v 


third district, eighth ward. 

7. Littell, William K. v 

8. Mackay, Gordon 

9. Skelly, John v 

10. Walker, Thomas H. v 

11. Wyckoff,P. V 






ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


455 


G9 East Houston street, second district, fourteenth ward. 


L Anthony, Charles 

2. Connolly, John v 

3. Duffey, James 

4. Frazer, Charles H. v 

5. Fox, Robert v 

6. Glennon, Thomas v 

7. Goldschmidt, Herman v 


8. Leven, Thomas v 

9. McGowan, Martin v 

10. McGowan, James v 

11. Riley, Hugh v 

12. Summers, David 

13. Watters, Charles v 


62 Bayard street, ninth district, sixth ward. 


1. Brophy, Patrick J. v 

2. Brophy, James J. v 

3. Brophy, Michael v 

4. Bennett, George v 

5. Ganson, John 


6. Kane, Michael v 

7. Lenz, Henry v 

8. Merritt, Edward v 

9. Stevenson, William v 


60 Mott street, ninth district, sixth ward. 


1. Bennett, William v 

2. Clark, Thomas v 

3. Cullinan, Thomas v 

4. Devoy, James 

5. Darling, James 

6. Edvtards, Michael 

7. Fibbs, Mathew 


8. Farrell, Patrick v 

9. Fitzgerald, Thomas v 

10. Flynn, Henry ^ v 

11. Goodwin, James v 


12. Haggerty, Lawrence v 


13. Harris, Morris 

14. Lord, William v 

15. Levy, Morris v 

16. Maas, John v 

17. Mack, Stephen 

18. Nugent, Patrick v 

19. Nugent, Daniel v 

20. Rooney, Thomas v 

21. Smith, Thomas v 


70 Mott street, ninth district, sixth ward. 


1. Adams, Henry 

2. Cohen, Lazarus v 

3. Crone, Michael v 

4. Gold, John v 


5. Roach, William v 

6. Suydam, George v 

7. Trebert, Lewis v 


George Mabee recalled. 

By tlie Chairman : 

4568. Question. Look at,tlie list of names furnislied by William H. 
Bog’art, the witness who has just testified, and state if yon have exam¬ 
ined that list and compared it with the poll-list of the last presidential 
election,^ and if so, how many of the names are found on the poll-list as 
having \mted ? 

Answer. I have examined the list and compared it with the poll-list 
of Amters and found all the names on the poll-list which are marked Y’’ 
in the accompanying list to have voted. 

T. AY. Greig sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4569. Question. State if you can furnish the committee with any sta¬ 
tistical information in relation to the population and voters of the sixth 
ward of this city ? 

Answer. I prepared a statistical table, which I present to the com¬ 
mittee. 

4570. Q. From what source did you get the population for I860'? 

A. From the United States census. 

4571. Q. From what source the population of 1865 ? 

A. From the State census. The table of voters naturalized and alien 
for 1865 is taken from the official State census. The total vote for 1868 
is taken from the New York Daily Transcript, the official newspaper of 
this city, and is the official Amte for 1868. 






456 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Total population of sixth ward^ New Yorlc city. 



1860. 

1865. 

WbUft _ - ______ 

13,319 
13,043 
146 

9,574 
9,891 
143 

_ __.............__ 

rinlnrfifl—Malps ________ 

Fpmflilf'f* - ____.......__- -- 

188 

146 


Total............ 

26,696 

19,754 



Voters, 1865. 


Native.•-. 599 

Naturalized. 3,546 

Total. 4,145 

Aliens. 3,674 


Total vote, 1868. 


Republican. 403 

Democrat. 4,998 

Total. 5,401 


New York, January 7, 18G9. 

Bahtholomew Cronin sworn and examined, (called at tlie instance 
of Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

4572. I was an election officer of the 4th district of the 4th ward 
at the last presidential election. I cannot state how many votes were 
cast in that precinct. During the day no illegal votes were cast to 
my knowledge. It would be utterly impossible to prevent them. There 
is a certain percentage of illegal votes cast at every election. 

4573. Q. State if the board of inspectors used ordinary prudence to 
prevent illegal voting ? 

A. Yes, sir ; everything possible that could be done was done. 

4574. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being cast in that precinct ? 

A. No, sir. 

4575. Q. Were a good many sworn? 

A. Yes, sir; a good many; probably twenty or thirty. 

4576. Q. Was all the board there that day? 

A. There was always a m^yority of the board there; that is required 
by regulation. The whole four were not there all day. 

4477. Q. Who did the challenging ? 

A. Mr. Shea was president of the board; he did most of the challeng¬ 
ing. 

4578. Q. Did you all exercise that privilege ? 

A. Yes, sir; whenever it was necessary. 

4579. Q. Were any of the inspectors driven away from the polls that 
day ? 

A. No, sir; I do not know of any of the inspectors being driven away? 

4580. Q. Do you know of any of the challengers being driven away ? 

A. There was a man there in the morning as a hired challenger; he 





























ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


457 


was ordered away by the board of inspectors. We all agreed in ordering 
liim away. Mr. Sbea objected to it at first, but lie finally agreed to it. 
When a man is challenged there is always a good deal of delay. As 
there was a large number of votes to be polled in our district in a short 
space of time, we could not allow any person around the polls to chal¬ 
lenge indiscriminately, as many of them would do, to delay the vote as 
much as possible. 

4581. Q. Did the board agree that there should be no challengers ex¬ 
cept by the inspectors 

A. Yes, sir. 

To Mr. Hopkins: 

4582. A. One of the challengers was ordered away because he created 
some excitement j he was then only challenging from spite. 

By the Chairman : 

4583. Q. Will you swear that he challenged through spite ? 

A. I do not positively swear that he did it out of spite; to the best of 
my knowledge he did, however. 

4584. Q. Are you a democrat ? 

A. Sometimes I am. I was during the last election j not in the elec¬ 
tion previous, however. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4585. Q. How long have you resided in New York ? 

A. About 17 years. 

4586. Q. Are you conversant with the elections here f 

A. Yes, I am. 

4587. Q. What percentage of illegal votes should you judge were cast? 

A. I should think about two per cent., probably three; in some dis¬ 
tricts there would probably be more. There is more talk about this illegal 
voting than really exists. It is greatly exaggerated. There is a large 
class of people who do not think anything is done right at elections unless 
it is done just as they want it done. If it is done according to their 
party predilections they think it is right; if not, they think it is wrong. 

4588. Q. Did you challenge any vote that day? 

A. I did. 

4589. Q. Were the votes you challenged sworn in ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4590. Q. Was there any man who did not get to vote on account of 
obstructions and delays in voting by challenging? 

A. Not that I know of. 


New York, January 7,1869. 

Joseph Malay sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

4591. I was an election officer in the 4th district of the 4th ward at the. 
last presidential election. I know nothing of illegal votes being cast in 
that precinct. I had the list of registered voters, and as a man came 
in to vote I checked his name off. I do not know of any repeating being 
done at that precinct. I believe, however, there was a man arrested 
afterwards for repeating in another district who voted at ours. Mr. Shea 
and myself did all the challenging at that precinct all day. He chal¬ 
lenged about 10 or 12. 


458 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4592. Q. Was there any inspector driven away from yonr polls ! 

A. Air. Shea challenged one vote, and had the man arrested. The 
policeman took him away, and after awhile came back for Mr. Shea and 
wanted him to go along as a witness. Shea said if he did he wanted 
5Aood, his republican colleague, to go with him, and adjourn the board, 
and allow no more votes to be taken until they came back. To this we all 
objected, and it was finally agreed that Mr. Wood should stay there and 
the voting should go on. Shea was absent about three-quarters of an hour. 

4593. Q. You observed the same care while he was away as you did 
before while he was there ? 

A. We did, as his republican colleague was there all the time. 

By Air. Hopkins: 

4594. Q. Was there a challenger driven away from your polls during 
the day? 

A. No, sir; he went away of his own accord. 

4595. Q. AVas he not sent away? 

A. No, sir. 

459G. Q. AVas he not notified to leave ? 

A. No, sir. 

4597. Q. AVas there any republican challenger there during the day? 

A. I could not say. 


New York, January 7, 1809. 

John Gilmore sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman: 

4598. Question. AVhat office did you hold at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion in this city ? 

Answer. I held the office of inspector of election and registry in the 
Tth district of the 4th ward. 

4599. Q. State what you know of persons presenting themselves to 
vote upon certificates of naturalization, and what evidence you had that 
their certificates were fraudulent. 

A. I do not know whether the certificates were fraudulent, but there 
were men who came to the i^olls with papers that they had obtained in 
the month of October. AVhen they iiresented the papers I asked them 
if they were the only papers they ever had, and whether they had got 
out their first papers or not. There were some 15 or 20 said they had 
not, and I refused to allow them to register. 

4000. Q. State if you swore all these men in. 

A. I did swear them in. 

4001. Q. Hid any of them state where they got their papers ? 

A. None of them stated. I am now speaking of the day of registry. 

Q. State if you know of any illegal voting in your district. 

A. There were a great many persons came to the polls who lived in 
the sailors’ boarding-houses in the district; I knew them to be illegal 
voters and would challenge them. 

By Air. Boss: 

4002. Q. How do you know they were illegal voters ? 

A. I knew it from the fact that they had not lived in the Avard long 
enough to vote. 

4003. Q. How long have you lived in that district yourself. 

A. I have lived in that ward 33 years. I knoAV the biggest pait of the 
ward. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


459 


By the Chairman : 

4G04. Q. From your knowledge of those who actually resided in the 
ward and were entitled to vote in your district, can yon estimate the 
number of persons who voted there who were not entitled to vote? 

A. I could not state of my own knowledge. I would not swear to 
them. If any man came to the polls of Avhom I had any doubt, I would 
challenge him. A dozen men were outside the polls who would hand 
slips of paper or cards with names on them to men, who would then 
walk up and offer to vote on them. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4605. Q. Who was the chief challenger in your precinct ? 

A. I was the only challenger that was at the polls. 

4606. Q. How many did you challenge ? 

A. I challenged about 30, 1 should think. 

4607. Q. Was there a crowd of voters there all day ? 

A. There was up to about 10 or 11 o’clock, and also between 12 and 1 
o’clock, when the men came to dinner. About 3 or 4 o’clock the crowd 
dropped off. 

4608. Q. How many votes were polled? 

A. Some 500. 

4609. Q. How many registered ? 

A. Some 715. 

4610. Q. How many were there who could not get to vote on account 
of want of time? 

A. I do not know; I think there was plenty of time for everybody to vote. 

4611. Q. Who were the other inspectors in that precinct? 

A. My republican colleague was Mr. Nevins. The democrats were 
Eobert McGrath and Thomas Dons. 

By the Chairman : 

4612. Q. Were you threatened at all? 

A. The crowd outside used some hard words against me and threatened 
me a good deal. They told me they would take my head off when I left 
the polls that night. When I did leave the polls I went out with an 
officer, and he took charge of me. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4613. Q. Did anybody try to injure you when you went out? 

A. No, sir; not while I had the officer with me. They were probably 
afraid to interfere with me then. I only lived across the street. 

4614. Q. As a matter of fact, did anybody try to injure you at all? 

A. No, sir; they did not. 

4615. Q. What is your business? 

A. Boat-building. 

4616. Q. Do you belong to the Loyal League? 

A. No, sir; I belong to the republican organization. 

4617. Q. Where did you get your instructions in relation to conducting 
the election? 

A. I got it from the law. 

4618. Q. Did Colonel Bliss tell you anything about it ? 

A. No, sir. 

4619. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being given there ? 

A. I do not, of my own knowledge. 

4620. Q. Can you name a single man who cast an illegal vote in your 
district? 

A. No, sir. 


460 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By tlie Chairman : 

4621. Q. Do you know of a single man, except in a single instance, 
wlio lias been indicted or pnnisbed for illegal voting, or for any frauds 
on naturalization, in New York city, within the last three years ! 

A. There was a man in the 4th jirecinct of the 4th ward that I know 
of, and that is all. 

New York, Janmry 7, 1869. 

Henry Lyle sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4622. Question. Where do you reside! 

Answer. I reside at No. 45 West Twenty-first street, in this city. I 
have lived here for 12 years. 

4623. Q. With what political party have you acted ! 

A. With the democratic party. 

4624. Q. What is your occuiiation! 

A. I am a clerk. 

4625. Q. State what you know of certificates of naturalization being 
issued by Judge McCunn of the superior court, and in the supreme court 
by Judge Barnard. 

A. I was engaged in that business during the months of September 
and October, 1868. I saw that everybody almost was going into it and I 
took a hand at it. I had an office at 33 Chatham street, in this city j I staid 
there most of the time dimng the day, and at night would go up town 
to Thirty-second street at a liquor store there,.where parties would send 
me names of persons to be naturalized. The next day I would fill uii 
the applications, go before the judges and put the men through. During 
the month of October I would come down in the evening and put the 
men through before Judge Barnard of the supreme court, who held the 
night session. 

4626. Q. Where did you get the blanks from! 

A. I got the blanks at No. 1 Centre street, and at the chamber of the 
board of councilmen in the City Hall. 

4627. Q. Where did you fill uj) the blanks! 

A. At No. 33 Chatham street. I wonld sign the names of the appli¬ 
cants to these blanks; sometimes I would sign the applicant’s name and 
sometimes he would himself, or if anybody else happened to be around 
he would sign it. 

4628. Q. How did you procure certificates of naturalization before 
Judge McCunn! 

A. I would take the papers down to the court and give them in to the 
clerk. He would call my name, and I would then go around and swear to 
the truth of the affidavits before the judge. After that I would go around 
to the clerk’s desk; if the man was not there I would take the oath of 
allegiance, or if the man was too old to go through j otherwise, the man 
himself would go round. 

4629. Q. How many certificates of naturalization did you procure 
during these two months! 

A. I cannot tell, but I should judge from 600 to 1,000; that I would 
swear to. Sometimes I would swear to 20 or 30 and sometimes 50 a day. 

4630. Q. State if you would sign your name to the affidavits as wit¬ 
ness in all cases, or what name was signed. 

A. I signed difierent names just as it happened to come into my head. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 461 

sometimes I ^YOl^ld sign my own name, at otliers that of Henry Law¬ 
rence, or Lines, or any name. 

4G31. Q. Hoav were you sworn to the affidamts before the judge, each 
one at a time, or more than one? 

A. I AYould bring them down in batches and he would generally put 
through eight or ten at a time. 

4G32. Q. State as near as you can how many of the applicants for 
naturalization were present when they were naturalized, or if any were 
absent. 

A. I got a good many papers out for men who were not there at all, 
by being both Avitness and applicant myself. 

4G33. Q. From what courts did you get these certificates ? 

A. From both the superior and the supreme courts. 

4G34. Q. Who furnished you with the names of persons to be natu¬ 
ralized ? 

A. I got the names up town from different parties who told me that 
they wanted papers for those persons, that they didn’t liaA^e time to 
come down themseh^es, that they would pay me if I would get the papers 
for them. 

4G35. Q. Did you procure the names of persons desiring to be natu¬ 
ralized from any of the officers of this city? 

A. No, sir; I procured some of the papers from one of the assistant 
aldermen. 

4G3G. Q. What was his name. 

A. Austin Y. Pettit. 

4G37. Q. State what connection you have ever had, if any, with the 
Tammany general committee ? 

A. Pettit is a member of the Tammany general committee j I have had 
no connection with it. 

4G38. Q. With what did you pay for those naturalization papers ? 

A. With red tickets. 

4G39. Q. Where did you get them ? 

A. I got some from Judge Gale in Centre street, some from Mr. Pettit, 
and some from different parties around the City Hall that I knew. 

4G40. Q. State if you are acquainted with Judge McOunn. 

A. I am. 

4G41. Q. State if he is acquainted with you. 

A. He is. 

4G42. Q. Did you have any coiwersation with Judge McCunn about this 
naturalization business? 

A. I Avas up before him one night and Avas a witness for a man by the 
name of Spirit; I told him my name, and he said that it ought to be 
Spirit too. After that I AAmuld sometimes sign my name as Spirit, as a 
witness. 

4G43. Q. What else was said by Judge McCunn ? 

A. That was all, though he told me at one time that if they did not 
register any of the men that I got papers out for, they would comi>el 
them to register them. 

4G44. Q. State what you obserA^ed in Judge Barnard’s court ? 

A. I would come doAvn to Judge Barnard’s court CA^ery night AAdiile 
he Avas sitting in naturalizing. He Avould call the applicant and in 
general the Avitness. I did not go to him but two or three times as a 
Avitness. He would call the applicants all up in a batch and SAvear 
them to renounce their allegiance, &c. 

4G45. Q. State if you knoAv of any certificates of naturalization being 
obtained there in that court Avithout any Avitness being present at all. 


4G2 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir; I liad papers from tliat court witlioiit either applicant or 
witness being present. 

4040. Q. How many papers were procured without the presence of 
the applicant ? 

A. I probably had a hundred or so. Sometimes I got the applications 
from difterent parties j 1 would give them the names and they would get 
the papers for me. 

4(>47. Q. Where were the different parties from whom you got the 
papers. 

A. I got some from Mr. Pettit, some from Mr. Love, corner Thirty- 
fourth street and Mntli avenue, and I paid him for them. I also got 
some from a young man I do not know. 

4648. Q. lio you mean that you got the applications or certificates 
from these persons 

A. I got the certificates. 

4649. Q. State as near as you can how many certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion you procured from Judge Barnard’s court when no applicant was 
present in the court ? 

A. I did not procure but very few that way, probably a dozen. I 
would generally bring my men down with me j I Avould often answer for 
a man aud take his papers out. 

4650. Q. State if you signed any papers as a witness and did not 
afterwards appear in court to be sworn in as a witness ? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 signed, on the 21st of October, papers for James Rey¬ 
nolds and Owen Gallagher in the supreme court. I signed the name of 
Henry Lawrence. 1 took the papers and gave them to Arthur Love in 
the supreme court chambers about 12 o’clock that day, and at 7 o’clock 
in the evening, at the corner of Thirty-first street and Ninth avenue, a 
young man that was with him in this business gave me two certificates 
of naturalization for these men. I i)aid him $2 for them. 

4651. Q. Were you sworn in that case ? 

A. No, sir; I was not. 

4652. Q. Who is Arthur Love ? 

A. He is on the 20th ward naturalization committee of Tammany Hall. 

4653. Q. When you signed as a witness what proportion of the names 
were fictitious 

A. They were all names that just happened to come into my head at 
the time. 

4654. Q. To what extent in either of these courts did you personate 
the applicant ? 

A. I attended in the superior court a good deal; I also did it some in 
the sui)reme court. 

4655. Q. Hid you touch the Bible when you were sworn in the supe¬ 
rior court “? 

A. No, sir. 

4656. Q. How were you sworn in f 

A. I would raise up my right hand and we would be sworn to tell 
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Probably ten or 
twenty would be sworn in together. 

4657. Q. How Avas it in the supreme court ^ 

A. They liad a Bible there, and they were sworirin in batches of about 
forty at a time. We Avere told to put our hands on the Bible, but I 
generally did notj I could not reach it in many cases. 

4658. Q. State aa hat compensation you got for your seiwices ? 

A. I got whateA^er I could. If I could get fiA^e dollars from any man 
I Avould take it j if tAA o dollars I Avould take that. I would not do any- 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


463 


tiling for less tliau one dollar. I generally got two dollars if a man went 
down liimself. If I had to go down and personate the applicant I Avould 
charge more. 

4659. Q. Did you pay any money to the officers of the court for their 
services, or did you use the red tickets 

A. Sometimes 1 would treat them. 

4060. Q. Did you have any one to assist you ? 

A. I did it ail alone. 

4661. Q. Do you know of any others that were engaged in the same 
husiness ? 

A. Yes, sir. One was Patrick McCaffrey; another was John Galla¬ 
gher; he is in the street department, I believe; a man at 189 King 
street; and also John Verway, conductor on a Mnth avenue railroad car; 
he resides at 439 West Thirty-sixth street. I know William Thurbin, 
who is also engaged in that business; he is a conductor on the Bleecker 
street line and resides somewhere in the 19th ward. There is also 
John Moran, who resides in the 21st ward. Also Chauncey Gray, who 
resides at the Putnam County House, corner Twenty-sixth street and 
Fourth avenue. 

4662. Q. Do you know John or Patrick Goff? 

A. I do not. I know a great many by sight but do not know their 
names. 

Q. Do you know where Patrick McCaffrey is ? 

A. I saw him last Monday. 

4663. Q. Do you know Henry Blume ? 

A. I know a great many by sight who are engaged in this business, 
but do not know them by name. 

4664. Q. Do you know anything of the mode in which these men con¬ 
ducted their business ? 

A. They did it just the same as I did. Some of them were at Eosen- 
berg’s idace; Kosenberg had three Jews who swore in papers for him. 
At the office of the Tammany committee, No. 1 Centre street, there was 
a clerk there from each ward. Applicants would come to these men to 
get their papers put through, and if they had no witnesses the clerks 
would go witness for them. In the sheriff’s office the different wards 
had parties there who would go. Patrick McCaffrey was most of the 
time in the old sheriff’s office. John Gallagher also had a desk there. 

4665. Q. Do you know anything about “repeating,” as it is called, at 
the last presidential election in this city? 

A. 1 registered quite a number of times, but I only voted once. I got 
a little scared that 1 would get catched up into it. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4666. Q. What do you get for telling all this story ? 

A. I have not been imomised one cent. 

4667. Q. Don’t you expect something ? 

A. 1 have not been promised anything. 

4668. Q. Don’t you expect anything'? 

A. I may expect something. 

4669. Q. From whom do you expect anything ? 

A. I do not know exactly whom I expect anything from ; I may expect 
something from ]\lr. Dtley. 

4670. Q. Who is he ? 

A. He is in the custom-house. 

4671. Q. From who else do you expect anything? 

A. Mr. Utley took me to Mr. White, a lawyer of this city; I think he 
is connected with the Union League. 


464 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4G72. Q. You expect cornpensatiou to come from Mr. Utley, tlien? 

A. Yes, sir; if I get any at all. 

4G73. Q. Did Mr. White tell you he would give you anything ? 

A. No, sir. 

4G74. Q. Doift you expect something from Marshal Murray f 

A. I do not know him. 

4G75. Q. Do you know Colonel Bliss f 

A. No, sir. 

4G76. Q. Have you not been up to the Union League rooms ? 

A. No, sir; 1 don’t train with that party. 

4G77. Q. Don’t you know that in the tale you have told here you have 
subjected yourself to a criminal prosecution under the laws of the State? 

A. I do not know; I have sworn to nothing false. 

4678. Q. You did not consider it perjury, then, in swearing in these 
naturalization papers ! 

A. I did not swear on the Bible. 

4G79. Q. You think, then, if you held up your hand and swore to tell 
the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, that you were not 
committing i)erjury ? 

A. I do not know. 

4680. Q. You think, now, that you are not liable to prosecution because 
you did not swear on the Bible ? Has anybody told you that you would 
be protected if you came here to give this testimony? 

A. I have heard that if a person gave testimony before a committee 
he would be protected. 

4681. Q. Who told you that ? 

A. I have read it. 

4682. Q. In what papers? 

A. In different papers. 

4683. Q. Tell me one paper? 

A. I generally understood a man is protected when he is a witness 
before a committee. 

4684. Q. Where did you get that information? 

A. Common sense told me that. 

4685. Q. Have you not been posted up by somebody as to your exemp 
tion from punishment by this testimony, and if so, by whom ? 

A. Mr. White told me that I would be protected j iie said the law pro¬ 
tected me. 

4686. Q. Didn’t somebody read to you the law and tell you that you 
would not be i^unished ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4687. Q. Who was that who did so ? * 

A. That gentleman standing there, (pointing to Mr. Davenport, clerk 
of the committee.) 

4688. Q. Did he tell you that you would not be liable to punishment 
if you came to testify in this way ? 

A. He only read me the law. 

4689. Q. Is that all he snid? 

A. That is all; I told him that I did not want to make myself liable 
to punishment, and he read the law to me. 

4690. Q. Where did he read the law to you ? 

A. In Chambers street. 

4691. Q. Whereabouts? ‘ 

A. As we Avere walking along the street. 

4692. Q. Did he read to you the whole of this law ? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


465 


4093. Q. What part did lie read ? 

A. I think it ^Yas the fore part of it. 

4094. Q. AVhat have you been doing for the last twelve years ? 

A. I was at work for four years for A. H. Dibble, corner of Broadway 
and Leonard street; I was for five years in the American Telegraph 
Company, corner of Broadway and Liberty street, and I was emxdoyed 
for six months in the New York custom-house, but was removed in July 
last. 

4095. Q. On what account ? 

A. I went on a spree on the occasion of the democratic convention, 
and was discharged. 

4G9G. Q. What induced you to organize this office at 33 William street? 

A. There was no office there at all, it was merely a desk and lager 
beer saloon. 

4G97. Q. Who ke^it the saloon ? 

A. A man by the name of Heidelberger. 

4G98. Q, How long Avere you in that place ? 

A. I Avas there for six weeks; eAmrj" day I would come there at 9 
o’clock in the morning and stay until about 4; I got my blanks for filing 
out the applications at No. G Centre street, and No. 1 Centre street, and 
the county clerk’s office, and some of them at the board of councilmen’s 
room. 

4G99. Q. From what clerk in the coiincilmen’sroom did you get them? 

A. I do not know his name. 

4700. Q. You say you know Judge McCunn ? 

A. Yes, sir; I liav^e often Ausited at his house; I am acquainted with 
his family. 

4701. Q. How much of a family has he ? 

A. There is himself, his wife, and hisAvife’s sisters ; I hav^e not visited 
his house for the last two years ; preAnous to that I used frequently to 
\dsit Avith my sisters, Avho are acquainted with his wife’s sisters; I liAmd 
three or four doors from them. 

4702. Q. Upon AAffiat occasion Avas it that yon last Ausited his house ? 

A. I Avent there and called one eAmning. 

4703. Q. Were you iuAited by him to come ? 

A. I went there Avitli my sister ; I used to Ausit there about once in 
two Aveeks, sometimes more, sometimes less. 

4704. Q. Hoav did you manage to represent both the applicant and the 
witness when you procured naturalization x^apers in the court ? 

A. I AAmuld go around and appear as witness ; after I had sworn and 
answered questions, I would go around and x^resent myself as the ax^x^b- 
cant and get the x^^^xAers; they would not call the applicant’s name; 
sometimes it AAmuld be called, but most frequently not; one of the mes¬ 
sengers of the court used to call the name ; Avhenever it was called I 
Avould hand the ax)plication to one of the officers and he Avould hand 
it to the judge ; if there was no crowd there I would go up to the officer 
myself and hand it to him ; he sat beside the judge; he would then call 
my name as witness, and lay the paper before the judge ; the judge Avould 
then swear me. 

4705. Q. Would there be an apxdicant there then? 

A. Sometimes there would and sometimes not. 

470G. Q. Did the judge eAmr ask you Avhere the applicant was ? 

A. No, sir ; sometimes he would call the apx>licant’s name, and some¬ 
times not. 

4707. Q. Hoav many times did you go there to get out apx)lications 
Avithout the apidicants being present ? 

A. A good mail}' times ; x^erhaps between 50 and 100 times. 

30 T 


466 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4708. Q. Wlieii you went there 50 or 100 times did the judge always 
only call the witness and never the applicant 

A. Yes, sir; I would wait about 15 minutes and see how the business 
was running; if I saw he Avas calling the api^licants’ names 1 would not 
present my papers ; if not, I would. 

p^ 4709. Q. To what extent did you see parties get papers without the 
ai)plicants being there ? 

A. I have seen it almost every day j I have seen it also in Judge Bar¬ 
nard’s court. 

4710. Q. By what names haA^e you been known for the last five years ? 

A. Always by the name of Henry Lyle. 

4711. Q. Have you been on Blackwell's island ? 

A. No, sir. 

4712. Q. HaA^e you caw been in State prison ? 

A. No, sir. 

4713. Q. Hoav did you get at the number of these applications you got 
through ? 

A. I calculated I got about twenty through a day; I commenced 
about the 15th of September and kept it up until the end of October. 

4714. Q. How much did you get for all this business? 

A. I do not know; I spent my money as fast as I made it. 

4715. Q. How did you spend it ? 

A. By treating fellows, paying my board and lodging, buying my 
clothes, &c. 

4716. Q. Any other way ? 

A. No, sir; I made lots of money, but spent it right aAvay. 

4717. Q. You say you treated the clerks of the courts ; to Avhat extent 
did you treat them, and who were they ? 

A. I do not know; I would ask out the messengers and officers of the 
courts. 

4718. Q. How many did you treat ? 

A. I treated tAvo or three in the superior court. 

4719. Q. How often did you treat them ? 

A. Sometimes two or three times a day, and sometimes not at all; 
I would take them to No. 33 Chatham street, and sometimes to No. 2 
Centre street. 

4720. Q. How many of the clerks in either of these courts do you knoAV 
by name ? 

A. I only know one clerk; he is in the superior court, and his name 
is James C. Dana. 

4721. Q. Hid you treat him ? 

A. No, sir, I did not. 

4722. Q. Hid you tell him what business you were engaged in ? 

A. They ail knew hoAv I Avas doing the business ; I ncA-er told any of 
the clerks, they all knew about it. 

4723. Q. Hid you tell the judge ? 

A. No, sir. 

4724. Q. Hid you tell any of the messengers, bailiffs, or clerks of the 
courtroom ? 

A. No, sir. 

4725. Q. Hid you tell any of these numerous persons for whom you 
got applications through that you Avere committing peijury in getting 
papers through for them in that Avay ? 

A. No, sir. 

4726. Q. Hidn’t you tell them that you were committing a crime when 
you got out these papers for them ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


467 


A. I told tliem I was working for tlie democratic party. 

4727. Q. Didn’t you tell the parties that you were committing a crime 
in doing this for tlieni ^^ 

A. No, sir; I did not tell the parties. 

4728. Q. You say you were serving the democratic party in doing this 
business? 

A. Y'es, sir. 

4729. (^. Did the democratic party secure your services? 

A. No, sir. 

4730. Q. Your services were volunteered, then? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4731. (^. AYliile you were serving the democratic party it appears that 
in a financial aspect you were serving yourself too ? , 

A. That is it. 

4732. Q. You would assume, in getting out these naturalization papers, 
the name of the person who was on the application? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4733. Q. How many times did you do this? 

A. I could not say. 

4734. Q. How many papers did you get from Mr. Austin Pettit ? 

A. I got about 10. 

4735. Q. When did you get them? 

A. About the loth of October. 

4736. Q. What did you give to Mr. Pettit for them? 

A. I gave liim nothing. I gave him the names tor them, and he got 
the papers out for me. I gave him the names on the steps of the supreme 
court about 12 o’clock in the day, and I got the papers that evening in 
a liquor store on Thirty-second street, I think. 

4737. Q. Do you know any of these men whose names you gave Pettit? 

A. Some of them I did; others I did not. 

4738. Q. What were the names ? 

A. Owen Gallaglier was one of them. I think there was another man 
by the name of Smith; another one by the name of Patrick Glenn; I do 
not know where he lives. Those are all the names that I can remember. 

4739. Q. Did they request you to give their names to Pettit ? 

A. No, sir. 

4740. Q. Did they request you to procure the i)apers for them? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4741. Q. How many tickets did you get from Judge Gale? 

A. I got tickets from him two difierent times. There was no trouble 
whatever in getting these tickets; anybody could get them. You could 
get them from any prominent man of Tammany Hall. 

4742. Q. Do you consider yourself a prominent man of Tammany Hall ? 

A. I train with the anti-Tammany men, and I belong to the democratic 

Union party of tliis city. The chief office of this party is Masonic Hall, 
Tldrteenth street. 

4743. Q. Wlien did Judge McCunn tell you that if any registers 
refused to register the names you could say he would attend to them? 

A. He told me so in Thirty-first street one evening. I met him in the 
street awd told him that some of my men were unable to register. He 
said if that was the case, let him know and he wonld compel the regis¬ 
ters to register them. That is all I said to him on that occasion. 

4744. Did he tell you how he would make them register ? 

A. No, sir. 

4745. Q. Did you ever call on him to make the registers do their duty ? 

A. No. sir. 


468 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


4746. Q. Who called on yon in the first i)lace to ask yon to come here 
and testify? 

A. I was talking with a Mr. TJtley, AAdio lives at the corner of Forty- 
first street and Seventh avenne, day before yesterday, and he told me 
I had better come here. 

4747. Q. Was that the only man? 

A. There had been other parties talking with me abont it; one of 
them is William Monigan. 

4748. Q. Who else? 

A. That is all that I remember now. 

4749. Q. How mnch have yon been offered for coming here? 

A. Not one cent. 

4750. Q. What protection was offered to yon? 

A. The law was read to me; that was all. 

4751. Q. Hid yon ever see the law before it was read to yon by Mr. 
Haven port? 

A. No, sir. 

4752. Q. Hid yon eAW see anything in the papers in regard to it? 

A. I cannot say. ^ 

4753. Q. Where does James Reynolds live? 

A. Tenth avenne between Twenty-sixth and Twenty-seventh streets. 
He is a stone-cntter by trade. Owen Gallagher lives in Greenpoint. 

4754. Q. How did yon come on the 21st of October to sign the papers 
of these two men for naturalization as a witness ? Hid yon sign their 
names to the papers? 

A. No, sir; I made ont their papers. 

4755. Q. Were yon the witness in each case? 

A. I was not. 

4756. Q. Who Avas their witness? 

A. They did not haA e any Avitnesses. I made ont their papers and 
ga\"e them to the men; in the afternoon the men returned and gaA^e me 
the certificates. 

4757. Q. Who was their witness? 

A. Henry Lyons is the name I pnt down on the paper. 

4758. Q. Yon haA*e said, in reference to these applications, that nobody 
was sworn at all; hoAV do yon know that? 

A. I knoAv it from this fact, that the supreme court was not in session 
on that day between those hours naturalizing parties. I handed the 
papers to Pettit abont 12 o’clock, and abont 6 or 7 o’clock in the evening 
I received the certificates. The supreme court did not commence to 
naturalize nntil 7 o’cdock in the eA^ening. I was in the snpreme conrt all 
that day hearing a trial. 

4759. Q. Where did yon get these certificates? 

A. The^^ were given to me in a liquor store in Ninth aA^enne, about 
7 o’clock. 

4760. Q. Ho yon knoAv Pettit personally ? 

A. I knoAV him by sight only. 

4761. Q. To Avhat extent did yon go into conrt and swear as applicant 
when yon Avere not an applicant? How many times did yon take the 
oath of allegiance for the applicant? 

A. I cannot tell. I may have done it probably a hundred times. 

4762. Q. In such chses did yon take the oath of Avitness as well as that 
of applicant ? 

A. In the snpreme conrt as a general thing they did not call the wit¬ 
ness’s name; they only called the applicant to take'the oath of allegiance. 
In the superior conrt the witness would be called often. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 469 

4763. Q. In wliat proportion of this number of GOO to 1,000 cases did 
yon act as witness as well as applicant 

A. Maybe between 50 and 100 times. 

4764. Q. Did yon ever do so before Judge Garvin! 

A. Ho, sir. 

4765. Q. Judge Jones, Eobertson, or Barbour ! 

A. Heither of them. 

4766. Q. How many persons did yon ever see sworn in a batch! 

A. Probably from 10 to 20 in the superior court. I have seen as many 
as 100 called up by Judge Barnard in the supreme court. They would 
be called up by the officers, and the oath and the papers would be read 
to them, and the names called off from the papers, and all of them were 
sworn together. 

4767. Q. To what extent did McCaffrey carry on this business! 

A. He carried it on to a very heavy extent. 

4768. Q. To what extent did John Gallagher! 

A. Very largely. Gallagher told me that he was in the street depart¬ 
ment. That is the only way that I know it. 

By the Chairman : 

4769. Q. State if you can what proportion of persons for whom you 
procured certiffcates of naturalization was on blanks for applicants who 
came to the United States under 18 years of age. 

A. They were all except two or three. 

4770. Q. State whether any persons for whom you made out applica¬ 
tions did really come to the United States under 18 years of age! 

A. Perhaps a few of them did. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4771. Q. To whom did you first disclose the fact that you were engaged 
in this business ! 

A. To Mr. Utley. 

4772. Q. Do you mean to say that Mr. Utley wanted you to come here 
and testify falsely ! 

A. Ho, sir. 

4773. Q. Among the applicants for whom you procured certificates of 
naturalization on the ground that they came to this country under 18 
years of age were there any very old men ! 

A. Yes, sir; a great many. 

4774. Q. Has any man tried by any means whatever to induce you to 
come here and swear to what is not true ! 

A. Ho, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4775. Q. Of this 600 to 1,000 persons whom you served in this way 
how many can you now name ! 

A. I cannot recollect but a very few: James Eeynolds, Twenty-sixth 
street and Tenth avenue; Patrick Glenn, Twenty-seventh street and 
Hintli avenue; Owen Gallagher, Greenpoint; Michael Davis, Twenty-' 
seventh street and Hinth avenue; Patrick Duffey, Twenty-third street; 
James Murphy, I do not know where he lives; William Eedmond, 237 
Hinth avenue; Patrick McDonner, Thirty-first street and Hinth avenue; 
Patrick Clancy, Thirty-first street and Hiuth avenue. These are all that 
I remember now. 

4776. Q. How many of them indicated to you Avhen they applied to 
you that they wanted to be naturalized contrary to law! 


470 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. The majority of tliem told me they were not entitled to be natu¬ 
ralized. I would question them as to when they came to this country, 
how old they were, &c. I wanted to know all the points, because it the 
judge got strict, I could answer the questions. 

4777. Q. Did you ever see the judge tear up any papers ? 

A. Yes, siiq I have seen Judge McOunn tear up papers—those that 
he would find delivered to parties that he had naturalized once before— 
and the applicants he would send away. I have seen Judge Kobertson 
tear up 20 in an hour. I have seen Judge McOunn tear up quite a num¬ 
ber of pai)ers. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4778. Q. Did you ever see any of these men who were engaged in this 
business in court with you ? 

A. Yes, sirj often. 


NTew York, Thursday^ January 7, 18G9. 

John H. White sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

4779. I reside in this city; have lived here for over 20 years; am a 
lawyer by iirofession; was a witness before the grand jury of the court 
of oyer and terminer in the month of November last. A. Oakey Hall, 
our xiresent mayor, was then district attorney. I was summoned to 
appear before the grand jury, and was examined by Mr. Hall. 

4780. Q. Were you acquainted Avith any members of tlie grand jury? 

A. I was personally acquainted with more than half of them. 

4781. Q. With what particular party do they act? 

A. They were, Avith but one exception, all prominent and leading dem¬ 
ocrats. 

4782. Q. Can you state if any indictments were found by the grand 
jury for illegal A'oting or fraud in connection with the elections of this 
city ? 

A. I newer heard that any one was found. 

4783. Q. State Avhat you know, if anything, of evidence of fraud being 
produced to the district attorney or to the grand jury in reference to 
illegal A'oting. 

A. I Avas asked by the district attorney whether I knew of any frauds 
being ])erpetrated at the late election. 1 said I did; that I kncAv of the 
fact that false naturalization iiapers were obtained; that many persons 
voted illegally; and that I had evidence of that kind in my possession 
Avhich I could produce. One of the jurymen remarked that I was not 
called for that purpose; that if they needed me, they would let me 
knoAV. They then requested me to retire, and told me that they had got 
through Avith me. 

4784. Q. State AAdiether steps were taken, AAuth your knowledge, dther 
by the district attorney or the grand jury, to iuA^estigate illegal A^oting. 

A. I newer receiA^ed any notice from the grand jury. I told them that 
I would be ready at any time to give them information, but they never 
called on me. 

4785. Can you state what connection any of the members of the grand 
jury had Avith Tammany Hall ? 

A. The foreman of the p\and jury Avas Mr. Charles H. HasAvell. He 
is a prominent member of the democratic party; another member was 
John J. Bradley, one of the sachems of Tammany Hall, and State sen¬ 
ator; there Avas also Morgan L. Harris, Henry D. Belter, Patrick G. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


471 


Maloney, William Withers, Morgan Jones, that I noticed at the time as 
prominent members of the democratic party. 

478G. Q. State to what extent, within yonr knowledge, i>ersons have 
been convicted or punished for illegal voting or any frauds upon elec¬ 
tion in this city for the last three years. 

xl. I do not know of a single instance. I have known of the arrest 
of i)arties, but they were subsequently discharged. 

4787. Q. Can you state where the register’s books of the last presi¬ 
dential election were kept ? 

A. They were kept, of course, by the registers until the registry 
closed. As a member of the Committee to x)revent fraudulent voting I 
procured copies of the registry books to be made. We obtained copies 
of the lists of most of the districts. I issued a letter requesting the 
registers as they registered,the names to make a duplicate, so that we 
could have, for the use of the committee of which I was a member, 
coi)ies of all the registry lists. 

4788. Q. Is there any law requiring the registry books to be kept 
secret or x)rohibiting cox)ies to be made of them ? 

A. The law requires that the registry book shall be made public, and 
that a copy shall be posted up at the place where the polls are to be 
held, for x)ublic inspection. 

4780. Q. There was no illegality or fraudulent purx)ose in obtaining 
these coihes of the registry books that you speak of? 

A. Ho, sir. These papers were obtained for the express purpose of 
guarding against frauds, if jiossible. The trouble was, that in the time 
intervening between the close of registration on Saturday night at 9 
o’clock and election day on the following Tuesday, it was utterly impos¬ 
sible to make a canvass to ascertain whether registration had been made 
correctly or not. 

4700. Q State if any original registration books had been returned 
to x>olice headquarters as early as tlie 30th of October. 

A. It could not have been. It would have been utterly imx^ossible if 
the law was carried out. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4701. Q. Do you mean to say that the members of the grand jury 
either violated the law, or corrux^tly, or from interested motives, failed 
to perform their duties as members of it ? 

A. I do not mean to make any charge of corrux^tion against the grand 
jury in any respect. I recognized among them x>€‘>rsonal acquaintances 
and friends. I did not know who composed the grand jury before I 
went into the room; nor did I know for what x^niq^ose they wanted me 
until I was examined by the district attorney. Most of the jury are 
prominent, leading x>oliticians, members of the democratic party. Many 
of them, I think, are high-toned gentlemen. 

4702. Q. Do you mean to say that the district attorney neglected his 
duties in the x)Rnishment of crime through the agency of the grand 
jury ? 

A. I have me^dy stated what took xilace, so far as I know. 

4703. Q. Do you know any motive that would justify you in making 
such a statement as to throw doubt ux>on the fidelity of the grand jury. 

A. I Avas examined in reference to what took x^lace at the Fifth AA^enue 
Hotel in regard to the books and x>axAers of the republican x>ftrty. That 
was the first intimation I had upon the subject ux)on Avhich I was to be 
examined. The district attorney then asked me if I knew of frauds 
being x)erx)etrated at the last election ? I told him I did; that I had 


472 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


evidence in my possession wliicli I could produce. One of tlie grand 
jury, and I think Mr. Hall also, stated that they were not iii>on that sub¬ 
ject ; if they wanted me, they would let me know. 

4794. Q Do you mean to say that you could have stated at that time 
facts within your personal knowledge relative to fraud f 

A. Yes, sir—from my own knowledge. I had in my i)OSsession at 
the time fraudulent naturalization papers* 

4795. Q. How do you know they were fraudulent! 

A. They were papers surrendered to me by parties who had obtained 
them. I would have given them to the grand jury, Avith the names of 
the parties. 

4790. Q. You say no indictments haA^e been found that you know of 
against persons engaged in illegal AU>ting; idease state Avhether you 
know of any strong republican community in New York finding an 
indictment and punishing persons for ofiences against the election laws? 

A. I think there have been some prosecutions in the interior of the 
State; I think one in Livingston county. 

4797. Q. During the time that you had a republican gOA^ernment in this 
city do you know of any vigorous prosecution for violations of election 
laAvs ? 

A. My attention was not directed to the subject at that time. 

4798. Q. Do you knoAvthat the grand juries impannelled in the United 
States court in this city are composed almost entirely of radicals ? 

A. I never noticed that they had any partisan or party direction. 

4799. Q. Did you ever knoAv of a democrat serving on the grand jury 
of the federal court ? 

A. I know some while Isaiah Eynders was marshal. 

4800. Q. Do you know of an^^ since Kobert Murray has been marshal? 

A. Yes, sir; I knoAV Andre av Clark, on the present grand jury; that is 

all I can recollect at present. 

4801. Q. What are your i^olitics ? 

A. I am a republican. 

4802. Q. What relation did you sustain to the party in the last election ? 

A. I am a member of the general committee, as it is called. The com¬ 
mittee that met at the Fifth Avenue Hotel was not the general commit¬ 
tee j it was simx)ly a committee of citizens. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4803. Q. Do you knoAv a man by the name of Henry Lyle ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4804. Q. Have you had any conversation witli him with regard to his 
coming here ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4805. Q. Did you offer him any inducement to come here to testify ? 

A. No, sir. 

4806. Q. Do you knoAV of any inducements being offered to him to 
come here ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4807. Q. What did you say to him ? 

A. I had heard that there aa^s a man by the name of Lyle who had 
been a good deal mixed up in procnring naturalization papers. I was 
not acquainted Avith him personally; I found, Iioavca er, a man by the 
name of Utley who did knoAV him, and he brought Lyle to me yesterday. 
Lyle stated to me, after some preliminary questions, that he Avas Avilling 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


473 


to testify as to ^Yllat he knew, provided he should not render himself 
liable to arrest. I said that if he went there as a witness and told the 
truth he should be protected. He gave me some general statements in 
regard to what took place, so far as he was concerned, in respect to the 
procurement of naturalization certilicates. I told him if he came here I 
thought he would be protected by the committee if he was made a 
witness. 

4808. Q. Yon gave him such advice as a lawyer % 

A. I gave him such advice. 

4809. Q. What was the basis of it ? 

A. The basis was that I knew that there was a provision of the statute 
providing that when a party is summoned to testify, the testimony 
shall not be used against him in a criminal prosecution. 

4810. Q. And suppose he swears to a lie ? 

A. Then 1 suppose he would subject himself to the pains and penalties 
of perjury. 

4811. Q. Suppose in his testimony he should render himself amenable 
to the statutes in the State of New York, would an act of Congress pro¬ 
tect him ? 

A. I do not know whether it would or not j I merely advised that he 
would not be prosecuted under the United States laws. He told me 
he could identify his papers, state how he managed his business, &c. 

4812. Q. Did he tell you how many such papers he got out f 

A. I think he said some hundreds. 

4813. Q. Who is Mr. Utley? 

A. He was formerly an inspector in the custom-house, and lives in my 
^ucinity; I believe he is not in business at present. I understood that 
he was removed from the custom-house. He is a high-toned gentleman 
and a man of strict probity. 

4814. Q. Do you know anything about Mr. Lyle’s character? 

A. 1 had made some inquiries in regard to this Mr. Lyle. I should 
think he is what is termed here a Bohemian—that is, a man who could 
adapt himself to almost anything to get a living. He had been a reporter 
on one of the papers for some time. He has a brother Avho is a lawyer 
in this city. 

4815. Q. What reference did you make to IMr. Utley in regard to com¬ 
pensation to Lyle? 

A. There has been no assurance given in reference to compensation by 
any i^erson to my knowledge. 

IsTew York, Thursday^ January 7, 1869. 

Charles Eeilly sworn and examined. 

, To the Chairman : 

4816. I live at 169 Houston street. I have lived in this city 20 years. 
Ill regard to the process of registering names as voters more than once 
at the last presidential election, I would say that there were gangs of 
repeaters who would go around from one registry place to another and 
register different names. I went around with a gang and registered my 
name I should think three or four times. I voted four times at the 
last presidential election in this city—once in the 6th ward, once in the 
8th ward, and twice in an np-town district; I voted each time under a 
different name. We would go around in squads of 20 or 30; there 
would be a man Avho would lead us, wlio would furnish us with slips 
of paper containing names and residences upon which we were to vote; 
we would go up to the polls, give our name and residence; the register 


474 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


would look on his hook, find the name there, then take the ballot and 
deposit it in the box; the other member's of the gang would furnish 
names in the same way. 

4817. Q. What ticket did yon vote ^ 

A. The democratic ticket, I believe. I should think there were about 
200 persons in the place np-town where we went to get our tickets j there 
was quite a large room full. 

4818. Q. State at whose request yon engaged in this business. 

A. I should not like to state. / 

4810. Q. Can you state the wards in which these other parties voted? 

A. Some voted in the Gth ward, 8th ward, 14th ward, and a good 
many up in Harlem; they did most of the voting up there because the 
registers were all right and there was no challenging; Axe could vote and 
then turn roimd and come back and Amte again at the same polling place. 

4820. Q. State if you, or any of the parties with you, Avere challenged, 
so far as you know. 

A. I saAY nobody challenged or sworn in. 

4821. Q. State if any officer of this city had any knowledge that this 
work was going on. 

A. I would not like to answer that question. 

By Mr. Boss: 

4822. What business do you follow ? 

A. I am a butcher. I am out of business at present; been out of busi¬ 
ness a couple of years, I should think. Have not been doing any busi¬ 
ness for a year. 

4823. Q. Hoav liaA^e you made your living ? 

A. I liA^e on the interest of my money. 

Q. Have you got your money loaned out ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4824. Q. How much do you get per annum? 

(Question objected to by Mr. Hopkins and objection sustained.) 

4825. Q. To whom have you loaned this money ? 

(Objected to by Mr. Hopkins and objection sustained.) 

4820. Q. Hoaa" much money have you loaned out ? 

(Objected to by Mr. Hopkins and objection sustained.) 

4827. Q. State the number of men that were with you and their 
names. 

A. I do not know the names of any of them. 

4828. Q. Hoav much did you get for this business ? 

A. Not a cent. 

4829. Q. Who advised you to go into the business ? 

A. A friend of mine. 

4830. Q. What is his name? 

A. I would not like to state. 

4831. Q. Does this man IHe in this city? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4832. Q. Does he hold any office? 

A. No, sir; not that I knoAV of. 

4833. Q. What street does he live in ? 

A. I do not know. 

4834. Q. Was he running for any office ? 

A. I do not know. 

4835. Q. Hoav long have you been acquainted Avith him ? 

A. Five or ten years. 

4830. Q. Did he make you any promise that he would give vou any¬ 
thing ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


475 


A. Xo, vsir. 

4837. Q. Wiiat iiiducecl you to go into tliis business ? 

A. He was a friend of mine. 

4838. Q. Are you a gambler ! 

A. NTo, sir. I used to gamble a little, and got broke. 

4831). Q. Have you ever been indicted for any offence f 
A. I was indicted for assault and battery, but the charge was Avith- 
drawn before it was brought up. 

4840. Q. Did you have a rendezvous Avhere the repeaters met before 
they Avent to Amte ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4841. Q. Where is it ? 

A. It is on Second aA-enue, up-towii somewhere. 

4842. Q. Do you know A\^ho kept the house ? 

A. I do not. 

4843. Q. Did you knoAV that you were committing a criminal offence 
when you did that ? 

A. I have no doubt that I did. 

4844. - Q. Did you have to SAvear in your Amte ? 

A. No, sir. 

4845. Q. Under what names did you vote ? 

A. I haAm forgotten now. 

4840. Q. ^ Do you know the person that gaA^e you the ballots to Amte 
upon ? 

A. I would not like to mention his name; he is the same man that 
induced me to go into it. 

1847. Q. Are you a Am ter ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have been since I was 18 years of age. 

4848. Q. Where were you born ? 

A. In Ireland. 

4849. Q. How did you get to be a Amter when you were 18 years of age 
A* I Avas in the fire department and in the army. 

4850. Q. How long were you in the army 
A. Two years. 

4851. Q. Are members of the fire department authorized to Amte at 
18 years of age ? 

A. Nobody objected to my having a vote, and I supposed I had a 
right to Amte. I was in the army, and eAmrybody Amted there. 

4852. Q. In what army Avere you in 1 
A. In the army of the Potomac. 

4853. Q. Were you ever naturalized ? 

A. I serAmd in the army, and I supposed that naturalized me. 

4854. Q. Have you any parents? 

A. My father is dead; my mother liAms in Brooklyn. 

4855. Q. Where does she live ? 

A. In Atlantic street; I do not know the number. PrcAdous to that 
she liAmd in Hicks street; I do not know the number of the house she 
lived in there. She has lived in Brooklyn 20 years. Before she lived 
in Hicks street she lived at 12 Amity. 

4856. Q. When did she live at 12 Amity ? 

A. I do not knoAV ; it is many years ago. 

Neav Y^'ork, Thursday, January 7, 1869. 
Egbert Utley sworn arid examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4857. Question. State if you have ever seen Henry Lyle. 


476 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Answer. I liaA^e. 

4858. Q. State wliat reward you offered liim as an inducement to 
testify before this committee. 

A. I offered him no pecuniary reward. 

4859. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A- About four years. 

4800. Q. Do you know his reputation for truth and veracity in the 
neighborhood where lie resides 

A. I am not well acquainted with his neighbors j I could not tell wliat 
his reputation is Avith them. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4801. Q. How did you come to know him ? 

A. He Avas a messenger in the custom-house at the time I was employed 
there; he Avas removed from his position there to make room for some¬ 
body else. 

4802. Q. How did you get out of the custom-house ? 

A. I was remoA ed too. 

4803. Q. What is your business now? 

A. 1 am out of employment; liaA^e been since the 1st of December. 

4804. Q. Where do you liA^e ? 

A. Ko. 575 Seventh aA^enue. 

4805. Q. With Avhat political party do you act ? 

A. The republican party. 

4800. Q. You say you did not promise Lyle any reward ? 

A. NTo. 

4807. Q. Did you not tell him it Avould be to his advantage to testify 
here? 

A. I told him he had better come here to testify to what he kneAV ; we 
had some general conversation ; I asked him if he was Availing to gi\"e 
testimony as to what he kneAv; he said he would if he thought he Avould 
not be locked up for it; I told him I thought there would be no danger 
of that. ' 

4808. Q. Did you tell him that if he committed perjmy against the 
people of the State of Kew York he aa- ould not be locked up ? 

A. The word perjury was not used. 

4809. Q. Did you read him the laAv in regard to testimony before com¬ 
mittees ? 

A. NTo, sir. 

4870. Q. Did you tell him to go anywhere and get satisfaction on that 
point ? 

A. I told him he had probably better go and see Judge White; I went 
with him to Judge White’s office. Judge White told him he did not 
think there was any probability of his being locked up because of his 
testimony. He did not read the laAV to him in my presence. 

4871. Q. AYhat is Lyle’s character generally for truth and veracity? 

A. I think it is \ery good ; I have not had any reason to doubt it. 

4872. Q. Do you not kuoAV from reputation and the knowledge you 
have of this man that he might be called Avhat is commonly denominated 
a Bohemian—a man equally ready for money to serve anybody or do 
anything. 

A. I should judge not from the fact that all he has done in these 
election frauds has been to subserA^e the interests of only one ]Aafty? 

4873. Q. Do you not think that he is noAV pretty Augorously seiwing 
the interests of the other party? 

A. I do not think he is doing so in any party sense. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


477 


New York, Thursday^ January 7, 18G0. 

Henry Lyle recalled and examined. 

By tlie Chairman : 

4874. Question. State if yon liave seen Judge McCann recently j if so, 
where and when. 

Answer. I just saw him a moment ago in this room. 

By jVIr. Kerr : 

4875. Q. Where have you been living for the past several years! 

A. I live in Thirty third street. Since I have got out of tlie custom¬ 
house I have been sleeping around in several jdaces; I now live with my 
sister, Mrs. Samuel Watson, 241 West Twenty-first street. 

4870. Q. Where did you live before thisj did you live on Thirty-first 
street! 

A. I do not remember. 

4877. Q. How many times were you put under arrest by Judge McCunn 
in his court during tlie month of October! 

A. Never, sir; 1 was drunk in court several times and he would not 
swear me or take my paiiers. 

4878. Q. Were you in the habit of going there drunk! 

A. I would go there under the influence of liquor a good many times j 
1 think he only took my xiapers away twice ) it certainly was not a half 
a dozen times. . 

4879. Q. What did he do with the papers when he refused to swear 
you ! 

A. He handed them back to me and I kept them until I got sober. 

New York, Thursday^ January 7, 1869. 

Peter Cook sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4880. Question. What position did you hold last fall in this city ! 

Answer. I was a member of the republican naturalization committee, 

and opened an,office in this city. No. 25 Chambers street, for the pur¬ 
pose of facilitating aiiplicants for naturalization in getting their papers. 
That is the only office we had in this city. The various ward clubs and 
associations would send parties to us and we would make out their 
aiiplications. 

4881. Q. Did you use any tickets ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

4882. Q. What kind of tickets were they ! 

A. They were printed tickets directing the cleik of the court to natur¬ 
alize so and so, and charge it to the account of myself. I signed the 
tickets. We filled out the names of the persons we naturalized in the 
ticket so that they were not negotiable, and could only be used by the 
party to whom they were given. 

4883. Q. In pursuance of your business here, at No. 25 Chambers 
street, as a member of the republican naturalization committee, you had 
frequent opportunities to observe the manner in which this business was 
done in court! 

A. Yes, sir; I was in and out of the court all the time. 

4884. Q. Did you often go into both superior and supreme courts! 

A. I was only in the supreme court once or twice j but in the superior 
court I was there continually. 

4885. Q. Who seemed to be doing the most naturalization in the supe¬ 
rior court! 


478 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I think Judge McCiinn did the most. 

4886. Did any of the judges of the superior court hold night ses¬ 
sions ^ 

A. NTot that I recollect. 

4887. Q. State how the naturalization business was done. 

A. Most of the business was transacted before Judge McOnnn. Judge 
McOnnn could despatch business quicker than almost any other judge. 
He would question the applicant shaiidy and vigorously. 1 have not 
observed any irregularities of any kind on the part of any of the judges 
in the uaturalizatioii business. I have often observed that the judges 
were deceived. Parties would frequently come to me to have applica¬ 
tions for naturalization made out without any witnesses at all. I would 
question them and ask them where their witness was, and they said 
they had none, and would want me to furnish them with one. I would 
send them away and tell them that I didn’t do that business. They 
would often go to other jdaces to get witnesses and go before the court 
and get their applications through. 

4888. Q. How did you come to know that fact 1 

A. It was the common report. I remember two or three cases in par¬ 
ticular—parties who came to me—of ])arties I had sent away, whom I 
met afterwards up in the City Hall with their certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion. They told me they had picked up some man on the corner to act 
as witness for them. 

4889. Q. Did you not inform the court that these frauds were being 
perpetrated—that these men were being naturalized improperly f 

A. I told Judge McCunn of it at one time, and he told me if I ever 
knew of such a case to let him know and he would put a stop to it. 
but 1 could not watch the court to detect these parties. 

4890. Q. These men that came to you to be naturalized without a wit¬ 
ness and whom you sent away, were they republicans ? 

A. I do not know whether they were republicans or not. 

4891. Q. Did anybody ever come to you that were not republicans'? 

A. AVhen any person applied to me the first question I would ask was 

how long he had been in the country j second, the name of the Avitness; 
third, Avho recommended him to the i)lace. If the person who recom¬ 
mended him was a republican I would naturalize the man. When these 
men that I speak of applied, as soon as they told me they had no wit¬ 
nesses, I asked them no more questions and sent them aAvay. 

4892. Q. You say you never saw any irregularities on the part of the 
judges or clerks of the courts in the business of naturalization ? 

A. No, sir; and I liaA^e been very shaiq) in watching this business. 

4893. State from your observation whether it Avas practicable for 
any person to appear both as witness and applicant in the same case. 

A. Not A^ery well. 

4894. Q. Do you think it possible for a person to be naturalized in 
these courts Avithout having with him somebody as a witness ? 

A. In Judge Barnard’s court and in Judge McOunn’s court, two men 
were always there, one as applicant, and one as Avitness. In fact it was 
a perfect system for AAutness and applicant to appear both together 
before the judge. 

4895. Q. State from your obserAvation in connection Avith this business, 
whether it was possible at all for one man to be both applicant and wit¬ 
ness in one case. 

A. It might possibly happen when a large crowd Avas there that per¬ 
sons would appear before the judge as witness, be SAvorn in, ansAver the 
questions, and then dodge around in the croAvd to the clerk’s desk and 
take the oath of allegiance. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


479 


4897. Q. Toil say the system was for the applicant and witness to he 
called together and come in together 5 do yon know of any instance in 
which the aiiplicant and witness were not called together? 

A. 1 never knew an instance. 

4808. Q. What question would the clerk ask the witness? 

A. “ How long have yon known the applicant ? Where do yon live ? 
Where does the applicant live ? How long has he been in this country ?” 

4899. Q. Would it be x>ossible for the witness to go in without the 
applicant ? 

A. Not unless the judge was a party to it. 

4900. Q. In other words, you think it could not be done ? 

A.‘No, sir, I do not. In almost every case I observed the judge look 
for the principal. 

By the Chairman : 

4901. Q. State if you were in Judge McCunn’s court at night. 

A. No, sir, I was not. 

4902. Q. Were you in the supreme court at all in the night ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4903. Q. How often ? 

A. Three or four times. 

4904. Q. How often were you in the superior court day-times ? 

A. Every day; three or four times. 

4905. Q. How long did you stay at one time ? 

A. I generally only stayed a couple of minutes. 

4900. Q. How long did you stay in the sui^reme court ? 

A. Only a few minutes j just looked in and saw how business was 
going on. 

4907. Q. State whether you kept a list at your office of the names of 
persons by whom applications were made for naturalization each day 5 
if so, have you it with you ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have the list with me. 

4908. Q. State the total number of persons for whom apidications 
were made to be naturalized through your office ? 

A. We naturalized 2,085. 

4909. Q. How many were of persons who came to the United States 
under 18 years of age ? 

A. Twelve hundred and thirty-seven. 

4910. Q. How many had declared their intentions previously to become 
citizens I 

A. Five hundred and forty-nine. 

4911. Q. How many were soldiers ? 

A. Two hundred and ninety-nine. 

4912. Q. Will you xiroduce to the committee and identify the list of 
names of the apidicants who got their pai^ers through your office ? 

A. Yes, sir; here is a list which is signed by Joseph Spangenberg, 
Herman Wien, Albert Seifert, clerks of the committee. 

4913. Q. Hid you remain in the supreme court long enough at any 
one time to see xiersons go through with the xirocess of naturalization ? 

A. No, sir ; 1 only noticed it was done in a hurried manner. 

4914. Q. Can you state whether the oath was administered to one 
X^erson at a time, or to a large number of x)ersons at the same time ? 

A. Generally to a large number of x>^^'tsous. They would stand 
around in a groux> and the oath would be administered to renounce their 
allegiance to the kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the King of 
Prussia or the Emperor of Austria, as the case might be; it was all 
stated in one oath. 


480 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr : 

4915. Q. You do not know how many persons that voted the republi¬ 
can ticket at the last presidential election were naturalized without your 
assistance^ 

A. There were some two or three that were naturalized through the 
democratic office. 

491G. Q. Do you know how many persons outside undertook to get for 
the republican party any business of naturalization ? 

A. Tlie whole business of naturalization of the republican party was 
concentrated in our office. 

4917. Q. IIow do you know that persons outside did not put persons 
through the naturalization process in behalf of the republican party ^ 

A. I would have known it if it had been done j a republican might 
once in a while get through the democratic office^ but this could not be 
done to any extent. 

4918. Q. How do you know that there were no other republican offices 
in this city ? 

A. I know there was no other republican office or branch office in this 
city; I would certainly have known it, if there were. I had all the tick¬ 
ets issued by the republicans in payment of the fees of the clerks, and 
I know all the republican tickets came through my office. The clerk 
received no money at all—only red and white tickets. 

4919. Q. How do you know that there was no money paid ? 

A. I have been told so by the clerks of the court. 

4920. Q. Who told you so ? 

A. Mr. Meeks told me so. 

4921. Q. Who else? 

A. The clerk in the trial term of the superior court; I forget his name. 
I w^ould not be jmsitive whether anybody else told me so or not. 

4922. Q. Was it not possible for a republican to get naturalized in a 
democratic office or on democratic tickets ? 

A. Ko, sir; democrats would soon have discovered it and stopped it, 

4923. Q. Did they discover these few men that went away from you 
and went to a democratic office ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4924. Q. Did you have any professional witnesses around you? 

A. No, sir ; I cleared them out. One man came to me and brought a 
letter to me from “ an earnest republican,” asking for a place in my office. 
I told him that we then had enough clerks, but probably we might employ 
him hunting up lost certificates. ‘‘ No,” said he, I want to be employed 
as a witness.” I soon sent him out, and had nothing whatever to do with 
him. 

4925. Q. Do you know the fact that there were men employed as wit¬ 
nesses ? 

A. I do not know that they were employed, of my own knowledge. 1 
know that men hang around naturalization offices and the City Hall, and 
offer their services to any person as witnesses. They are well-known 
characters. 


New York, Thursday^ January 7, 18G9. 
George Johnson sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

492G. I live at the Liberty Hotel in this city. 1 know where the Jack- 
son Club of this city is located; it is located at the corner of Thirty- 
second street and Second avenue. I staid in that club-room all night 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


481 


the niglit previous to election. There were about 75 or 80 persons in the 
room at the timej about 50, 1 should judge, staid all night. The next 
morning I went to four or five difierent districts and voted. I think I 
voted at the 4th, 5th, Oth, 7th, and 8 th districts; I do not know the ward; 
it was in Second avenue, near the club-room. 1 got the tickets upon 
which I voted at the club-room. By tickets I mean slips of paper con¬ 
taining names and residences upon which to vote. They were all fictitious 
names. I probably voted some 10 or 11 times that day, in difierent elec¬ 
tion districts. There were other parties who went with me 5 they were 
all strangers with me, except a few that came up from Crosby street with 
me. I cannot swear positively as to what the others did that day. We 
got dinner that day corner of Twenty-seventh street and Fourth avenue. 
In the morning we had breakfast in a private house two or three streets 
above Thirty-second street. 1 did not look at the ticket which I voted, 
but I believe it was a Seymour and Hofiman ticket. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

4927. I have had no other assumed name except those I voted on elec¬ 
tion day. My name has been Johnson all my lifetime. I have been 
living at the Liberty House for a couple of months. I am not married; 
I am divorced from my wife. For the last four years I have been engaged 
in driving a truck; for the last year I have been out of employment. I 
get a living the best way I can, picking up occasional jobs, driving a 
truck. 

4928. Q. Who asked you to come here to testify ? 

•A. Mr. Dorans. 

4929. Q. Why did he tell you to come here*? 

A. 1 do not know. It was from his place that I started to go up to 
Thirty-second street and Second avenue. I have been acquainted Avith 
him for the last year or so; he went around with us; whether he voted 
or not I cannot say. 

4930. Q. Did he tell you to come here to vote ? 

A. He Avanted me to make my statement as to what I did on election 
day. 

, 4931. Q. What reward did he promise you? 

A. Nothing. 

4932. Q. Did anybody i)romise you anything? 

A. No, sir. 

4933. Q. Do you expect anything ? 

A. No, sir. 

4934. Q. Did anybody tell you that you would be protected from prose¬ 
cution if you came here to testify ? 

A. I Avas under that impression. 

4935. Q. Who told you of it ? 

A. Mr. Dorans and Mr. Le Barnes, deputy sergeant-at-arms of this 
committee. 

4930. Q. How did he come to tell you of it? 

A. Somebody asked him outside in the entry, and he said there was 
some law passed protecting Avitnesses Avho testified before a congres¬ 
sional committee, stating, at the same time, that if I did not testify I 
Avas liable to be arrested at any moment. 

4937. Q. And if you testified you would not be arrested or punished?. 

A. Yes, sir. 

4938. Q. Who procured you to do this^reqAeatiug? 

A. Mr. Dorans asked me to go there as a fa\mr to him. 

4939. Q. Did he hire you? 

31 T 


482 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. He did not pay me a cent. 

4940. Q. Was lie paid himself ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

New York, Thursday^ January 7, 1869. 

George Hill sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4941. Question. State your residence and age. 

Answer. I live at No. 61 Thompson street. I am 28 years of age. 

4942. Q. Ho you know any persons voting more than once at the 
last presidential election in this city—what preparations were made for 
it and what was done? 

Witness. I w^ould like to know what is to be done in regard to it; 
whether I will be protected in making a statement. 

The Chairman directed the clerk to read the act of Congress in regard 
to testimony of witnesses before a committee. 

The Chairman. Go on Avith your statement. 

Witness. The night before election we met at the corner of Hester 
and Wooster streets. There was quite a number there, and w^e agreed 
to meet at that place the next morning at 8 o^clock. They gave us slips 
of paper containing about 19 or 20 names and told us to go and vote on 
them. 

4943. Q. How often did you vote that day? 

A. I A^oted 9 or 10 times in different election districts in this city, 
mostly in the 8th ward. 

4944. Q. State what you knoAV of other persons A^oting AAuth you. 

A. The crowd Av^ent around aa ith me and A^oted at the same time so far 
as I knoAv. When we met at the corner of Hester and AVooster streets 
a man, Avhose name I don’t knoAAq said to me if I A\"ould A^ote for him he 
would get me employment, or something to do. 1 said, ‘^All right, I avuII 
vote for you.” 

4945. Q. How^ often did the other xiersons A^ote ? 

A. I could not say; I suppose as many times as I did. 

4946. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. The democratic ticket right clean through. We voted in the first 
place in Green street, near Spring. We voted there three times each. 
We next voted in Green street, further below the first polling place; 
then again in Prince street; then doAvui near the corner of Sullivan; 
then again at the corner of Laurens street. I voted at the last place 
twice. I AS as pretty full all day, and I cannot recollect how many times 
I A^oted at each place. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

4947. Q. How many were in yonr squad ? 

A. Sixteen or twenty. There were two or three who led us around. 

4948. Q. At whose request did you do this repeating ? 

A. At the request of the man AAdio gave us the tickets. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

I have been known only by the name of George Hill since I was born. 
I have lived in various places, particularly in Detroit; also in Cincin¬ 
nati and in various other places. I went around in search of employ¬ 
ment. I am a salesman. I have been living in this city for the last two 
years. For the last six months I have been sick and have folloAved no 
occupation. 

4949. Q. Were you ever sent to Blackwell’s island? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


483 


4950. Q. Were you ever sent to State prison? 

A. No, never in my life. 

4951. Q. I suppose these parties with yon thought they were doing 
perfeetly right in doing this way ? 

A. I suppose they were had up, as I was. I don’t think there was 
any harm in it. I was very hard up, and I had to steal or do something 
to get a living* 

4952. Q. Yon do not think it was wrong, then ? 

A. I do not know as it is; even if I did I would have done it. 

4953. Q. Who was this man that employed yon? 

A. I do not know. 

5954. Q. Have yon seen him since? 

A. I may have seen him. 

4955. Q. Did he pay yon for your services ? 

A. Not much, if anything. He gave me something to drink and some¬ 
thing to eat. I did not see any money. 

4956. Q. What else did he give yon? 

A. He gave me some stamps, and agreed to give me a good deal more. 
He promised me more, but did not fulfil his promise. 

4957. Q. Yon think yon were cheated, then ? 

A. I think so. 

4958. Q. Wbat reward do yon expect for coming here ? 

A. I do not expect any reward. 

4959. Q. Have yon not had assurances that yon would be rewarded to 
testify in this way ? 

A. I do not know as I had. I refuse to answer whether I had or not. 

4960. Q. Who saw yon before yon came here in relation to this 
testimony ? 

A. I saw a man in Jersey City. 

4961. Q. How did yon come to be over there? 

A. The man came to me and asked me if I would not go across the 
river and do a favor for him. He wanted me to make a statement to a 
man over there. 

4961. Q. Who was that? 

A. It was a man over there. 

4962. Q. Do you know Colonel Wood ? 

A. No, sir. • 

4963. Q. Do yon know Marshal Murray? 

A. I have seen him. 

4964. Q. Did yon see him over there? 

A. No, sir. 

4965. Q. What place did you go to in Jersey City? 

A. Taylor’s Hotel. 

4966. Q. Who requested you to go there ? 

A. A friend of mine. 

4967. Q. Who was that ? 

A. I decline to answer that. 

4968. (Question repeated.) 

A. I could not tell you who he was. I know him. by sight, but do not 
know his name. 

4969. Q. When did you leave that place in Jersey City to come over 
here? 

A. I started from there about 10 o’clock this morning. 

4970. Q. Who went over to Jersey City with you ? 

A. A man by the name of Johnson. 

4971. Q. Was it the man who testified here this morning ? 

A. Yes; sir. 


484 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


4972. Q. Who else? 

A. A man by the name of Nichols. 

4973. Q. Who else ? 

A. No other man. 

4974. Q. Do yon know of any reason why you were requested to go 
over there instead of talking on this side of the river with him ? 

A. I do not. 

4975. Q. Did you tell the men over there in that place what you have 
sworn to here to-day ? 

A. Yes, sir. They did not ask me to come over here, however. 

4976. Q. Who did? 

A. The other man, whose name 1 do not know. 

4977. Q. What did you call that man ? 

A. ^‘Billy’^ or “Sammy,” or something like that. 

4978. Q. How many were at that office in Jersey City with you this 
morning ? 

A. I did not see manyj there were four or five men and two writers. 

4979. Q. W^ould you know the handwriting of any of these men? 

A. They were short hand writers. 

4980. Q. Can you give the names of these men? 

A. No, sir. 

4981. Q. Were you not paid something over there ? 

A. I decline to answer. 

4982. Q. Who told you here in this building that you would not be 
harmed for giving testimony ? 

A. I saw a paper which stated that no man would be hurt if he gave 
a statement here, by some act of Congress. 

4983. Q. Can you give all the names for which you voted ? 

A. I cannot give any. 

4984. Q. Did you swear in your vote at any time ? 

A. No, sir. 

4985. Q. Did you swear in your registry ? 

A. No, su\ 


New Yoek, January 7, 1869. 

Claek Bell sworn and examined. 

To the Chaieman : 

4986. I am an attorney and counsellor-at-law. I voted for Grant at 
the last election, but paid very little attention to local politics. Mr. 
Jose])h Beamis, private secretary to George Francis Train, came to me, 
professionally, and asked me to inquire into the alleged election frauds 
in the 5th congressional district in this city. George Francis Train was 
a candidate for Congress in this district at the last presidential election, 
and Mr. Beamis requested me, on behalf of Mr. Train, to take some proof 
as to frauds supposed to have been committed in that election. I took 
a large number of affidavits of persons who swore that they voted for 
George Francis Train. I examined more particularly the election returns 
of the 5th district of the 13th ward of this city. The vote in that pre¬ 
cinct for members of Congress was, for James McCartin, republican, 131: 
for John Morrissey, democrat, 229 j for George Francis Train, independ¬ 
ent, 1. I confined my operation to that piecinct, as I was pretty certain 
that there were some frauds in that district. I have vfith me affidavits 
of various parties who swore that they voted for George Francis 
Train. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


485 


By Mr. Kerr : 

4987. Q. What motive prompted you to make this inquiry ? 

A. Simply a motive of justice to Mr. Train, who was absent from the 
city. His private secretary, Mr. Beamis, consulted me professionally 
about it, and requested me to do it. 

New York, January 7,1869. 
James Nichols sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

4988. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. At 87 Mercer street. New York city. 

4989. Q. State where you were the night previous to the day of the last 
presidential election. 

A. I staid at the corner of Thirty-second street and Second avenue. 

4990. Q. How ofter did you vote at that election ? 

A. About seven times, I guess; all in the 22d ward. 

4991. Q. State upon what names you voted. 

A. Different names. The only name I can remember now is that of 
James lYhite. 

4992. Q. How did you procure the names upon which to vote ? 

A. I procured them at the club-room, corner of Thirty-second street 
and Second avenue, where I staid the night before. 

4993. Q. State what you know of others being engaged in the same 
business. 

A. There were something like 27 of us in the party I was with. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

4994. Q. How long have you lived at 87 Mercer street ? 

A. For the four months last past. 

4995. Q. Where did you live before that ? 

A. At 45 Bobinson street; I lived there for eight years. Previous to 
that I lived at No. 10 Beekman street. I have been in this city since 
1857. 

4996. Q. Wliat is your business ^ 

A. I work in an auction house. 

4997. Q. Where do you work ? 

A. At Wildermings & Mount. 

4998. ^Q. Are you there now ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

4999. Q. How long have you been there ? 

A. Four years. 

5000. Q. By what name have you been known during the last four 
years ? 

A. James Nichols; I never had any other name. 

5001. Q. Where were you yesterday ? 

A. I was at work at my business. 

5002. Q. All day? 

A. Y'es sir. 

5003. Do you know George Hill ? 

A. No, sir. 

5004. Q. Do you know George Johnson? 

A. No, sir. 

5005. Q. Were you not out of town yesterday ? 

A. No, sir. 

5006. Q. Who procured you to come here ? 


486 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Parties sent me liere. 

5007. Q. Who were they ? 

A. I came here partly by myself. I thought the thing was right. I 
saw about this committee sitting here in the j)apers. 

5008. Q. At whose request did you come ? 

A. I decline to answer. 

5009. Q. How much money was paid you to come here ? 

A. ^Nothing at all. 

5010. Q. How much was promised ? 

A. i7othing at all. 

5011. Q. Don’t you expect something ? 

A. No, sir. 

5012. Q. AYho procured you to go into this repeating business! 

A. I went in \vith a party of young fellows, and thought we would 
have a good time. Nobody in particular engaged me. 

5013. Q. How long were you engaged in this business ! 

A. During the morning of the election until about 12 o’clock. 

5014. Q. Were you paid for doing this business! 

A. I was not paid anything at all. I had a few drinks and something 
to eat. 

5015. Q. Who gave you the drinks ! 

A. I do not know the names of the parties. 

5016. Q. Give the names of the x)arties whom you were with in this 
repeating business. 

A. One man by the name of Wliite, who lives somewhere in Forsyth 
street; he is in business down in Wall street with his father. His father, 
I believe, is a custom-house broker, or something of that kind. 

5017. Q. How do you know he is engaged in that business ! 

A. His son told me so. 

5018. Q. How old is the son ! 

A. Twenty-three. There was another man by the name of Daniel 
Norton; I have known him about two years; I do not know where he 
lives. Another by the name of John Graham, and he lives in Frankfort 
street near Pearl; he is a printer. I have known him about a year and 
a half. Another man by the name John Eastburn; he lives in McDougal 
street somewhere. He is not doing anything at present; 1 believe his 
occupation is a carver. Those are all the names that I can recollect. 

5019. Q. By what names did you vote at these different places ! 

A. One of them was James White. 

5020. Q. In what district did you vote by that name ! 

A. The 6th district of the 21st ward. There were a lot of Dutch and 
Irish names. 

5021. Q. Did you swear your vote in ! 

A. No, sir. 

5022. Q. Did you swear in your registry ! 

A. I did not register at all. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5023. Q. What ticket did you vote ! 

A. The democratic. 

5024. Q. Did your colleagues vote for the same ticket! 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5025. Q. How do you know it! 

A. The tickets were given us by the democratic party. 

5026. Q. Who gave them to you ! 

A. I do not know the names. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


487 


New York, January 7,1869. 

William Wood sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

5027. I live at No. 5 Eldridge street, New York city. I voted a good 
many times at the last presidential election in this "city; I conld not 
state exactly how many; I shonld suppose from 16 to 20 times at differ¬ 
ent polling places. I voted on different names. The names were fur¬ 
nished me on slips of paper. I voted in the 10th and 7th wards. I pro¬ 
cured the slips of paper containing the names upon which I was to vote 
in the Bowery. I voted twice at several of the precincts. I cannot 
remember any of the names upon which I voted. 

• By Mr. Kerr ; 

5028. Q. State if you received any compensation for what yon did that 
day. 

A. I did. 

5029. Q. What was it ^ 

A. I could not say; I received some money. ^ 

5030. Q. Who paid it to you ? 

A. I decline to answer that. 

5031. Q. What do you know, if anything, of other persons engaged in 
that business 1 

A. I guess there were from 20 to 25 in the same party with me. 

By the Chairman : 

5032. Q. Where did you procure the names upon which you were to 
vote ^ 

A. At the same place in the Bowery. I think it was the Atlantic 
Garden. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5033. Q. What political party did you vote with ? 

A. The democratic party, I believe. 

5034. Q. Who was the leader of the gang that you were with engaged 
in this repeating ? 

A. I decline to answer. 

5035. Q. Do you know him ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

5036. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. He lives in this city. 

5037. Q. What does he do for a living ? 

A. I hardly know. 

5038. Is he a friend of yours ? 

A. Slightly. 

5039. Q. What do you consider a good day’s work for a repeater ^ 

A. That is more than I can tell you. 

5040. Q. Would you consider voting 30 times a good day’s work? 

A. I should consider that a very fair day’s work. 

5041. Q. Did these men get pay in proportion to the number of votes 
they polled, or for a day’s work regardless of the number of votes that 
they deposited ? 

A. I can hardly say. Some got more than others. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5042. Q. How long have you been known by name of William Woodf 

A. Since I was christened. 


488 


ELECTION FRAUDI^ IN NEW YORK. 


5043. Q. Have you assumed any otlier name ? 

A. No, sir. 

5044. Q. How long liave you lived in this city f 

A. Sixteen or seventeen years. I live with my jjarents at No. 5 
Eldridge street, in this city. I am a machinist by trade. I am doing 
nothing now. I quit work about six months ago j since then I have 
been attending store, off and on, for my brother-in-law, at No. 97 Bowery. 
His name is John 0. Anderson. He keeps a jeweliy store. I could not 
say definitely how much time I spent there; I siq^pose I have been 
engaged there a week or so; I conld not say how long. 

5045. Q. What else have you been doing during the last six months ? 
A. Nothing in particular. 

5046. Q. What in general ? 

A. Nothing in general. 

5047. Q. How do you earn a living ? 

A. I have a brother-in-law who works for a living. 

5048. Q. Does he support you ? 

A. I decline to answer that question. 

5049. (Question repeated.) 

A He does. 

5050. Q. Who emploj^ed you to go into this repeating business ? 

A. I could not tell you the man’s name. 

5054. Q. Why not. 

A. Because I do not know it. I might come very near it. 

5052. Q. What do you think it is ? 

A. I decline to answer that question. 

5053. (Question repeated.) 

A. I think it is something like Gilden, or something of that kind. It 
begins Avith a G. 

5054. Q. Where were you yesterday ? 

A. I was in the city here. 

5055. Q. Who did you see yesterday in reference to coming here to 
testify ? 

A. No one. 

5056. Q. Who did you see about it in reference to coming here to 
testify ? 

A. I do not know the man’s name. 

5057. Q. Where did you see him ? 

A. In Jersey City. 

5058. Q. What place ? * 

A. Taylor’s Hotel. 

5059. Q. How many persons were present at that i^lace at that time ? 
A. Three or four. 

5060. Q. How came you to go there ? 

A. A friend of mine brought me over there. 

5061. Q. Who was he ? 

A. I could not tell you his name. 

5062. Q. Where was he when he made that request ? 

A. On the Bowery near Canal. I met him in the street. 

5063. Q. How much money did you get in Jersey City for coming here? 
A. No money. 

5064. Q. Hoav much did you get the day before ? 

A. Nothing. 

5065. Q. Hoav much did you get to-day ? 

A. I decline to answer. 

5066. Q. Who gave you the money ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


489 


A. I decline to answer. 

5067. Q. Wliere was it given to yon*? 

A. 1 decline to answer. 

5068. Q. Wliat were yon told, by way of inducement to come here, in 
reference to prosecution for anything you might say here? 

A. I do not care to answer that question. I was told that no harm 
would come to me by tlie State or the United States government. 

5069. Q. Who told you that? 

A. I decline to answer. 

5070. (Question repeated.) 

A. It was a young man in Jersey City. 

5071. Q. Do you know him? 

A. Ho, sir; I do not. 

5072. Q. Where did you see him? 

A. In Jersey City. 

5073. Q. Was anything said to you about it here? 

A. Ho, sir. 

5074. Q. Hame one of these repeaters that were with you. 

A. I could not name one of them. They all repeated under assumed 
names. I could not tell you their real names. 

5075. Q. When were you on Blackwell’s island? 

A. Hever. 

5076. Q. When were you in State’s prison? 

A. Hever. 

5077. Q. What gambling house do you frequent? 

A. Hone. 

5078. Q. Who do you know in the city of Hew York? 

A. I know 0. A. Durgan, for one. 

5079. Q. Who is he? 

A. Solicitor of patents. He does business at 111 Leonard street. I 
worked for him some time rei)airing sewing machines and the like. 

5080. Q. How many went over with you to Jersey City? 

A. I went over there myself; no one went with me. 

5081. Q. Who made ui) these affidavits in the hotel? 

A. I could not tell you the man’s name. 

5082. Q. Was the statement you made over there brought here? 

A. I believe it was. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5083. Q. Has any person offered to pay you money to testify falsely 
before this committee? 

A. Ho, sir. 

5084. Q. The parties you saw who have talked with you about coming 
before this committee have simidy asked you to come here and tell the 
truth? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5085. Q. Has any member of this committee ever seen you or spoken to 
you about testifying before this committee ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

Hew York, January 7,1869. 

James Emott sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5086. Question. What is your profession or business ? 

Answer. I am counsellor-at-law; have been judge of the supreme court 
and court of appeals in this State, and have been practicing my i)rofession 


490 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


upwards of 20 years. In regard to the questions you submitted to me 
I woidd say that, as to my construction of the law in regard to the power 
of deputy clerks to sigu the name of the clerk to official documents, and 
the x^ower of clerks to appoint deputies, 1 find a statute authorizing the 
clerk to appoint a deputy clerk. That statute, I have no doubt, only 
authorizes the appointment of one deputy. There is another statute 
authorizing the ax)pointment of a special deputy, ai^parently for the pur¬ 
pose of performing duties in courts. I think that the proper construction 
of that statute only authorized the appointment of one special deputy, 
but, I suppose, the construction of it in the city must have been different, 
as we have a good many courts here, and have many clerks to administer 
oaths, &c. I speak only of the county clerk’s office. 

5087. Q. What is the power of the deputy clerk so appointed to sign 
the name of the county clerk ? 

A. It has been held in this State that he has power to sign the name 
of the clerk. I should think, also, that a special deputy, properly 
appointed, could sign the name of the clerk, in regard to i)roceedings in 
courts? 

5088. Q. How as to certificates authenticating a judicial order? 

A. My recollection of that statute relative to the appointment of special 
deputies is that it did not give such power to special deputies. 

5080. Q. How as to the x^ower of administering oaths and attaching 
jurats? 

A. That I think a special deputy might do, and if the law authorizes 
more than one, then all. 

5090. Q. Does not the act of Congress require the oath to be admin¬ 
istered to witnesses and applicants in cases of naturalization to be in 
these words, ‘Won solemnly swear that you will tell the truth, the whole 
truth, and nothing but the truth touching naturalization, so helx^ you 
God?” 

A. I sux)x^ose the act of Congress does require an oath to that effect. 
But if the witness is x>roduced in court and his statement is reduced to 
writing and read over to him and he testifies to it, I think that will sat¬ 
isfy the x^rovisions of the law. I do not think the act of naturalization 
would be ffitiated because the common law oath was not administered. 
The witness, however, I think, should be xu’oduced, and the court ought 
to make an oral examination, and not to naturalize a x^erson ux^on the 
mere x^roduction of an affidavit x^rex^ared and signed out of court vdthout 
additional examination. I never knew that to be done while I was on 
the bench. But if the witness was x^rodnced and the affidavit w as read 
to him I should think that would answer all the requirements of the 
statute; after he had made his deposition it wmuld then be the duty of 
the court to examine him if there was any reason for so doing. 

5091. Q. The next question is as to whether, to test the veracity of 
witnesses, questions cannot be asked that are not printed on the paper? 

A. Most unquestionably. 

5092. Q. How could such questions be asked unless the common law 
oath was x^ut to the witness ? 

A. That is difficult to say. I do not mean to say that merely the 
production of the witness with an affidavit prepared and signed outside 
would be sufficient, but I think if he is sworn and made to understand 
its contents that wmuld be sufficient. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5093. Q. When a witness is produced in court and sworn to answer 
all questions x^ot to him in relation to the x)ending apx)Mcation, &c., x>nt- 
ting in a short form, would that be sufficient ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


491 


A. I tliiiik tliat would be sufficient. I think he ought to make such 
oath as would make everything he said come under it; then I tldnk if he 
was asked if the affidavit which was read over to him was true, that 
would be sufficient. 

By the Chairman : 

5094. Q. If the naturalization laws required the applicant to verify 
under oath certain facts, do not these words require a common law oath 

A. They require an oath that he shall tell the truth, the whole truth, 
and nothing but the truth touching the matter before the court. But, 
after the affida\dt had been read to the man and he testifies to its truth, 
I suppose it would be a compliance with the statute. It would be in 
effect a leading question. The affirmation would be in this form: You, 
so and so, came to this country at such a time, you have lived here so 
long, you have not been out of the country, your residence is such a 
place; is that true.” If he answers yes, he comj)lies with the statute. 

5095. Q. The next question is as to whether a judge in New York can 
discharge on habeas corpus when no return has been made 

A. I think he ought not to discharge. He ought to require a return. 
If the officer i)roduced the person and made no return, that would be 
equivalent to saying that he had no warrant. If the person was not 
produced before the court and no answer was made to the writ, I do not 
see how the judge could make any order at all. 

5096. Q. Do the judges of this State have jurisdiction in chambers to 
discharge on habeas corpus f 

A. Yes, sir j there is a statute which requires them to issue habeas 
corpus out of court under penalty. 

5097. Q. What are your political opinions ? 

A. I am a republican, and expect to be as long as the party exists. 

[5098. To all of the testimony of this witness which consists of 
legal opinions, the minority of the committee object as being incompe¬ 
tent, because it does not relate to facts, but only to opinions, and at the 
same time the minority object to its being stricken out.] 

New York, January 8,1869. 

Joseph Dumble sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

5099. I was registrar and inspector of the 2d district of the 4th ward 
at the last presidential election; on the day of registry I found that a great 
many persons who presented themselves for registry had naturalization 
papers which they did not get in the court; I took away the papers from 
two or three of them; many of them could give no satisfactory answers 
as to where they got them ; they said that they had not been in court, 
but that somebody had got the papers for them j I took about four 
l)apers from these parties ; two of them I returned, and the other two I 
gave to Mr. White j there were a great many came over on election day 
from the 14th ward ; there was one man I had arrested for illegal voting; 
he registered himself by the name of Sheehan,” and said he lived 
somewhere in Water street j I knew he did not live at that place, and 
when he came to vote I swore him in, and then had him arrested; he 
was discharged afterwards by the city judge j I cannot say whether any 
fraud was practiced by substituting tickets that were never voted for 
those that were voted. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5100. I only knew of one fraudulent vote in my district to my own 
knowledge; that was the case of Sheehan j I know that he did not live at 
the house in Water street where he registered, because I inquired there j 


492 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


the reason I took the papers from these parties that wanted to register 
was because they could give no satisfactory answers as to wliere they 
got them j I knew they did not get them of the court, because 
they said so; the democratic inspectors of that precinct were William 
Dodson and X^atrick Kane; Peter Eyan and myself were the republican 
inspectors ; the two democrats were willing to receive the votes of these 
men, but it required a vote of three of the inspectors to register a 
name; the men themselves that presented these naturalization papers 
acknowledged that they did not get them in the court j that they had 
not previously declared their intentions to become citizens ; I have lived 
in the ward for 17 years j I do not know any of these men that presented 
these papers ; there were 900 votes registered in that precinct j the vote 
was about 99 short of the registry. 

5101. Q. You swear that your democratic colleagues wanted to take 
the names of these men that you rejected ? 

A. They did not insist upon taking them; they would argue with me 
and say that I had better put the names down, and Ave would have quite 
an argument over them; but I would insist upon rejecting them j I told 
them that if they could prove to me satisfactorily that they were legal, 
and had recewed their papers in a lawful manner, I would register 
them. 


Kew York, January 8, 1869. 

Thomas H. York sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : • 

5102. I am deputy clerk of the Kings county court j was so during the 
year 1868; I i)resent herewith to the committee a statement of the 
number of persons naturalized in that coiuT from the year 1856 to the 
yearY868, both inclusive, with the number naturalized daily during the 
month of October, 1868; the city court of Brooklyn has also the power 
of granting certificates of naturalization; they probably naturalized more 
than we did. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5103. I copied this list from the records in the county clerk’s office; 
we have a printed book there with the different headings, under which 
we write the applicant’s and the witness’s names, and other data neces¬ 
sary to be preserved. 


Statement of the whole number of persons naturalized in the county clerWs 
office from the 23d day of September, 1856, to the 31st day of December, 
1868. 


1856, 

1857, 

1858, 

1859, 

1860, 
1861 
1862 
1863 


1,667 

1864 

293 

1865 

984 

1866 

144 

1867 

1,159 

J868 

47 


151 


181 



722 
483 
2,328 
2, 436 
3,246 


13,841- 




















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 493 

Whole numher naturalized from the day of Oetoher to the day of 

Oetoher, 18C8. 


October 


1. 

. 130 

October 19. 

.. 143 

2. 

. 28 

20. 

. 157 

3. 

. 24 

21. 

. 145 

5. 

.. 74 

22. 

. 130 

6. 

.. 55 

23. 

. 183 

7. 

. 217 

24. 

. 39 

8. 

. 147 

26.. 

. 5 

9.. 


27. 

. 12 

10.. 

. 42 

28.. 

. 4 

12.. 


29.. 

. 9 

13. 

. 207 

30.. 

. 6 

14.. 

. 165 

31.. 

. 5 

15.. 

. 207 



16. 

. 107 

Total.. 

. 2,613 

17. 

. 55 




Kew York, January 8,18G9. 
Edmund M. Plumb sworn and examined. 


To tlie Chairman : 

5104. I am clerk of records in tlie county clerk’s office in tliis city. I 
have examined the records of the supreme court of this county on file in 
the county clerk’s office, and present herewith a statement of the unmher 
of persons naturalized in that court from the 6th to the 23d day of 
October, 1868. 

Number of persons naturalized in the supreme court of New YorJc city, on 
the days hereinafter named. 


1868. 

October 6. 6 

7. 8 

■ 8. 379 

9. 668 

10. 717 

12 . 723 

13 . 901 

14 . 523 

15 . 857 


October 16. 721 

17. 633 

19 . 955 

20 . 944 

21 . 773 

22 . 675 

23...... 587 


Total. 10,070 


The number I counted from the applications on file; and, to the best 
of my knowledge and belief, this is a correct statement of the number. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

5105. These applications were all filed with me. I made search of the 
records of the office for applications as far back as 1844. I could find 
none prior to 1868. 


New York, January 8,1869. 

Austin D. Pettit sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

5106. Question. Bo you know a man by the name of Henry Lyle? 
Answer. Yes, sir. 

5107. Q. Bo you know where ho lives? 

A. I do not. 

5108. Q. What is his business? 

A. The last time I saw him he said he was a reporter for the Evening 
News of this city. 





















































494 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5109. Q. How long liave you known him ? 

A. Two or three years. 

5110. Q. What is his character for truth and veracity? 

A. Not very good in my opinion. 

5111. Q. What is his reputation among his neighbors for truth and 
veracity? 

A. I could not say 5 I have never associated with his neighbors. 

5112. Q. What means have you of knowing his character for truth 
and veracity? 

A. Generally from his mode of life. He is an habitual drunkard. 

5113. Q. Hid you have much intercourse with him during the month 
of October last? 

A. No, sir. 

5114. Q. Do you know whether you ever had any conversation with 
him during that time? 

A. I met him at one time and he accosted me and said he had reported 
a meeting up town in which I was interested, and that he had received 
no pay for it, and I gave him a quarter of a dollar. 

5115. Q. Are you a democrat ? 

A. I am. 

5110. Q. Are you identified with the Tammany organization? 

A. I have been within the last few months; previous to that I was 
always opposed to it. At that time I was a member of the independent 
democratic party. 

5117. Q. Slate whether you did ever at any time procure 10 final cer 
tificates of naturalization from any court, in anybody's name or names, 
and give them to Henry Lyle. 

A. No, sir; I never did. 

5118. Q. State whether he at any time during the month of October, 
or at any other time, requested you to procure certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion for any number of ])ersons, and gave you their names. 

A. No, sir; he told me at one time that if there were any parties who 
did not want to come down town and wait to get their final certificates, 
as he was doing nothing and was generally about the City Hall, he 
would do it himself. This was for procuring the final certificates at the 
City Hall after the judge had ordered the naturalization certificate to be 
granted. The clerk of the court would generally give orders for the 
certificates, which were obtained somewhere in the City Hall. 

5119. Q. State whether he ever made any other request of you of any 
kind. 

A. No, sir; not that I remember. 

5120. Q. Did he ever request you to get any certificates for names 
that he would hand you, without producing the persons to you or their 
witnesses? 

A. No, sir; he would not ask me to do it, for I was not in that business. 

5121. Q. Suppose he had asked you to obtain certificates in ways that 
were unlawful, would you remember it? 

A. I certainly would. He would not dare to have made any such 
request of me. 

5122. Q. Do you know where he kept himself during the month of 
October? 

A. I do not. 

5123. Q. Was he habitually drunk? 

A. Yes, sir. The last I have heard of him, lui was expelled from the 
organization of which he was member, for being drunk and disorderly. 
At that time I believe he lived in Twenty-seventh street. That was 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 495 

two or three years ago j I was then a candidate for nomination and he 
was a candidate also. 

5124. Q. State, from what you know of his character, whether yon 
would believe him under oath. 

A. I certainly would not. 

By the Chairman : 

5125. Q. What office were he and you candidates for ? 

A. For assemblymen. He was a candidate of some small local organ¬ 
ization. 

512(). Q. Hid yon procure certificates of naturalization for James 
Beglan or James Glenn? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5127. Q. Ho yon know these men ? 

A. I know James Beglan. I saw him at the Hecember election. 
Previous to that election he was a bitter opponent of mine. I had not 
spoken to him, previous to a few days before the Hecember election, for 
three years. 

5128. Q. Ho you know of any iierson speaking of Lyle’s character for 
truth and veracity ? 

A. I cannot recollect just now. 

5129. Q. Can you name any person whom you heard speak of his 
character for truth and veracity ? 

A. I think I could name half a dozen who would not believe him 
under oath. I do not remember having any particular conversation 
with these men, however, about Lyle. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5130. Q. You stated that Mr. Lyle w^anted you to send your friends to 
him, and that he would obtain papers for them. 

A. He said he would obtain their certificates. The regular paper, I 
believe, is filed with the judge, and after it has passed him an order is 
given on the clerk at the City Hall for the regular certificate, and as there 
was a great crowd at the City Hall, persons would not want to wait 
there a long time. 

5131. Q. Hid you send any papers to Mr. Lyle ? 

A. ISTo, sir. 

5132. Q. Hid you ever meet him in any court, or have any conversa¬ 
tion with him about naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir; not of my knowledge. I think I met him one day around 
the City Hall somewhere, or in a lager-beer saloon in William street; 
it was the time I gave him a quarter of a dollar. 

5133. Q. Were you engaged at that time in assisting your friends in 
getting naturalized ? 

A. 1 have assisted some five or six. 

5134. Q. Were you a witness for them ? 

A. I was a witness for two or three, I believe. I had tickets which 
were issued by Tammany Hall to pay for the fees, and I supplied them 
to parties in my ward. 

5135. Q. Ho you know what business Lyle was engaged in ? 

A. He told me he was a reporter for the Evening News. 

513G. Q. Hon’t you know that he was engaged about the City Hall in 
lirocuring papers ? 

A. He told me he was about the City Hall a good deal and could 
lirocure papers for me. 

5137. Q. Hid you not know that he was a witness for parties desiring 
to be naturalized ? 

A. No, sir. 


496 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5138. Q. Were you in courts mucli when naturalization was going 
on? 

A. No, sir j very little. I was in the superior court once or tmce. 

New York, January 8, 1869. 

George B. Gifford sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5139. Question. Do you know John H. Wliite ? 

Answer. Yes, sir j I am well acquainted with him. 

5140. Q. Have you had any conversation with him lately ? 

A. I had about a week ago last Tuesday night. 

5141. Q. Where? 

A. In front of the Union League club-room. 

5142. Q. Please state what it was. 

A. I went up there in company with a friend of mine by the name of 
Henry Darling. Previous to that a boy came to me and sMd that Mr. 
White wanted to see me at the Union League rooms. I went up there 
about 8 o’clock in the evening with Darling. We met White in front of 
the Union League club-rooms and entered into conversation. He said 
he wanted me to testify to frauds committed by the democratic party at 
the presidential election. I told him that I knew of no frauds being 
perpetrated by the democratic party. He said that that would niakeno 
difference; that as long as I would SA\^ear to the facts that he would 
write in the shape of an affidarsdt, he said that he would x^ay me liber¬ 
ally for such evidence. I told him that I would have nothing to do with 
the affair at all. The reason he asked me, I suppose, was because I was 
formerly a member of the republican party, and was formerly in the 
revenue service. 

5143. Q. What position did you hold in the revenue service ? 

A. I was assistant assessor under Anthony J. Bleecker, assessor, and 
George Putnam and Morgan Harris, collectors. 

5144. Q. To whom did he say that you would be well rewarded ? . 

A. To myself and Darling j we had conversation together. 

5145. Q. What was it he would reward you well for ? 

A. For making an affidavit to the effect that frauds were perpetrated 
by the democratic party at the presidential election. 

By the Chairman : 

5146. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. At No. 511 Third avenue. 

5147. Q. What business are you engaged in ? 

A. I am clerk to Mr. Hanberry. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5148. Q. When did you dissolve your connection with the republican 
party ? 

A. They struck my name off* the rolls. 

5149. Q. What for? 

A. It was at the time of the October election. I had a conversation 
with Christopher B. Pullman in reference to going to Philadelphia. 

5150. Q. What did he want you to go there for ? 

[Mr. Hoi)kius objected. Objection sustained.] 

By the Chairman : 

5151. Q. Were you a member of the Union League? 

A. No, sir; I was a member of the republican organization of the 21st 
ward. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


497 


5152. Q. Who was present at this conversation with Judge Wliite? 

A. Mr. Henry Darling. 

5153. Q. Where does he live I 

A. In Thirty-second street, in the 22d Avard. Only ns three were 
present. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5154. Q. With aa horn did yon have consultation in regard to yonr tes¬ 
timony before this committee ? 

A. I had not innch consnltation about it. I had repeated the conver¬ 
sation to some of my friends in the 21st ward. 

5155. Q. Who are they? 

A. I had one coiwersation with Mr. Jones. I also had one AAith Mr. 
Barrett. They are both democrats. 

515G. Q. HaA^e yon consulted Avith any member of this committee as 
to what yonr testimony Avonld be ? 

A. No, sir. 

5157. Q. Who else have yon consulted with ? 

A. I had a coiiA^ersation AAdtli Mr. Banker. He is a democrat. 

5158. Q. With AA^hat party did yon act this fall ? 

A. I A^oted the democratic ticket straight through. 

5150. Q. Were yon remoA^ed from yonr position as assistant assessor? 

A. No, sir; I left of my own accord. 

51G0. Q. Do yon mean to state that Mr. White offered yon a reAvard 
to testify to what was not true before this committee ? 

A. He offered to pay me liberally for testifying to what frauds were 
committed by the democratic i3arty. I told him that I kncAV of no frauds. 
He said that would make no difference, if I AA^onld only come here and 
testify. 

51G1. Q. Who is this Mr. Banker with Avhom yon had this conversa¬ 
tion ? 

A. Thomas A. Banker; he is a deputy sheriff. Banker told me he 
thought it was proper for me to come here and giA^e my ev idence. Mr. 
Banker is a personal friend of mine. 

New York, January 8, 18G9. 

Henry DARLiNa SAvorn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr: 

51G2. Q. Do yon know John H. White, attorney-at-law in this city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

51G3. Q. Have yon had any coiiA^ersation with him lately ? 

A. Last Tuesday niglit, a Aveek ago, I had a coiiA^ersatiou with him in 
front of the Union League clnb-room. 

51G4. Q. Hoav came yon there ? 

A. I Avent there Avith a man by the name of Gifford. Mr. White sent 
for him. 

5165. Q. What conAWsation did yon have with Mr. White ? 

A. Mr. White said to Gifford, I want yon to go down before the com¬ 
mittee and testify as to frauds and illegal Acting by the democratic 
party.” We told him we knew nothing about election frands. He said 
it would make no difference, if we wonld swear to the eAddence that he 
Avonld draw np; that we Avoiild be liberallj^ compensated for it. Said I 
to Mr. White, I am not doing business in that way.” I Amted for Mr. 
White every time he has ever rnn for office in New York city. I have 
alAvays supported and A^oted for him. 

32 T 


498 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5166. Q. Was lie a candidate at the last election ? 

A. I think he was. 

5167. Q. Did yon have any further conversation ? 

A. I told Mr. Gifford that he could do as he liked in this matter, but 
so far as any frauds committed by the democratic party was concerned, 
I knew nothing about it. 

5168. Q. Was it stated what compensation you should have ? 

A. No, sir. 

5169. Q. Was it stated from whom you would receive your compensa¬ 
tion % 

A. He said that he would see that it was all right. 

5170. Q. Was anything said as to the amount of compensation you 

should have ? . > 

A. Not in my hearing. I left Mr. Gifford talking with him for 10 or 
15 minutes. 

By the Chairman : 

5171. Q. Do you know Thomas A. Banker, deputy sheriff of this city ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

5172. Q. When did you see him last ? 

A. I saw him to-day. 

5173. Q. Did you talk with him about this matter? 

A. No, sir ; never a word. 

5174. (J. Was Gifford with you when you saw Banker? 

A. No, sir. 

5175. Q. Where did you see Banker ? 

A. I saw him in the City Hall. 

5176. Q. Did you see Banker yesterday ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5177. Q. Was Gifford with you then ? 

A. No, sir ; I saw Banker last evening, up town somewhere. 

5178. Q. Did you have any conversation with him about this matter? 
A. No, sir; I have never talked with him about this matter. 

5179. Q. To whom did you first tell this conversation ? 

A. I think I talked it over in a lager-beer saloon where many persons 
were present. 

5180. Q. Whose lager-beer saloon ? 

A. A Mr. Whiter; he keeps a lager-beer saloon in Thirtieth street, 
near Second avenue.' 

5181. Q. What business are you engaged in? 

A. Not any, at present. 

5182. Q. Was Banker present at the lager-beer shop? 

A. No, sir; I have never seen him there. 

5183. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. At No. 253 Thirty-second street. 

5184. Q. How long have you lived there ? 

A. Since last May. 

5185. Q. Have you been engaged in any business lately ? 

A. Not of any account; I am about to go into the butcher business. 

5186. Q. What office did Judge Wliite run for ? 

A. I do not recollect exactly; he has run for assemblyman and school 
trustee. I think I voted for him once for city judge. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5187. Q. With what political party do you act ? 

A. I have been an old line whig; I have acted with the republican 
party up to the last election, wlien I voted the democratic ticket. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


499 


5188. Q. Where was this interview with Judge White! 

A. Itight opposite the Union League elub-room. 

5189. Q. How did you get the interview with him ! 

A. We were ubout sending our names into the club-room when he came 
along. 

5190. Q. With whom did you talk about this interview before you went 
there ? 

A. Mr. Gifford came after me to go there and I went up with him. 

5191. Q. Then you acted as an accomplice too in it! 

A. I went up with him. 

5192. Q. After you had this interview with White, with whom did you 
talk about it! 

A. I talked with several in the lager-beer shop about it. I said I was 
not going to State’s prison for anything of that kind. 

5193. Q. Have you seen Sheriff O’Brien about this ! 

A. No, sir. 

5194. Q. Any other officer of the city ! 

A. No, sir. 

5195. Q. With whom have you consulted? 

A. Nobody in particular: I have mentioned the matter in this lager- 
beer saloon, as I have stated. I would not have come here at all if I was 
not obliged to. 

5196. Q. You were subpoenaed to come here? 

A. No, sir; I was told that I was obliged to come here; that if I did 
not I would be arrested. 

5197. Q. Who told you to come here? \ 

A. Mr. Gidbrd. 

5198. Q. Who else told you ? 

A. Nobody. 

5199. Q. State what Gifford said to you when he wanted you to go 
and see Judge White. 

A. He came to me and said that Judge White wanted to see both of 
us. I told him that I did not want to see Judge White about anything.. 
Says he: ‘‘Maybe there is a dollar or two in it, and we had better go.” 

5200. Q. And then you went because there was a dollar or two in it ?. 

A. Yes, sir; but when I found what it was I would not go into it. 

5201. Q. Ho you know that Judge White sent for Gifford ? 

A. No, sir; not of my OAvn knowledge. 

5202. Q. Hid he send for you? 

A. No, sir. 

5203. Q. Hid you commence the conversation with eJudge White ? 

A. No, sir; Mr. Gifford did. 

5204. Q. What did he say ? 

A. He said to the judge that he was there aecording to the arrange¬ 
ment, and asked what was to be done. Judge White said he wanted us 
to go down and testify before a committee about frauds committed by 
the democratic party. I told him I knew nothing about frauds commit¬ 
ted by that party. Says he, “ It don’t make any difference whether you 
do or not; you go down there and testify to the affidavits that I will 
draw up.” 

5205. Q. Hid he not say, “Go down and testify to what youkaow?” 

A. No, sir. 

5206. Q. How long did this conversation last? 

A. About 10 or 15 minutes. I left Gifford talking with him,, perhaps 
10 minutes. 

5207. Q. Hid Gifford tell you who had advised him to see Judge White? 

A. No, sir. 


500 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5208. Q. Your only inducement in going there, then, was to make a 
dollar or two ? 

A. I have done a good deal for Judge YHiite. I have had a good deal 
of his money; he has given me a good many jobs. 

5209. Q. Hoav did you know there was.any money in it? 

A. I did not know. 


New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

John H. McCunn recalled, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5210. Question. State whether you know Henry Lyle. 

Answer. The young man I saw here yesterday appeared several times 
in my court in a very drunken condition, and I ordered him to be exi)elled. 
He said he lived in my street, and was acquainted with some of my people. 
I told the officers of the court to use him as gently as possible. From 
what I learned about him I believe him to be a poor, broken-down, 
drunken fellow. He had a decent mother, but rum got the best of him. 
I never knew him before he appeared before me, but upon inquiry of my 
wife last night she said that she knew him. He appeared before me at 
one time as a witness of some applicant for naturalization. He was very 
drunk at the time, and I ordered him to be put under arrest. He pleaded 
that he was acquainted with my family, and I ordered him to go out of 
the room. 

5211. Q. State whether, during the time this naturalization business 
was going on, you had any conversation with him about the registration 
of persons naturalized by you. 

A. Never, in my life. 

5212. Q. Hid you ever say to him in effect that if the registrars refused 
to place the names of persons for whom he got out certificates of natu¬ 
ralization upon the registry list you would compel them to do so ? 

A. I never exchanged one word with him off* the bench in my life. 

5213. Q. State whether, under all the circumstances attending the 
transaction of the business of naturalization, it was possible for him or anj’ 
other man to have personated both witness and applicant in any one case. 

A. It was utterly impossible. 

5214. Q. State if any preparations were made, to your knowledge, for 
compelling registrars to register the names of voters. 

A. No, sir. 

5215. Q. Were not blank mandamuses printed for that purpose? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

5210. Q. Did these men who were engaged in this business of natu¬ 
ralization have any visible means of support ? 

A. There are a large class of men in this city who are engaged in 
politics ; they attend all the primary meetings, and mix a good deal with 
the people of the ward in which they live, and know almost everybody 
in it. These men would have nothing to do for a few weeks before the 
election, and they would act as witnesses for a great number of persons 
who they honestly knew were entitled to naturalization. 

5217. Q. Did you consider that class of men very reliable in court ? 

A. I found that they were just as honorable as almost anybody else. 

5218. Q. How long have you known this young Lyle ? 

A. I oidy know him from the time lie came into my court drunk. 

5219. Q. State whether, in view of all the circumstances attending 
naturalization in your court, it is possible for Henry Lyle or any other 
man, during the days of hurried naturalization, to haVe by liis own 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 501 

service there as applicant and witness put through from 600 to 1,000 
men ? 

A. It was utterly impossible. The moment I discovered any man run¬ 
ning through a number of cases, say 20 or 25,1 would instantly stop him 
and tell him to go away^ or I would commit him. The moment I got my 
eye on witnesses of this kind that I thought were perpetrating frauds 
on the court I would instantly stop them. I don’t think he could for 
50, at the outside, without my detecting it when it came before me. 

llEW York, Friday j January 8, 1869. 

jA:NrES A. Lucas sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5220. Question. What position did you occupy during the year 1868 ? 

Answer. I was telegraph operator at police headquarters in this city. 

5221. Q. At what time were the election returns of this city received 
at police headquarters I 

A. The election returns did not go on our book of messages received. 
They would be sent instantly up to the superintendent, and would not 
go on the records that night. My impression is that the first return was 
received about 5 o’clock or 5.50, I think. I received two at the same 
time. 

5222. Q. Can you give the time you received the returns from the 
wards 1 

A. It would be impossible to do so. We received the returns from 
the difi'erent police precincts, and they are in many cases composed of 
fractional parts of difierent wards. One precinct that I recollect of just 
now takes in a part of four difierent wards, and the returns are sent in 
from each of these precincts only by election districts, regardless of 
wards. 

5223. Q. At what time did you receive the last return ? 

A. I cannot say. 

5224. Q. Can you state to what extent the election returns were 
delayed that night? 

A. It was the general impression that the returns were coming in 
exceedingly slow. 

NiEW York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

John II. White recalled and examined. 

By the Chairvian : 

5225. Question. State if you know Henry Darling and George Gifford. 

Answer. Not to my knowledge. I have no recollection of the names. 

I may know them by sight. 

New York, Friday, January 8, 1869. 

George Mellville sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5226. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. No. 14 Hester street. New York city. 

5227. Q. State what took place at the last presidential election in this 
city in regard to illegal voting. 

A. I should think 1 voted five or six times at that election. I rei)eated 
once; that is, voted twice in the same precinct. The only place I recol¬ 
lect voting in is in Canal street. I was under the influence of liquor 


502 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


most of the time, and I cannot recollect any more precincts. The night 
before election I staid at my own house. On the morning of election, 
before we commenced voting, I met a party of about 25 or 3(1) men at 
Atlantic Garden, in the Bowery. These other men went around with 
me. I saAv them doing pretty nearly the same thing as I did. The 
names were given to me on a slip of paper. 

5228. Q. At whose request did you go to Atlantic Garden on the 
morning of election ? 

A. A man by the name of Hawley; I think his first name is James. 
I cannot say where he lives nor what his business is. I had known him 
about two years before. He did not go around with us, but staid right 
in that one spot most of the day. 

5229. Q. Was Hawley a candidate for office at that election? 

A. hTo, sir. 

5230. Q. In how many wards did you vote at that election? 

A. I voted in two wards, as far as I can recollect. 

5231. Q. Did you receive any compensation for this service ? 

A. No, sir. 

5232. Q. Were you promised any? 

A. No, sir; none at all. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5233. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. I believe it was the democratic ticket. 

5234. Q. Do you know whether any money was paid to any of the 
others? 

A. Yes, sir; I believe there was. 

5235. Q. By whom ? 

A. By the party who gave us the names. 

523G. Q. How much was paid? 

A. Some received five dollars and others less; I received seven dollars. 

5237. Q. State if you or any party that was with you were challenged 
during that day. 

A. Some of the others, I believe, were challenged; I was not. 

5238. Q. Do you know what the politics of this man Hawley are ? 

A. I believe he is a democrat. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5239. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I am a boiler-maker. I did work at the Franklin boiler-works in 
Jersey City; business got dull and 1 was discharged about four months 
ago. I worked at that place for two years. 

5240. Q. What did you do before that time? 

A. I cannot recollect. 

5241. Q. Where did you first make the statement that you have made 
here in regard to illegal voting? 

A. In Jersey City. 

5242. Q. When? 

A. Yesterday. 

5243. Q. At whose request ? 

A. I do not recollect who it was. 

5244. Q. Were you drunk yesterday? 

A. I think I was. 

5245. Q. Were you drunk when you gave the statement? 

A. Not very drunk; I had been drinking. 

5246. Q. Are you sober to-day ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


503 


5247. Q. Where did you go in Jersey City? 

A. Taylor’s Hotel; I do not know the room. 

5248. Q. Whom did you find in the room ? 

A. Only one clerk, 1 do not know his name. 

5249. Q. What conversation took i)lace between you and him ? 

A. Nothing more than what is contained in my statement. 

5250. Q. What compensation did you expect for going there ? 

A. I did not expect any. 

5251. Q. What were you promised ? 

A. I was not promised anything. 

5252. Q. What motive induced you to go there ? ^ 

A. Nothing more than that man asked me to go there. 

5253. Q. Was that man a friend of yours? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5254. Q. What is his name ? 

A. Smith; Eichard, I think, is his first name. 

5255. Q. How long have you known Smith ? 

A. Since election. 

5256. Q. Is he one of the chaps that repeated with you ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5257. Q. Where did you see him ? 

A. In this city. 

5258. Q. When? 

A. Yesterday morning, about 8 o’clock. He went over there with 
me to Jersey City. He said he wanted me to go over there to make a 
statement. I paid my own ferriage going across the river. He did not 
treat me any; I treated him. 

5259. Q. Did he go into that room with you ? 

A. No, sir. 

5260. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. I do not know. 

5261. Q. What is his business ? 

A. I do not recollect where he works; I believe it is somewhere in 
Eighth street. 

5262. Q. Did he tell you by whom he was employed to get up this 
evidence ? 

A. No, sir. 

5263. Q. State the number of districts at which you voted on the day 
of election? 

A. I remember voting twice in Canal street. I voted legally once, 
and repeated once. That is all I recollect. 

5264. Q. Can you give the names of the parties that were with you ? 
A. I cannot say who they were. 

5265. Q. When were you told that if you came here to testify you 
would not be harmed under the laws of the United States? 

A. Yesterday morning. 

5266. Q. Who told you that ? 

A. My friend Smith. 

5267. Q. Did he read any law to you ? 

A. No, he did not. The clerk at Taylor’s Hotel, however, read me 
the law. 

5268. Q. Has any man about this building told you that if you were 
examined here you would not be punished ? 

A. No, sir. 

5269. Q. By what name have you been known dining the last five 
years? 

A. George Mellville. 


504 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5270. Q. Didn’t you go to Philadelpliia during tbe last State election 
in that State to engage in tlie business of repeating ? 

A. No, sir. 

5271. Q. \Yere you not in Philadelphia at that time ! 

A. No, sir. 

5272. Q. What reward did you receive for engaging in this repeating 
business ? 

A. I received seven dollars on the night of the election. 

5273. Q. How do you know that money was paid to other persons! 

A. I have seen parties receive it. Some received live dollars, and 

others less, and some more. 

o274. Q. How many received more! 

A. I do not know. 

5275. Q. How can you recollect seeing this money paid if you were so 
drunk ! 

A. I got sober by that time 5 it was 9 o’clock in the evening then. 

5276. Q. Where do you go when you engage in the business of gamb¬ 
ling! 

A. I never gamble. 

5277. Q. When were you over on Blackwell’s Island last! 

A. 1 never was there. 

5278. Q. Sui^pose records were produced here showing that a man of 
your name was sent to Blackwell’s Island 5 which would be true, your 
statement or the record ! 

A. Perhaps there may have been a man of my name sent to Black¬ 
well’s Island; it was not me. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5270. Q. Did any man at any time ask you to testify before this com¬ 
mittee to anything that w^as not true! 

A. No, sir. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Peter Hale sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : ' 

5280. Question. Where do you live! 

Answer. No. 242 Division street, in this city. 

5281. Q. State in what ward and election district you voted in the 
last presidential election ! 

A. Fifth district, 13th ward. 

5282. Q. For whom did you vote as candidate for Congress ! 

A. George Francis Train. 

5283. Q. State if you saw other persons vote at that precinct for Mr. 
Train, and if so, how many ! 

A. I think, to the best of my knowledge, there were from 30 to 50 of 
us. AVe all voted for Train. I was working in the interest of Train, 
and had charge of that. 

5284. Q. Did you see the others vote for Train ! 

A. Yes, sir. There were a good many in that district who were strong- 
advocates for Train, and voted for him; I could not give their names. 

5285. Q. How do you know that these men voted for him! 

A. I put the tickets in their hands and saw them deposit them in the 
box. 

5286. Q. Who employed you to do that! 

A. The committee employed me. I was one of the committee myself. 
This committee was organized to forward the interest of George Francis 
Train, and we did all we could to elect him to Congress. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


505 


NTew York, Friday^ January 8, 1809. 

James Clark sworn and examined. 

By tlie Chairman : 

5287. Question. Where do you live ? 

Answer. No. 82 Mott street 

5288. Q. State anything you know in regard to illegal voting at the 
last presidential election in this city. 

A. I suppose I voted eight or nine times in the lOth and 7th wards in 
this city at that election. I do not recollect any names upon which I 
voted. They were given to me on a slip of paper. There were, I suppose, 
some 25 or 30 of us in the party that I was with. 

5289. Q. Who furnished you with the slips of paper containing the 
names and the residences? 

A. I refuse to answer that question. 

5290. (Question repeated.) 

A. When I made my statement as to what I would swear to here, I 
said I would not give any names at all; therefore 1 decline to answer. 

Tlie Chairman. I insist upon an ansAver. 

Witness. His name was Morris; I do not know his first name; can¬ 
not say where he lives. 

5291. Q. At whose request did you go to Atlantic Garden ? 

A. At Mr. Morris’s request. 

5292. Q. Do you know what business Morris is engaged in? 

A. I do not. 

5293. Q. Where can he be found ? 

A. I suppose at Atlantic Garden. 

5294. Q. Did you receive anj^ compensation for it? 

A. Yes, sir. I received $8 from Mr. Morris. 

5295. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. I presume it Avas the democratic ticket ; I did not look into the 
ballots, but I understood they Avere for the democratic party. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5296. Q. To what political iiarty did the man belong who gave you the 
tickets? 

A. I believe the democratic. 

5297. Q. Do you know a man by the name of James Hawley, 45 Mott 
street? 

A. I cannot say that I do. 

By Mr. K^err : 

5298. Q. How long have you been known as James Clark? 

A. Ever since I was christened. 

5299. What has been your business for the last five years ? 

A. I have been engaged in several occupations; but most of the time 
I haA^e been in the jewelry business. 

5300. Q. Where? 

A. Different places. Fulton street, Courtlandt street, and Chatham 
street. 

5301. Q. Give us the names of the parties you were with ? 

A. I was with James Morrison, 103 Fulton street; I was with a party 
in Courtlandt street, I don’t remember his name; I Avas also at No. 90 
Chatham street. 

5302. Q. Where else have you been in business ? 

A. I do not recollect any more. 


506 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5303. Q. What business are you in now ? 

A. No business except the jewelry business. 

5304. Q. Where do you follow that ? 

A. Nowhere in particular. 

5305. Q. Have you got a store? 

A. No, sir. I have not. 

5306. Q. How do you carry on your business ? 

A. I receive a percentage on the business I send to the store. I 
receive 25 per cent. 

5307. Q. Name some more men with whom you were engaged. 

A. I am engaged with James Morris, 190 Fulton street. 

5308. Q. How long have you been engaged in this business with 
James Morris? 

A. For a year and a half last past. 

5309. Q. When did you take to him the last purchaser to buy some of 
his jewelry ? 

A. About six weeks ago. 

5310. Q. Where do you find your customers ? 

A. In the different hotels—French’s Hotel, the Astor House, and dif¬ 
ferent places. 

5311. Q. Do you make it your business to go to the guests of these 
hotels and suggest to them the propriety of their going with you to buy 
jewelry at these different places ? 

A. Not at the start; I generally in the first place commence playing 
billiards to get in with them, and then get them to go down there. 

5312. Q. At whose request did you go over to Jersey City ? 

A. I decline to answer that question. 

5313. (Question repeated.) 

A. A man by the name of Murray; I think his first name is Charles. 

5314. Q. Is that Marshal Murray? 

A. No, sir. 

5315. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A. Some time. 

5310. Q. Where did you see Murray ? 

A. I saw him in the 6th ward—in the Union Hotel in that place. 

5317. Q. When did you see him ? 

A. I saw him night before last. 

5318. Q. What is his business ? 

A. That I cannot say. 

5319. Q. What did he tell you he wanted you to do ? 

A. He wanted me to go over to Jersey City and make a statement of 
what I knew; he went over with me—went over to a room in Taylor’s 
Hotel; there were two clerks in the room—nobody else. 

5320. Q. Did Murray go into the room with you ? 

A. No, sir; he stayed down stairs. 

5321. Q. What reward did he promise you for giving the statement? 
A. I refuse to answer that question. 

5322. Q. Where was the reward offered you ? 

A. I refuse to answer that question. 

5323. Q. Where did you make that statement ? 

A. At Taylor’s Hotel, Jersey City, yesterday, between 10 and 12. 
5324-25. Q. What guarantee was given you that you should be exempt 
from harm if you testified before this committee ? 

A. I was guaranteed that the United States of America and the State 
of New York would not harm me for anything I did. 

5326. Q. Was any law read to you ? 


ELECTION FBAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


507 


A. A written statement was read to me. 

5327. Q. Who read it to yon ? 

A. One of the clerks. 

5328. Q. I^^^ame every person who repeated with yon at the last Novein- 
her election. 

A. I do not recollect any names. 

5329. Q. What ticket did yon vote ? * 

A. I do not know. 

5330. Q. You did not care what ticket yon voted ! 

A. It made no difference to me. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5331. Q. How old is Mr. Murray ? 

A. I should think he is a man from 28 to 30. 

5332. Q. Has anybody offered you anything, or promised you anything, 
or paid you anything, to come here and testify to what is not true ? 

A. No, sir j they have not. 

5333. Q. Are you well acquainted with James Morris ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 18G9. 
James Green sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5334. Question. Where do you live ? 

Answer. No. 175 Crosby street. New York. 

5335. Q. State anything you know in regard to illegal voting in this 
city at the last presidential election. 

A. I suppose I voted nine times altogether at that election ; I do not 
remember any names upon which I voted; I did noti)ay much attention 
to it at the time, as I did it to oblige a friend; I got the names upon 
which I voted at a place in Thirty-second street, near Second avenne; 
there were about 30 of us went around and repeated at that election; I 
believe the others voted about the same number of times that I did; I 
stayed the night before the election at this house in Thirty-second street; 
got breakfast on the morning of election at Sheriff O’Brien’s house, I 
believe; there were about 50 of us who went together to the house 
and got breakfast. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

533G. Q. Do you know Mr. O’Brien well ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5337. Q. How long have you known him ! 

A. About 15 mouths. 

5338. Q. How did you come to know him ! 

A. By his being pointed out to me at the Tombs. 

5339. Q. What were you doing at the Tombs % 

A. Seeing a friend of mine. 

5340. Q. What was he doing in the Tombs ? 

A. He was in there for stealing. 

5341. Q. When were you in the Tombs for stealing ? 

A. Never. 

5342. Q. How long has James Green been your name ? 

A. As long as I can remember. 

5343. Q. When were you on Blackwell’s island ? 

A. Never in my life. 


508 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5344. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I am a peddler; I have peddled in different places around the coun¬ 
try—Newark, New York, and idiiladelphia. 

5345. Q. AYhat do you peddle ? 

A. I am an optician i^eddler, iiiend spectacles, &c. 

5346. Q. How do you go around the country 

A. On foot and aione ; sometimes I ride in the cars. 

5347. Q. How long has that been your business ? 

A. Eight or nine years. « 

5348. Q. Supi)ose a criminal indictment was produced liere showing 
that a man by your name had been convicted of some offence; which 
would be true, your statement or the record ? 

A. I would put up with the consequences j I have never been in prison 
at any time for stealing. 

5341). Q. What have you been in prison for, then ! 

A. For being drunk. 

5350. Q. Where were you in prison ? 

A. The Tombs. 

5351. Q. How long ago. 

A. About 10 months ; my friends paid my fine for me, and I got out. 

5352. Q. Where did you go yesterday to make the statement as to 
what you were to testify to here to-day ? 

A. I did not go anywhere. 

5353. Q. AYho took jmu over to Jersey City, to Taylor’s Hotel, to make 
the statement you hav-e made here to-day ? 

A. No one. 

5354. Q. Were you not over there ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5355. Q. Who took you over there ? 

A. Mr. Dunn. 

5356. Q. What is his name ? 

A. Bill Dunn; he lives at 103 Crosby street. 

5357. Q. What did he tell you ? 

A. He told me nothing, only to state what I did on the morning of 
the election. 

5358. Q. Did he not tell you if you came here to testify you would be 
guaranteed against all harm ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5359. Q. How long have you known Dunn ? 

A. About six months. 

5360. Q. What is Bill Dunn’s business ? 

A. I do not know. 

5361. Q. AVere you in Philadelphia on the second Tuesday in October 
last? 

A. No, sir; I was in this city at the time. 

5362. Q. How much money did Dunn tell you you should have if you 
would come here and testify ? 

A. He did not say anything about it. 

5363. Q. How much did you exj)ect ? 

A. Nothing at all; I came here to do an indirect kindness for a friend. 
5364^ Q. Did not Dnim tell you it would be a benefit to him ? 

A. Yes, sir; he said if I came here and spoke the truth it would be 
doing him a benefit, which he could not tell me then, but he would tell 
me at some other time. I wanted to oblige him, because he had done 
me some kindness at one time. 

5365. Q. AVhat kindness did he do you ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 509 

A. He lent me some money—$10 at one time and $20 at another time; 
he lent me the $20 about three months ago. 

5366. Q. How did you know whatr oom to go to in Taylor’s Hotel in 
Jersey City ? 

A. I met a couide of men there who told me where to go ; I do not 
know their names; they were strangers to me. 

5367. Q. How many went over with you ? 

A. I think four. 

5368. Q. What were their names ? 

A. I do not know. 

5369. Q. Have you seen any of them about here ? 

A. No, sir. 

5370. Q. Did you hear what statements the others made there 

A. Yes, sir; but I was disinterested and paid no attention to it. 
Dunn told me to go over there and I would be doing him a good turn, 
and he might be able to do nie a good turn some time ; so I went over. 

5371. Q. Where do you go when you engage in gambling ? 

A. I go to different places; there is no necessity to go very far for 
that purpose. 

5372. Q. Did you ever meet any of these parties at any of these gam¬ 
bling-houses ^ 

A. No, sir, not that I know of. 

5373. Q. Have you been in any of these gambling-houses with Bill 
Dunn ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5374. Q. Were you sober yesterday? 

A. Yes, sir ; I was sober for two months ; I gamble and I drink some¬ 
times. 

5375. Q. When you go to faro-banks and gambling-houses, what ones 
do you go to ? 

A. I refuse to answer that question; I aint going to expose these men. 
By Mr. Hopkins : 

5376. Q. Did you see O’Brien at this house where you took breakfast 
on the morning of election day ? 

A. No, sir; it may not have been his house; I heard parties in the 
crowd saying we were going to O’Brien’s house, and I supposed it was 
the sherilTs house. 

5377. Q. Are you x)ersonally acquainted with the sheriff? 

A. I am. 

5378. Q. Do you know Sheriff O’Brien’s brother ? 

A. No, sir. 

5379. Q. In the interest of what party did you vote ? 

A. The democratic party, of course. 

By Mr. Kerr^ : 

5380. Q. Who is that gentleman ? (pointing to Sheriff O’Brien.) 

A. That is Mr. O’Brien. 

5381. Q. Did you see him about that house at which you took breakfast ? 
A. No, sir, I did not. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 
Jaimes O’Brien recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5382. Question. Have you any brothers ? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

5383. Q. Who are they ? 

A. John, Lawrence, Stephen, and Patrick. 


510 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5384. Q. Are any of them deputies of yours ? 

A. No, sir; none of them. My youngest brother is employed by one 
of my deputies as a kind of clerk, but 1 had nothing to do Avith it at all. 

5385. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. No. 307 Thirty-second street, near Second avenue. It is about four 
doors from Second avenue. 

5386. Q. Where do your brothers reside? 

A. One of them resides between Thirty-first and Thirty-second streets, 
in Third avenue; another in Third avenue between Thirty-seventh and 
Thirty-eighth streets, with my father; another, corner of Thirty-third 
street and Third avenue; and the other lives with my sister, in Thirty- 
sixth street. 

5387. Q. Which one of them keeps house ? 

A. Stephen. He lives in Third avenue near Thirty-second street. 

5388. Q. Where is the headquarters of the Jackson Club ? 

A. At the corner of Thirty-second street and Second avenue. 

5389. Q. How far is that from your residence ? 

A. One block. 

5390. Q. Ho you know this man James'Clark who has just given his 
testimony ? 

A. No, sir; I have never seen him in my life before that I remember. 

5391. Q. Have you a deputy in your service by the name of Banker ? 

A. I have. 

5392. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. In Thirty-first street, I believe. 

5393. Q. Did you ever see a letter addressed by the clerk of this com¬ 
mittee, Mr. Davenport, to any parties in this city in relation to procuring 
testimony for this committee ? 

A. I had it in my possessiou, but tore it up. , 

5394. Q. When was this ? 

A. About three weeks ago. 

By the Chairman ; 

5395. Q. Was it before the committee came here ? 

A. Yes, sir; it was addressed to a uian in this city, asking him to 
come before this committee to give testimony in relation to these frauds. 

5390. Q. Who was president of the Jackson Club ? 

A. Leander Burke. 

5397. Q. Who was secretary? 

A. Samuel Ward. 

5398. Q. How large is that club ? 

A. The club consists of 115 members, many of whom are the most 
respectable men in New York city. Mr. Kerr, president of a saving’s 
bank, in this city, is a member. Also Mr. Costello, one of the head 
butchers in Washington market. » 

5399. Q. How large is the club-room ? 

A. About 65 feet deep and 20 crossways ; has a public house on the 
first floor. The club-room is on the second floor. 

5400. Q. Were you at the club-room during the night previous to the 
election ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5401. Q. Were there many men there? 

A. Yes, sir. We distributed our tickets there and made preparations 
for election next day. We were making arrangements for hiring persons 
to attend the polls, to keep the election boxes, distribute tickets, &c. 

5402. Q. Do you know whether quite a considerable number of men 
took breakfast at your house on the morning of election ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


511 


A. I believe there was. Some men came in whom I had hired to attend 
the polls and look after the interest of the democratic party. There were 
also about nine confidential friends of mine there altogether. They came 
in about 6 o’clock in the morning, and I gave them breakfast. There 
were also some policemen around whom I asked in to take a cup of coffee. 

5403. Q. Is your brother a member of this club ? 

A. He is not. 

5404. Q. AYas he there that night ? 

A. He might have been. 

By the Chairman : 

5405. Q. What kind of men were those whom you hired to attend the 
polls ? 

A. The most respectable men in the ward. 

5406. Q. Were any of them thieves? 

A. No, sir. 

5407. Q. Were they men who might have been in the habit of getting 
into the Tombs ? 

A. No, sir; I can name the whole lot of them. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5408. Q. Do you pretend to say that there were only nine men took 
breakfast at your house that morning ? 

A. That was all while I was there. This was about five o’clock; from 
five to six I kept open house. 

5409. Q. Was it not jiossible for parties to have been there without 
your knowing it? 

A. No, sir; it could hardly have been possible. I got up very early 
and was very busy making arrangements tor the election. 

5410. Q. To whom was this letter directed which you say was signed 
by Mr. Davenport and which you had in your possession ? 

A. It was addressed to a man by the name of Lawrence. 

5411. Q. Tell us why you tore that letter up. 

A. I did not think it concerned me at all. I did not think it would 
amount to much. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Edward Sanford, Jr., sworn and examined, (called at the instance 
of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5412. Question. Did you go this morning with a process of this com¬ 
mittee to summon James Morrison, 190 Fulton stiieet, and James Morris, 
103 Fulton street ? 

Answer. I did, sir. 

5413. Q. State with what result. 

A. The parties could not be found. 

5414. Q. What inquiries did you make for them ^ . 

A. I asked at 103 Fulton street for James Morris; I inquired first in 
the store on the first floor, and there was not any one there. Up stairs 
are all lawyers’ offices; I inquired of parties whom 1 met on the stairs 
and who belonged to the building, if they knew such a party, and they 
said no. 

5415. Q. Did you see any jewelry store there? 

A. No, sir; I then went down to 190 Fulton street. This building is 
occupied by a paper-hanging firm and they occupy the whole building; 
I inquired of the clerk of the establishment and he said there was no 
man there by that name, unless it was a party whom they had employed 


512 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


there that morning; he then consulted his books to see, and found out 
that there was no party at all employed by the name of James Morrison. 

5410. Q. AVas there a jewelry store there? 

A. No, sir; I inquired of several parties around 190 Fulton street, who 
were employed there, and they knew no such man. 

By the Chairman : 

5417. Q. How many stories were there to this building, 100 Fulton 
street ? 

A. Four stories; and at 103 Fulton street there were two stories; I 
did not notice whether there were basements in these or not. 

5418. Q. Hid you take any steps to ascertain if any of these men were 
engaged in this business six weeks ago, at any of these places ? 

A. They said they knew nothing about it. 

5419. Q. Do you live in the city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5420. Q. Do you not know that these dollar jewelry stores only keep 
a place for a little while, tlien leave and go to some other location ? 

A. Yes, sir; I believe so. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5421. Q. Don’t you know that people engaged in this dollar jewelry 
business are generally swindlers? 

A. I believe they are. 

5422. Q. Do you know of one place in Broadway, a large place ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5423. Q. Do you think that store is changed around every few weeks ? 

A. That I could not say. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 18G9. 

William Willson sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5424. Question. AATiere do you live ? 

Answer. No. 19 Forsyth street, in this city. 

5425. Q. State what frauds were committed at the last presidential 
election of which you have any knowledge. 

A. I voted a good many times myself at that election; I cannot tell 
how many times; I voted once in Canal street; I was intoxicated most 
of the day and could not recollect where 1 voted. 

5420. Q. Can you remember whether you voted more than once ? 

A. I could not exactly say whether I did or not; I got pretty drunk 
after I voted the first time. 

5427. Q. AA^here were you on the morning of election ? 

A. At the Atlantic Garden, in the Boweiy. 

5428. Q. How many persons were with you there ? 

A. Some 12 or 15. 

5429. Q. At whose request did you go there ? 

A. A young man told me to go there by the name of James Hawley. 

5430. Q. AVhere does he live ? 

A. I do not know; I merely know bim by his name. 

5431. il. For Avhat purpose did you go there ? 

A. To get slips of paper containing names on which to vote. 

5432. Q. From whom did you get these slips of paper ? 

A. I could not say. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5433. Q. How long have you been known by the name of AAhlliam 
Willson? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


513 


A. All my life. 

5434. Q. By what name were you sent to the Tombs not long ago ? 

A. I was never sent there. 

5435. Q. l^ever sent to BlackwelPs island^ 

A. No, sir. 

5430. Q. What is your business ! 

A. Hat and bonnet presser. i 

5437. Q. Where have you worked? 

A. I have worked with Ball, Bergen & Bay, 312 Canal streec 

5438. Q. When did you quit there? 

A. In the latter part of the fall,- T should think in the latter part of 
September. 

5439. Q. Why did you leave? 

A. Work became slack. 

5440. Q. Where did you live at the time you were discharged? 

A. Orchard street; I do not know the number. 

5441. Q. What business are you in now? 

A. No business. 

5442. Q. Where do you live? 

A. With a friend of mine by the name of Stephens—John I think is 
his first name. 

5443. Q. What business is he engaged in ? 

A. No particular business. 

5444. Q. How does he make a living? 

A. By speculating. 

5445 Q. Speculating in what? 

A. Anything at all. 

5446. Q. Name one thing. 

A. In jewelry. 

5447. Q. On what floor does he live? 

A. Second floor. 

5448. Q. How does he speculate in jewelry? 

A. I do not know; I never inquired into his business. 

4449. Q. How large a store does he occupy? 

A. He deals in jewelry, but he has no store. 

5450. Q. How does he support you ? 

A. He feeds me at this place. 

5451. Q. How long have you been living at this place? 

A. Some four or five months. 

5452. Q. Where did you go yesterday to make a statement of what you 
were sworn to here? 

A. I went over to Jersey City yesterday. I did not sui)pose I would 
have to answer any more questions here than what I did in my statement 
made in Jersey City. 

5453. Q. With whom did you go to Jersey City yesterday ? 

A. I went over by myself. 

5454. Q. At whose request? 

A. At the request of a man by the name of Smith; I do not know his 
first name. 

5455. Q. How long have you known him? 

A. I do not know; I have seen him several times. 

5456. Q. What did he tell you he wanted you to go over there for? 

A. To tell the truth about illegal voting. 

5457. Q. What reward did he promise you? 

A. No reward at all. 

5458. Q. What reward did anybody promise you ? 

33 T 


514 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Nobody promised me any reward. 

5459. Q. Vviiat reward did yon expect ? 

A. None at all. 

5460. Q. When you got over to Jeisey City Avhere did you go? 

A. I decline to answer that question. 

5401. Question repeated. 

A. I went to Taylor’s Hotel, and made a statement there. 

5462. Q. Who were there? 

A. There were a couple of men j I don’t know^ who they w:ere. They 
took down my statement. 

5463 Q. Wiiat reward did they offer you ? 

A. None at all. 

5464. Q. What reward did Smith offer you? 

A. None. 

5465. Q. What reason did Smith assign for asking you to go over to 
Jersey City? 

A. He assigned no reason whatever. 

5466. Q. You say 3 "Ou were drunk when you voted? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5467. Q. Who made you drunk ? 

A. A lot of men that were Avitli me; and I made a darned fool of 
myself. 

5468. Q. Are you in the habit of getting drunk? 

A. No, sir. 

5469. Q. How many times did you vote? 

A. I do not know. 

5470. Q. What did you get for voting? 

A. Nothing at all. 

5471. Q. What were you promised? 

A. I supposed I should get $5 or $6. 

5472. Q. Did you get it? 

A. No, sir. 

5473. Q. Who promised you the $5 or $6? 

A. A whole lot of men j I do not know any of them from a bunch of 
beets. 

New Y^ork, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Lewis Jonassohn recalled and examined. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5474. In regard to my testimony the other day before this committee, 
I would like to make an explanation. I stated, in answer to a question 
in regard to whether apiilicants or witnesses in the naturalization cases 
in the suiierior court were sworn individually or collectively, that wit¬ 
nesses were individually questioned by the judge; after they had iiassed 
the judge and went before the clerk, the clerk would take probably a 
dozen or half a dozen applications, which had been previously marked 
by the judge, and would call off the names; they would then appear 
before the clerk, who requested them to lay their right hands upon the 
Bible, and would then administer to them the following oath: “ You and 
each of you do solemnly swear that you will support the Constitution of 
the United States of America, and renounce forever any allegiance to 
any foreign prince, potentate, or sovereignty whatsoever; especially you” 
so-and so, “the kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland,” “you” so-and-so 
“ the free state of Frankford,” and “ you” so-and-so “ the King of Prussia,” 
&c., &c.; and in this way the oath could be administered to them collec- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


515 


lively. I also stated that the Teason why Judge McCiinii sent away in 
one night so many Irishmen was because they did not give proper answers 
to the questions that were put to them. The particular question they 
could not answer was, In what year were you born % ” The usual ques¬ 
tions put to them by judges were, How old were you when you arrived 
in this country f” and “ How old are you now ? ” But as soon as Judge 
McOunn put the question to them as to the year in which they were born 
they could not answer, and he would not reiieive their api^lications. 
Another ground why he expelled many was because they aj^peared before 
him in a gross state of intoxication. 

By the Chairman ; 

5475. Q. Do you know Henry Lyle? 

A. I do not know him by name ; I know so many that appeared before 
the courts that I cannot recollect all of the names. 

5476. Q. Do you hold an appointment under Judge McCunn? 

A. No, sir. 

5477. Q. Are you not an interpreter ? 

A. I am an interpreter by profession. 

5478. Q. How are you paid for your services? 

A. In cases where an interpreter is required in any court, whatever it 
may be, I am paid either by the party bringing the witnesses forward 
who do not understand the English language, or I am paid by both par¬ 
ties, if they both have witnesses who do not understand this language.. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Edward Sanford, Jr., recalled and examined: 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5479. Question. Did you go to the house of Ball, Bergen & Bay, 312 Canal 
street, to make an inquiry whether William Wilson was en^iloyed there 
last September; and if so, what did you ascertain ? 

Answer. I asked Mr. Bergen if any such man had been employed in 
that house, and he said no such man had been employed therefor a year 
past. 

New York, Friday^ January 8,1869. 

Edward H. Bergen sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5480 to 5482. I am a manufacturer of frames for bonnets j I made an 
examination this morning to ascertain whether one William Wilson had 
been in my employ in September last, and found that no such person had 
been employed by me since 1867; I consulted with my partner and my 
foreman, and they were positive no such man had been in our employ.. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

James O’Brien recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5483. Question. State whether your deputy sheriffs are obstructing 
the door of this committee room ? 

Answer. There are only three of them standing outside; they are 
waiting out in the ante-room. 

5484. Q. State whether you directed any policeman to arrest anybody 
here. 

A. I gave no directions to arrest anybody. 

5485. Q. Who did give directions ? 


516 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. As I understood that the committee wanted me to take a party whom 
they had here as a witness to be identified, I took one down to the 6th 
ward station-house to be identified by Captain Jourdan; this is a sample 
of the lot of witnesses that have been here; they are all thieves, and they 
get pay for coming here and swearing. I went into Marshal Murray^s 
room a little while ago; I told the marslial that this thing was played 
out; that I had kept men from coming here who would swear against 
him ; that I did not think he was doing the right thing towards me; that 
these men coming here to give testimony were all thieves, and he acknow¬ 
ledged the fact. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5486. Q. Do you know that the marshal of this district has been 
engaged in repeating, or hiring men to repeat, in this city 1 

A. I think he has been, together with Marcus Cicero Stanley. 

5487. Q. Do you know that to be so of your own knowledge ? 

A. I do, to the best of my belief. 

5488. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge that he has been 
engaged in that business ? 

A. I would not like to swear to that; I do not want to injure the man. 

5489. Q. Do you mean to swear that you have been iirotecting the 
marshal of this district against persons wlio are willing to swear to these 
facts ? 

A. I told the men that it would be best not to come; that they better 
not come here. 

5490. Q. Do you consider it lawful for one officer to protect another in 
the commission of crime ? 

A. 1 feel very friendly towards Marshal Murray. 

5491. Q. And yon say you have been protecting him from persons who 
were coming here to give testimony ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5492. Q. Can you give the name of any one person that was coming 
here to give testimony as you state? 

A. There was a man by the named of Ferguson ; I do not know where 
he lives; he is a clerk ; and l^eter McKnight; he keeps a rag and iron 
business somewhere. 

5493. Q. You say tiiat men came up to you and disclosed to you facts 
which they wanted to swear to before this committee, and that you pre¬ 
vented them from coming? 

A. They said they knew a great deal against Marshal Murray ; that 
there was a great noise about the democrats repeating; that the repub¬ 
licans had as much to do with it as anybody else. 

5494. Q. And you say you prevented these men coming hereto testify 
in order to screen Marshal Murray ? 

A. I did not give them any encouragement. 

5495. Q. What other man was there? 

A. G eorge Bartlet and John Jones ; they are partners in the plumbing 
business. 

5496. Q. What did they say ? 

A. They said they had a conversation with Marshal Murray and 
Stanley. 

5497. Q. You prevented them from coming here and testifying ? 

A. I did not encourage them at all. They said they knew a great deal 
about republican frauds and that Marshal Murray was implicated. 

5498. Q. What did you do when you left this room this morning ? 

A. I met a lot of suspicious peoide out in the entry; I knew them to 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 517 

be a lot of English thieves, and I took them down to Captain Joiirdan 
to identify them. 

5499. Q. Did you have any warrant for their arrest ? 

A. No, sir; a man told me that Colonel Wood, in Taylor’s Hotel, 
Jersey City, had hired a gang of thieves—English thieves—to come 
over here and swear. 

5500. Q. What person told you that ? 

A. A man by the name of Daniel Noble. • 

5501. Q. Where does he live"? 

A. In Elmira. 

5502. Q. What is his chai'acter ? 

A. Very bad, I think. 

5503. Q. Is he the man that w'as arrested some time since for being 
engaged in robbery ? 

A. There wns a notice of that kind in the papers. 

5504. Q. What other man told you that these men were thieves '? 

A. Barney Aaron. 

5505. Q. What is his business f 

A. He is a prize fighter. He has been over to see Colonel Wood in 
Jersey City; Colonel Wood sent for Noble to Elmira, and he paid all 
his expenses to come on here to swear for him. I met Noble in Broad¬ 
way and he showed me the despatch. 

5500. Q. How did you arrest those men that were in the hall ? 

A. I sent three of my deputy sheriffs, who took the men to Captain 
Jourdan to identify; the captain said he knew them all. 

5507. Q. Did you arrest them at the instance of Mr. Kerr, a member 
of this committee ? 

A. I supposed that it was the desire of the committee that I should 
have these men identified. I believe Mr. Kerr told me. 

5508. Q. Did you arrest them thinking Mr. Kerr represented this 
committee, or was it at his personal suggestion ? 

A. I thought it to be for the benefit of the committee. 

5509. Q. How many of them did you arrest ? 

A. I should think there were three or four of them. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Egbert Murray recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5510. Question. I would like to inquire whether the sheriff of this 
county, at your request or by your knowledge, has screened or attempted 
to screen you from any investigation before this committee that would 
implicate you in any violation of the election law of the United States 
or of the State of New York ? 

(The minority of the committee objected to this question as being 
leading and improper. Objection overruled.) 

Answer. He has not, or any other iierson. I desire to state here that 1 
have not been engaged either directly or indirectly, by myself or through • 
any other person, in perpetrating any frauds against the election laws 
of the United States or of the State of New York, either at the last elec¬ 
tion or at any other time in my life. I desire to make this statement 
as broad as possible, that I am incapable of doing anything of the kind. 

5511. Q. Do you know Daniel Noble? 

A. 1 do not, but I believe there is such a man. If the committee will 
permit me to state, I desire to say that the witnesses who appeared 
before your committee yesterday, and testified in regard to repeating, 


518 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

have never conversed with me or I with them. 1 have never had any 
communication with them directly or indirectly. I would not he able to 
call one of them by name. 

5512. Q. State what occurred at the interview between you and Sheriff 
O’Brien. 

A. I was standing out in the hall, looking for one of my men to go on 
some errand. Mr. Kerr was out in the hall at the time pointing out 
certain parties to the sheriff. The sheriff' ordered the arrest of some of 
these. He then followed me into my office. Said he, Who have you 
got here?” Said I, ‘‘Kobody, O’Brien.” He then went up to the door 
of my room, which was locked. Said he, Who liave you got in here ?” 
I told him there was nobody in there.” Said he, You are carrying 
this thing a little too far.” ‘‘What thing?” said I. He said he had 
saved me from exi)osure in this business, and didn’t think I was doing 
a fair thing by him ; that these men that came here to testify to-day 
were all thieves. I told him “I thought possibly they were; that it 
would require thieves to do this kind of business.” He then went out. 
That is the substance of what transpired between myself and the sheriff*. 
He said that he could bring 12 men that conversed with me at the Fifth 
Avenue Hotel. I told liiin I was not aware of having conversed with 
anybody there. 

5513. Q. You were quite willing, were you not, for him to bring any¬ 
body here to testify ? 

A. I would only be glad for him to do it. I shrink from no exposure 
whatever. 

By Mr. Eoss : 

5514. Q. Who is Charles Murray? 

A. 1 do not know. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5515. Q. 1)0 you know by name any person whom you have seen about 
your room waiting to swear before this committee ? 

A. I do not. 

5516. Q. Ho you know where they came from ? 

A. I do not. 

5517. Q. Have you sent any man or set of men to room Ko. 18, Taylor’s 
Hotel, Jersey City, to see anybody there? 

A. Ko, sir; I have not. 

5518. Q. Hid you authorize any of your deputies or clerks to do so ? 

A. No, sir; I did not. 

5519. Q. Ho you know whether they have done so ? 

A. I do not. 

5520. Q. Ho you know who has an office in that hotel ? 

A. I think Colonel Wood stops over there. I do not think that he 
has any office there. 

5521. Q. Who is Colonel Wood ? 

A. Hetective. 

New York, Friday^ January 8,1869. 

Samuel S. Acker recalled, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5522. I do not think I know a man by the name of Henry Lyle. 
There has been a man around the court who represented himself as a 
reporter on some paper in this city; I think his name was Wild. • He 
stands about five feet three, and is rather roughly dressed. I have 
been an officer in the superior court in this city about twenty years; and 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


519 


every year I have had something to do with the issuing of naturaliza¬ 
tion certificates. During last October I was emj)loyed during the day, 
as an officer of the court, to maintain order among the people who pre¬ 
sented themselves for naturalization. I would take up their applications 
to the clerk; and, in the absence of the clerk, would sometimes swear in 
the applicants. 

5523. Q. State whether, from your observation, you think it possible 
for any one man, during the month of October, to have got in over 000 
or 1,000 applications while appearing as a witness? 

A. Most emphatically, no. 

Q. Did you ever know any person to appear as both applicant and 
witness at the same time? 

A. No, sir; it would be utterly impossible. 

New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

Thomas Eyan sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. IvERR: 

5524. Question. State if you know Henry Lylje. 

Answer. I know a man who represents himself by that name. 

5525. Q. Have you seen him about this building recently ? 

A. Yes, sir; I saAv him a little while ago in the custody of one of the 
marshals. 

5520. Q. How long have you known him? 

A. I knew him while the naturalization business was going on; he 
represented himself as a rei)orter. 

5527. Q. State whether he acted as a witness or aiDplicant in the 
naturalization of cases. 

A. He acted once in a while as a witness. 

5528. Q. State what you know of him. 

A. He appeared in court several times under the influence of liquor, 
and acted in a disorderly manner. I turned him out several times. He 
was generally intoxicated when he was at the court. 

5529. Q. State whether it is, from your knowledge and observation of 
the sux)erior court, possible tor this man Henry Lyle, during these days 
of naturalization, to have come into court and to have secured, on his 
own testimony, as either witness or applicant, from 000 to 1,000 certi¬ 
ficates. 

A. No, sir; it would have been utterly impossible. 

5530. Q. State whether, according to your observation as an officer of 
the court, you suppose it to have been possible that tliat man or any 
other man could have come in on successive dhys, or at any time^ and 
secured certificates of naturalization by being himself both witness and 
applicant; first testifying as a Avitness, then turning around and taking 
the oath of allegiance as an api)licant in the same case. 

A. No, sir; it could not haA^e been. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5531. Q. Did you e\"er see him around the court ? 

A. I saAV him there sometimes. 

5532. Q. Was he hanging around the court-room? 

A. He Avould come in and look around and see if he could see anybody 
that he knew; and if he did, he would approach them and try to get a 
drink out of them. 

5533. Q. You saw him two or three times as a witness—might he not 
have been a witness for a good many persons ? 


520 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do not tliiiik lie could liave been without my recollection. 

5534. Q. Do you know all the men who hung around the court and 
acted as professional witnesses'? 

A. No, sir, I do notj I think I did not know of anybody acting as a 
professional witness. 

5535. Q. Were there not a good many faces which you saw there every 
day'? 

A. No, sir. 

553G. Q. Is your knowledge sufficient to tell whether he was acting as 
a witness in a good many cases'? 

A. I could not say. 

5537. Q. When he did act as a witness was he drunk ? 

A. Yes, sirj that is to say he was under the influence of liquor, but 
could give answers to the questions; sometimes he would stagger, but if 
he was very drunk he was generally put out of court. 

5538. Q. Did you see men there acting from day to day as witnesses ? 

A. I did not. 

5539. Q. Do you know of a man by tiie name of McOatfrey ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5540. Q. Was he in there frequentlj- as a witness? 

A. I cannot say of my own knowledge. 

5541. Q. Do you know Patrick Gough ? 

A. No, sir. 


New York, Friday^ January 8, 1809. 

Charles L. Grant sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5542. Question. State if you were present at the last presidential elei?- 
tion in this city; if so, v/hat occurred in your iirecinct ? 

Answer. I was at the 1st election district, 20th ward, in this city. I 
went there to look after iiarties that were attempting to register imxirop- 
erly. I had not been in the place long when Charles McCarthy (^ame in 
and attempted to register. I chaUenged him and he was sworn, lie 
said he had never been to a court to obtain his naturalization ceiliflcate, 
but had got it at the comer of Thirty-fourth street and Ninth avenue. I 
then arrested him for attempting to vote on illegal papers, brought him 
down to the station-house, and he was cojnmitted. Subsequently he said 
a man by the name of Eobert Love gave him the paper. A warrant was 
issued for his arrest, and he was arrested; but he could not be identified, 
and he was discharged. 

5543. Q. I here present four papers purporting to be certifleates of 
naturalization issued to John E. Glover, Jacob Hufl*S(dimidt, Edmund 
Jacker, and Eobert Frye, three of which are signed “Charles E. Loew,” 
and dated October, 1808; the other one is signed by James M. Sweeny 
and dated in October, 1808; state what you know of them. 

A. I arrested the parties holding these papers and the man who sold 
them. His name is Simon Lesser. These men gave two dollars apiece 
for them. 

5544. Q. Hoav do you know that? 

xA. They so stated it to me. I saw Frye give the two dollars to Lesser. 
The jiapers were purchased in a lager beer saloon, corner of Seventh 
avenue and Thirty-fifth street. I understood this thing Avas going on, 
and Avent up there and watched for it. When Frye came out of his place 
I arrested him and asked him for his paper; took him back into the 
pla(;e and told him to point out to me the man Avho sold it to him. He 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


521 


pointed out Simon H. Lesser. I took Lesser down before tlie marsbal 
and liad a commitment made out for him and had him locked up. I then 
got the papers from these other parties and had them arrested. 

5545. Q. What official position do you hold. 

A. I am deputy United States marshal. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5546. Q. Did any of these men vote ^ 

A. No, sir; their papers were taken away from them the Wednesday 
imeceding the election. 

5547. Q. What is Lesser’s character ? 

A. 1 do not know anything about his character; he operated in this 
lager-beer saloon; he is now contined in the Ludlow street jail. 

New York. Friday^ January 8 , 1869. 

James Gorman recalled and examined, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. EA:rr : 

5548. Question. State whether you went by the process of this committee 
this afternoon to 19 Forsyth street, in this city, to find one John Ste¬ 
phens ? 

Answer. I did. 

5549. Q. State what was the result. 

A. I went to No. 19 Forsyth street and inquired there for the man. 
The first story is a grocery store. They told me they did not know* of 
any such man. 1 then inquired on the floor above, and no such man 
lived there I then met the lady who was agent of the house and 
inquired of her; she said that John Stephens did not live there and had 
not lived there for some time past. She did not know of any such man. 
She said there were some German cigar-makers on the first floor, but she 
did not think it could be any of them. I went into the rear house and 
inquired there, and was told that there was no such man lived there by 
that name. 


New York, Friday^ January 8, 1869. 

George Merritt sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr: 

5550. I live'at 247 West Twentieth street. I was inspector of elections 
at the last presidential election, 5th district, 16th ward. Mr. Howell, 
and Mr Brady, and Mr. Willis were my colleagues. Messrs. Willis and 
Brady were the democrats. I was appointed inspector to serve in the 
last election; but they said I was a democrat and had me removed. I 
was then reappointed, but was discharged again. I had been inspector, 
in that district for 32 years. 

5551. Q. State whether the business done before the board, in connec¬ 
tion with registration and voting, was done with the general consent or 
harmonious action of the whole board? 

A. Certainly. 

5552. Q. Did you have any difference of opinion concerning those who 
ought to be registered ? 

A. I had none; there was ]io ill-feeling or jarring at all. 

5553. Q. State whether of your own knowledge yoa have reason to 
believe that illegal or otherwise unauthorized persons were registered 
by your board ? 

A. No, sir; if a man appeared and desired to be registered, and I had 
anv doubts about him, I would make him show his papers. I know 


522 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


aliriost everybody in tlie ward, and eonld easily tell whether they were 
legal voters or not. 

5554. Q Have yon any reason to believe that any illegal votes were 
east at your preMnct 

A. So tar as niy knowledge is concerned I do not think there eonld 
liave been any illegal voting, because I do not suppose there are any men 
vile enongli to do that. I hear a good deal of talk about illegal voting, 
but I never saw any of it in my life. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5555. Q. 1)0 you regard the presentation as conclusive of a man’s right 
to votei 

A. No, sir; parties would often have papers that would not belong to 
them. 

5556. Q. Hid you challenge any man ? 

A. Frequently; I made them swear. 

5557. Q. How many votes were polled at your precinct"? 

A. Five hundred and seventeen at the jiresidential election; at the 
municipal election there were taken only 30() or 400 votes, probably less 
than 300. At the municipal election there were onl^^ 4,000 votes polled 
in my ward; at the iwesidential election 9,000 votes were polled. 

New York, Friday^ January 8 , 1869 . 

George W. Maybee recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5558. Question. Have you examined the registry of the last presidential 
election in this city for the 7th district, 8th ward ? 

Answer. I have, and present to the committee a list of persons regis¬ 
tered at the Compton House, at the corner of Third avenue and Twenty- 
fourth street. 

5559. Q. Have you examined the poll-list in that district? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5560. Q. How many of those in that poll-list are marked as having 
voted at the last presidential election'? 

A. All those on the list which I present to committee which are marked 
with the letter ‘‘V.” 

5561. Q. Are there on the poll-list any names of persons whose names 
are not on the registry ? 

A. Yes, sir; I present a list to the committee showing the names of 
persons on the poll-list whose names are not on the registry. 


COMPTON HOUSE, THIRD AVENUE, CORNER OF TWENTV-FOURTII STREET. SEVENT 


Charles Anderson, 

Henry Ayres, 

Henry Austin’, 

Henry Andrews, 

Peter Anderson, 

*James H. Blackwell, 
William Banker, 

Hiram Beord, 

Edward Rrigps, 

* Christopher Brown, 
William Blorsall, 

* Daniel Brown, v 

Michael Brody, 

John M. Borker, 

Patrick Boylan, 

William Burgoyne, v 


STRICT, EIGH I’EENTH WARD. 
* Daniel A. Creamer, v 


Arthur Crimins, v 

Bernard Campbell, v 
James Cillin, 

Hugh E. Coiemau, 

John Culvert, v 

W'iiliam Cohen. v 

Richard Cook, 

James Ball and, v 

John Baker, v 

Francis Berber, v 

John Brooks, 

Jos. Bray, v 

Jesse Barker, v 

Jos. Cole, V 

Levi Cook, 


Thomas Conroy, 

Owen Clark, v 

Peter Campbell, 

Henry Dean, 

Frederick Decker, v 

.John Delaney, 

Morton Delaney, v 

Hugh Durnan, 

Michael Dwine, 

Charles Devoe, v 

Charles Diamond v 

Albert Devoo, 

William Doherty, v 

Tim Dolan, 

Charles Davis, v 

Jos. Dodd, V 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


523 


Peter Delaney, 

Pearce Ent^lish, v 

William Elder, v 

Jos. Ellis, V 

Jos. Elliott, V 

Patric'k Fitzsimmons, v 
Michael Fogliu, 

John Flood, v 

Edward Fallen, 

Amos Garret, 

James Gardner, v 

John M. Garvey, 

John Griffin, v 


Thomas Henderson, 
George W. Hull, 
Jos. Hengleton, 
Michael Hendy, 
Philip Higgins, 


Alexander Handle, v 

Thomas Hunt, 

Andrew Hund, v 

John Henright, 

William Harrington, 

John Harris, v 

Charles Hogan, 

Henr^^ Jenkins, v 

William Johnston, v 

Patrick Lynch, v 

Jos. Larkin, 

William Lewis, 

Andrew Lord, ' v 

David Laynon, 

Edward Lyons, 

William long, v 

James R. Logan, 

John Kendall, v 

Alexander Koon, 

Benjamin F. King, 

William Moore, v 

Patrick Monahan, 

^Gilbert A. Meigs, v 

"^^Theodore Morrel, 

*Thomas Morrow, 

John McArdle, 

James Murphy, v 


i Robert McGee, v 

' Terrance Monohan, v 

j Henry G. Moffatt, 
i Henry Masterson v 

j Jos. McMaim, v 

Henry Neely, 

Frederick Morshall 
Henry Melay, 

James McClodd, 

William O’Brien, v 

*Henry Owens, v 

Samuel Purdy, v 


* Benjamin F. Pease, 

^John W. Phelps, v 

* Maurice Powers, 

Abel Parker, 

George Pinard, 

William Quinn, 

*John Rollins, v 

Thomas Roorke, 

William Ramssy, 
William Randall, 
■’^Thomas Rogers, 

Waller Reed, v 

*^John F. Scannell, v 

* Henry Steinchmann, 

* David Stevenson, 

1 D. W. Smith, v 

j Michael Smith, ' v 
I Jos. Smith, 

I Albert Smith, 
i Owen Shields, v 

Barny Small, 

Michael Shay, v 

Frederick Slack, 

Austin Shepard, 

Robert Shaw, 

Andrew Stewart, v 

* Edgar C. Suydam, v 

* Daniel H. South worth, 

* Florence Scannell, v 

* Peter Smith, v 

j William Teal, 

I Jacob M. Walsh, 

I Horace Taylor, v 


Thomas Tillyon, 

Samuel Veedu, 

^Cffiarles Vaiibergan, v 
*Lewis Willsoy, v 

Hiram Whitmore, 

William Whady, v 

Francis Work, 

Oscar Wood, v 

Henry L. Webb, 

Thomas Williamson, 

Henry Westlake, 

John We.stou, 

Jos. Worden, 

James Devlin. v 

Names on poll-hook not on 
registry. 


Michael Morton, v 
Thomas Davis, v 

* Peter Carroll, v 

*J. F. South worth, v 
^Harry R. McCready, v 
William Moore, v 

George Andrews, v 

William Long, v 

William Besaw, v 

* Peter Garvin, v 

^William P. Suydam, v 
Henry Arthur, v 

Richard Coole v 

James Eiaidru, ‘ v 
Frederick Mahon, v 
John Delaney, v 

Benjamin F. Kuzery, v 
William Becher, v 
James Hutton, v 

Michael Boylan, 26, v 
William Dorhan, v 
John Barrow, v 

George Bennell, v 
Thomas Connors, v 
Alexander Conn, v 
Henry Anderson, v 
Arnus Savitt. v 


NTew York, January 9, 18G9. 

John A. Foster sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5592. Question. State if you liave examined the tables nuitihered from 
one to six, both inclusive, referred to in the testimony of H. E. Sweetzer; 
and if so, what do you know of their correctness ? 

Answer. I have examined the tables mentioned. In examining’ No. 1 
I find, in the third and fourth columns, there is given what is called per¬ 
centage of increase in one case and decrease in another case, ifs referring 
to the vote of the consecuti ve years in this ci ty; such a percentage woul d not 
show the actual increase of votes. If you take the vote of aii}^ four years, 
containing, two of them an increase, and two of them a decrease, and 
add the increase together and the decrease together, and if they amount 
to the same, the first presumption would be that the statement showing 
a large percentage of increase was incorrect. Compare, for instance, 
tlie votes from 1857 to 18G1. The increase of tlie vote of 1858 over 
1857 is 19J per cent.; of 1890 over 1859, 98J per cent. The decrease 
of the vote of 1859 from that of 1858 is 18|^ per cent., and of 1891 from 







524 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tliat of 1860 is 41 per cent. If you add the percentages of increase 
together they amount to 85 per cent., while the percentages of decrease 
aniount to but 59J per cent.; but on reference to the actual figures, as 
shown in the table, instead of exhibiting a large increase they show a 
decrease. From 1848 to 1868, taking the Amte by presidential contests, 
there has been an increase of the vote in NTew York city at each election. 
1 have prepared a table shoAving that increase: 

From 1848 to 1852 . 8 per cent. 

From 1852 to 1850 . 38/^ “ 

From 1850 to 1800 . 20 “ 

From 1800 to 1804 . 15J “ 

From 1848 to 1804 the aA^erage increase is 20J per cent. From 1864 
to 1808 the percentage of increase is ll^^ per cent., or nearly twice as 
much as the average percentage of increase of preAious presidential 
elections. If the votes actually cast at that election had been at such 
aA^erage, there Avould have been 133,000 Azotes, or 23,000 less than has 
been actually declared in the official canvass. Taking the rate of in¬ 
crease from 1800 to 1804, 15J i:)er cent., as the basis of the number of 
A'otes that should have been polled in 1808, there Avould liaAX been 
128,500, or 27,500 less than were declared. 

Making the same comi)utation for the State, exclusive of NTew York 
city, I find that from 1848 to 1852 the increase Avas 10 per cent.,* from 
1852 to 1850, 18 per cent.; from 1856 to 1800, 11 per cent.; from 1860 
to 1804, 7 per cent.; and from 1804 to 1808, 12 per cent.; making an 
average increase of about 12 per cent, for each four years, being less 
by eight per cent, than the UA^erage increase in the city previous to 1868. 
I have also made a comx)utation of the population of Nlew York city from 
1850 to 1805, shoAving the number of voters, natiA^e and foreign, and a 
similar table for tlie State, showing the numbei* of Alters, native and 
foreign. It shoAv^s that of the total number of voters in Ncav York city 
in 1855 40,173 were nath^e and 42,704 Avere foreign, and in 1805 51,500 
native and 77,475 foreign. I have also made the same comx)utation for 
the State. I have also x)repared a table showing tlie percentage of 
natives and foreigners in the six New England States and in New York 
and Pennsylvania ; shoAving also the i)ercentage of natives and foreigners 
in NeAv York city and PhiladelxAhia. 

Such of the ligures as 1 have used as Avere on the tables submitted to 
me I have taken from them, supx)osing them to be correct; AAdien not on 
the x>apers I liave taken them from the official canvass and the United 
States and State census of 1850, 1855, 1800, and 1805. 

Mr. Kerr .objected to witness being alloAved to make the aboA^e state¬ 
ment; objection overruled. 

To Mr. Kerr: 

5503. I am a counsellor-at-laAv^; haA^e been x)racticing for sixteen years, 
except from about the middle of 1801 to 1805, during \Adii(di time I AAms 
in the army. I Avas lieutenant colonel and colonel; served most of the 
time in the department of the gulf; Avas Avounded at Port Hudson, and 
on my request to be either mustered out of the service or idaced.on some 
light duty, 1 Avas ordered to court-martial serAuce. I did not recover 
from the aa ound in my leg until nearly a year after I left the service. I 
have paid great attention to statistics. It has been a favorite study of 
mine, and I have made myself extremely familiar Avith them. I am 
counsel for the Union League; liaAx been so since three days after the 
liresidential election. I did not compile these tables especially as their 
counsel; I did it in the interests of truth. I Avas not requested by them 






ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


525 


to do so. I arn not paid for it. I will charge them a counsel fee for my 
services as counsel; it will not, I suppose, be any more because I prepared 
these tables. As counsel for the Union League, I exaniine witnesses 
for the purpose of submitting to this committee sucli facts as may be 
elicited. I have addressed letters to parties all over tlie State wliere 
there was any probability of fraud; the letters were printed in the papers; 
when answers were received, I would examine the evidence, to ascertain 
whether it was legal evidence, such as might be produced in a court of 
justice. If it was I made memoranda, and submitted them to my asso¬ 
ciates; they are Mr. S. J. Glassey and J. H. White. I do not know 
whether Mr. Bliss considers himself an associate counsel or not; he is in 
and out all the time. I cannot say whether we have furnished most of 
the evidence produced by the majority of this committee. I suppose Ave 
have produced a good deal of it. I know very little as to the testimon;^ 
in relation to the repeating. I could not say what my associates bad to 
do with it. 1 never knew that any of my associates Avere employed 
in Jersey City in getting up evidence. I should naturally have heard of 
it if they had been. I was not aware there was an office organized OA^er 
there. 

To the Chairman : 

5564. I was one of the counsel for John H. Surratt; I knoAv Colonel 
Samuel North ; in regard to his character for truth and veracity I only 
know Avhat I heard at the time he Avas tried. 

To Mr. Kerr: 

5565. Colonel North Avas tried in Washington before a military com* 
mission, of which Major General Doubleday Avas president and I was 
judge adA^'ocate. He was tried for making false votes under Avhat was 
known as the soldiers’ voting law. It was alleged on the trial that he 
would either himself, or procure sombody else to, forge the names of 
parties who voted, of the officers before Avhom the vote Avas given, and of 
the officer who certified that the signature of the officer Avas genuine, 
and finally forward it to Noav York. I do not knoAv that there Avas any 
final result to the trial only that he was discharged; he AA’'as serA^ed with 
a copy of the charges and specifications, and made a long argument, 
occupying three days, as to the question as to whether the charges con¬ 
tained a military offence at all. I cannot disclose the decision of tlie 
commission until the proceedings are published. I know nothing as to 
Colonel North’s character other than what I gathered on that tritl. 

5566. Q. Don’t you know that the census of this State, taken in 1865, 
is confessedly unjust and incorrect towards the city of Ncav York"? 

A. No, sir; I believe it is right. 

5567. Q. Don’t you know that Mr. Dex>ew himself has repeatedly stated 
that it is grossly incorrect ? 

A. I do not know that he has. 

5568. Q. Do you know anything about its correctness or incorrectness ! 

A. No more than from my judgment. 

Witness presents the folloAving statement and tables as part of his 
testimony: 

Percentage of increase in votes for every four years, (presidential elec¬ 
tions,) from 1848 to 1868: From 1848 to 1852, 8 per cent, increase; from 
1852 to 1856, 38.8 per cent, increase; from 1856 to 1860, 20 per cent, 
increase; from 1860 to 1864, 15.5 per cent, increase; from 1864 to 1868, 
41.4 per cent, increase. From 1848 to 1864 the average is 20J per cent.; 
less than half of this iiresidential election. 

If the votes actually cast at this election had been at such average of 


526 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


20J per cent., they would have amounted to 133,020, or about 23,000 less 
than was actually declared in the official canvass. 

If we take the rate of increase for from 1800 to 1864 as the basis of loj 
per cent., the number whi^h would have been polled \yould be 128,500, 
and which is probably nearly correct. This is about^27,500 less than 
the canvass. 

Making the same estimate of the State, exclusive of New York county, 
I find from 1848 to 1852 an increase of 10 per cent.; from 1852 to 1856 
of 18 per cent.; from 1856 to 1860 of 11 per cent.; from 1860 to 1864 of 7 
per cent. ; from 1864 to 1868 of 12 per cent., or not quite 12 per cent, for 
each four years. 


Population of New York city. 

Votei’Hj 

Population of State of New York. 

Voters. 

T- 

Years. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

Total. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

Total. 

Native. 

Foreign. 

1850.. 

274. 558 
303, 721 
427, 324 
412, 909 

240, 981 
326,183 
386, 345 
313, 477 

515, 547 
629, 810 
813, 669 
726, 386 



2, 441,465 
2, 528, 444 
2, 879,455 
2, 880, 852 

659, 929 
937, 768 
1,001,280 
920, 293 

3, 097, 394 
3, 466, 212 
3, 880, 735 
*3, 827,818 



1855.. 

1860.. 

46,173 

42,704 

516,745 

135, 577 

1865.. 

51, 500 

77, 475 

583,611- 

239, 873 


1800. Percentage of— 

Native. 

Foreign. 

Maine. 

94.04 

5. 96 

New Hampshire.... 

93. 58 
89.61 
78.87 

6.42 

Vermont. 

10. 39 

Massachusetts. . . 

21.13 

Rhode Island. 

78.58 

21.42 

Connecticut...... 

82.46 

74.27 

17. 54 

New York. 

25. 73 

New Jersey. 

81. 73 
85.19 

18. 27 
14.81 

Pennsylvania. 

New York city. 

52. 38 
71.07 

47. 62 
28. 93 

Philadelphia. 



New York, Saturday^ January 9,1869. 

JOHN E. MoGtOWAN sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

^y Mr. Ross: 

5569. Question. What is your business? 

Answer. I am a clerk in the sherifi'^s office in this city; I was formerly 
a clerk in the World office, and x)revious to that in the American News 
Company. 

5570. Q. Are you acquainted with Colonel Wood? 

A. No, sir. 

5571. Q. Are you acquainted with Marshal Murray ? 

A. Not personally. 

5572. Q. Are you acquainted with Marcus Cicero Stanley ? 

A. Yes, sir, I am. 

5573. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A. I have known him by reputation since I was a boy; I have known 
him intimately for about a year. 

5574. Q. Do you know with what political party he acts ? 

A. I could not state positively; he is a very uncertain man. 

5575. Q. State if you have had any conversation, with him; if so, when 
and where, and what it was. 








































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


527 


A. It was two days before the State election in this city. I met Mm 
at the Fifth Avenue Hotel. He asked me if I was a canvasser in the 3d 
ward in this city, and I told him I was. He then offered me $50 to 
change tickets for him at the election. He wanted me to give him the 
governor and electoral ticket, and stated he would SAvap off the other 
tickets with me. That Avas the substance of the conversation. I have 
not s^en him since to talk with him. 

5576. Q. For Avhoin did he Avaiit you to make this change ? 

A. In favor of the republicans. I Avas a democratic cauA^asser. 

5577. Q. Who was your republican colleague ? 

A. I cannot recollect his name. 

By the Chairman : 

5578. Q. Did you hav^e more than one interAueAY Avith him ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5579. Q. Did he produce any money? 

A. I told him I would see about it. 

5580. Q. Have you stated all that transpired at that interview ? 

A. Yes, sir. It took place in the bar-room of the Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

5581. Q. Was anybody else present ? 

A. Marshal Murray was Avitli him. 

5582. Q. Did he hear the conversation ? 

A. He was present at the time the interview took place. 

By the Chairman : 

5583. Q. Where do you live ? 

A. No. 119 White street. 

5584. Q. How long have you been a clerk of the sheriff ? 

A. Nine months. 

5585. Q. HaA^e you had any coiiA^ersation with the sheriff about testi¬ 
fying here ? 

A. No, sir. 

5586. Q. Were you summoned here ? 

A. I came here of my OAvn accord. 

5587. Q. At whose instance did you come ? 

A. At my own instance; I felt it my duty to come here. 

5588. Q. Did you come here Avithout telling anybody about it? 

A. I told two or three I was coming here; I knew nothing about this 
committee until last evening; I heard somebody talking about it ,at the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

5589. Q. Whom did you hear talking about it ? 

A. Ben. ButleFs nephew; I forget his name. 

5590. Q. Are you acquainted with Marshal Murray? 

A. I do not know him to talk Avith him; I haA^e seen him frequently. 

5591. Q. Did you change any votes ? 

A. No, sir; I did not. 

5592. Q. Did Stanley eA^er speak to you about changing the Amtes after 
that inteiwieAv? 

A. No, sir; he did not come to me afterwards; I did not see him again 
until after the election. 

5593. Q. When did this conversation occur ? 

A. It Avas two or three days before the election. 

5594. Q. How did you happen to get into this coiiA^ersation with him ? 
A. Accidentally; I was standing there, and am there almost every 

evening. 


528 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


]New York, Satmrday, January 9, 18G9. 

Robert Murray recalled and examined. 

By tlie Chairman : 

5595. Question. Do yon know Marcus Cicero Stanley'? 

Answer. I do ; but i have not spoken a word to him for five years. 

5596. Q. State if you are acquainted with John E. McGowan, the wit¬ 
ness who has just testified. 

A. I never saw him in my life to my knowledge. 

5597. Q. State if he had any conversation with Marcus Cicero Stan¬ 
ley, two or three days before the presidential election, in your presence 
at tlie Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

A. No, sir; I have had no conversation with Stanley, or noticed him 
in any possible way in five years. 

5598. Q. Did McGowan have any conversation with you prior to the 
j)residential election 1? 

A. No, sir. 

New York, Saturday, January 9, 1869. 

Thomas Sullivan sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Keir.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

5599. Question. What is your business? 

Answer. I am a clerk. 

5600. Q. Wliere do you live ? 

A. No. 173 Delaney street. 

5601. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray? 

A. I do, sir. 

5602. Q. Did you have any conversation with him touching the elec¬ 
tion ? 

A. I did, sir. 

5603. Q. When and where ? 

A. The conversation occurred in Cliambers street, a few doors from 
the United States court-house. It was last Tuesday, I believe. 

5604. Q. State Avhat your conversation was. 

A. John Donovan and myself were standing in Chambers street when 
Murray came up and asked us what we were doing there. He asked us 
theii if we would not make an affidavit that we breakfasted at Sheriff 
O’Brien’s house on the morning of election, and repeated for the demo¬ 
cratic party in the election. I told him I would not make such an affi¬ 
davit. 

5605. Q. Did he offer you any reward ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5606. Q. What was it ? 

A. He said we would be compensated. He did not name any amount, 
but said we would be paid for doing so. 

5607. Q. Did he state by whom you would be compensated ? 

A. No, sir. 

5608. Q. Have you stated as nearly as you can recollect all that tran¬ 
spired ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

5609. Q. In what business are you a clerk? 

A. I am a clerk to Mr. Mueller, who keeps a liquor store 398 Greene 
street. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


529 


5010. Q. How long have you been there ? 

A. Six months. 

5011. Q. What time did this conversation take place"? 

A. Last Tuesday, between 11 and 12 o’clock in the forenoon ? 

5012. Q. Where does John Donovan live'? 

A. I cannot state; I have known him for five years. 

5013. Q. What business is Donovan engaged in"? 

A. I do not know. 

5014. Q. What is Mr. Mueller’s name with whom you are employed ? 
A. Anthony Mueller. 

5015. Q. How often did you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. I voted only once. 

5010. Q. Do you know of any persons voting more than once ? 

A. No, sir. 

5017. Q. Where did you vote *? 

A. At the 4th election district, 13th ward. 

5018. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. Democratic ticket. 

5019. Q. Were you summoned as a witness here? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5020. Q. Who summoned you ? 

A. I do not know. 


New York, Saturday^ January 9, 1809. 

Egbert Murray recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5021. Question. Have you seen Thomas Sullivan, the witness who has 
just testified here ? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

5022. Q. Have you ever seen him before ? 

A. No, sir; not to my knowledge. 

5023. Q. Did you have any conversation with him in Chambers street?. 

A. No, sir. 

5024. Q. State if you ever made any request of him to appear before' 
this committee to testify in relation to taking breakfast at Sheriff O’Brien’s, 
house on the morning of election. 

A. No, sir; I never made any request of this kind, nor had any con¬ 
versation with him of any kind whatsoever. 

New York, January 9„ 1809. 

John Donovan sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr 
Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5025. I live at No. 259 Broome street. New York city. I have lived 
there since last December. I am an engineer by occupation. 

5020. (Question. Do you know Marshal Murray ? 

Answer. Yes, sir; by sight. 

5027. Q. Did you have any conversation with him within the last two 
weeks ? 

A. Yes, sir; I had a conversation with him last Tuesday, in Chambers 
street, a few doors below the United States court-house. 

5028. Q. State Avhat occurred at that time. 

A. I was standing in front of Sheldon & Company’s store with Thomas 
Sullivan. Marshal Murray came along and asked us what we were doing 
there. We told him we were going in to see the investigating, committee. 

34 T 


530 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


He told us to go in and swear we took breakfast at Sheriff O’Brien’s 
house^ and repeated for the democratic party at the last presidential 
election, and that we would be liberally paid for it. 

5029. Q. Hid he say how much you would be paid. 

A. No, sir. 

5630. Q. Hid he say by whom you would be paid? 

A. He did not. I would not be positive, however, whether he said he 
would pay or not. 

By the Chairman : 

5631. Q. How long have you known Mr. Sullivan ? 

A. Eighteen months or two years. 

5032. Q. Hid you have any conversation with Sheriff* O’Brien about 
your testimony here ? 

A. No, sir; I only told him about the conversation. 

5633. Q. When did you tell him about that ? 

A. Tuesday afternoon. 

5634. Q. Hid you tell him anything about it yesterday ? 

A. No, sir; I did not see him yesterday. 

5635. Q. Were you served with a subpoena to come here ? 

A. Yes, sir; I was served with a subpoena yesterday afternoon. 

5636. Q. Are you engaged in your business of engineering now? 

A. No, sir; I am messenger to the board of aldermen; 1 have been so 
since the 8th of January last, a year ago. 

5637. Q. How often did you vote at the last election ? 

A. But once, and registered but once; I voted in the 9th election dis¬ 
trict, 7 th ward. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5638. Q. Ho you know Marshal Murray well ? 

A. I know him by sight. 

5639. Q. State how that interview commenced. 

A. We Avere standing in Chambers street, in front of Sheldon & Co.’s, 
when Marshal Murray came along aud said, ‘‘Boys, what are you doing 
here?” We told him Ave Avere going in to see the investigating commit¬ 
tee. I had heard a good deal of talk about tlie committee, and had come 
down to see it; 1 was not aware that the committee was sitting with 
closed doors. 

5640. Q. Who employed you to come here and giA^e this testimony ? 

A. Nobody employed me; I Avas served with a subpoena yesterday 

afternoon. 

5641. Q. Is that the gentleman to Avhom you refer? (pointing to Mar¬ 
shal Murray.) 

A. Yes, sir. 

5642. Q. Hid anybody send you here to spy around this committee? 

A. No, sir. 

5643. Q. Has not some one talked Avith you about coming here ? 

A. No, sir; no one at all. 

5644. (^. Hid you take breakfast at Sheriff O’Brien’s house on the 
morning of the presidential election ? 

A. No, sir^ I do not knoAV where he liA^es. 

Neay York, January 9, 1869. 

Egbert Murraat recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5645. Question. Have you seen the witness, John Houovan, who has 
just testilied before this committee ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


531 


Answer. Yes, sir. 

5(>4C). Q. State if yon liad any conversation with him on Tuesday last ? 
A. NTo, sir; I never had on Tuesday last, nor upon any previous time. 

5047. Q. Did you have any conversation with him about testifying 
before this committee"? 

A. No, sir. 


New York, January 9, 1809. 

David Hogan sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5048. I reside at No. 833 Third avenue, New York city j I am a hackman 
by occupation. 

5049. Q. Where were you last October and November ? 

A. In New York city. 

5050. Do you know Marcus Cicero Stanley? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5051. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray ? 

A. I do. 

5052. Q. Do you know George Wilkes “? 

A. Partially. 

5053. Q. Prior to last November election, state whether you had any 
conversation with any of those gentlemen, and if so, with whom ? 

A. I had a conversation with Marshal Murray and with Marcus Cicero 
Stanley at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in this cityj I think it was the 28th 
of October. 

5654. Q. State what that conversation was. ^ 

A. It was in reference to voting and getting repeaters, and repeating 

myself; Invent over to the Fifth Avenue Hotel with a friend of mine, by the 
name of Ferguson, and also one by the name of Jones, and another man 
whose name I do not recoUect. We heard that there was a good deal of 
business going on at the Fifth Avenue Hotel in connection with the election; 
I said to Ferguson that there was a good deal of money floating around 
there, and that Ave might try and get some of it. I went there and saw 
Marshal Murray; he said he wanted me to get 10 good men to vote on 
election day in the Avestern district of the 21st ward, and one or two dis¬ 
tricts of the 18th Avard, and he asked me how much it would be worth; 
I told him it would be Avorth $1,000; Murray said that was too much; 
we talked a little while, and he finally offered me $300 ; I said I would 
take it; 1 then made an agreement Avith him to meet him at the Hoffman 
House the night before the election; we went there that night and met 
him there; he introduced us to a man whom I had not seen before, with 
A^ery heavy black Avhiskers, and he paid us the $300; I then went to the 
bar-room and divided it up between myself, Ferguson, Jones, and the 
other man. 

5655. Q. Who paid you this money ? 

A. The man Avith the heavy whiskers ; I do not knoAV his name. 

5056. Q. Wliat were Stanley’s political relations at this time ? 

A. I think he was a republican; Murray did all the talking in the 
business. 

5057. Q. In Avhat interest did he want you to repeat ? 

A. In the interest of the republican party. 

5058. Q. What did you do on the day of the election ? 

A. I repeated, I suppose, at least 14 times. 

5059. (i. Did the other three who Avere with you repeat ? 


532 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir. 

5060. Q. Who gave you the names upon which to vote ? 

A. The man who gave ns the money. 

5GG1. Which ticket did you vote '? 

A. The republican ticket. 

By the Chairman : 

5GG2. Q. AVhere did yon vote ? 

A. I voted all over } I voted in the 4th, 5th, 9th, and 14th precincts of 
the 21st ward; I voted again down in Twenty eighth street; I do not 
know the number of the precinct. 

5GG3. Q. In which place did this man give yon the names and the 
numbers upon which to vote “? 

A. At the corner of Twenty-fourth street and Third avenue, directly 
opposite the Comiiton House; he gave them to ns in the bar-room at that 
place. 

5GG4. Q. Who keeps the place 

A. I do not know; I had never been there before, but have been there 
since ; I Avas there last night; I saw nobody there last night; the bar¬ 
room, I suppose, is about 50 feet in length. 

5GG5. Q. Who was this man who paid yon the money ! 

A. I do not knoAV; I never saw him before, and have not seen him 
since. 

5GGG. In which part of the Fifth AA^enne Hotel did you liaA'e this 
coiiA ersation aa ith Marshal Murray ? 

A. In the lobby, near the reading-room. 

5GG7. Q. AVhere did Marshal Murray introduce you to this man? 

A. In the Hoffman House; we Avere standing right by the door lead- 
in^^’ to the bar-room. 

5GG8. Q. Upon what names did you Amte ? 

A. I cannot recollect all of them; one Avas Charles Hoff'. 

5GG9. AVhere did you Amte upon that name ? 

A. Either the 4th or 5th precinct of the 21st Avard. I do not remem¬ 
ber any other names. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5G70. Q. Did you look at the ballots you Amted? 

A. Yes, sir; I Avent to the republican box and got the tickets upon 
which I voted. 

5G71. Q. What are your politics? 

A. I am a democrat. 

5G72. Q. And you say you voted the republican ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir ; I Amted for money. 

5G73. Q. You state that you iieA^er saw this man who paid you the 
money ? 

A. I saAv the man when he paid me the money ; I had never seen him 
before. 

5(>74. Q. Do not you think it Avas a very curious transaction for a 
perfect stranger to giA^e you $300 before you had done any Avork for him 
at all? 

A. That was his affair, not mine. 

5G75. Q. Do not you know that you were violating the law? 

A. Yes, sir; I did not think much of it at the time, though; I thought 
more of the money. 

5G7G. Q. Who induced you to come here and testify to this? 

A. I Avas told that I was Avanted here. 

5G77. Q. Who told you? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


533 


A. A democrat; Ms name is Farley; I do not know Ms first name; 
lie keeps a liquor store at the corner of Fifty-seventh street and Third 
avenue. 

5078. Q. What did he say you were to do down here ? 

A. He knew that I had repeated, and he told me to come doviui here 
and tell my story. He said there was a commission sitting here inquir¬ 
ing into frauds, and that, if I was a good democrat, I would come down 
here and tell what f knew about them. 

5079. Q. Who came with you here"? 

A. Mr. Ferguson. He was with me when I repeated. 

5080. Q. Did you vote more than once at any one precinct ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5081. Q. Were you challenged at any precinct *? 

A. Yes, sir; I was challenged in the 9th precinct of the 21st ward. 
The man who challenged me got shot afterwards. I do not know his 
name. 

By the Chairman : 

5082. Q. What time in the day did you see Marshal Murray at the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel"? 

A. I think it was about 8 o’clock in tlie evening. 

5083. Q. What time did you see him at the Hoffman House ? 

A. About 8 or 9 o’clock. 

5081. Q. What was this man shot for ^ 

A. I do not know; I saw a notice of it in the paper the next day. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5085. Q. How long have you known Marcus Cicero Stanley"? 

A. By reputation, for many years. 

5080. Q. Where is your staud’as hackman? 

A. At Jersey City ferry. 

5087. Q. How do you know that IMarshal Murray had anything to do 
with the iiayment of tlie money at the Hoffman House ? 

A. ^7otMng but what this man told me. 

5088. Q. Is this Marshal Murray now present ? 

A. It is, sir. 

New York, January 9, 1809. 

Eobert Murray recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5089. Question. Have you seen the witness, David Hogan, who has 
just testified before this committee ? 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

5090. Q. State whether you ever saw him before. 

A. Never, to my knowledge. 

5091. Q. Did you have any conversation with him at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel shortly before the last presidential election in reference to repeat¬ 
ing "? 

A. No, sir. 

5092. Q. Did you introduce anybody to him or him to anybody at the 
Hofi'man House"? 

A. No, sir; 1 was not at the Hoffman House during election or pre¬ 
vious to it. 

5093. Q. Did you see any man with black whiskers, or have any con¬ 
sultation with arty man with black whiskers, about repeating for the 
republican party % 


534 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. No, sir; I never liad any conversation with any man about repeat¬ 
ing, either at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, at the Hoffman House, or at any 
other place. 

New York, January 9, 18G9. 

George B. Gifford recalled and examined, (at the instance of i\Ir. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5G94. Question. Who is that man ? (pointing to J. H. White.) 

Answer. That is J. H. White. 

4G95. Q. Is that the man about AA^hom you testified ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5G9G. Q. You stated in your testimony that Mr. White sent for you to 
meet him at the Union League club, Iioav did lie send for you ? 

A. By a boy 5 I do not know his name. The boy had on gray clothes 
and a fur cap. The boy came up to me and said that Mr. White Avould 
like to see me and Mr. Darling at the Union League club that night. I 
said, ‘Wery well.” I went to Mr. Darling and told him that the boy had 
brought a message from Mr. White for us to meet him at the Union 
League club-rooms that night. We started to go doAvn there 15 or 20 
minutes before 7. We got there about 10 minutes before the appointed 
time, and were waiting there on the side-Avalk in front of the Union 
League Avheii Mr. White came up. 

5G97. Q. Why did you not go into the club-room ^ 

A. Because I was not known there. 

5598. Q. I AYOuld like to haA^e you state just what Mr. TVdiite said to 
jA)u when he met you. 

A. He came up to me and says he, Your name is Gifford f” 1 said 

Yes.” He then asked me if I would not go doAvn before the congres¬ 
sional committee and giA^e eAddence as to frauds being perpetrated by the 
democratic party at the presidential election. I told him that I knew of 
no frauds committed by the democratic party at that election. He said 
that made no material difference ; if I Avould SAA^nr to an affidaA it that 
he AA ould draw up, it AA Ould be all right, and he would pay me liberally 
for doing so. I do not knoAv whether he said he Avould pay me or 1 aa ould 
be paid liberally. 

5G99. Q. Do you know why Mr. White sent for you to inquire about 
frauds ? 

A. I do not know, unless it is because I was a member of the repub¬ 
lican party up to the last election; he also knew that I lived in Third 
avenue near Thirty-ninth street, and I presume he thought that if there 
were any frauds going on I would know about them. 

5700. Q. State the exact place where this coiiA^ersation occurred. 

A. It Avas on Twenty-sixth street, 30 or 40 feet from Madison aA^enue, 
very near the entrance to the Union League. 

5701. Q. Which e\"eniug was this? 

A. Tuesday eA^ening, a week ago. 

5702. Q. How old a boy Avas it avIio brought you the message? 

A. He was about 14 years of age, I should judge. He had on a gray 
sack coat and pants; I could not see his A^est. 

5703. Q. Did you intimate to your friend. Darling, that there Avas any 
money in it ? 

A. No, sir; I did not know whether there AAms or not. 

5704. Q. Was there nothing said about money ? 

A. Not on the first evening. 1 told him, after I came away from 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 535 

tliere, that if they wanted anybody to commit a fraud we might as well 
make something out of it as not. 

5704. Q. How were yon to make anything out of it? 

A. I thought we might come down here and make some statement 
that would not amount to anything, and then get them to pay us for it. 

5705. Q. Do you think that was perfectly honorable? 

A. As honorable as this proposition to us. 

5706. Q. When did you see this Mr. Banker in reference to your tes¬ 
timony here ? 

A. I think it was last Sunday evening. I told Mr. Banker the facts 
in the case, and he said it was our duty to come down here and give 
evidence before this committee. I told him I was very willing to do so. 

5707. Q. What else did he say ? 

A. Nothing else. 

5708. Q. Did he ofler you any inducement ? 

A. No, sir. 

5709. Q. Have you been offered any inducements by anybody to come 
here and testify ? 

A. No, sir. 

5710. Q. Have you been promised any? 

A. No, sir. 

5711. Q. Do you expect anything ? 

A. I do not. 


New York, January 9, 1869. 

John H. White recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman ; 

5712. Question. State if you have seen the witness, George B. Gifford, 
who has just testified before this committee ? 

Answer. I have. 

5713. Q. state what interview, if any, you had with him on last Tues¬ 
day evening, a week ago, in front of or near the Union League club¬ 
house ? 

A. I had no interview with him at that place or any other, to my 
knowledge. I was not at or near the club-house that evening. 

5714. Q. State if you sent any boy with a message to him to meet you 
there that evening, or anywhere else ? 

A. Never, in my life. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5715. Q Do you know where this man lives, or anything about him ? 

A. No, sir j I do not know that I have ever seen him before. He may 

have seen me around the courts, or in the City Hall. 

5716. Q. State if you saw Henry Darling with this man at or near the 
Union League club-house last Tuesday evening, a week ago, or any 
other time? 

A. I did not. I have never seen such a man, to my knowledge, either 
there or elsewhere. I can state to the committee, by referring to some 
memorandum that I have at home, where 1 was that night, but my mind 
is not now entirely fixed as to where I was. My impression is that I 
was where there were 50 gentlemen from 7 o’clock in the evening till 10 
at night. I desire to state that the whole story is a fabrication from 
beginning to end j that I never had such conversation with mortal man. 


536 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 0, 1869. 

George B. Gifford recalled and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5717. Question. Do you know that man? (pointing to Christopher 
Pullman.) 

Answer. I do. 

5718. Q. Who is he? 

A. Christopher Pullman. 

New York, January 9, 1869. 

Christopher Pullman called and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5719. Question. State if you had any conversation with George B. 
Gifford, who has just testified before this committee, two or three days 
previous to the State election in Pennsylvania, in reference to his going 
to Philadelphia ? 

Answer. I had none whetever. 

5720. Q. Did you have any interview with him about going to Phila¬ 
delphia ? 

A. No, sir. I have had no conversation with him whatever. I meet 
him occasionally on the street, and pass the compliments of the day j 
that is all. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5721. Q. Do you know who has organized an office in Jersey City for 
the purpose of receiving men who might be sent over there, and exam¬ 
ining them in reference to testifying before this committee ? 

A. No j I do not. I never heard of any such office before. 

New Y^ork, January 9, 1869. 

J. Malcolm Smith sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

5722. I reside at White Plains, Westchester county, New York. 1 am 
clerk of Westchester county; 1 imesent to the committee, as requested 
by them, a statement of the number of persons naturalized in that county 
from the year 1858 to 1868, both inclusive, Avith the number of persons 
naturalized upon each day in the month of October, 1868. There were 
138 persons naturalized in October, 1868. We naturalized a good many 
previously to the town meetings. The supreme court and the county 
court both have jurisdiction in reference to naturalization. There were 
very few persons naturalized in the supreme court, probably 25. I have 
a deputy clerk j his name is Wright Banks. We both act with the dem¬ 
ocratic party. Judge Cochran, who presides over the county court, is 
also a democrat. Mr. Banks has acted as my deputy since January 1, 
1868, and still does. 

To Mr. Hopkins : 

5723. My deputy made out most of the certificates of naturalization. 
We never made out any certificates for parties Avho did not appear in 
person. When the party appears to be naturalized, myself or my dep¬ 
uty go into the court room Aviththe applicant, the judge examines him, 
and AAdien he has passed upon the papers, either myself or my deputy 
makes out the certificates. The court-room is on the second floor of the 
court-house j my office is on the first floor. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 537 

5724. Q. Do you not know that a great many parties have been natur¬ 
alized wlio did not go into the court-room ? 

A. No, sir ; 1 do not believe there is one case. I never heard of any. 

5725. Q. Do you know of your own knowledge that certificates of 
naturalization have not been issued to ijarties who never went into the 
court-room f 

A. I do not believe that such a thing has occurred. 

572G. Q. Do you know that it is not so ! 

A. Not having been always in the court-room I cannot say positively 
of my own knowledge. 

5727. Q. You say your deputy made out most of the certificates; has 
he a right to sign your name ? 

A. Yes; he signs my name. There is a law that empowers the deputy 
clerk, in the absence of the clerk, to sign his name. 

5728. Q. Does he sign his name or your name 

A. He signs my name, the only distinction being in the handwriting. 

5729. Q. Did he sign most of the certificates of naturalization ! 

A. Yes, sir; he signed most of them. I had charge of the office 
proper, and he attended to that portion of the court business relative to 
naturalization. 

By Mr. Boss: 

5730. Q. Can men come into the clerk’s office and obtain final papers 
without going into the court-room at all ! 

A. No, sir. 

5731. Q. Do you know anything about a man by the name of John 
Lee getting papers through ! 

A. No, sir. 

5732. Q. Do you know anything about Thomas Smith bringing a lot 
of men into the court-house and getting illegal naturalization papers ! 

A. No, sir; I know of no person going there and obtaining illegal 
naturalization papers. 

5733. Q. Do you think it could have been done ! 

A. I do not; I have no idea that it has been done. 

By the Chairman : 

5734. Q. Do you know Thomas Smith, of Hastings ! 

A. Yes ; I know of his bringing men there at different times. 

5735. Q. Do you recollect delivering certificates of naturalization to 
liersons he brought there ! 

A. Yes; I do remember once delivering papers to a man he brought 
there. 

Q. How were you paid for naturalization ! 

A. I received the usual fee; sometimes I charged it, sometimes I did 
not. In reference to obtaining papers without appearing in court, I 
w’^ould say that the practice in the county court was for some time for 
applicants to go before the clerk in the clerk’s office and there make 
their affidavits and obtain the papers from the clerk. This would occur 
when the court was not in session, but we would take it for granted that 
there was an open court. That lias always been the practice until 18G8, 
when I protested against it, and the judge issued an order that the appli¬ 
cant should appear before him in every case, and he would open court 
expressly for that purpose. 

5737. Q. These affidavits then were made in the clerk’s office! 

A. Yes; that was the practice under Judge Kobertson. They were 
made in the clerk’s office, when there Avas no court sitting. 

5738. Q. The judge did not see the witnesses then ! 

A. No, sir. 


538 


ELECTION EEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


5739. Q. They were not examined ! 

A. No, sir j we would swear them to the printed form upon the appli¬ 
cation in the clerk’s office. I found this to be the practice when I took 
charge of the office, and I continued the practice for some time. When 
the number of applications began to increase in September last, I told 
the judge I thought it Avas his duty to order naturalization, and that the 
clerk should not be held res])onsible. He agreed AAuth me and entered 
an order to that effect, and since that tinie he has taken charge of it. 

5740. Q. How did you SAA^ear the AA itness ? 

A. The affidaAut Avas read to him and the Avitness signed it ; then the 
affidaAut Avas repeated to him in the form of an oath, as for instance: 
“You SAAX^ar that you haA^e been acquainted with so and so,” &c. 

5741. Q. In what manner did the judge, in those cases where Avitnesses 
were sworn in the clerk’s office, indicate that certificates of naturalization 
should be issued ? 

A. In those cases the judge A\^as not consulted. That was the prac¬ 
tice up to September last. 

5742. Q. Did heknoAv that you were engaged in issuing naturalization 
certificates in that AA\ay ! 

A. Yes, sir; that has always been the practice both under Judge 
Kobertson and the previous judges. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5743. Q. How long have you lived in White Plains ? 

A. Only since I have held the office of county clerk. I have ]i\^ed in 
Westchester county all my life. I Avas an attorney and counsellor at law, 
and resided at Sing Sing. I have attended nearly ev^ery court that has 
sat for the last fiA^e years, and have been somewhat actiA^ely identified 
with the democratic party. I have had personal observation of the 
manner in Avhich naturalization business has been conducted in the 
county court for nearly 10 years. During all that time it was transacted 
in the Avay I have mentioned. 

5744. Q. Do you suppose it Avas possible, during the time the judge 
transacted this naturalization business, for a person to go there and 
obtain naturalization certificates Avithout a Avitness ? 

A. No, sir. 

5745. Q. Was it practicable for a person to be Avitness and applicant 
at the same time ? 

A. No, sir : I candidly believe that no application has been granted 
unless there Avas sufficient proof that the applicant was entitled to it. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5746. Q. Did you eA^er permit applicants who came there to be wit¬ 
nesses for one another'? 

A. It Avas frequently the case that parties Avould come there who knew 
each other. We Avould first naturalize one man, avIio Avould bring a citi¬ 
zen as a Avitness. After he Avas naturalized he would go Avitness for one 
of the other party Avhom he kneAv. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5747. Q. State if it was iiossible, so far as you knoAv, for a iierson to 
become naturalized by reason of perjury either of the Avitness or appli¬ 
cant. 

A. No, sir. 

The folloAving is the statement presented by the witness : 

Statement from the records of the clerk’s office of the county of West¬ 
chester of the number of persons naturalized' in the county of West¬ 
chester in the years 1858 to 1868, both inclush^e: 1858,48; 1859, 99; 1860, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


f)39 


139; 18G1, 43; 18G2,23; 18G3,11; 18G4, 17G; 18G5, IG; 18GG, 40; 18G7, 
50 ; 18G8,502. IS'iimber of persons imtiiralized in each day in the month 
of October, 18G8, (included in above statement for 18G8:)'October 3,44; 
7, 1; 12, 2; 13, 13; IG, 5; 17, 51; 21, 4; 24, 17; 27, 1. Total, 138. 

New York, January 0, 18G0. 

Florence Scannell sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5748. Question. State your residence and occupation. 

Answer. I reside corner Twenty-fourth street and Third avenue; lam 
in the horse business. 

5740. Q. How long have you lived in the city? 

A. I was born here. 

5750. Q. Do you know Marcus Cicero Stanley? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5751. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray ? 

A. I know him by sight; I have never spoken to him. 

5752. Q. Do you know George Wilkes ? 

A. 1 have spoken to him, but do not know him intimately. 

5753. Q. Did you have any conversation with Mr. Stanley, in company 
with Mr. Wilkes ? If so, state when and where, and the nature of the 
conversation. 

A. I had, about a week before the November election. I met him at 
the Fifth Avenue Hotel in this city. I agreed with him to register a num¬ 
ber of names and leave them unvoted, provided they would give me two 
republican canvassers in the December election. I fulfilled my i)art of 
the contract, but they did not theirs. 

5754. Q. AVith Avhoni did you make this contract? 

A. I made it with both Stanley and Wilkes. I was a candidate for 
assistant alderman in the municipal election in December. I had made 
a fight against Hoffman at the convention in Albany; did my best to 
get Murphy nominated, and I thought the democrats would oppose me 
pretty strongly. I knew that Tammany Hall had a feeling against me, 
and I thought that if I could get two republican canvassers I would have 
a certain thing of it; but Wilkes and Stanley went back on me. 

5755. Q. How could AVilkes and Stanley get these canvassers nominated? 

A. They could have sent the names to the leaders of the republican 

organizations of the ward, got the two republican canvassers who were 
appointed to resign, and then sent in my names to Police Commissioner 
Manniere. 

575G. Q. How would you be benefited by the appointment of these 
canvassers ? 

A. If I could have got two republicans appointed, whom I would 
name, they wmuld do almost anything I told them. 

5757. Q. What would you teil them to do? 

A. I would tell them to give me all the votes they could. 

5758. Q. AVhat did you do for AYilkes and Stanley? 

A. I registered 150 or 200 names in my ward. I voted some myself, 
and left some for them to vote. 

5750. Q. How many of these names were of men legally entitled to 
vote ? 

A. I cannot tell that; probably none, probably a dozen. 

57G0. Q. How many men registered these 150 or 200 names ? 

A. About 30 men; they registered about five apiece. 

57G1. Q. Can you tell Avhere they registered ? 


540 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I cannot; they registered from almost every house in the district 
where I lived. 

57G2. Q. What district is that ? 

A. The 18th Avard. 

57G3. Q. IIoAv many of those names did you leave ummted '? 

A. I probably voted a hundred. 

57G1. Q. Did you give those names to Wilkes or Stanley*? 

A. I did; 1 gave them, I think, 50 or GO names. I fulfilled Av^hat I 
agreed to do, but they left me in the lurch. 

57G5. Q. You say that Marcus Cicero Stanley and George Wilkes 
Amted those names ? 

A. I cannot say Avho \mted them. I Avas asked the day before elec¬ 
tion to send nobody to Amte upon the names. I told them that Avas the 
understanding, and they might bet I Avmuld not do it. 

57GG. Q. Who asked you that^ 

A. A man Avho liA^es in my a\ ard. I A\muld not like to mention his 
name. He is a man of business and respectability, and did it for these 
people merely as an act of kindness. I AAmuld not liaA^e come here and 
made any statement, if those felloAVS had carried out their contract 
Avith me. 

57G7. Q. At the time you had this conversation Avith Stanley and 
Wilkes, Avas any consideration ottered by Avay of money? 

A. Yo, sir; they kneAV me Avell enough. They kiieAv that if I said I 
Avould do anything, they could count upon it that it would be done. I 
was a candidate at the December election, and I was Avilling to strain 
everything to gain my point. I did all that I could do; organized all 
the combinations that I could, but when it came down for Wilkes and 
Stanley to do their part, they Aveakened. 

By the Chairman: 

57G8. Q. For whom did you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. I AO ted the Seymour electoral ticket. I often vote for republican 
candidates. I Amte for any good man, regardless of politics. 

57G9. Q. What office do you hold in this city now ? 

A. I do not hold any. I AAms member of the common council in 18G8. 
I represented the same district that Brooks does, and polled 7,000 more 
votes than he did. 

5770. Q. Which Wilkes do you refer to? 

A. George Wilkes, the editor of the Spirit of the Times. I never 
knew him before, but I heard his word was very good. 

5771. Q. When did this coiiAWsation occur? 

A. A Aveek before the November election. I met Stanley first, find 
he told me to go to the Fifth AA^enue Hotel. 1 Avent there and met 
Wilkes. He Avas in the little office near the Twenty-third street entrance 
when this conversation took place. 

5772. Q. Were those all fictitious names that you registered ? 

A. I guess they were; they must liaA^e been fictitious, because 30 
respectable men would not register 150 names. 

5773. Q. Which houses did they register at ? 

A. 1 cannot tell; different houses. 1 Amted some of the names myself, 
and gave the rest to them. They did not Avant the names so much for 
the electoral ticket as they did for the goA^ernor. 

5774. Q. Those persons who voted upon your fictitious names, did they 
Amte the democratic ticket ? 

A. I cannot tell whether they did or not. 

5775. Q. Did you have any understanding Avith these men that they 
were to vote the democratic ticket ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


541 


A. I never liad an nnderstanding with a voter in niy life. 

5770. Q. How many men did you get to vote upon the names you reg¬ 
istered ? 

A. About 20, I guess. Tliey voted upon from 70 to 100 names. 

5777. Q. Did they vote several times f 

A. Not that I know of. I supi)ose some of them voted two or three 
times. 

5778. Q. Did you give them slips of paper with names and numbers 
on? 

A. Yes. 

5779. Q. Do you know that Wilkes, or anybody else, got in any votes 
upon the names you gave them ? 

A. I do not know; 1 know that I gave them the list. 

5780. Q. To whom did you give that list ? 

A. 1 gave it to a man who lives in my ward. I registered a lot of 
names, and told the democrats not to vote them, as they were to be 
voted by the republicans. 

5781. Q. You do not know, of your own knowledge, whether they 
were voted on or not ? 

A. I do not; but the man to whom I gave the list, who came from 
Wilkes, said that he was going to vote upon them, and I took his word 
for it. I knew that he did not lie. 

5782. Q. Do you know of iiny persons engaged in repeating? 

A. I have nothing to do with other people’s business. 1 am telling 
what I do, and that is bad enough. I am giving myself a pretty bad 
character for a lot of politicians who would not walk from here to the 
door for me. 

5783. Q. Do you know of any person engaged in repeating in any 
other ward besides the 18th ? 

A. I do not like to answer any such question. I came here to tell just 
what I have done; I think that is bad enough. I have showed myself 
up as a loafer from beginning to end, and I do not want to meddle with 
anybody else’s matters. I would not be here at all had Wilkes and his 
men done what they promised. I registered so many men for the repub¬ 
licans, and they voted them, and when I asked them to do something 
for me I could not find them. 

By Mr. Boss: 

5784. Q. Was it the agreement that the republicans would vote for 
those names ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5785. To whom did you give those names? 

A. To a man whose name I would not mention; he is a republican, 
and one of the strongest who live. 

By the Chairman : 

578G. Q. I want you to state that name. 

A. I refuse to do it; I would rather go to the Tombs all my life than 
do it. 

5787. Q. Did this man vote for you ? 

A. I do not know whether he did or not; I would be willing to bet, 
however, that he did j a great many republicans voted for me because 
they know whenever they have a good candidate I vote for him. 

5788. Q. I insist upon an answer to my question. 

A. I cannot answer it. 

5789. Q. Do you know that you render yourself liable to be imprisoned 
by refusing to answer it ? 


542 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I am very well aware of that f if a man is not willing to suffer 
punishment rather than to show up a respectable man before the com¬ 
munity, he does not amount to much. 

5790. Q. Then you refuse to answer that question? 

A. I do. 

5791. Q. State if you know any person, or persons, who were engaged 
in voting more than once in any Avard in this city at the last presidential 
election ? 

A. I had nothing to do with anybody else’s business. 

5792. Q. Who keeps the Compton House? 

A. My brother keeps it. 

5793. Q. Ho you know who were living at that house in November 
last? 

A. There were so many living there that I cannot tell the names. 

5791. Q. Hid you not register fictitious names from the Compton 
House ? 

A. Yes, sir ; I did. 

5795. Q. Look at this list of persons registered as living in the Comp¬ 
ton House, mentioned in the testimony of Mr. Mabee, (see page 522,) 
and say Avhich of them lived at the Compton House in NoA^ember last. 

A. I cannot say hoAv many i)eople I knoAA^; some feAv names I recognize. 

5790. Q. State them, and the reporter Avill mark them Avith a star. 

A. Christopher BroAAui, Haniel Brown, Patrick Boylan, Win. Burgoyn, 
Haniel A. Creamer, Charles Havis, Pierce English, Patrick Fitzsim¬ 
mons, John Flood, James Gardner, F. A. Hauckey, James Lewis, Albert 
A. Meigs, Henry OAvens, John Bollins, J. J. Scannel, (that is my brother,) 
and Florence Scannel, myself; Win. O’Brien, Avhose name is on the list, 
I know, but he does not live at that house; there are 50 men who liA^e 
at the Compton House, and who Amted from that place, whose names are 
not on the list; the names I have mentioned are of men who Avork for 
me; that is the reason I recollect them; I may knoAA^ all of them by 
sight; my recollection is very poor. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5797. Q. Hid you haA^e care of the repeaters in the 18th ward? 

A. No, sir; I had not care of more than a few of them. 

5798. Q. How large a number of men knoA\m as repeaters did you 
furnish bollots to ? 

A. I did not furnish hardly any. 

5799. Q. Who did furnish tickets to the men you had registered? 

A. I liaA'e nothing to say as to aa ho did. 

5800. Q. Ho you know Avho did ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5801. Q. State to the committee their names. 

A. I cannot ansAver that ; that Avould not be honest to my friends. 

5802. Q. You say you did furuish the slips Avith the names that you 
had registered ? 

A. I furnished them one election. 

5803. Q. I speak of the presidential election ? 

A. I did not furnish the names of probably more than 10, because 
there Avere other men for that business. 

5804. Q. You say you furnished 10 ? 

A. It was probably 10. It might not have been OA-er three or four. 
There were other men who were doing this work. They were doing it 
for me, to benefit my election; that Avas what the whole thing was for. 

5805. Q. You say you had men registered in every precinct in the 18th 
ward ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 543 

A. Not every one. I did not register tlie names myself j I sent tlie^ 
to be registered. 

5800. Q. How many men did you send out to register these names? 

A. Probably 30. It might have been oidy 20. 

5807. Q. Do 5 'ou know the names of any of those men you employed " 
in this way ? 

A. I have nothing to say about it. 

5808. Q. Do you know the names ? 

A. I know the name of one. I do not know that I can recollect any 
more. 

5809. Q. What kind of character had these men ? 

A. I do not know ; I never investigated it. 

5810. Q. Give the committee the name of the man whom you recollect 
furnishing names to be registered ? 

A. 1 do not want to answer that question. He is a young man, 
respectable and industrious, and if there is anybody to be shown up in 
this thing, I want it to fall upon me, and not upon men who have been 
my friends. 

5811. Q. We require yon to answer that question. 

A. I would be pretty tightly squeezed before I would answer that 
question. 

5812. Q. Do not you know that these men, Stanley and Wilkes, were 
trying to draw you in to ascertain these facts, and never intended to 
carry out their programme ? 

A. Stanley knows me too well to undertake such work. We have 
always been friends; I think his intention was good, and I would almost 
bet my life upon Stanley’s word. I was at one time the only man in 
New York who would believe him. If he had given me his word, I would 
have gone out and bet $100 to one that he would have kept it. I do not 
believe it is his fault that the agreement failed. 

5813. Q. Whose fault was it ? 

A. I do not know. 

5814. Q. You say your consideration was that you would have two 
republican canvassers whom you were to name ? 

A. Yes, sir; they were to be appointed at the presidential election, 
and I gave my word that Griswmld w'ould get every vote that Avas com¬ 
ing to him, and that Grant would get every vote that was coming to 
him, and they w ould get the men 1 wanted appointed for the municipal 
election. 

5815. Q. Then these canvassers must perform a very important part 
of the election ? 

A. I should think they did. If I had had my two men I guess I Avould 
have been elected. I w as only defeated by 200 votes. 

581G. Q. You think if you could have got these canvassers as you 
promised, you could have been elected ! 

A. Yes. If they nominated my two men and kept my district out 
until the last, I think 1 Avould have run in. 

0817. Q. Then if you had tliese two canvassers appointed, you would 
haA^e got the returns kept back until the other returns w ere sent in ? 

A. The cauAmssers did not amount to anything to the republicans, 
because they knew that their Amte was not more than 700, w^hen the 
democratic \mte AAms about 8,000, so there was no chance to elect a repub¬ 
lican, and they mighfi as wtII haA^e giA^en me the two cam assers as 
not. If I had had these two canvassers I would have slept comfortably 
election night. They could count faster than any other tw^o men in New 
York, and you could bet on it. 

5818. Q. What would you have got these canvassers to do ? 


544 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I think I could have selected two republicans who could count as 
fast as anybody in the ward. If anybody could get canvassers to count 
taster than my men, I would be willing to chuck up the sponge. I knew 
that all Tammany Hall was against me and accused me of being associ¬ 
ated with the republicans, and I never denied it. 

New York, January 9, 18G9. 

Michael Brady sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

1819. I reside 49 J Dominick street in this city. In reference to illegal 
voting in this city at the last presidential election I would say, that at the 
place where I live there is but one voter, and he is my brother. There 
were registered from this house live names, none of whom resided there. 
From 54 Sullivan Street there were registered Matthew McLaughlin, 
John Andrews, James Bowen, George McCloud, and William Wilson, 
none of whom lived there. I examined the registry list of the 2d, 12th, 
and 4th districts of the 8th ward. At No. 43 Sullivan street there are 
but four persons who actually resided there, while there were about 13 
names registered from that house. At No. 142 Sullivan street there 
were quite a number registered, but I only found one of them at the 
place; his name was 0. 0. Winkle. At No. 117 Spring street I found 
eight voters living in the front and rear house, but there were quite a 
large number registered from the place. I formerly lived at 48 Sullivan 
street; I see by the poll-list that William H. Dwyer voted from that 
place; I know him; he never lived there. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5820. I have lived at 49J Dominick street about a month; before that I 
lived at 48 Sullivan street. I was never in Sing Sing or BlackwelFs island. 
1 am not in any business at present. I used to be employed as a detec- 
ti^ e by Simeon Draper. I was detective about two years. I have been 
sick for the last two years, and have not followed any business. I had 
a good deal of money standing out, and have lived with my father. I 
suppose I had $10,000 standing out. I lent it to parties during the war. 
I am a machinist by trade, and have been in Kussia, where I made a 
good deal of money. 

5821. Q. To whom did you lend this money ? 

A. I decline to answer. 

5822. Q. Who supports you now ? 

A. I live with my father. He is a conductor on the Eighth avenue rail¬ 
road. His name is John Brady. I have never voted or registered more 
than I was entitled to. I was requested to examine the poU-lists by 
Major Strong. He is connected with the Union League. I found the 
poll-books at the Union League club house. There were probably about 
200 of them there; I cannot positively say how many. I examined 
some of them to-dajy and previously. He requested me last week to go 
up there and examine the books. I met him at the club-house, and he 
showed me the books that I was to examine. 

5823. Q. Are you a member of that league ? 

A. I am not; I have many friends, though, connected with it, S. J. 
Glassey, Major Strong, and others. I should think I examined about 
six of the books. 

5824. Q. Tell me, if you can, the name of any person who was regis¬ 
tered from a place where he did not live'? ' 

A. I can mention John Lawrence, 54 Sullivan street, Michael Laugh- 
lin, 531 Broome street; both of these registered twice, to my knowledge. 

5825. Q. How do you know that they did % 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


045 


A. I saw tliem. These are about all I know, except from what I have 
seen on the poll-list of those registered as residing at iny house. 

58:30. Q. How did you know that these men did not live at your house 
prior to the time that you went there ? 

A. I used to ^isit there very frequently, I knew everybody who lived 
in the house. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

I cannot say whether the other books that were at the Union League 
club house were similar to those I examined; thej" were different sizes. 

5827. Q. How long after election did you go around inquiring at the 
houses to ascertain whether the parties lived there ? 

A. Probably about a week after the charter election in December last. 

5828. Q. Was it the frauds in the December election that you were 
examining ? 

A. N’o, sirj the State election. 

By the Chairman: 

5829. Q. You say jmu examined those books at the Union League 
club house; which one do you mean? 

A. I mean the one in Broadway; I think it is 258 Broadway. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

5830. Q. Did you lend out that $10,000 to banks or private individuals ? 

A. Private individuals. 

5831. Q. Have you got a note for it ? 

A. Yo, sir; I know a great many of the parties. 

Yew York, Januanj 9, 1869. 

Egbert Murray recalled and examined, (called at the instance 
of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5832. Question. Upon whose authority are the 21 policemen stationed 
in and about this building ? 

Answer. I asked the superintendent of police this morning to send 
me eight or ten men. Things looked rather rough about here at 10 
o’clock this morning. There was a rough crowd in the hall, and I made 
a requisition upon the sui)erintendent for eight or ten men. 

5833. Q. Have you that requisition with you ? 

A. Ko, sir; I did not keep a copy. 

5831. Q. How does it read ? 

A. Something like this: ‘‘I would thank you to send me eight or ten 
men. In consequence of the peculiar character of the testimony pre¬ 
sented to the congressional committee, I am apprehensive that there 
will be a disturbance, and desire eight or ten men to keep the peace.” 

5835. Q. Will you furnish us a copy of that requisition ? 

A. I did not keep a copy. 

5836. Q. By what authority did you make that requisition f 

A. By my authority as marshal. I have charge of this building, and 
am responsible for it. 

5837. Q. Do the laws of the United States put you in charge of the 
public buildings here? 

A. I believe they do. 

5838. Q. Is it in pursuance of any law that a marshal of the United 
States makes a requisition upon a police officer of a State to furnish 
him with imlicemen ? 

35 T 


546 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do not know wlietlier there is any law npon the subject or not. 
I frequently do it. 

5839. Q. How does it come, in response to a requisition for eight or 
ten men, that he sent you 24*? 

A. That is a question he Avill have to ansvrer himself. 

5840. Q. What trouble did yon anticipate that led yon to reqnest this 
force 

A. When I was passing out of this room, when I was in here this 
morning, I was hissed by the crowd standing in the entry. It was a 
very rough crowd, and npon consnltation with some of my men who were 
mixing with this crowd, I came to the conclusion that there \yonld be 
trouble, and I immediately wrote this commnnication and sent it. I 
sent one of my clerks with it to the superintendent’s office. Why he 
sent me 24 men I do not know. 

5841. Q. By whom were yon hissed ? 

A. I cannot tell. By the sound of the voices I should think there 
were quite a number. 

5842. Q. Where were they'? 

A. Eight at the door of the committee room. 

5843. Q. Then it is for your personal protection that you did this'? 

A. Not altogether j I have considerable courage. 

5844. Q. For what purpose then *? 

A. For the protection of this building and the records of the court. 

5845. Q. Did you apprehend that they were in danger ! 

A. I do not know whether they were or not. 1 take great precaution 
in aU things. 

5846. Q. Did you assign these policemen their station ? 

A. No, sir. 

5847. Q. WTien they came here did they apply to you for orders ? 

A. The sergeant came to me and said he had a file of men here and 
wanted to know what disposition to make of them. I told him I wanted 
order kept in the hall, and the door of this committee-room kept clear. 

5848. Q. Do you think you have the right to bring these policemen 
here and supersede the sergeant-at-arms of this committee ? 

A. I had nothing to do with the policemen. I supposed that you 
were going to conduct your own business in your own way, with your 
own sergeant-at-arms. 

5849. Q. Suppose our sergeant-at-arms wanted the witnesses in the 
hall and in the doorway? 

A. He told me that he did not. 

5850. Q. Did he ask you to send for these policemen ? 

A. No, not particularly. 

5851. Q. Did you have any talk with him on the subject ? 

A. Not to-day. I did yesterday. 

By the Chairman : 

5852. Q. State if you made this requisition upon the chief of police 
at the request of any member of this committee; or with the knowledge 
or at the suggestion of any member of this committee. 

A. I did not. 

5853. Q. Or at the request of the clerk of the committee ? 

A. No, sir. 

5854. Q. State if Barney Aaron was in the hall ? 

A. I do not know liim. I was told this morning there was quite a 
number of roughs in the hall. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


547 


By Mr. Kerr : 

5855. Q. Do you tliink the men you have seen about here to-day as 
witnesses were any more vicious in their character than those you have 
seen about here for the last few days ? 

A. I testilied yesterday that I derived my knowledge of those parties 
from other people. I know but A^ery few of the men here to-day j but 
from tlie character of the men who were here yesterday and to-day I don’t 
see much difference. 

5S5G. Q. Do I understand from what you say that, notwithstanding 
the desire of the committee, you jntend to keep these men here ? 

A.^I Avill, so long as I deem it,necessary to protect the building. 

5857. Q. Your own judgment Avill then determine that? 

A. Yes, sir; I have no desire whatever to interfere A\dth the committee. 

Kew York, January 0, 1869. 

John W. LeBarnes recalled and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5858. Q. State whether the police force, consisting of 24, now in and 
about this building, was brought here upon your procurement or with 
your adAuce and consent f 

A. Ko, sir; they were not. 

5859. Q. Were you consulted before they came here ? 

A. Ko, sir; I knew nothing about their coming here. I haA^e been 
waiting for an opportunity to inquire hoAv they came. I Avas a ery glad 
to see them here, however. 

5860. Q. Did you liaA^e any coiiA^ersation with Marshal Murray about 
bringing them here ? 

A. Ko, sir. 


Neav York, January 9, 1869. 

Thomas A. McGlade called and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

5861. I reside at Ko. 233 West Thirty-first street. I am bar-tender at the 
Compton House. In reference to a list of 152 names referred to in the 
testimony of George Mabee, I AAundd say that I am not acquainted Avith 
all the boarders in the Compton House. I am only there from 7 o’clock 
in the morning till 7 o’clock at night. I did not go there until the 27th 
of October last. Some of the names I recognize ; they are as follows: 
James H. Blackwell, Christopher Brown, Daniel BroAvn, Daniel A. 
Creamer, Gilbert A. Meigs, Tlieodore Morrell, Thomas Morrow, Henry 
Owens, Samuel Purdy, Benjamin F. Pease, John W. Phelps, Maurice 
Powers, John Eollins, Thomas Eogers, John F. Scannell, Henry Steinch- 
mann, David SteA^enson, Edgar C. Suydam, Daniel H. SouthAvorth, Flor¬ 
ence Scannell, Peter Smith, Charles Yanbergan, Louis Willsley, Peter 
Carroll, J. F. Southworth, Harry E. McCready, William Long, Peter 
Garvin, and William P. Suydam. I may know two-tbirds of the parties 
named by sight. 

5862. Q. Who are the proprietors of the Compton House ? 

A. Fagin & Scannell. 

5863. Q. Wliat do you know about this business of repeating? 

A. I do not know anything about it. I Inwe lieard about it, but do 
not knoAV anything about it of my oavu knowledge. 


N 


548 ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

5804. Q. Where is the hotel registry containing the names of the per¬ 
sons who stox)X)ecl at the hotel from the last of October to the 10th of 
November ? 

A. I believe it is in the possession of the i)rox)rietors of the house. 

By Mr. Boss: 

5805. Q. Are there a good many people around the Compton House 
whom you do not know ? 

A. A good many. 

5800. Q. You do not know the regular boarders ? 

A. No, sir; I do not. 

New York, January 9, 1809. 

John Jones sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

To Mr. Kerr : 

5807. I reside at 202 East Thirty-first street. I have been there about a 
year. I keep a ifiumber’s store. I know Marcus Cicero Stanley. 1 also 
know Marshal Murray. I am not acquainted with George Wilkes. A 
few days before election a friend of mine, Mr. Hogan, came to me and 
asked me to go over to the Fifth Avenue Hotel with him, and said that 
he had an engagement with Marshal Murray and Mr. Stanley. My part¬ 
ner, a man by the name of Ferguson, Hogan, and myself went over there, 
and met Marshal Murray and Stanley. Marshal Murray wanted to know 
if we could get some men to repeat. Hogan said he could. He then 
wanted to know how much he wanted for it, and Hogan replied, a thou¬ 
sand dollars for ten men.’’ They had some conversation, and Hogan 
finally agreed for us four to go for $300. We then agreed to meet them 
the night iirevious to the election at the Hoffman House. We were there 
and met Stanley and Murray. Murray introduced us to another gentle¬ 
man with black wdiiskers. I do not know his name. He took Hogan to 
one side and after a little talk gave us $300, and made an arrangement 
to meet ns on the following morning. Hogan then joined us and we 
went to the bar-room, and he gave us $75 a piece. The following morn¬ 
ing we met this man at the corner of Twenty-fourth street and Third 
avenue. He gave us some tickets and names to vote on. We went 
through the 18th ward and voted at five or six jilaces, then went to the 
21st ward and voted at some districts there. I was arrested in the 14th 
district of that ward. There was no one with me when I Avas arrested. 
I was taken up before the court, and I had to stay in the station-house 
until I sent for bondsmen to get me out. 

5868. Q. To what extent did your company carry out the iirogramme ? 

A. We all worked in every name they gave us until I was arrested. 

I cannot say positively what the others did. I suppose I voted betAveen 
10 and 12 times before I was arrested. 

5869. Q. For Avhom did these men desire you to do this business; in 
Avhose interest'? 

A. In the interest of the republican party. I have always been a 
republican myself, and have alAvays voted that ticket heretofore. 

By the Chairman : 

5870. Q. Who was present at the Fifth Avenue Hotel when this con¬ 
versation took xilace *? 

A. Marcus Cicero Stanley, Marshal Murray, and us four. There were 
several gentlemen standing around. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 549 

5871. Q. Were they all present when you had this conversation with 
Marshal Murray f 

A. Yes, sir. 

5872. Q. In which room of the hotel did it take place ? 

A. Close hy the bar-room, near tlie telegraph office. 

5873. Q. Then there were six or eight persons present I 

A. I should think there were only four or five. I did not know any 
of the gentlemen before I came there. Hogan knew Marshal Murray 
and went up and spoke to him. 

5874. Q. Where does Hogan live? 

A. In the 19th ward. He used to live near me, in University Place. 

5875. Q. Was George Wilkes present at this interview ? 

A. I do not know whether he was or not.' I do not know him. 

5876. Q. What time did it take place? 

A. In the evening, about ^ or 9 o’clock. 

5878. Q. When was it that you met at the Hoffman House? 

A. The night previous to the November election. We met at about 
the same hour in the evening. We waited at the Hoffman House some 
time before they came. 

5879. Q. Who was present at the Hoffman House when you had the 
interview there ? 

A. Marshal Murray, another gentleman, and the one with the black 
whiskers, whom he introduced. 

5880. Q. Who was the man with Murray ? 

A. I do not know his name. 

5881. Q. Who produced the money ? 

A. The man with the black Avhiskers. 

5882. Q. State the names of your party who were at the Hoffman 
House ? 

A. David Hogan, Thomas Barrett, my i)artner, and a man by the name 
of Ferguson, and myself. We met there Marshal Murray, another gen¬ 
tleman, and the black-whiskered man. The last man was about five feet 
eight inches in height, I should think. 

5883. Q. Then there was seven altogether ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5884. Q. Do you know whether this man gave Hogan any money ? 

A. I cannot swear that he did. Hogan had some money immediately 

after he left him, and gave us $75 apiece. 

5885. Q. In what part of the house did all this occur ? 

A. It was in the first story, just as you go in through the door. It 
occurred in the lobby, about 20 feet, I should think, from the stairway. 

5886. Q. Where did you meet the following morning ? 

A. Corner Twenty-fourth street and Third avenue, in a bar-room op¬ 
posite the Comxiton House. 

5887. Q. Who keeps that bar-room ? 

A. I do not know. We were furnished there with the names and res¬ 
idences and tickets with which to vote. The man with the black whis¬ 
kers gave them to us. 

5888. Q. Do you know George Wilkes ? 

A. I do not. 

5889. Q. Did you hear his name spoken at any of these interviews f 

A. No, sir. 

5890. Q. Was there any man there pockmarked? 

A. No, sir j not that I "know of. 


550 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5801. Q. If there had been, would you have noticed it? 

A. I was not very close to the man j I might not have noticed it by 
gas-light. The third man who was there was over six feet in height, I 
should judge. 

5892. " Q. Do you recollect any of the names upon which you voted ? 

A. Only the name upon which I voted when I was arrested, and that 

was my own name, John Jones. 

5893. Q. How were you released ? 

A. Upon $500 bail. 

5894. Q. Has nothing been done with you since ? 

A. Nothing that I know of. 

5895. Q. Did you register more than once prior to the election % 

A. No, sir; I registered my own name as a voter in either the 15th or 
16th district of the 17th ward; I forget which. 

5896. Q. Did you register under the name of Hinchman in the 4th dis¬ 
trict, 21st ward I 

A. No, sir. 

5897. Q. Did you vote under that name ? 

A. Not that I remember of j I voted in that district, however j I can¬ 
not recollect under what mame ? 

5898. Q. Did you see any of the tickets you Voted ? 

A. Yes, sir; I did not take any particular notice of them, because I 
knew what they were. The repulilican endorsement was on the tickets. 

5899. Q. What was the republican endorsement ? 

A. The name of the office ui^on the outside of the ballot is printed in 
Italics; upon the democratic ballot it is printed in Roman. 

By Mr. Ross: 

5900. Q. You and your crowd intended to vote the republican ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

5901. Q. How long have you been in the i)lumbing business ? 

A. About two years j my father furnishes the capital and I oversee the 
business. 

5902. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray personally ? 

A. No, sir 5 I think I would recognize him if I saw him. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5903. Q. With whom have you talked in reference to your testimony 
before this committee before you came here ? 

A. I talked with no person in reference to what my testimony would 
be ] Hogan asked me to come down here and tell what I knew. 

5904. Q. Do you know Sheriff O’Brien ? 

A. Not personally. 

5905. Q. Do you know Under Sheriff Banker ? 

A. Only through business; 1 have worked at his house. 

5906. Q. Have you talked with him in reference to this transaction ? 

A. No, sir; I have never spoken to him about any political transaction. 

5907. Q. Has Sheriff O'Brien tried to prevent "your coming here and 
giving this testimony ? 

A. No, sir; I have never spoken to him about the testimony. 

5908. Q. Look around among the gentlemen present in this room, and 
see if you know any of them. 

A. I recognize Mr. Murray, (pointing to Marshal Murray.) 

5909. Q. What induced you to go into this business of repeating ? 

A. I was not doing much at the time, and was pretty short of money; 
Hogan told me I would make some money out of it, and I went into it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 551 

5910. Q. Did you know that it was a violation of the law, that would 
render yon liable to imprisonment? 

A. I am not very well posted in law matters. 

5911. Q. What did Hogan say to yon when he came to yon and wanted 
yon to go to Fifth Avenue Hotel ? 

A. He said that he had an engagement over there with Marshal Mur¬ 
ray, and we could probably make some money out of it. I consented 
and Avent over with him, thinking that $75 or $100 would be quite an 
item to me. 

5912. Q. Did yon know what kind of work yon were to do ? 

A. Hogan said something to me about repeating. I did not know 
what it was, and he explained it to me. 

5913. Q. JDo yon know Marcus Cicero Stanley ? 

A. I am not personally acquainted with him. Hogan pointed him out 
to me and said that Avas Stanley. He also pointed me out Mr. Murray. 

By Mr. Kerr ; 

5914. Q. State whether the man whom Hogan pointed out to you as 
Marshal Murray is the gentleman whom you haA^e just identified? 

A. Yes, sir. 


Kew York, January 9, 1868. 

Robert Murray recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

5915. Question. Did you ever see John Jones, the AAutness who has 
just testified before this committee, before? 

Answer. Kever, to my knoAvledge. 

5910. Did you eyer meet him at the Fifth AA^enue Hotel, with Mr. 
Hogan or anybody else ? 

A. ISTo, sir. 

5917. Q. Did you eA^er know of anybody paying him for repeating or 
engaging in repeating at the last election ? 

A. I certainly never did. 

Kew York, January 9, 1868. 

John W. LeBarnes recalled and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

5918. 1 Avas informed that one of the Avitnesses summoned before this 
committee Avas illegally detained in the ante-room under arrest by one 
of the deputy sherilfs of this city. I thought I recollected the man^s 
name and something of his case. Presuming that the committee would 
not reach that class of cases this afternoon, I took him into Marshal 
Murray’s office, to haA^e a priA^ate couA^ersation with him. An officer of 
the sheriff followed me ; I asked him Avhat he Avanted j he said be was a 
deputy sheriff, and that this man was under his charge. I asked him if 
he had a warrant for his arrest; he said he had not. I asked him by 
what authority he presumed to make the arrest; he answered by order 
of the sheriff. I thought I Avould see whether the authority of the 
Sergeant-at-arms OA^er witnesses subpoenaed by this committee Avas to be 
interfered Avith by deputy sheriffs, and I told the Avitness that he Avas 
excused until Monday morning, and that he might depart from the 
building without molestation, I then turned to one of the policemen 
who was standing tliere and said to him: “ I am messenger to the Ser¬ 
geant-at-arms of the House of Representatives j this man has been sum- 


552 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


inoned as a witness before this committee j I have told him that his case 
will not probably be reached this afternoon j I have excused him until 
Monday morning. I desire you to see that he leaves this building with¬ 
out molestation. If any officer has a warrant for his arrest, you know 
your duty in the premises. If any persou attempts to arrest him with¬ 
out a warrant, you know your duty in the x^remises also.’^ 

By Mr. Kerb : 

5919. Q. By what authority did you do that? 

A. I did that on my own responsibility. 

5920. Q. What business had you to discharge a witness, brought here 
by the minority of the committee ? 

A. I discharge witnesses every xlay. 

5921. Q. What right have you to do this without the orders of the 
committee ? 

A. It has been a matter of practice every day. 

5922. Q. Bo you know that this man was a witness brought here by 
the minority of the committee ? 

A. He was summoned by me. 

5923. Q. Are not all the witnesses summoned by you ? 

A. I mean in contradistinction to the witnesses summoned by the 
minority. 

5924. Q. Then you mean to say that you did not know that this wit¬ 
ness was here at the request of the minority of the committee ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5925. Q. You say you saw him in custody of the deputy sheriff? 

. A. Yes, sir. 

5926. Q. Was that dex)uty acting in yom service ? 

A; Ko, sir. 

5927. Q. Upon your order ? 

A. No, sir. 

5928. Q. Wliat right had you to believe that that witness was here 
at the call of the majority of the committee ? 

A. I did not sux)pose it made any difference. I should not have inter¬ 
fered in any way with the witnesses you have called. 

5929. Q. Bo you mean to say that you did not believe that that wit¬ 
ness was here upon the call of the minority of the committee ? 

A. I had not the remotest idea of it. 

5930. Q. Bid you not know that you had no authority to discharge 
witnesses in attendance upon this committee without its order ? 

A. I know the custom has been to do so. When there are many wit¬ 
nesses in attendance late in the afternoon, and I see that there is no 
X^robability of their being called that day, I generally excuse them until 
the next morning, without reference to who they are, or who called them. 

5931. Q. Bo you not know that it is impossible for you to tell, without 
some direction from this committee, which witnesses are to be called ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5932. Q. I repeat again the inquiry: by what authority did you 
assume to discharge this witness ? 

A. By the same authority I have hitherto excused witnesses at this 
time of the day, (4 o’clock m.) 

5933. Q. Bo you exercise that authority with the knowledge of any 
member of this committee ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5934. Q. You say this man was in the custody of the sheriff’s officer ? 

A. I learned that he was under restraint. If I have stated that he 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 553 

was under custody, I made a mistake. I learned that he was under 
restraint, the nature of which I ascertained afterwards. 

5935. Q. Do you not know that for the last two or three days there 
has been no deputy sheriff or any other officer here, with the sanction 
of the minority of the committee, except a man to summon witnesses ? 

A.‘ NTo, sir; I have not been here, however, for the last few hours. 

5936. Q. Do not you know that tliis witness was sitting in that little 
room Avholly alone, and unconnected with anybody, under no man’s cus¬ 
tody, and under no man’s restraint ? 

A. I do not know the man at all. 

5937. Q. How, then, did you point him out to the policeman ? 

A. I thought I recognized his face as a person whom I had seen here 
as one of the repeaters, and I called out his name, which he responded to. 

By the Chairman : 

5938. Q. State how long this deputy sheriff has been in the building. 

A. I do not know, sir. In reference to deputy sheriffs being in attend¬ 
ance here, I desire to state that I have seen more than three or four here; 
the name of one of them was Scannell. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5939. Q. Do not you know Scannell was here as a witness, detained 
by the majority of the committee ? 

A. It Avas the brother of that Scannell. 

5940. Q. Who authorized you to give orders to this policeman sta¬ 
tioned about the building f 

A. I assumed that right as a citizen of the State of Ncav York. 

5941. Q. Is that all % 

A. That is all. 

5942. Q. You did not do it, then, as an officer of this committee? 

A. I told the policeman that I Avas an officer of this committee, in 
order that he might know what credibility might be placed upon my 
statement. 

5943. Q. Did not you state your position in connection with this com¬ 
mittee, in order that the policeman might infer that it was by direction 
of the committee ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

5944. Q. Do you suppose that it is your duty, as a stranger in Kew 
York city, to direct the policemen here ? 

A. I do not know that I directed them. 

5945. Q. Or do what you did ? 

A. Yes, sir; certainly. 

Keav York, January 9, 1869. 

Georoe W. Mabee recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

5946. Question. State if you have examined the poll-lists of the 15th 

diiitrict, 8th ward, for the last presidential ^election of this city, and 
whether you found upon them the names contained in the paper that 1 
now present to you ? . 

AusAA^er. Yes, sir; I found all those names upon the registry list, and 
those marked “v” upon the poll-list. 

5947. Q. State if you found any name upon the poll-list not upon the 
registry ? 

A. Yes, sir; J. C. W. Willey. 


554 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Kerr : 

5948. Q. When did you examine this list ? 

A. Tliis morning. 

5949. Q. At whose request ? 

A. The request of Major Strong. 

5950. Q. Where did yon do it• 

A. At the county clerk’s Office. 

5951. Q. In the county clerk’s presence ? 

A. Ko, sir; Mr. Plumb, one of the deputies, was present. 

5952. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I am clerk for the Union League club committee. 

5953. Q. How long have you been in that service ? 

A. Six weeks, I think. 

The following is the list alluded to in the above testimony : 

FIFTEENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


12 Renwick street. 

1. George Barkley. 

2. John Cox. V 

3. Martin Cox. 

4. Win. J. Cook. 

5. Lawrence Farrell. v 

6. Charles Florence v 

7. Wm. Foley. 


8. James Goff. v 

9. James Newell. v 

10. Augustus Neidhoft. v 

11. George C. Robinson, v 

12. Hugh Riley. v 

13. Augustus Stevens. v 

14. James Shannon. v 

15. Wm. Smith. v 

16. John Stevenson. v 


17. Wm. Scott. 

18. Edward Wilson. 

19. Charles Wilson. v 

20. Chs. W. Whitmore, v 

21. John Moran. 

22. John Malloy. 

23. Andrew Macken. 

24. Jas. Macken. v 

25. Samuel McGee. v 


1. John Andrews. 

2. James Bowen. 


TWELFTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 
49^ Dominick street. 


V 

V 


3. James Jordan. 


V 


4. William Wilson. 


V 


FIFTEENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


12 Renwick street. 

J. C. W. Willey. 

The above name is on the poll-book but not on registry. 

Kew York, Januanj 9, 18G9. 

Samuel Baker sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

5954. Question. Have you been before this committee before ? 
Answer. Yes, sir. 

5955. Q. What name did you give at the first examination ? 

A. I do not recollect; I think it Avas Johnson. 

5956. Q. What is your real name ? 

A. Samuel Baker. 

5957. Q. Ho you recollect what you testified the other day ? • 

A. Yes, sir. 

5958. Q. State to the committee what induced you to come here the 
other day and testify; 

A. One reason was to benefit a friend in trouble, and another one was 
to get some money. 

5959. Q. AVho Avas the friend you were to benefit ? 

A. AVm. Horans. 

5960. Q. AVliat money did you get ? 

A. I got $5 for the statement and $5 after I was sworn here. 






ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


.^55 


5961. Q. Where did you get the first $5 ? 

A. I got the first $5 in Jersey City. 

5962. Q. Whereabouts? 

A. In a liquor store there. 

5963. Q. Who gave it to you ? 

A. Dorans; he said he got it from Colonel Wood. 

5964. Q. Who gave you the $5 after you had testified here? 

A. Dorans; he said he got that from Colonel Wood also. 

5965. Q. When you went over to Jersey City, whom did you see there? 
A. I saw Colonel Wood and two short hand writers. 

5966. Q. What did Colonel Wood say to you? 

A. He asked me about election; how many times I repeated, &c. I 
certainly did testify to more than I did. 

5967. Q. What is the truth of the case? 

A. The truth is I voted but once or twice in each district; I was doing 
it for the benefit of Dorans. 

5968. Q. What ticket did you vote? 

• A. I think the democratic ticket. 

5969. Q. Did Colonel Wood himself offer you any money for testifying 
here? 

A. No, sir; since that time he has given me money to go to other 
people and get them to do the same as I did. 

5970. Q. How much money did he give you? 

A. Five dollars a man. This I gave to the parties, and he gave me $5 
for bringing them here. 

5971. Q. Can you give the names of the men you took to him? 

A. I know some of them. 

5972. Q. Did any of them testify here? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5973. Q. Do you know under what names they testified? 

A. No, sir. 

5974. Q. State whether the facts you testified to here the other day, 
as to your residence, were true or false. 

A. They were false. 

5975. Q. State how many people you took to Colonel Wood for the 
l)urpose of being prepared to testify here. 

A. Probably about 12. 

By the Chairman : 

5976. Q. You tell the truth, now, when you say you did vote once or 
twice ill each district ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5977. Q. Did Colonel Wood ask you to state anything but the truth ? 
A. No, sir. 

5978. Q. Did Colonel Wood request any of these parties to make any 
untrue statement ? 

A. No, sir. 

5979. Q. Did you make any such request? 

A. No, sir. 

5980. Q. Did any xierson, to your knowledge, request anybody to testify 
here to what was not true? 

A. No, sir. 

5981. Q. State if any caution was given to you that you were to be care¬ 
ful to tell only what was true? 

A. There was no caution at all; they said there should be no jiroceed- 
ing taken against us. 


556 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Hopkins : 

5982. Q. What induced you to come back here now and testify? 

A. Some of my friends living in my ward did not seem to be satisfied 
with Avhat Dorans had done, and they got me to come back and speak 
right out. 

5983. Q. Who are these friends ? 

A. They live in the 8th ward; I know them by sight. 

5984. Q. By whom were you brought here this afternoon to testify ? 
A. I brought myself. 

5985. Q. Under whose charge have you been to-day? 

A. Under the charge of the deputy sheriff; I do not know his name. 
5980. Q. He took you in custody and kept you all day ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

5987. Q. What reason did he give for keeping you in custody? 

A. He did not tell me. 

5988. Q. And he kept you in close custody ? 

A. He has kept me in custody all the afternoon. 

5989. Q. Have you been at the sheriff’s office to-day ? 

A.Wes, sir; I went over with him. 

5990. Q. What questions were put to you there in reference to your 
testimony? 

A. They asked me if I had been over here to testify; I said no, and 
they asked me to go over here and tell the truth. 

5991. Q. Who examined you there? 

A. I was not examined by anybody. 

5992. Q. Who asked you the questions? 

A. 1 do not know the party. 

5993. Q. Do you know Sheriff O’Brien ? 

A. I do not. 

5994. Q. Do you know whether he sent that deputy sheriff to take 
charge of you ? 

A. It was a little short man Avho told him to take charge of me. 

5995. Q. What did you get for testifying here to-day ? 

A. Nothing. 

5996. Q. What do you expect to get? 

A. Nothing at all. 

5997. Q. You cannot give the name of anybody who advised you to 
come down and testify here to day? 

A. No, sir. 

5998. Q. Did Mr. Dorans advise you? 

A. No, sir; several friends who live in my ward did not approve of 
what Dorans was doing, and they asked me to come down here and 
make a clean breast of it. 

5999. Q. Where do y(.u live? 

A. No. 103 Crosby street. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

6000. Q. You say you were taken in close custody; what do you mean 
by that—did the deputy sheriff’ say he arrested you by any process ? 

A. He did not say so. 

6001. Q. What did he say? 

A. He said: “You will have to stop with me until you go in.” I said 
that I came here on purpose to go in. 

6002. Q. Would you have stopped if he had not been with you ? 

A. Yes, sir; just the same. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 557 

0003. Q. When yon say lie took you in custody, you do not mean to 
say that he compelled you to stay, whether you wanted to or not ? 

A. It seemed like it. 

Kew York, January 9, 1869. 

Florence Scanner recalled and examined. 

To Mr. Kerr : 

6004. I have come here on my own motion to say that I was the only 
person who had anything' to do with registering names upon election 
day from the Compton House. Neither my brother nor Mr. Fagin, who 
keeps the house, had anything to do with it. If there is anybody to 
blame, I am the man. They are business men and very seldom interfere 
with politics. 

By the Chairman : 

6005. Q. Is your brother a deputy sheriff? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6006. Q. Is Mr. Fagin also deputy sheriff ? 

A. He is connected with my brother. The appointment was given to 
me first; but I did not want to have it, and I gave it to my brother and 
Mr. Fagin. 

6007. Q. How many men did you register at the Compton House? 

A. None. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

6008. Q. How many did you procure? 

A. I do not know that I procured any. If I met any boarders, I would 
ask them if they would not go down and register. 

6009. Q. How many men were registered by you, or under your influ¬ 
ence, at the Compton House ? 

A. 1 cannot say. I wmuld meet a man and ask him if he had regis¬ 
tered ; if he said no, I would induce him to go down and register. 

6010. Q. How much truth have you told us to-day ? 

A. Every word I have said is true. 

6011. Q. Ho not you know more than you have told us? 

A. I do not know as I do; but, if I do, it will be kept where it is. 

6012. Q. You have stated that you had a large number of names 
registered; state how many were registered from the Comiiton House. 

A. I did not register any myself. It was not from that house I was 
to register these names. I could not afford to register them in my dis¬ 
trict. If I was to let the republicans show strength, it must be some¬ 
where outside of my district. 


New York, January 9, 1869. 

John A. Kennedy sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

6013. (Question. What office do you hold? 

Answer. I am superintendent of the metropolitan police of the State of 
New York. 

6014. Q. State whether to-day, at any hour, you detailed any number 
of policemen to come to this building and guard the entrance to it and 
the entrance to this committee room. 

A. 1 received a communication from the United States marshal, stat¬ 
ing that there was a large crowd of persons at the building, and that he 


558 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


appreliended tliere miglit be trouble, and be wished a detail of eight or 
ten policemen to be sent here for the purpose of preserving the peace. 
Having received that communication, I addressed a special order to 
Captain Jourdan, of the precinct in which this building stands, directing 
him to send a detail of men, under a discreet sergeant, to preserve the 
peace. 

0015. Q. Have you that order with you^ 

A. ISTo, sir. 

0010. Q. Was that addressed to him by telegram ? 

A. Flo, sir; I sent it by the messenger who brought me the request 
from the marshal. 

0017. Q. State whether it was in pursuance of any law of the State of 
New York you made that order. 

A. The laAvs of the State of New York make it my duty to protect the 
public peace. Whenever I learn there is a probability of a disturbance 
of any kind it is my duty to see that it is prevented. 

0018. Q. Is it your duty to obey an order of that kind made upon you 
by the marshal of this district ? 

A. No, sir; he gave me no order. I would not obey any order if he 
gave one. He made an official request, but not an order. 

0019. Q. You mean by that, you do not recognize him as having any 
authority over you'f 

A. No, sir; not in my judgment. 

0020. Q. Why was it that instead of 8 or 10 policemen 24 were sent? 

A. I ordered only 10; and I directed Oaptain Jonrdan, in case his 
reserve would not allow him to send that number, to call upon other 
precincts to make up the 8 or 10. 

0021. Q. If you were requested by this committee to withdraw those 
policemen would you not comply with their request? 

A. I certainly would. 

By the Chairman : 

0022. Q. With Avhich political party does Captain Jourdan act? 

A. He has always been a democrat. 

By Air. Hopkins : 

0023. Q. If any respectable party should make a request similar to the 
request made by Marshal Alurray, would you not have done the same 
thing? 

A. Alost assuredly. 

By Air. Kerr : 

0024. Q. Does the law require that there shall be kept in your office 
an account of the returns of the registers in the city of New York at 
general elections ? 

A. I am not prepared to say; that is not in my branch of business; 
that is in what is called the bureau of elections. I am not prepared to 
speak of the provisions of the law upon that subject. Air. D. B. Has- 
brouck has charge of that bureau. 

By the Chairman : 

0025. Q. State if you accompanied Air. Acton and some other gentle¬ 
men, on the night of the 30th of October, from the police headquarters to 
301 Mott street, in a hack, with a lot of books or copies of registers, or 
anything of that kind. 

A. No, sir. 

6020. Q. State if you rode in a carriage with Air. Acton from the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel to procure a lot of books from police headquarters? 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


559 


A. On eitlier tbe evening of the 30th or 31st of October, I am not 
clear which, Mr. Acton and myself, understanding that a habeas had 
been issued by Judge Barnard on me to send certain persons, who were 
then ill custody, to his office, namely his dwelling-house, we went down 
there in a carriage. We were, both of us, at the Fifth Avenue Hotel 
and I called a hack and went down to the police headquarters. There 
was nobody else with me. I went in and saw Mr. Howe, the counsellor 
who had sued out the habeas, and I directed Mr. Dilks to make a return 
of the prisoners and to send them forthwith before the judge. I under¬ 
stood afterwards that he discharged them. I did not meet anybody else. 

G027. Q. Hid you not meet three gentlemen who came there in a 
carriage? 

A. I do not recollect that I did. As to being present when any books 
were taken away from there, 1 do not know anything about it. 

6028. Q. State whether the election returns were received by telegraph 
at police lieadquarters as early as usual. 

A. No election returns are made by telegraph. They are merely elec¬ 
tion reports. These have been returned in the same way since I have 
had charge of the police department, nearly eight years. They were not 
returned quite as early as usual. Some of them were very long delayed. 
Box No. 1, that is the electoral box, is required by law to be counted 
first, and we were not able to make complete returns of this box until 
nearly 12 o’clock, when we ought, ordinarily, to have had that box com¬ 
pleted by 9 o’clock. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

6029. Q. You say the returns were not received as early as usual? 

A. Some few of them were not. 

6030. Q. How many of them? 

A. I should suppose about 8 or 10 out of 310 j but there was a gen¬ 
eral delay. I am speaking of the list. 

6031. Q. How many of the 310 were in before 9 o’clock? 

A. I am not prepared to say. 

6032. Q. Was any considerable number in before 9 o’clock? 

A. Yes, sir; I think some of the wards were completed before 9 o’clock. 

New York, January 9, 1869. 

Edward Sanford, Jr., recalled and examined, (at the instance of Mr. 
Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

6033. Question. Take that list handed you by me this morning with the 
request that you would visit the places mentioned therein, and state what 
places you have visited and what was the residt. 

Answer. I went to No. 5 Eldridge street for Mr. Wood; there was no such 
person living there, or had been there for the last four or six months. I 
then went to 27 Bowery for John 0. Anderson; no such man lived there at 
all; it is a lager-beer saloon. I then went to No. 75 Crosby street for 
James Green; there is no such person there; it is a large furniture house. 
I then went to No. 87 Mercer street for James Nichols; I found no such 
person there, either in the rear house or front house, or in that neigh¬ 
borhood. I then inquired at No. 11 Hester street for George Melville, 
and the parties occupying the house said that no such person ever lived 
there. I found Joseph Benson at No. 103 Crosby street; this place is a 
low drinking shop, evidently a resort for thieves and cut throats. I 
inquired at No. 169 Houston street for Charles Eeilly; I went to both 


560 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


East and West Honston-^treets, and I could find no sucli person. Xo. 61 
Thompson street is a large scliool-lionse, and I could not find that George 
Hill lived anywhere in the neighhorhood. 

New York Oita^, January 11, 1869. 

Louis Caaipbell sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6031. I work at 98 Mercer street. I did not vote in New York city at 
the last presidential election. 

6035. Q. Ho you know of any person voting at that election more 
than once/? 

A. I know what I have been told. I understand I am under oath now. 
At the time I made the statement at TayloEs Hotel in Jersey City I was 
what you may call drunk. Whiskey was bought for me and I was made 
drunk. I calculate to swear to the truth, and nothing but the truth. 

6036. Q. Hid you register as a voter? 

A. I did not here j I did in the country. 

To Mr. Ross: 

6037. As I before said, in reference to the statement I made, it was 
inisrepresented to me. I was ifiied with liquor before the statement was 
made. It was represented to me that nothing would be done about it, 
and when I got back to New York I got $10 in money for going over and 
making this statement. 

6038. Q. What statement are you referring to now? 

A. The statement, they say, is here that I made in New Jersey. 

6039. Q. When did you go over to make a statement in New Jersey ? 

A. I was over in New Jersey on Saturday. 

6010. Q. At whose instance, or request, did you go over ? 

A. One of the young men I know—his name is Cassidy. He came to 
the stable where I am at work, and came up stairs and said, “I have got 
five dollars for you.” I says, “How is that?” Then he came in and the 
other young gentleman told me- 

6011. Q. Hid you get any pay for going over? 

A. I did not. I was promised pay by the young gentleman that I did 
no know, that was with Mr. Cassidy. He promised me ten dollars. 

6012. Q. Whom did you go over with? 

A. 1 went over with him and Mr. Cassidy, and there were several 
others. I went over to Taylor’s restaurant. 

6013. Q. What did you do after you got over there? 

A. After we got over there we drank considerable liquor. 

()011. Q. Who furnished the liquor? 

A. This young gentleman I went over with; 

6015. Q. The one who represented himself as witness the cTay before ? 

A. No, sir; Mr. Cassidy represented himself as a witness the day before. 

The other gentleman was the one who was footing the bills. 

6016. Q. State whether there was a good deal of drinking, and what 
efiect it had on those present. 

A. I coidd hot state what effect it had on the rest. It made me pretty 
boozy. 

6017. Q. When in that boozy condition what did they ask you to do? 

A. They asked me to go up stairs and make this statement. 

6018. Q. Whom did you make that statement before? 

A. I could not tell you to save my life. 

6019. Q. Was the statement you made over there true or not? 

A. They never asked me anything of the kind, whether it was true or 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


561 


not, and notliing of the description. All that was said to me a gentleman 
at Taylor’s said to me: You need not he scared. I will give you a 
written guarantee it shall be all right; there will be nothing done; no 
hereafter about it.” 

0050. Q. You know nothing of any illegal voting of your own knowl¬ 
edge ? 

A. I do not. 

0051. Q. Did you see money paid to other parties over there 1 

A. I did not. 

0052. Q. Was there any man connected with that that you knew? 

A. There was not. 

0053. Q. If you testified over there that you had been a repeater, it is 
not true ? 

A. I did not testify to anything. I made a statement over there that 
was not true. I considered over there that telling a story and swearing 
to it is two different things. If I swear to a thing I consider that my 
oath is binding, and I would not want to swear to a lie, but talking with 
a man’ and telling a lie I don’t consider that is binding. 

By the Chairman : 

0051. Q. Did they ask you over there to state anything that was un¬ 
true ? 

A. Cassidy knew, as well as I did, that I was not a voter in the city 
of Hew York, They asked me questions and I answered them. They 
did not ask me whether they were true or not true. 

0055. Q. You made the statement over there that you had voted more 
than once? 

A. Yes, sir *, I was not asked whether it was true or untrue. I was 
asked the questions and that was all. I supposed, at the time, that was 
the end of it. 

0050. Q. Where have you been since Saturday ? 

A. I have been to work at my business. 

0057. Q. Whom have you talked with about this matter ? 

A. Hobody at all. 

0058. Q. Why did you come here this morning and say you were afraid 
that you were in danger ? 

A. That is just as I state now. I did not understand there was to be 
any swearing done about this thing. 

0059. Q. Whom were you afraid of? 

A. I was afraid of different parties; in the first place, I was afraid, 
when I came to my senses, to know where I was, that if I came here this 
morning and made this statement here it was going to get me locked up, 
and I wanted to understand that before I came. 

By Mr. Boss: 

0000. Q. That is, if you came before the committee and swore falsely 
you were afraid you would get into trouble ? 

A. Yes, sir j I knew a false oath would get me in trouble. 

0001. Q. After you got afraid you concluded that you would tell the 
•truth, and have now told it ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0002. Q. You were led by the promise of money and being intoxicated 
to make the statement you did over there ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

William IT. Bogart recalled. 

To Mr. Boss: 

0003. I reside at 88 Lexington avenue. 

30 T 


562 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


To tlie Chairman : 

C0G4. I liave examined tlie registry and poll-list of voters in this city, at 
the last presidential election, for the 13th district of the 8th ward, and 
others 5 and I present to the committee a list of names with the dis¬ 
tricts and wards as they are found on the registry-lists and poll-lists. 
Those marked “ Y’’ are found on the poll-list as persons having voted. 


The following is the list presented hy the witness : 

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


277 Spring street, 


1. Harry Bell. 

V 

2. Joseph Dunlap. 

3. Harry Golding. 

V 

4. Luke Higgins. 

V 

5. James Hall. 

V 

6. Thos. Kernay. 

V 


7. Tbos. Lilly. v 

8. Thomas McKinney, v 

9. Francis McMahon, v 

10. Peter J. McCormick. 

11. Mich’l O’Leary. v 

12. Jas. O’Neil. 

13. Dau’l Powers. v 

14. James Rorke. v 


15. Mich’l Russell. v 

16. Thos. Ryan. 

17. Pat’k Rearodan. v 

18. John Schattheip. v 

19. Mich’l Sexton. v 

20. Dan’l E. Stewart. 

21. Henry Walker. 


SECOND DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


98 Mercer street. 

1. AndreAv Andrews. 

2. Charles Mills. V 

3. James Wiley. v 

4. John Q. Smith. 

101 Spring street. 

1. John Bermunder. v 


2. John Brown. 

3. John Baker. v 

4. Thos. Connor. v 

5. Jas. Coffee. v 

6. Chas. H. Diamond, v 

7. Jacob Fisher. v 

8. Sebastian Fisher. 

9. Jesse Goodenough. v 

10. Geo. H. iDgersoll. 


11. Edw’d Jones. 

12. Geo. T, Kintner. v 

13. Geo. A. Payne. 

14. Egydrus Roessner. v 

15. John Rodgers. v 

16. Theodore Schoen. 

17. Wm. W. Smith. v 

18. Philip Strong. 

19. Julius Waiblinger. v 


FOURTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


43 Sullivan street. 


1. Conrad Appenzeller. v 

2. Arends J. Allen. v 

3. Heiurich Hinz. v 

4. Ludwig Henrickson. 

5. Conrad Pollman. 

6. Henry Schutz. 

7. John H. Schwager. v 

8. John Smith. v 

9. August Schisler. 

10. Carl Scholtz. v 


11. Wm. Wallace. ^ 

12. Henry Langeleis. 

13. Plenrick Fesericks. v 

12 Thompson street. 

1. John Barry. v 

2. Philip Bradley. 

3. Thom.as Denegan. 

4. James Dunavon. v 

5. Wm. Fergurson. 

6. Joseph Hoppen. v 


7. Thomas Hederton. v 

8. Peirce Murray. v 

9. Daniel Mullin. v 

10. Michael O’Connor, v 

11. Louis Owenhaus. v 

12. Mike O’Brien. v 

13. Patrick Ryan. v 

14. John Mulvey. v 

15. Patrick Mulvey. v 

16. Miles McBride. 


SECOND DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


117 Spring street. 

1. Philip Armouer. 

2. John Barber. v 

3. Thomas Cakanaley. 


4. Bryan Duffey. v 

5. Hugh McCrossen. 

6. Manuel C. Peach. v 

7. Joseph Ryan. v 

8. Lazar Reichman. 


9. Michael Schwanberger, 

10. John Smith. 

11. William H. Travis. 

12. Charles Werner. v 

13. James Welsh. v 


TENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


143 Jf^est Houston street. 


1. 

David Anderson. 

V 

2. 

G. E. Bissell. 

V 

3. 

Henry Brown. 

V 

4. 

Augustus Cohen. 

V 

5. 

William Duryea. 

V 

6. 

John B. Ebbetts. 

V 

7. 

William Griffiths. 

V 

8. 

David Garvoy. 

V 

9. 

William C. Howard. 

V 

10. 

Henry Jackson. 

V 

11. 

William Jones. 

V 

12. 

Samuel E. Jones. 

V 


13. James Mullen. v 

14. Henry Smith. v 

15. James Thompson. v 

16. Edward Wilson. v 


62 McDougall street. 


1. Chas. B. Albertson, v 

2. James Cusick. v 

3. James Fitzgerald. 

4. Alexander Fallon. v 

5. Samuel J. Goodwin, v 

6. George G^,tchell. v 

7. Thomas Hanna. v 


8. Wm. H. Lynn. v 

9. Thomas Martin. v 

10. James O’Donnell. v 

11. William Porter. v 

12. Isasc Robinson. v 

13. Robert Roberts. v 

14. Adrian Roberts. v 

15. James Roach. v 

16. George P. Robinson, v 

17. James Smith. v 

18. James Steverson. v 

19. George Watson. v 

20. Henry Wheeler. v 












05 CO ts I-* 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


563 

THIRTEENTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 

50 Vandam street. 

1. Gabriel A. Aiguin. 

2. Dan’l U. Blauvelt. 

Wm. E. Blauvelt. 


116 Varrick street. 

. Sam’l Bradnay. ■ 

. Sam’l Bartley. 

. Geo. Bowers. 

. Jas. Berry. 

. Henry C. Connor. 

. Jas. Evlind. 

. Owen Farley. 

8. Henry Fenton. 

9. James Flowers. 


101 Greene Street. 

1. Jno. Briggs. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

jG0G5. Q. When did you make tliis examination ? 

A. I made tliat Thursday, Friday, or Saturday, I forget which; 
two days in succession. 

GOGG. Q. AVhere did you make it ? 

A. At the county clerkts office I got the poll-lists. A part of the 
otliers I got at the office in Broadway. 

G0G7. Q. At what office in Broadway ? 

A. Xo. 258; the office of the Union League. 

GOGS. Q. You copied these from their hooks ? 

A. No, sir; from the registry. 

GOGO. Q. From the registry in their books ? 

A. No, sir; the registry used on the days of registering. Some of 
them I copied from the registry-books in the county clerk’s office—all 
excepting one district. 

GOTO. Q. Is there any law requiring the luiblic records of the elections 
to be deposited in the office of the Union League ? 

A. I do not know of any. 

G071. Q. You copied part of those from their books? 

A. The book left tliere by the registrars themselves. 

()072. Q. Then the registrars do leave some of their original books at 
the office of the Union League ? 

A. I presume so. 

G073. Q. How many are left there ? 

A. I cannot tell. 

G074. Q. You found some of the original election-books at the Union 
League rooms ? 

A. I found one there. 

G075. Q. Is that the only one ? 

A. I suppose there are others there. 

G07G. Q. Which you understand to be the original books ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G077. Q. About how^ many of those original books should you judge 
are to be found at the Union League room ? 


4. Chas. Cummings. v 

5. James J. Foster. v 

6. John Foster. v 

7. John Grogan. 

8. David McLean. v 


9. James Murphy. v 

10. Thomas Murphy. v 

11. Wm. E Ormend. v 

12. Clarkson C. Foilion. v 


EIGHTH DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 


V 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V 

V 


10. Owen Gannon. 

11. Thos. Graham. 

12. Jas. Garvey. 

13. David Hall. 

14. Stephen Jones. 

15. Wm. Johnston. 

16. Gee. Jones. 

17. Edw’d Jenkins. 

18. Jno. Kaine. 

19. James Myers. 

20. Jno. Martin. 


V 

V 

V 

V 


21. Mich,1 Norton. v 

22. Jas. Murray. v 

23. Wm. Ostrander. 

24. Thos. O’Donnell. v 

25. Sam’l Stevens. v 

26. Henry Stevens. 

27. W. B. Short. v 

28. Bernard Trainor. v 

29. Henry Welsh. v 

30. Geo. Watson. v 


SECOND DISTRICT, EIGHTH WARD. 

2. Jno. Fallon. 

3. John Hays. 

4. Chas. Kastenbein. v 


5. Thos. King. 

6. Henry C. Neff. 

7. Jonas Wilson. 








564 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. That I caimot tell. Perhaps 5, 10/15, or so. I have never seen 
any except Avhat 1 used myself. I left one there myself. 

0078. Q. You were one of the election officers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

GOTO. Q. Do you belong to the Union League ? 

A. No, sir. 

6080. Q. Are you a republican in i)olitics ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0081. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I have no business at imesentj only connected with the office, in 
WTitiug, as clerk. 

6082. Q. Clerk to the Union League ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0083. Q. How long have you been in their service ? 

A. Since the 23d of November. 

0081. Q. At what salary ? 

A. Eighteen dollars a week. 

6085. Q. How many of you are employed there ? 

A. That I could not tell j five or six. 

0080. Q. In that building ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6087. Q. What are you working on ? 

A. We are doing writing. 

6088. Q. In reference to election frauds ? 

A. I suppose it is. 

By the Chairman : 

6089. Q. Do you know whether the registrars keej) the custody of one 
of the registry-lists, as a general rule ? 

A. I think they do. 

0090. Q. Were you an election officer 

A. At the November election I was an inspector and registrar. 

6091. Q. Do you know John E. McGowan f 

A. Yes, sir; he is a deputy sheriff under James O’Brien. 

0092. Q. State if he registered or voted in your district at the last 
November election. 

A. He registered under the name of Sherman, 231 East Thirty-first 
street. 

6093. Q. Do you know John Jones ? 

A. 1 know the gentleman by sight. 

0091. Q. State if he registered or Voted in your district. 

A. He registered in my district by the name of Hinchman. I do not 
thmk that he voted. I could not positively say whether his name was 
voted on or not. I could refer to my book and answer that question. 

To Mr. Boss: 

6095. I saw Mr. McGowan both register and vote. 

New York, January 11,1869. 

Hiram B. Ferguson sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Ross.) 

By Mr. Ross: 

6096. Question. Are you acqaiuted with Marshal Murray % 

Answer. I know him by sight. 

6097. Q. State what you know, if anything, in relation to improper 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 565 

influences being exercised with a view to controlling the elections in this 
city. 

A. All I know is, that six or eight days before the presidential elec¬ 
tion I went to the Fifth Avenue Hotel, about eight o’clock in the eve¬ 
ning, and I saw Mr. Murray and Mr. Stanley. Tliey wanted to know 
Avliat it would cost for eight or ten repeaters on election day. A friend 
that was with me told him $1,000. Mr. Stanley said it was too much. 
Mr. Murray said, will give you $300, and will see you the night 
before the election at the Hoffman House.” Mr. Stanley said, “ Very 
well; arrange it to suit yourselves.” That was all that occurred that 
evening. We w^ent away on the night before the election; we went up 
to the Hoffman House and got $300. I did not get tlie $300; it was 
given to another man. I g*ot $75 of it. A man by the name of Hogan 
gave me the $75. I don’t know the amount that Marshal Murray gave 
him, but he asked him for $500, and he said that $300 was all that had 
been given him. 

6098. Q. State what was done in relation to that on election day, if 
anything ? 

A. I don’t know of my own knowledge what was done. I did not 
do anything with it. I took the $75. I was an inspector on election day, 
and was not with them at all. I was expecting to be withdrawn from 
being inspector, but was not, and had to attend to that on election day. 

6099. Q. In the interest of what party, if any, was this repeating to 
be done? 

A. For the republican party. 

By the Chairman : 

6100. Q. Do you know Peter McKuight ? 

A. Yes, sir; he holds the ofiice of deputy sheriff. 

6101. Q. Are you a clerk to him ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6102. Q. How long have you been ? 

A. A year the first of this month. 

6103. Q. You were inspector of elections at the time you got this $75 ! 

A. I was inspector of elections on election day. 

6104. Q. When were you appointed ? 

A. I cannot tell that exactly. I presume a month, or nearly a month, 
before the election. 

6105. Q. Then you were inspector at the time you got the $75. 

A. Yes, sir. 

6106. Q. Did you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. I did. 

6107. Q. For whom ? 

A. I voted a straight democratic ticket. 

6108. Q. Did you report these facts to anybody? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 reported them before I got the money. I told them 
money was being given out there, and I was told I could go there and 
get it if I wanted to. 

6109. Q. To whom did you report it ? 

A. Several gentlemen. Peter McKnight, for one, a man by the name 
of Odell; another man by the name of Kerrigan. I remember telling 
it to a large party that they were giving out money there for repeaters. 

6110. Q. Did you tell them you got $75 ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6111. Q. Did you tell anybody else ? 

A. I don’t remember telling anybody but McKnight, Odell, and Ker¬ 
rigan. I may have told others. 


566 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6112. Q. Who were the men that got the money for repeating^ besides 
you'? 

A. Mr. Hogan got the money in the first place. He got it all. He 
paid me $75. There was another man by the name of Jones. I don’t 
know the first name. I know him by sight. I have generally seen him 
around Twenty-fourth street and Third avenue. 

6113. Q. In what district and ward were you inspector ? 

A. In the third district, 11th ward. 

6114. Q. Hid you see Jones vote there that day ? 

A. No, sir. 

6115. Q. Hid he vote there ? 

A. He did not. 

6116. Q. Hid you know of any of these men voting ? 

A. I did not. 

6117. Q. At what time was it that you saw Marshal Murray at the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel ? 

A. It was about 8 o’clock in the evening. I don’t remember the date. 

6118. Q. Whereabouts in the Fifth Avenue Hotel did you see him? 

A. I met him first in the main hall, and he walked around in the 

southern part of the building, fronting Broadway. There is a partition 
as you go into the main entrance, and we went round there. 

6119. Q. Hid you go into another room ? 

A. I did not j no, sir. 

6120. Q. Hid Murray ? 

A. He went away from me and 1 don’t know where he w ent. He and 
Mr. Hogan went away from me. 

6121. Q. Was your conference with him in a room or in the hall ? 

A. In this room off the hall. It is not a room, because there is no 
door to it. 

6122. Q. Who were present at that interview in the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel? 

A. Part of the time Mr. Murray, Mr. Stanley, Mr. Hogan, and myself. 
Mr. Jones was there j and another man I don’t recollect. 

6123. Q. All there together ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6124. Q. Was there a man there with very large, light, sandy whiskers ? 

A. I don’t remember any such man. 

6125. Q. Was there a man there with black whiskers? 

A. There was a man there Avith black Avhiskers ; but I don’t remem¬ 
ber his name. I did not know him. I knoAV he seemed to be interested. 
I don’t know who he is. I did not ask. 

6126. Q. Was he a tall man over six feet high? 

A. I think he Avas a little taller than I am. I think he might be about 
six feet, A\dth black whiskers. I remember that man. I saw him the 
next night. He was as stout as I am, nearly; rather a lieaA^y man. I 
think he Avould weigh 180 pounds, or 200 pounds, perhaps. 

6127. Q. You have been knoAvn as a democrat, in this city, for how" 
long? 

A. I never Avas much of a politician. I don’t know that I w\as really 
known as a democrat any more than a republican. 

6128. Q. You Avere knowm as clerk in the deputy sheriff’s office ? 

A. Yes, sir. I was not employed there as a politician, but only for 
my services there. I Avas there before the present sheriff' was there. I 
generally stay from one term to another, because I am posted in the 
business. 

6129. Q. Then you went to the Hoffman House the next evening ? 

A. Not the next evening. It may have been a Aveek after that. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


567 


6130. Q. You are sure it was as long as a week? 

A. I am not siue. It may not liave been more than four days. It was 
not the next day or the day after that. 

6131. Q. At what time in the evening were you at the Hoffman House? 

A. Between eight and nine, I think. 

6132. Q. Was it not nearly 12? 

A. Yo, sir. 

6133. Q. You stayed there until nearly 12 ? 

A. Yo, sir; I was at home before 12 o’clock. I think I must have left 
there long before 11 o’clock. 

6131. Q. Who was there at the Hoffman House in conference with 
you? 

A. Mr. Murray and this same gentleman I saw at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel; I don’t know his name. And Mr. Hogan and Mr. Jones was 
there; and there was another man went up there with us from the Third 
avenue; I don’t remember his name. I had very little to say with any 
of them. 

6135. Q. Then the money was paid? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6136. Q. You saw it paid? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6137. Q. All were present when the money was paid? 

A. No, sir. 

6138. Q. Who were present? 

A. Mr. Jones and I were standing in the room, and Mr. Hogan and 
the gentleman that gave him the money walked down to the other end 
of the room, and he handed him the money, and then he walked down 
and asked us to drink, and we went to the bar, and I think the gentle¬ 
man took a drink. 

6139. Q. At this time were you in a room in the second or thud story ? 

A. No, sir; right in from the street; the first floor. 

6110. Q. The same room where the bar is ? 

A. I never was in that house before; it must have been in the bar¬ 
room, certainly. The money was paid in the back end of the room; I 
am not certain it was the bar-room, but I think it was. 

6111. Q. It was the room where you got something to drink? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6112. Q. They had a bar there, where they were selling liquor? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6113. Q. You are sure it was in that room? 

A. I think it was the bar-room; but I am not sure of that. 

6111. Q. Was that the room you had your conference in? 

A. We had no conference there. We didn’t speak to anybody there 
five minutes that night. Mr. Hogan did all the talking and got the 
money. 

6115. Q. Was this tall man, six feet high, with black whiskers, there 
that night? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6116. Q. Did you observe the appearance of his face? 

A. Not particularly. I don’t know that I should know the man now 
if I should see him. 

6117. Q. Was he a young man ? 

A. Not a very young man. I guess he was as old as I am; about 35 
or 10, I should think. I did not notice him particularly, and did not have 
a word’s conversation with him myself. 


568 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6148. Q. Was lie pock-ma,rked? 

A. I did not notice anything of that sort. 

6149. Q. What is your weight! 

A. I think about 195. 

6150. Q. This black-whiskered man was as heavy as you! 

A. He might have been not quite as heavy. I think he was near my 
size. I could not judge very well if I saw him now. 

6151. Q. Doift you remember they called his name Davis ! 

A. I did not hear his name. I think I asked his name, and they told 
me they did not know. ' 

6152. Q. Who paid the money over! 

A. This man with black whiskers. He paid Mr. Hogan the money. 
He went one side for the purpose of giving it to him. 

6153. Q. Did you see any money that night! 

A. 1 saw $300 laid on the bar and divided. Hogan had the money all 
in a row, and picked out $75 and handed it to me. 

6154. Q. Did you see the black-whiskered man pay the money! 

A. Ho, sir; I did not see it paid. Hogan Avent out with him, and 
came back and said: ‘H have got $300, and I will give you $75.” And 
he took money out of that $300, and handed it to the bar-tender—enough 
to pay for four or five drinks. He handed him a bill. 

6155. Q. Hoav far from the bar Avas it that Hogan and the black- 
whiskered man retired Avhen the blqck-A\’hiskered man gaA^e Hogan the 
money ! 

A. Probably the width of this room; say 60 feet. 

6156. Q. You are sure it Avas not between the bar and the front door! 

A. Ho; I think it was betAveen the bar and the front door, a little to 

one side though. I noticed so A^ery little about that, however, that I 
could not gWe accurate testimony about it. I neA^er AAms inside of the 
house before or since. 

6157. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray! 

A. I know him by sight; yes, sir. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

6158. Q. Do you know anything further about election frauds in this 
city than what you liaA^e stated ! 

A. Ho, sir, I do not. I knoAv that parties attempted to repeat in the 
district where I was inspector, but I did not receHe their votes. 

6159. Q. Do you know for which party! 

A. I kiioAv one man. I looked at his tickets the second time he came 
to vote. It was the republican ticket. 

6160. Q. He Avas trying to repeat theTepublican ticket! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6161. Q. Have you any knowledge of your own with reference to 
whether these men did repeat that day or not! 

A. I have not. I did not see them on election day. They told me 
that they did. 

(Marshal Murray was here called in.) 

6162. Q. Is this Mr. Murray who is now present the Marshal Mimray 
of AA'hom you haA^e testified! 

A. Yes, sir. 

Heav York, January 11,1869. 

Marshal Egbert Murray recalled. 

By the Chairman: 

6163. Question. Have you not seen Hiram D. Ferguson ! 

Answer. I have seen the gentleman pointed out to me'here. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 569 

G1G4. Q. State if you saw liiin at the Fifth Avenue Hotel a week, or 
at any time shortly before the last presidential election. 

A. I never saw him before in my life. 

G1G5. Q. Did you see him at the Hoffman House shortly before the 
presidential election ? 

A. As I have testified before, I was not in the Hoffman House. I 
think the last time I was in there prior to the election was one evening 
in the month of September. I am not in the habit of visiting there. 

GIGG. Q. Have you been in the bar-room of the Hoffman House? 

A. I have never been there in my life since they changed the old bar. 
The old bar was changed some two years and a half ago. I think I have 
been in there half a dozen times. I have never been in where the new 
bar-room is. The old bar-room was right back of the cigar store, and I 
noticed when I was in there in September that it was removed, but what 
part of the building it is removed to I am unable to tell, because I have 
never been there. 


Hew York, January 11, 18G9. 

David Hogan, (recalled at his own request to explain his testimony.) 

To the Chairman : 

G1G7. I came back to rectify a mistake. On Saturday I testified to 
the best of my belief that the man who was hurt on the day after the 
* election wns the man who challenged me. I heard he was a challenger 
in the 9th district, but I discover, after reflection, that he was not the 
party at all, because he was not hurt until after the second election, the 
December election; so that whoever it was I don’t know. I think 1 
heard one of these gentlemen who was writing here tell somebody else 
that I lived at 833 Third avenue. I live at 830, one door this side of 
Fitty-fifth street. 


Hew January 11, 18G9. 

James Gorrey sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

G1G8. I live at 1G5 East Thirty-third street. I was a canvasser in the 
15th district of the 18th ward at the Hovember and December elections. 
I got my notification from headquarters, from Mr. Hasbrouck, the clerk. 
I was down there one day and qualified, and after I came down stairs I 
made the acquaintance of a man by the name of Scannell, and he intro¬ 
duced me to a man by the name of Stanley, who said, This man has just 
been confirmed.” Mr. Stanley asked me my politics, and I told him I did 
not hardly think that was necessary, but I was a democrat, and appointed 
a democratic canvasser; and he said to me, taking me one side, ‘ Do you 
want to make a stake?” I said that depended upon circumstances; and 
he says, “I guess it does not make much difference to you who wins this 
race now.” I said, It won’t benefit me anyway, that is certain.” He 
says, “I am interested in the vote that Grant and Griswold are going to 
l)oll in the 18th ward, and if j^mu could assist me any it might be worth 
a couple of hundred dollars to yon.” I put up my hands in that way, 
(illustrating,) and said, ^^Ho, I am not one of that kind of people; you 
must look to somebody else for one to get anj thing of that kind done.” 
That is all I said to him then, and he walked away with Mr. Scannell, 
and I went up to my place of business. 

G1G9. Q. Do you know of any repeating being done? 

A. I heard a great deal of talk about it, but did not see any of it. 


570 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 11, 18G9. 

John Norton recalled, (at Lis own request.) 

To Mr. Koss: 

G170. I was here on Tlmrsday, and gave my name as James Nicliols, 
87 Mercer street, and I said that I was not paid for coming here, or any¬ 
thing of that kind, which I was. 

G171. Q. State what your right name is. 

A. John Norton. 

6172. Q. State your right residence. 

A. No. 42 West Houston street. I said that I did not receive any 
money or anything of that kind for coming here, whicli I did j and that 
I voted seven times, which I did not. 

G173. Q. You did not act as a repeater ? 

A. No, sir. 

C174. Q. State what money you got for making your statement the 
other day, and from Avhom you got it. 

A. I received $5, in Jersey City. 

6175. Q. For the statement you made the other day! 

A. Yes, sir 5 I also received $5 here at this hall. 

6176. Q. State who got you to go over to Jersey City. 

A. A young man hy the name of Samuel Baker j he received the 
money from Colonel Woodj he gave me $5 to go over there, and $5 for 
giving my evidence here. 

6177. Q. Who is this Samuel Baker; do you know him? 

A. I have seen him; I don’t know him. 

6178. Q. Do you know whether he holds any office? 

A. I do not. 

6179. Q. Were the statements you made the other day true or false? 

A. They were false. ^ 

6180. Q. Under what circumstances were you induced to make those 
false statements ? 

A. Parties gave me money for doing it. I received $5 in Jersey City 
and $5 in this city for making the statement. 

6181. Q. How many other parties were there that you know of ha\dng 
got money besides yourself? 

A. There were parties with me, but I did not know their exact names. 

6182. Q. What number of them did you see get money? 

A. All I saw was another young man and myself; they sent two of us 
up at once. 

6183. Q. Who took your statement in Jersey City ? 

A. I don’t know what the party’s name was. 

By the Chairman : 

6184. Q. Where is your true residence? 

A. Forty-two West Houston street. I gave my name as James Nichols, 
87 Mercer street. 

6185. Q. When you went over the river they did not ask you to state 
anything that was untrue ? 

A. O, no; you stated what you pleased over there, and did not swear 
. to it. 

6186. Q. Have you been talking with some of the deputy sheriffs on 
Saturday or to-day ? 

A. I have not talked with any of them. 

6187. Q. Were not you in the sheriff’s office? 

A. YYs, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


571 


G188. Q Wliicli one of tlie deputy sheriffs did you talk with ? 

A. I did not know their names; I did not know any of them. 

G181). Q. Did you see Sheriff O’Brien himself? 

A. No, sir; I do not know the gentleman at all. 

G190. Q. How long were you in the sherift‘’s office ? 

A. Only a few minutes; giving my evidence there. 

G191. Q. After you testified here ? 

A. No, sir; before. 

G192. Q. Where was his office ? 

A. In Jersey City. 

G193. Q. Were you over at the City Hall building? 

A. No, sir; I was not. 

G194. Q. Were you at the court-house? 

A. No, sir. 

G195. Q. Where did you see any of the deputy sheriffs ? 

A. I have not seen any. 

• G19G. Q. Have you been drinking this morning? 

A. I had one drink this morning at Delmonico’s. 

G197. Q. Who was with you at Delmonico’s? 

A. Nobody; I went there myself and took a wash, and had a drink. 
G198. Q. Who i)aid for it ? 

A. I did, sir. 

G199. Q. Where did you get your money ? 

A. I have got money sufficient to carry me through. 

G200. Q. You have got some since testifying here before, have you ? 
A. No, sir. 

G201. Q. Would you swear to a statement that was untrue for $5 ? 

A. I did do it. 

G202. Q. You did it ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G203. Q. You would do it again, then, would you not ? 

A. No, sir ; no, sir; I came here to repudiate myself this time. 

G204. Q. You have repented and reformed ? 

A. Yes, sir; I understood that parties were going to get into trouble, 
and came here for that purpose. 

G205. Q. Who told you that ? 

A. This young man by the name of Samuel. 

G20G. Q. When did you see him ? 

A. I saw him this morning in Crosby street. 

G207. Q. Did he come to hunt you up ? 

A. No, sir; I met him there in a liquor saloon. 

G208. Q. He told you you were going to get into trouble from what 
you testified? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6209. Q. And you were afraid that that was so? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G240. Q. And thereui)on you have made the statement you have made 
to-day ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6244. Q. To avoid any danger ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G212. Q. How many times did you vote upon the day of election ? 

A. I voted once in the 8th ward; I don’t know what the district is; it 
is right between Amity and Bleecker. I gave the right name. 

G213. Q. Did you vote the democratic ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


572 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


C214. Q. Did you vote at any other place? 

A. No, sir. 

6215. Did you register at any other place ? 

A. No, sir. 

6216. Q. Who gave you the slip with the name and number on that 
day? 

A. No party gave me no slip and number. 

6217. Q. Could you point out this man that came to you at the liquor 
saloon ? 

A. This man; certainly I could. 

6218. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. I don’t exactly know where he does live, in fact. I know him when 
1 see him round. 

6219. Q. What office does he hold ? 

A. He is not doing anything, I guess, at present. 

6220. Q. Was that the first time any one said anything to you about 
your testimony when that young man met you in the liquor saloon this 
morning ? 

A. No, sir; I saw him yesterday and also this morning. 

6221. Q. Where did you see him yesterday? 

A. In the 8th ward, in Houston street; the corner of Houston and 
Wooster. 

6222. Q. In a liquor store ? 

A. No, sir; I met him. 

6223. Q. Did he tell you then that there was danger of your getting 
into trouble ? 

A. Yes, sir; he told me also this morning. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6221. Q. Was this man you have testified of one of the men that went 
over to Jersey City with you ? 

A. He was. 

6225. Q. And testified with you over there and brought you here to 
testify ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6226. Q. The apprehension that you spoke of was because you swore 
falsely? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6227. Q. And you desire now to swear to the truth that you may not 
get into trouble? 

A. Yes, sir. 


New York, January 11,1869. 

Michael Edwards recalled, (at his own request.) 

^o Mr. Boss: 

6228. I gave my name here as George Nelson. What 1 testified to the 
other day was that I went to a place in Wooster street and Crosby and 
voted several times, and it was an untruth. 

6229. Q. What you swore to the other day was an untruth ? 

A. An untruth. I was told I would get paid for it, and receive the 
sum of $10—$5 for making a statement in Jersey City, and $5 for the 
statement here. Seeing that the papers were making a time about it, 
being liable to arrest, and one thing and another, I thought I would 
come down and mthdraw my statement in some way or other, and do 
what I could with it anyhow. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 573 

G230. Q. What reason have you for desiring to change your state¬ 
ments^? 

A. N'othiug more than I suppose I am liable to be arrested at any 
moment for malving a false statement. 

6231. Q. Do you know who paid you the money for the statements you 
made the other day ! 

A. A young man by the name of Samuel Baker gave me $5 in Jersey 
City, and $5 in New York city. 

0232. Q. Was the statement you made the other day true or false! 

A. It was false. Some parts of it were true. With reference to going 
to the club, I Avas there two nights, and that was all. So far as the 
voting and repeating was concerned, there was nothing true about that. 

6233. Q. Did you falsely register ! 

A. No, sir; I only registered in the 5th ward. 

6231. Q. Do you know Avho this Samuel Baker is! 

A. I have known him personally for about six months. His occupa¬ 
tion I cannot tell. He stops in Crosby street, at a place under the Metro¬ 
politan Shades. He has no office that I am aAvare of. 

6235. Q. Do you know what political party he belongs to ! 

A. No, sir; I do not. 

6236. Q. Did you see any money paid to other parties that went OA^er 
to Jersey City for testifying; and if so, to Avhat extent! 

A. I saw one young man recewe |5, and this is all I saw paid by the 
same man. 

By the Chairman : 

6237. Q. What is your real name! 

A. IMy real name is Michael Edwards. I live at 59 Laurens street. I 
room at Mrs. Stackpole’s. I have my meals at the eating-houses. 

6238. Q. When did you last see Billy Cook! 

A. I don’t know the gentleman. I may know him and not know his 
name. 

6230. Q. After you testified before, you were told you might get into 
trouble about it! 

A. Only what 1 saw myself in the papers. I read the Herald yester¬ 
day, and the Tribune to-day, and I inferred from them that there might 
be some trouble, and I thought I might as Avell come down. 

6240. Q. You were afraid there would be trouble! 

A. I was not exactly afraid, but I had the idea. 

6241. Q. Did not somebody tell you of that besides! 

A. No, sir. 

6242. Q. Didn’t you talk with'any one! 

A. I talked Avith no one personally in any way, shape, or manner. 
Nobody talked with me about it. What I did I did myself; but I heard 
other people talking about it, and what Avas in the newspapers. 

6243. Q. Where did you hear them talking! 

A. At the saloon in Green street; the proprietor. He did not tell me 
anything about it. He did not know I had done this thing; but he said 
that parties Avould get themselves into trouble by doing this thing. 

6244. Q. He told you if you Avould go and correct it that it Avould save 
the trouble! 

A. No, sir ; he did not say anything at all. 

6245. Q. What made you think you could get out of trouble by coming 
back now ! 

A. I tliought it was the best way anyhow to come and make the correct 
statement. 


574 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Eoss: 

6240. Q. Yon tlionglit that it was safer to tell the truth than a falsehood ? 

A. I did to-day. 

6247. Q. Were yon fearful of being prosecuted for swearing falsely the 
other day? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Kew York, January 11, 1869. 

James Strong sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

6248. 1 live at 49J Downing street. I have made a canvass of honses 
in this city, to ascertain who resided there at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion. I visited 116 Varick street. I found the only residents there were 
Michael Nlorton, a Mr. Green, and James Sherry j only three residing 
there. Michael Norton is the State senator. I went to 12 Eenwick 
street. 1 fonnd -two residing there—John Cox and August Needhart j 
they were the only two that resided there. I visited 50 Yandam street. 
There Avas a front and rear there. I fonnd eight residing in the front 
and rear; three in the rear, and five in the front. In the rear house, 
James Murphy, Eichard Foster, and a man by the name of McClane; 
and in the front house, Charles Cummings, and the other names I can¬ 
not recollect. I also went to 62 Macdougal street. I found two residing 
there—Samuel Goodwin and Isaac Eobinson. Isaac Eobinson is aider- 
man ; democratic, I think; and also Mr. Cox and Eenwick are aldermen, 
or assistant aldermen. In the house that I reside in there were fiA^e 
parties registered out of that, and neither of them liA^es there—49J 
Downing—John AndreAvs, James Bonney, James Jourdan, George 
McLoud, and William Wilson. I found three residing at 143 West 
Houston street—John B. Evarts, Charles E. Bissell, and Mr. Bloon. 
They were the only three that resided there. I Ausited 277 Spring street. 
There were eight residing there—Eichard Eyan, James PoAvell, John 
Powell, and Eobert Powell, I think, and the other names I cannot think 
of at present. 

6249. Q. HaA^e you stated all the persons who resided at the places 
you have named? 

A. There may be two or three names. I have got all the numbers. 

6250. Q. State if you made inquiry and search for persons residing 
there at the time of the presidential election ? 

A. I made inquiries for the persons residing there at the present time, 
and for the two months previous. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

6251. Q. What time did you make this examination? 

A. Last week and the Aveek before. 

6252. Q. How many stories Avere there in those houses usually? 

A. In some there were two, and others three. A majority of these 
houses were very .small houses. 62 Macdougal street was a A^ery small 
house, and 50 Yandam street was a very small house. 

6253. Q. Did you go into eA^ery room ? 

A. I did not. 

6254. Q. Did you go into eA^ery story ? 

A. I did not. 

6255. Q. Was information you had with regard to the persons residing 
there hearsay testimony derived from others ? 

A. No, sirj it Avas not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


575 


6250. Q. How did you get it I 

A. From their wives and servants; that is all I know about it. 

6257. Q. Have you any personal knowledge who lived there? 

A. I have personal knowledge of the parties living there some time 
previous. I have no personal knowledge what other parties lived there, 
except as I was told. 

6258. Q. What is your business ? 

A. I am a brush-maker by trade. I worked with Mr. Berriare, 252 
Pearl street. I have been out of work since the 29th of November. 
AVork is very dull. 

6259. Q. In what business have you been engaged since ? 

A. Nothing. 

6260. Q. AA^ho employed you to make this examination i 

A. No one in particular. 

6261. Q. A¥ho asked you to do this ? 

A. A young friend of mine by the name of Gilligan was making the 
examination. He can testify substantially as I have to all the examina¬ 
tion we made. 

6262. Q. AVhat pay have you got for it ? 

A. Nothing. 

6263. Q. AVhat promise of pay ? 

A. Nothing. 

6264. Q. What political party do you act with ? 

A. 1 act with either party. 

6265. Q. How did you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. I did not vote. 

6266. Q. AVhere were you ? 

A. I was conductor on the Sixth avenue railroad at the time. I changed 
my residence about the time of the election, and was not entitled to vote. 

6267. Q. Have you ever had any other name except James Strume? 

A. No, sir. 

6268. Q. Have you ever been convicted of any oftence? 

A. No, sir; I never was arrested in my life. 

6269. Q. AVhat induced you to make this examination ? 

A. I came to the conclusion that such frauds ought to be investigated 
by every honest man. 

6270. Q. You were looking at the good of the country at large ? 

A. Yes, sir; as I have done at previous times during the war. I was 
at the front a little over three years, and I went there for the good of the 
country, and I thought an investigation of this kind would also be bene¬ 
ficial to the country. 

New York, January 11,1869. 

James AVard sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

6271. Question. State if you know of any efforts being made to procure 
false statements in relation to repeating. 

Answer. Yes, sir. Saturday at noon I was taking a walk around. I am 
at present out of employment, and I thought I might see the superintendent 
of the Broadway road, where I last worked, and see if I could get work, 
and I walked from Barclay street up Broadway to Chambers, and turned 
across here and saw the police standing around, and I walked into the 
hall and saw a friend of mine by the name of John Keating, and I stood 
talking to him at the foot of the stairs there, and a gentleman walked 
over and laid his hand on both our shoulders and says, Boys, this is all 


576 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


right; go aliead and give your testimony that you cast illegal votes for 
the democratic party, and it will be all right, and here are $10 to divide 
up between you f and he gave them to my friend and he says, ‘‘Ko harm 
will happen to you; I will see that it is all right, and don’t go back on 
me like the rest of the boys did.” So we went out and divided the money. 
I thought it was given under a mistake j that they took me for somebody 
else 5 and after due coiisideratiou I came to the conclusion that I might 
get myself into trouble, and I proposed to come here with him and return 
the money, and I have the five dollars here if you wish to take it, [laying 
a five-dollar bill upon the table.] 1 can use it to good advantage, and 
shall be very glad to get it, but I don’t feel disposed to keep it if it is 
dishonest. 

6272. Q. Do you know who gave it to you ? 

A. I did not know at the time j I afterwards found out from Keating 
that it was Mr. Wood. 

6273. Q. Then you do not know Mr. Wood at all? 

A. Ko, sir. 

6274. Q. Was there a promise of anything more after you got back ? 

A. Yes, sir ; he said he would give us more when we came out, but he 

did not state how much. I did not notice anybody with him. 

6275. Q. Did the gentleman with you get any money ? 

A. He got the $10, and gave me five when we went outside the building. 

6276. Q. Do you know what Mr. Wood’s politics are? 

A. I don’t really know, sir. Mine is democratic. I should judge from 
what he said that he was a republican. 

By the Chairman : 

6287. Q. You did not see Wood yourself? 

A. Yes, sir j he stood right before us, and idaced his hands on each of 
our shoulders. 

6278. Q. Did Wood give you the money ? 

A. Ko ; he gave it to my friend in my presence. I could not tell how 
much it was; I could see it was greenbacks. It was right out at the 
foot of the stairs, on Saturday. 

6279. Q. Did you ever go over the river on Saturday ? 

A. No, sir. 

6280. Q. You did not know it was Wood ? 

A. I did not know, except that I was told afterwards. 

6281. Q. Don’t you know that the man was a democrat of this city 
who came up and said that to you in order that you might be brought in 
here to testify in this way ? 

C. Ko, sir ; I don’t know that. 

6282. Q. You don’t know who he was ? 

A. Ko, sir; I don’t know who he was j I think I could identify the gen¬ 
tleman 4f he was present. 

6283. Q. To whom did you make this statement of what vou have tes¬ 
tified ? 

A. To a friend of mine. 

6284. Q. Who is that friend ? 

A. An officer of one of the courts, William Ward. 

6285. Q. What office does he hold ? 

A. Messenger of the court, in the court-house; I don’t know what court. 

6286. Q. He came with you and asked you to make this statement? 

A. Yes, sir; we were talking about it and I told liiin how it was, and 

he listened to it and said I might make the statement and return the 
money, which we proposed to do. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


577 


6287. Q. Wliere were yon when you made this statement ? 

A. Up at the Third avenue. 

6288. Q. When was that 
A. Yesterday afternoon. 

6289. Q. How did he know that you had this conversation ? 

A. He was a particular friend of mine and heard me talking about it. 

6290. Q. Do you hold any office % 

A. No, sir; I was conductor upon the Seventh Avenue and Broad¬ 
way railroad. I am now not in any business. I live at 463 Third avenue. 

6291. Q. Did Mr. Ward take down your statement ? 

A. Yes, sir; we both talked it over before him, and he went and wrote 
it down. 

6292. Q. Where was that ? 

A. In the office of a livery stable in Thirty-third street. 

6293. Q. What did you get for making this statement 
A. Nothing. 

6294. Q. Or the promise of anything ? 

A. No, sir. 

6295. Q. Where did you vote at the last presidential election 

A. I voted in Second avenue between Thirty-fourth and Thirty-fifth 
streets. 

6296. Q. Under what name ? 

A. Under my own name. 

6297. Q. Did you vote any other time ? 

A. No, sir. 

6298. Q. Are you sure of that ? 

A. Very sure. 

6299. Q. How often did you register ? 

A. Once. 

6300. Q. Did you register at any other time, or under any other name ? 
A. In other years and other elections. 

6301. Q. Under a di#erent name ? 

A. No, sir ) only my own name. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6302. Q. Did you get these five dollars for going over there and making 
a false statement in relation to voting in this city ? 

A. That is what I got the money for, I suppose, but I did not do any 
such thing. 

6303. Q. I ask now if you desire to return the money to Mr. Wood 
from whom it came ? 

A. Yes, sir; I desire to do so; 1 done nothing to earn it, and therefore 
I don’t think I ought to keep it. 

By the Chairman: 

6304. Q. You did not go over the river and make any statement? 

A. No, sir. 

6305. Q. You did not make any statement to’Mr. Wood ? 

A. No, sir ; I did not even make an answer to him. 

6306. Q. You have not been called as a witness by Mr. Wood? 

A. No, sir. 

6307. Q. Who did call you as a witness ? 

A. Nobody in particular. 

6308. Q. How did you come here as a witness ? 

A. Because I thought it was just my due. 

6309. Q. You came of your own accord without being summoned I 
A. Yes, sir. 

37 T 


578 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


^^EW York, Jamiary 

K Jarvis, Jr., recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

0310. Question. Will you furnish the coininittee a statement of the 
number of persons naturalized from 1850 to 1808, inclusive, with the 
number daily in October, 1808, in the court of common pleas'? 

Answer. 1 submit to the committee the following- statement, which is 
correct: 


Office of the Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas 

FOR THE City and County of New York. 
lu answer to the question “ How many persons were naturalized in the said court during- 
each year, beginning’with the year ]856, to and including the year 1868, and how many 
were naturalized during- the month of October, 1868, stating the number each day during 
said month,” I answer— 


Number naturalized in 

1856. 

... 10,479 ! 

' Number naturalized October 6-- 

;. 78 

Do. 

1857. 

... 6, 857 i 

j Do. 

.7. 

57 

Do. 

1858. 

... 4,882 

Do. 

.8. 

81 

Do. 

1859.. 

... 5,546 

Do. 

.9. 

91 

Do. 

1860.. 

... 8,142 1 

1 Do. 

.10. 

42 

Do. 

1861. 

... 2,935 1 

Do. 

.12. 

157 

Do. 

1862. 

... 1,511 ! 

Do. 

.13. 

. 231 

Do. 

1863.. 

... 1,762 ! 

1 Do. 

.14..... 

149 

Do. 

1864.. 

... 5,631 j 

i Do. 

.15. 

116 

Do. 

1865. 

... 4,154. 

1 Do. 

.16. 

85 

Do. 

1866. 

,.. 6,465 I 

1 Do. 

.17. 

21 

Do. 

1867. 

... 4,662 

Do. 

.19. 

105 

Do. 

1868. 

.. 3,145 

Do. 

.20. 

18 

Number naturalized October ]- 

104 

1 Do. 

.21. 

16 

Do. 

.2_ 

95 

i Do 

22 

29 

Do. 

.5.... 

139 

1 Do;.;:;;;; 

_23. 

31 


N. JARVIS, Jr. 


doll. Q. State whether during- the war a large proportion of the 
foreigners of this city went into the army. 

A. I do not knoAv the fact. 1 presume they did ; a great many did. 
0312. Q. State whether from your knowledge of the city, in addition 
to those Avho were killed and died of disease, a large portion of those 
wlio went into the army did not remain mother portions of the country. 
A. Yes, sir. 


^^EW York, January 11, 1869. 

John Keatino sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Eoss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

0313. Question. State if you know of any combina tion or conspiracy in 
this city or in Brooklyn organized with a view to induce persons to give 
false testimony before this comniittee in relation to repeating 5 if so, 
state what you know about it. 

Answer. 1 was passing by and I saw the policemen around, and I saw 
some excitement, and I walked in and I heard the investigation committee 
• was here investigating frauds; and I was standing near the door and 
Mr. James ward was coming up, and we got to talking about how dull 
the times was, and a man came up (Colonel Wood) and put his hand 
on our shoulders and said, “ Everything is right, boys,” and took us 
aside and he said for us to come in here and give testimony that we re¬ 
peated the democratic ticket on the 3d of November, and he said he 
would be a friend of ours, and for us not to go back on him like the 














































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


579 


rest of tliem did. He gave me $10—$5 apiece—to divide amongst me 
and Mr. Ward, and bid us good day; and Mr. Wood went off and I gave 
Mr. Ward $5, and here is tlie $5 now, sir; I liave got it in my pocket 
yet, [laying a $5 bill upon the table.] 

6314. Q. Where were yon to go to make this false statement? 

A. I was to come here; that was all that was said. He asked us to 
come in here and swear false, and give our testimony that we voted 
illegally on the 3d of November. On Sunday me and Mr. Ward had a 
little conversation over it, and we went to a stable on Thirty-third street 
and talked it over to Ward’s brother and gave him the statement. We 
came here voluntarily to make a statement of the truth? 

6315. Q. And return the money to Colonel Wood if he would accept it? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6316. Q. Which you are now ready to do ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6317. Q. You have the money in your possession ready for Colonel 
Wood’s order? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman: 

6318. Q. Where do you live? 

A. At 68 Cherry street. 

6319. Q. Colonel Wood did not ask you to go to any place except to 
come here and testify in this building? 

A. No, sir. 

6320. Q. It was right at the door of this building? 

A. No, sir; it was right over against it; and he said everything was 
right, and asked us to come and testify. 

6321. Q. He said nothing about going to any place in Jersey City? 

A. Nothing that I know of. 

6322. Q. Nothing about Taylor’s Hotel ? 

A.. No. 

6323. Q. Colonel Wood is a very tall, slender man? 

A. No, sir, not very tall; a stout man, with a stoop in the shoulders. 

6324. Q. With light side whiskers. 

A. No whiskers at all. 

6325. Q. Had he a fur cap on? 

A. No, sir; a tall plug hat. 

6326. Q. When was that? 

A. That was on Saturday, between half-past 3 and 4 o’clock. A 
quarter past 3 on Saturday. 

6327. Q. Hid you ever see Colonel Wood before? 

A. Yes, sir; I have seen him. 

6328. Q. Before that day? 

A. Never, sir. 

6329. Q. Are you certain that was Colonel Wood? 

A. Yes, sir; I was told it w^as. 

6330. Q. Who told you so? 

A. A man by the name of Matchee Moore. 

6331. Q. Wood did not tell you the name himself. 

A. No, sir; I was told an hour before that it was Colonel Wood.. 

6332. Q. Then you had been in the building some time? 

A. Not very long—about an hour. 

6333. Q. Then you did not come up and meet this man that was talk¬ 
ing with Colonel Wood? 

A. No, sir; that man came and met me. 


580 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6334. Q. Where did he come from ? 

A. He came towards Chatham street? 

6335. Q. What were you doing in the building? 

A. I was taking a walk around and I saw the excitement. 

6336. Q. Hid you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. I registered; I did not vote. 

6337. Q. Were you summoned to come before this committee. 

A. No, sir; I came here voluntarily. 

6338. Q. Hid Ward tell you to come here? 

A. We had a little conversation in Thirty-third street. 

6339. Q. Somebody told you it was better to do this? 

A. We thought in our own conscience it was better to tell the truth. 

6340. Q. Who took down the statement of what you were going to 
testify here now ? 

A. A brother of Ward^s at Thirty-third street. 

6341. Q. How did you happen to see him? 

A. We met him there. 

6342. Q. Who sent him there ? 

A. I don’t know who sent him there. 

6343. Q. Hidn’t you know this man that spoke to you was not Colonel 
Wood at all, but it was a man who made that statement to you in order 
that you might come and testify to it? 

A. No, sir; I am sure it was not. 

6344. Q. What business are you engaged in? 

A. I am a laborer in Jeiferson market. 

6345. Q. How often did you vote at the last presidential Section? 

A. I did not vote at all; I registered. 

6346. Q Why did not you vote? 

A. I did not feel very much interest in it at all. 

6347. Q. Where did you register? 

A. I registered in Eoosevelt street. 

6348. Q. What number? 

A. I could not tell the number. 

6349. Q. What name? 

A. John Keating, 68 Cherry street. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6350. Q. Were you to have any additional compensation after you 
swore. 

A. Yes, sir; we were to get $10 more. 

6351. Q. Five dollars apiece, or $10 apiece more? 

A. Ten dollars apiece more. 

By the Chairman : 

6352. Q. Hid he say anything about swearing false? 

A. He told me to come here and give testimony that I voted illegally 
on election day, on the 3d of November, and said he would protect me. 

6353. Q. Hid you tell him you would do it? 

A. No, sir; I did not say nothing about it. 

6354. Q. AVithout your saying anything he gave you the $5? 

A. That is so. I was thunderstruck when he came up and spoke to 
me. I did not know who the man was. 

By Mr. Boss : 

6355. Q. Have you any doubt of his being Colonel Wood? 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


581 


By the Chairman : 

6356. Q. You never saw him before 
A. i^^ot until an hour before that. 

6357. Q. And you have never seen him since ? 

A. No, sir. 

6358. Q. He has not asked you since to come and testify ? 
A. No, sir. 


New Y ork, January 11, 1869. 

Howard T. Marston recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

6359. Question. State if, under the direction of this committee, you have 
made any examination of the applications for naturalization and affidavits 
on file in the office of the county clerk of naturalization in the supreme 
court of this State in the year 1868 ? 

Answer. Yes, sir; I have. 

6360. Q. State what you have observed. 

A. In making this examination I have kept notes. I have here the 
original notes. 

The witness testified to the following statement: 


Days on which ivitnesses appear^ names of witnesses^ and number of times 

each witness appears. 



October 8. 

October 9. 

October 10. 

October 12. 

Patrick McCaffrey. 

14 


60 

7 

.Tohn Wa^'d______ 

31 


9 

23 

John Morg^aii. 

18 


24 

19 

James Goff... 

48 


Patrick Goff_-_-. 

88 


37 

11 

Thomas Selhan... 

9 


37 

13 

Beinteau Lachman... 

2 


10 

5 

Ja.mps IVTp.P.fl.be._ ___ 



9 

7 

Mip.liRP.l Mnrrnw_ __ 

2 


8 

14 

John McGinness......____ 

3 



3 

Jnsfiph Mnnrp . __ __ 

31 


2 

10 

.Tfl.mp.s O’Dnnnell___ _ 


13 

13 

Dq.vid Sfl.nfif>rd . . .. __ 

11 


JpVin McCarthy__ 

12 



J'^hn ^ 


36 


Philip Whilpy __ 

11 








6361. Q. There were other witnesses whose names you have not given, 
and whose names do not appear so frequently upon those days ? 

A. Yes, sir; that is the truth of-the case. 

6362. Q. You have made a partial examination since that date ? 

A. Yes, sir; it is not finished. 

6363. Q. State how you procured the naturalization papers from which 
you made this statement. 

A. They were given to me by a man in the county clerk^s office, taken 
from the place where they were kept. 

6364. Q. Do you know whether he furnished all the papers ? 

A. No, sir; 1 do not. 







































584 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6400. Q. How much money did you get for this ? 

A. I didift get a cent. I was promised money, but I never got it. 

6401. Q. Do you know what ticket you voted 

A. That is what I cannot say. It was a democratic ticket; that is 
all I know. Groves said that it was a good democratic ticket, and to go 
and put it in. 

6402. Whom did you first tell this to ? 

A. I didn’t tell it to anybody but the young fellow that was on the 
corner at the time. 

6403. Q. What young fellow was that 

A. That is Groves. After I came out I told him I went in tiiere 
twice. Said he, “ Go right in again.” 

6404. Q. Whom have you told about it since ? 

A. Never anybody. 

6405. Q. You never told anybody what you knew about it ? 

A. No, sir. 

6406. Q. You never communicated to anybody that you knew any¬ 
thing about it*? 

A. I talked to a young fellow to know how many times he voted, and 
how many times I voted- That is all. That was at the porter-house, a 
week ago to-day. I don’t know his name exactly. The name he goes 
by is Bob. That is all I know. 

6407. Q. Who subpoenaed you to come here ? 

A. I don’t know who subpoenaed me to come here. 

6408. Q. Were you subpoenaed 

A. No, sir; not that I know of. 

6409. Q. Who brought you here ? 

A. A young man fetched me here. I don’t know his name. 

6410. Q. What did he tell jmu ? 

A. You were doing this, and the party you voted for haven’t done 
anything about it. You might as well come up and make your state¬ 
ment, and it won’t hurt you or anybody else; and I thought I would 
come up. 

6441. Q. He said the party you voted for had not done anything for 
you, and that induced you to come ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6412. Q. 'They had not paid you 

A. No, sir. 

6413. Q. When did you have that talk with this young man ? 

A. About a week ago. 

6414. Q. What day was it you went over to Jersey City "? 

A. On Saturday. 

6415. Q. Whom did you come over with % 

A. The young man that told me to come here and make a statement. 
He told me I had been working for the party, and the party never had 
done anything for me, and never would do anything; and I went over 
and made the statement. 

6416. Q. How much did you get for that ? 

A. I didn’t get nothing. 

6417. Q. Then they treated you as bad as the other party % 

A. I don’t know, vsir. 

6418. Q. How much did they promise you I 

A. They promised me that I should not lose a day’s work on it. That 
is all they promised me. 

6419. Q. Have they paid that % 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 585 

6420. Q. Then if they do not pay that you will come out and tell the 
truth about it! 

A. iTo, sir; I have told all I know-all the truth—to-day. 

6421. Q. Who took your statement over the river! 

A. There was a young man over there who took the statement. 

6422. Q. Where did you see Colonel Wood that day! 

A. I did not see Colonel Wood at all. 

6423. Q. Where did you see Marshal Murray! 

A. I did not see Marshal Murray. 

6424. Q. Who took you to Marshal Murray^s office this morning ! 

A. I was not there this morning. 

6425. Q. Have you not been sitting in Marshal Murray’s office! 

A. Oh, that was this afternoon. 

6426. Q. Who took you in there ^ 

A. A young man took me in there. 

6427. Q. How many of you were taken in there! 

A. Two. 

6428. Q. Were there not more than two! 

A. I only know that I came here with two myself. 

6429. Q. When did you come over ! 

A. This afternoon. 

6430. Q. From where! 

A. Jersey City. He told me to come over there and meet him, and he 
would fetch me overj and I went over there and met him. I gave my 
statement Saturday, and he said he would fetch me over Monday. 

6431. Q. Did you see Colonel Wood at either time! 

A. hTo, sir. 

6432. Q. Do you know Colonel Wood! 

A. No, sir. 

6433. Q. You do not know the man that took you into Marshal Mur¬ 
ray’s office! 

A. No, sir. 

6434. Q. Did he tell you to stay there! 

A. Yes, sirj he told me to stay there, and I would be wanted; and 1 
sat down. 

6435. Q. There were two came with you ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6436. Q. New hands; just got into the business! 

A. I don’t know anything about that. 

6437. Q. What did you tell Marshal Murray about it! 

A. I didn’t tell Marshal Murray anything about it. 

6438. Q. How long have you been going by this name you have given 
here now! 

A. That is my natural name—John Wood. 

6439. Q. Did you ever have any other name! 

A. No, sir. 

6440. Q. Have you ever been convicted of any offence in this country! 
A. No-, sir. 

6441. Q. What inducement did they hold out to you to go over there 
and make this statement! 

A. They didn’t hold out any inducements at all; but I was to go over 
there and make these statements, and a couple of days’ wnrk on it—I 
should be paid for it—and likewise for me to come here and make my 
statement. 

6442. Q. They said you might go and swear you had committed fraud ! 
A. No, su*; they did not tell me that. 


582 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


NTew York, January 11, 1869. 

Abraham Yoorhees sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6365. Q. I reside in Stamford, Connecticut. I have been examining the 
papers from the 1st of October to the 10th. It has been a herculean 
job, and it has been impossible yet to finish it. 

To Mr. Boss ; 

6366. I am a lawyer. My office is at 132 Nassau street. I do not live 
in this city. ^ I go home every night. I have been here since November 
1861, in the law business. Mr. Glassey asked me to go and examine 
these records. Mr. Glassey is a lawyer. I suppose he is acting for the 
Union League. I don’t know. 

6367. Question. How much pay do you get ? 

Answer. I don’t know exactly. That has never been settled. 

New York, January 11, 1869. 

John Wood sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6368. I reside at 696 Water street. 

6369. Q. State if you voted in the last presidential election % 

A. Yes, sir. 

6370. Q. How often? 

A. I voted at the corner of Monroe and Jackson three times. Then 
I went up to East Broadway, I believe 68, and I voted there twice. 
Then I Avent over to the New Bowery and Madison street, and I A^oted 
there twice, and that is all I voted. I voted in the 13th, 7th, and 4th 
wards. 

6371. Q. What ticket did you Amte ? 

A. I believe it was a democratic ticket. I don’t exactly know the 
ticket because the men came up and gave me the ticket, and I was half 
drunk when I was A^oting. The names were given me on a slip of paper 
at the liquor store on the corner of Madison and Jackson. A man came 
in and gave me the names. I got two names there. 

6372. Q. Can you remember any of the names you A^oted on? 

A. No, sir. A name was shoved into my hand and I had to watch 
the name and Amte on it. 

6373. Q. State Avhat you know of other persons A^oting in that same 
way. 

A. There were 11 or 12, all at the same time. 

6374. Q. In the gang with you ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6375. Q. Engaged in the same business ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6376. Q. In what business were they engaged ? 

A. The business of going round and A^oting as many times as we 
could, and getting all the rum Ave wanted to get. 

6377. Q. Hid you receive any compensation ? 

A. They promised me, but I neA^er receded it. 

6378. Q. Who promised it to you ? 

A. Certain parties that I do not wish to name. 

6379 Q. State where the other men that Avere in your gang got their 
names and numbers on which to vote. 

A. They got them at the corner of Madison and Jackson. I saw two 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 583 

or three get their names with me. They all fell in with me; and I sup¬ 
pose the others got their names the same way. 

To Mr. Ross: 

6380. I live at 696 Water street. I have lived there about eight years. 
I am engaged in hack-driving. 

6381. Q. What election did yon vote at f 

A. The presidential election last year. I voted the democratic ticket 
first, and the other tickets I don’t know nothing about. 

6382. Q. How came yon to go into this business ? 

A. The night before that we were drinking np at the porter-house, 
corner of Monroe and Jackson, and they told ns to meet them between 
7 10 o’clock, and we went iq) to the corner of Madison and Monroe. 

6383. Q. Who asked yon to go into this business'? 

A. A yonng man; I do not wish to tell his name. 

6381. Q. I desire yon to give his name. What was his name ? 

A. I don’t wish to tell it. 

6385. Q. Yon are a witness, and I ask yon to tell what it was. 

A. No, sir ; 1 won’t tell it. 

Mr. Ross. ]Mr. Chairman, I insist that he shall tell the name. 

6386. The Chairman. State the name. 

A. I said I was not going to state the man’s name. He is a friend of 
mine, and 1 don’t desire to-. His name is Charles Groves. 

6387. Q. Charles Groves gave yon the cine to the business 

A. Yes, sir. 

6388. Q. Where does Charles Groves live ? 

A. He lives in Monroe street. I cannot state the number; between 
Jackson and the next street—a small, nari’ow street. I cannot tell the 
name of it. 

6389. Q. YTiat business is Groves in ? 

A. He drives a cart. 

6390. Q. Where is his stand 

A. His stand is down town. He stands at several places. I could not 
tell yon all the places he stands. God only knows where he does stand. 

6391. Q. What did Groves tell yon"? 

A. Groves told me if I would go and vote as many times as I could, 
I would get a few dollars on the arrangement; and not only that, but he 
would be a friend of mine some other time Avhen I wanted a friend. 

6392. Q. About how many times do yon think yon voted ? 

A. I don’t know. I got pretty drunk, and that is all I remember—all 
that I told yon. I think about seven times. 

6393. Q. Yon got pretty drunk 

A. Yes, sir. I got drunk before nine. 

6394. Q. Yon don’t know very well what yon did do in the afternoon 

A. No, sir. 

6395. Q. Who were the other men with yon ? 

A. I cannot say. There were four or five other parties I know noth¬ 
ing at all about. They were from some other ward. 

6396. Q. Hid yon see either of them vote ? 

A. Yes, sir; at the corner of Monroe and Jackson. 

6397. Q. How many did yon see vote? 

A. Two or three. 

6398. Q. How many times ? 

A. I cannot say. They came in behind me. 

6399. Q. Is that the only time yon saw them vote ? 

A. That is the only time. 



586 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6443. Q. Did tliey ask you to swear about frauds, and tliey would pay 
you for it"? 

A. iSTo, sir 5 tliey didn’t tell me to swear about frauds and they would 
pay me for it at all. 

6444. Q. Who took down your statements over there ? 

A. A young man. 

6445. "Q. Did they read it over to you? 

A. No, sir. 

6446. Q. Did they promise you should not be prosecuted ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6447. Q. Should not be prosecuted for making this illegal oath ? That 
if you made this oath you should not be prosecuted? 

A. That if I made an oath I would not be convicted on my own evi¬ 
dence. 

6448. Q. Did they say they were authorized by this committee, or any¬ 
body else, to state that you should be held harmless ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6449. Q. That the congressional committee said that the men who 
would come here and swear should not be prosecuted ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6450. Q. And you believed the committee would iirotect you, and Con¬ 
gress would protect yoU, and General Grant would iirotect you, against 
any prosecution, on account of this swearing? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

6451. Q. Did any of these men who asked you to make these state¬ 
ments ask you to state anything that was not true? 

A. No, sir; they did not. They told me to go over there and tell my 
own evidence, what I saw myself and what I had done; and that is all 
they told me. 

6452. Q. When they told you you would not be liable to be prosecuted 
by reason of any statements you made here, did they say the law pro-, 
tected you, or that the committee would protect you ? 

A. The committee. 

6453. Q. Were you challenged on the day you voted? 

A. No, sir. 

6454. Q. Were any of those engaged in that business challenged? 

A. Not as I know of, sir. 

New York, January 11, 1869. 

John Gregory sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6455. I reside at 80 Oliver street. 

6456. Q. Did you vote at the last presidential election in this State ? 

A. I could not say what ticket I voted. On the morning I was going 

to the polls, and there was a lot of tickets shoved in my haiidsby aparty 
I met there, and told me if I would vote for that party I was to earn 
some inoney, and they would see me all right about it. 

6457. Q. With which party have you heretofore acted? 

A. I don’t know; but I believe the party that morning was the demo¬ 
cratic party. 

6458. Q. How often did you vote in that election? 

A. Twice was all. 

6459. Q. Under the name of Gregory both times ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


587 


A. Ko, sir; not both times. That morning I voted in Oliver street, 
between Madison and Oak, in the 4th ward. The next time I voted on 
the corner of Madison and the Bowery, the same ward, and a different 
election district. That is the first time I ever voted in the city. 

6460. Q. Under what name did yon vote the second time ? 

A. I don’t know the name ; this party with me seemed to be the head 
man, and gave me the name, and said he would see me all right; I could 
not tell, because I was under the influence of liquor; he was at the polls; 
I met him there that morning. 

6461. Q. How many were in the gang? 

A. To the best of my knowledge I should suppose 15 or 20; there was 
quite a crowd of them ; I don’t know how often they voted; I know I 
voted twice myself j some of the parties voted that was in the crowd j 
and there was more that didn’t. 

6462. Q. In wdiat business were they engaged—this gang that had 
this head man ? 

A. They seemed to be for the democratic party. 

6463. Q. Were they engaged in voting more than once 1 

A. I don’t know; I think they wmre j I could not say, because the men 
w^ere strangers to me, and I didn’t understand anything about it, any 
more than that they Avanted me to vote for this party, shoving a lot of 
tickets in my hand, and I Amted them; and they said they Avould see me 
all right. 

6464. Q. What rcAvard did they promise you ? 

A. They said they would give me $20 ; I was told by coming here to 
state this there would not be any trouble about it, but to tell just the 
truth and nothing but the truth ; it is the first time I ever did vote here 
in the city. 

6465. Q. Were you ever asked to state anything but the truth! 

A. No, sir. 

6466. Q. Did they promise you anything else but money ! 

A. They said if I AAmnted any favors or anything of that kind I could 
alwmys call upon that party. 

6467. Q. They said that to you when you were voting! 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

6468. Q. You say you Amted tAvice ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6469. Q. Can you read and write ! 

A. No, sir. 

6470. Q. You don’t know what ticket you did Amte ! 

A. I believe it Avas the democratic ticket j I could not say; I am almost 
sure it was ; I can read print. 

6471. Q. Did you see O’Brien that day ! 

A. I did not take notice j but I Avas run bodily right up and told to 
put these tickets in by the party. 

6472. Q. Who gaA^e you these tickets ! 

A. A lot of men I met close to the polls ; I didn’t know one of the 
party; I Avould knoAY them if I saAV them again. 

6473. Q. Did anybody give you any money ! 

A. No, sir ; I didn’t receiA^e a cent. 

6474. Q. Who promised you the money ! 

A. This party ; there seemed to be one man who seemed to haA^e all to 
do with it; he said he AYOuld make it all right by and by ; and w^e Avere 
drinking round after that, and he never paid me a cent. 


588 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKE. 


6475. Q. Yon don’t know liis name ? 

A. No, sir; if 1 did I wonld tell it in a minute. 

6476. Q. Did yon know yon were doing wrong? 

A. No, sir ; I did not think it was. 

6477. Q. Did yon know yon were committing an offence for which yon 
conld he i^rosecnted and indicted ? 

A. I didn’t think anything at all of the kindj I am not a great man in 
politics, and that is a thing I didn’t think of. 

6478. Q. What bnsiness do yon follow ? 

A. Boating, specnlating, anything like that along shore, buying jnnk, 
stevedore work. 

6479. Q. How long have yon lived where yon now live? 

A. I don’t live at 80 Oliver street now ; I live on Mnlberry street now; 
No. 19, I think, is the number 5 I have lived there, I gness, two or three 
weeks. 

6480. Q. Who keeps the house ? 

A. The landlady of the house; her name is Mrs. Harrington, I believe j 
that is the name 1 heard. 

6481. Q. What have yon been doing since yon have been there ? 

A. Specnlating ; buying old rope, and the like of that. 

6482. Q. Who first told yon to go over to Jersey City ? 

A. Well, I heard a lot of young men was .going over, acqnaintances 
of mine, and they asked me if I wonld go there; so I went with one of 
them; and the rest I don’t know whether they went there or not 5 and 
they wanted me to state this that I have stated. 

6483. Q. What is the name of the yonng man that asked yon to go 
over there ? 

A. That is more than I can tell yon ; he is a yonng man that I know; 
he has been along shore with me j he is a ’long-shore man; he has worked 
with me sometimes. 

6484. Q- What indncement did he hold ont to get yon to go over there ? 

A. He didn’t say 1 wonld gain anything by it; it was merely to go 

and stat 6 this there ; he didn’t say I was doing a favor to him or any¬ 
body else, any more than to go there and tell; and he told.me that it 
wonld not get me into any tronble. 

6485. Q. Did he say yon were to have five dollars there, and if yon 
came here five dollars more ? 

A. He didn’t speak of five dollars; bnt he said I wonld be paid for the 
day’s work. 

6486. Q. He didn’t say how mnch ? 

A. He said five dollars for the day’s work. 

6487. Q. Was that to be paid to yon over there or here ? 

Al. Here 

6488. Q. By whom ? 

A. They said in this office. 

6489. Q. Wasn’t yon to have five dollars when yon went over there, 
and five dollars after yon testified here ? 

A. No, sir; I didn’t have no nnderstanding to that effect; I was here 
Saturday; bnt I was not called on Saturday, and I was told to come 
back to-day, and I was to get paid for to-day and get paid for Satnrday 
also. 

6490. Q. Five dollars each day ? 

A. That was what I was told. 

6491. Q. Then having been here two days yon have a claim against 
the committee of ten dollars, as I nnderstand? 

A. For that matter I don’t care for the money; I merely just came to 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 589 

state wliat I know; I am a poor man^ but I would not make a false state¬ 
ment for the sake of five dollars. 

0492. Q. How many went over with you to Jersey City? 

A. There was only one man—this long shore man. 

6493. Q. Hid he pay your bill ? 

A. Ko, sir ; I paid it. 

0494. Q. Did this young man testify over there to the same as you did? 
A. Yes, sir. 

0495. Q. You were both sworn over there, were you ? 

A. Our names were put down, and we made our statements there; 
that was all. 

6496. Q. Were yon not sworn to it? 

A. No, sir; he only asked us if it was true, and I said yes. 

6497. Q. Did they have it written out when you got there ? 

A. No, sir. 

6498. Q. Do you know who did the writing ? 

A. No, sir; a young man ; quite a young man. 

6499. Q. Do you know Colonel Wood? 

A. No, sir 5 I was showed a gentleman outside as Colonel Wood while 
I was sitting down. 

6500. Q. Did you see him over there ? 

A. No, sir; he was not over there. 

6501. Q. What did he say to you about being over there on Saturday? 
A. He didn’t speak to me at all j I never spoke to the man in my life. 

6502. Q. Were there a good many making their statements over there 
when you were there ? 

A. I believe there was three or four over there at the time. 

6503. Q. At what place ? 

A. Jersey City. 

6504. Q. At the Taylor House ? 

A. Yes, sir; up-stairs. 

6505. Q. You are certain they have not paid you any money yet ? 

A. No, sir; I have not received a cent. 

6506. Q. Who brought you over here from Jersey City? 

A. I came over here myself to-day. 

6507. Q. You went over there on Saturday, and again to-day? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6508. Q. Did nobody come back with you either time ? 

A. There were two or three men; I don’t know who they were ; there 
are a couple, I think, outside now. 

6509. Q. Waiting outside ? 

A. Yes, sir j they are strangers to me. 

6510. Q. Do you know Marshal Murray? 

A. No, sir; I don’t. 

6511. Q. How long have yon been in Marshal Murray’s office ? 

A. Three-quarters of an hour, 1 should think. 

6512. Q. How many of you were sitting in that office ? 

A. There are three or four right outside there. 

6513. Q. The first door to the left hand as you come into the hall ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6514. Q. Were there not ten or a dozen in there ? 

A. There was a lot of gentlemen going in and out j there were about 
three or four sitting down in the chairs. 

6515. Q. How long has your name been John Gregory? 

A. Ever since I have known it. 


590 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6516. Q. Have you ever had any other ? 

A. No, sir. 

6517. Q. Were you ever conducted of auy criiniual offence 

A. Never, sir. 

6518. Q. Ho you know any prominent man here in the city ? 

A. No, sir; I never dealt much in politics. 

6519. Q. How long have you lived in the city? 

A. I have been here ever since I know. 

6520. Q. Born in the city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6521. Q. You are not a foreigner ? 

A. No, sir; I am not a foreigner. 

6522. Q. You never were convicted of any offence ? 

A. No, sir ; and I hope I never will be. 

6523. Q. Hid you know it was wrong to vote twice ? 

A. No, sir, I did not; I was under the influence of liquor all that 
day, anyliow. 

6524. Q. Were you under the influence of liquor when you went over 
to Jersey City on Saturday? 

A. No, sir; I was not. 

6525. Q. Whom did you first talk with about giving this testimony? 

A. The young man over there j I went right into the office, and he 

walked to a table, and sat down by the table and asked me what my 
name was, and I told him my name Avas John Gregory; and he asked 
me Avhere I lived, and I told him 80 OliA^er street; and he asked me 
where I was the night preAuous to the election, and I told him I was at 
home; and he asked me if I made an agreement with any parties the 
night preAuous to election to meet the morning of the election, and I 
told him no; and I told him I Avas going to the polls and met a party 
there, and that party got me to go up and Amte, and he would see me all 
right; and that there Avere a body of men, and they were shouting 
‘Wote for this man;” ‘HlaA^e you Amted yet?” “No, I havn’t voted yet;” 
“ Then vote for this man.” 

6526. Q. Electioneering for both parties ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6527. Q. There was a big crowd at the polls, electioneering as strong 
as they could for both parties, and some asked you to vote the demo¬ 
cratic ticket ? 

A. They didn’t say aa hat ticket; they said vote for this party, and I 
went and done it. 


Neav York, January 11, 1869. 

Laavrence Earrell sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

6528. Question. Are you acquainted AAuth Marcus Cicero Stanley? 
Answer. I knoAv the gentleman; I have no acquaintance with him; I 

know him when I see him. 

6529. Q. Are you acquainted Avith his reputation for truth and veracity? 
A. No, sir; only from hearsay. 

6530. Q. Ho you know the reputation he has among his neighbors ? 
A. Yes, sir. 

6531. Q. What is it, good or bad ? 

A. I don’t Avant to say anything Avith regard to Mr. Stanley; I don’t 
knoAV anything about him. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


591 


0532. Q. Do yon know anytliiiig of Davenport and Grinnein 

A. Yes, sir; I know Davenport and Grinnell; there is Mr. Davenport 
there. 

6533. Q. Do yon l^now anything about this case f If yon do, state it. 

A. I received $30 from Mr. Glassey, and Mr. Foster, and Mr. Daven¬ 
port, on Saturday night, to keep men until Monday to fnrnish evidence 
that they had voted illegally in the 21st ward. 

0534. Q. When wms that 

A. In December. I got men to come on Monday to fnrnish evidence 
that they voted illegally in the 21st ward. 

6535. Q. Who besides Mr. Davenport was engaged in that ? 

A. Mr. Glassey and Mr. Foster. Mr. Glassey told me I wonld get the 
money as soon as Mr. Davenport got back. 

6536. Q. What did yon do in respect to the matter ? 

A. I did not do anything. I did not fnrnish the men. I asked Mr. 
Foster what he wanted of the men, and he stated he wanted to fnrnish 
ewdence against Sheriff O’Brien, a democratic leader, so that he conld 
prosecnte him. I said if I wonld fnrnish the men and they were arrested 
what protection wonld they have, and Foster told me that General Grant 
being elected and having the power, he wonld fnrnish the money and 
send them out of the United States, if they wanted to go out. 

6537. Q. Have yon had any talk with any other republican leaders in 
reference to this matter ^ 

A. I saw John Jay, and he told me to go to the leagne committee. 

6538. Q. Did yon have this conversation with them in yonr right name, 
or under an assumed name ? 

A. Under the name of Pierce. 

By the Chairman : 

6539. Q. What names have yon gone under ? 

A. I went under the name of William Pierce. 

6540. Q. What other names have yon had at different times! 

A. None at any time, only Farrell. 

6541. Q. Was Mr. O’Brien at the Jackson clnb all night before the 
election ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6542. Q. All night! 

A. No, sir; not all night. 

6543. Q. How long! 

A. Two or three hours. 

6544. Q. Yon know that there was a lot of men there to be engaged 
in repeating on the next day! 

A. No, sir. I saw a lot of men there. I do not know what they were 
there for. 

6545. Q. Don’t yon know that they were repeating on the next day! 

A. No, sir. 

6546. Q. Did not yon state to the committee that yon knew it! 

A. I have made different statements. Yes, sir; I might make a 
hundred statements. 

6547. Q. Did not yon name to some one four persons who voted ille¬ 
gally on the day of election! 

A. Yes, sir. I told them I conld fnrnish a thousand. 

6548. Q. Yon told the truth, did yon not! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6549. At the last presidential election! 

A. Yes, sir. 


592 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6550. Q. That statement was true ? 

A. Yes, sir; that statement was true. 

6551. Q. What ticket did those thousand persons vote ? 

A. 1 could not answer tliat question. I do not know whether they 
voted the democratic ticket or the republican ticket. 

6552. Q. Did not you tell some one that they had voted the democratic 
ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6553. Q. You stated that you could furnish a thousand who had voted 
the democratic ticket % 

A. Yes, sir. 

6554. Q. A thousand persons who had been engaged in repeating in 
the last November election? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6555. Q. That is the fact; that is so; is it not? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6556. Q. State if you have examined the registry books, or any of 
them, of the last election ? 

A. No, sir. I never examined any of them, only once in Mr. Daven¬ 
port’s office. 

6557. Q. State if you find upon the books there a lot of names of 
persons who were registered, and who were repeaters. 

A. I saw some there that I thought repeated. 

6558. Q. How many did you see on the book there who registered, and 
were repeaters ? 

A. I only looked at the 14th district of the 21st ward. I saw two there 
that I knew. 

6559. Q. How many times, as a general rule, cbd the men engaged in 
repeating at the last presidential election vote ? 

A. I don’t know how many times they voted. I did not watch them. 

6560. Q. So far as you know or observed, state as near as you can. 

A. I could not say that they voted any more than once. 

6561. Q. Do you know from what you observed? 

A. I know from what I saw. 

6562. Q. Do you kuoAv from what you saw that those persons whose 
names were on the book voted more than once? 

A. I saw them vote the republican ticket and repeat, and the demo¬ 
cratic ticket, both. 

6563. Q. You are a democrat ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6564. Q. You voted the democratic ticket at the last election ? 

A. I voted some of the democratic and some of the republican ticket. 

6565. Q. How often did you vote at the last election ? 

A. Once, sir. 

6566. Q. Under what name ? 

A. Under Farrel, my right name. 

6567. Q. In what ward were those thousand persons you referred to 
as being engaged in repeating? 

A. In different wards all over the city. 

6568. Q. In pretty much all the wards of the city? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6569. Q. Was the fact that this large number of persons were engaged 
in repeating known to officers in this city? 

A. I suppose so. I had no means of knowing. 

6570. Q. Did you state to any one that you could furnish the names 
of a hundred or more persons who had been engaged in repeating ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


593 


A. Yes, sir; I stated tliat to make money. 

OoTl. Q. Did you tell the triitli tlien ? 

A. Men don’t always tell the truth when they are doing business. 
6572. Q. For whom did those i>ersons vote ^ 

A. The republican ticket and the democratic ticket both. 

G573. Q. Did you say that you knew democratic officers engaged in 
procuring them to repeat"? 

A.^Yes, sir; I stated that for the purpose of getting money. 

0574. Q. Do you know of any democratic officers that kneAv of iU? 
A.^No, sir; I would not swear so. No, I am on my oath now. 

()575. Q. Did you state that you knew four men, Avhose names you gaA^e, 
that were engaged in repeating^ 

A. Yes, sir. 

0570. Q. By whom were they emidoyed to repeat ? 

A. They would be employed by me. 

0577. Q. AVhom did you state they were employed by? 

A. I stated that I could furnish evidence against Mr. O’Brien. 

0578. Q. Is that a fact? 

A. No, sir. 

0579. Q. Did you employ x^ersons to rex^eat yourself? 

A. I decline to answer that question. 

0580. Q. Why? 

A. For certain reasons. I am not obliged to answer anything that will 
criminate myself. 

0581. Q. Who told you that? 

A. Common sense tells me that; I always knew it. 

0582. Q. Hoav many x^ersons did you employ or engage in rexAeating on 
the day of the last xAresidential election? 

A. That is the same question oA^er again. 

0583. Q. Well, AA'hat is the number of x^ersons? 

A. I might say one or a hundred. 

0584. Q. Hoav many did you enqiloy ? 

A. Hoav many did 1 x^‘"iy? I did not x>ay anybody. 

0585. Q. How many did you ask or engage in the business yourself? 
A. I Avould have asked or engaged anybody, xn-OAuded I could have 
got money to do the business Avith. 

0580. Q. Hoay many did you ask or engage in the business? 

A. Not any. 

0587. Q. Did you induce any x^ersons to engage in rex^eating? 

A. No, sir. 

0588. Q. AVhy did you decline to answer the question I asked you ? 

A. Because I did not want to answer it in the way you x^nt it. 

0589. Q. AYill you iioaa^ ansAver the question I xnit before? 

A. You asked Iioav many men AA^ere engaged AAutli me in rexieating. I 
say there were none engaged with me in repeating at all. 

0590. Hoav many did you engage to go into the Avork? 

A. None at all, sir. 

0591. Q. Did not you just state that you emxdoyed these four men? 

A. I had emjiloyed them, yes, from the arrangement the Union League 
committee made Avith me to furnish evidence, and they backed out 
because they could not get money. 

05J)2. Q. bid not you state that yon pointed out four men upon the 
registry avIio Avere engaged in repeating? 

A. Yes, sir; 1 x>ointed out four, and could x^oiut out a thousand if I 
could get money enough. 

38 T 


594 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G593. Q. A thousand that you know^ to be engaged in repeating at the 
last presidential eleetion in this city ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G594. Q. All over the city ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

G595. Q. Is that paper in your handwriting? (Paper shown witness.) 
A. N'o, sir. 

G59G. Q. Did you write that? 

A. ]No, sir. 

G597. Q. Did you send that to anybody in this city ? 

A. No, sir. 

G598. Q. Are you sure of that ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G599. Q. Is it not signed William Pearce? 

A. I did not sign it; I did not write it. 

GGOO. Q. Did you ever see it before? 

A. No, sir. 

GGOl. Q. Wlio did sign it ? 

A. I don’t know. 

GG02. Q. Did you write that? (Another paper shown witness.) 

A. No, sir. 

GGOo. Q. Is your name signed to it ? 

A No, sir. 

GG04. Q. Is William Pearce signed to it? 

A. Yes, sir. 

GGOo. Q. Do you know who wrote it? 

A. No, sir. 

GGOG. Q. Did you know of its being written ? 

A. No, sir. 

GG07. Q. Did you know of its being sent? 

A. No, sir. 

GG08. Q. Did not you call on the persons to whom these two notes 
were addressed soon after they were written? 

A. Yes, sir j I called there and they never stated anything about it to 
me. 

GG09. Q. Do you know Mr. Weiss, in this city? 

A. Yes, sir. 

GGIO. Q. Do you know he delivered these notes ? 

A. He never told me so. 

GGll. Q. Did not you and Weiss go together to the Union League on 
Broadway ? 

A. Sometimes together, sometimes not; Weiss never knew anything 
about my business. 

GG12. Q. Has your testimony been true so far as vou have gone here? 
A. Yes, sir. 

GG13. Q. You are sure of that ? 

A. Yes, sir; I am sure of that. 

By Mr. Boss: 

GG14. Q. I understood you to say something about the Union League, 
or the republicans, not turnishing you money as they agreed to furnish 
you money for swearing falsely? 

A. Yes, sir; Poster told me Avhat money was wanted he would let me 
have, and I left, and I found witnesses and advanced $108, and all that 
they gave me was $30. 

GG15. Q. If you had got the money you could have got tlie witnesses 
to swear falsely? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


51)5 


A. Yes, sir. 

OOIG. Q. And you would have served the Union League in that way 
if they had furnished vou money ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0017. Q. Because they did not furnish you money, you did not bring 
further proof? 

A. No, sir; not any. 

0018. Q. You think there Avould have been no trouble in getting men 
to swear talsely if you had had the money ! 

A. Yes, sir; I could have furnished a thousand as well as one. 

0010. Q. That is what you mean—that vou could have found men to 
swear falsely that they voted illegally ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

0020. Q. That for pay you could have found a thousand men who Avould 
have come before the committee and testified that they had voted illegall v! 

A. Yes, sir. 

(>021. Q. You would do it simply for pay, not because it was a fact! 

A. Yes, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

0022. Q. Did not you say it was the fact that there were a thousand 
persons engaged in repeating at the last presidential election ! 

A. 1 said that for the purpose of making money. 

0023. Q. Did you not testify to that here ! 

A. 1 testified I knew a thousand men; I did not say whether they 
voted the democratic ticket or the republican. 

0024. Q. I did noy[ ask you the ticket. Did not you say you knew a 
thousand men in this city engaged in repeating at the last presidential 
election ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

0025. Q. That is true, is it not! 

A. Yes, sir. 

0020. Q. iMr. Glassey and Mr. Foster did not say that they wanted 
you to SAvear falsely, did they ! 

A. No, sir; they did not say they Avanted me to s\A^ear at all, because 
they would not allow me to do anything of that kind. 

0027. Q. They did not say they wanted to get anybody else to swear 
falsely ! 

A. They did not say either way so long as I could get men, and there 
was the evidence they Avanted. They di(l not say Avhether they were to 
SAvear falsely or SAvear the truth. 1 asked them what evidence they 
wanted. They Avanted to get evidence against Sheriff O’Brien—Foster 
did—DaA^enport did not IniA^e any talk Avith me on that subject, at all— 
so that they could prosecute Sheriff* O’Brien. 

[Samuel J. Glassey and John A. Foster Avere called into the room.] 

(>028. Q. State if Mr. Glassey and General Foster are present in this 
room ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

New York, Jummry 11, 1809. 

Samuel J. Glassey recalled. 

By the Chairman: 

0029. Question. State if you have just seen Lawrence Farrell, other¬ 
wise called William Pearce, aaUo has just testified! 

Ans AVer. I IniA^e seen him here. 

0030. Q. State Avhat interviews you had Avith him in relation to elec¬ 
tion frauds—Aviien they Avere ! 


596 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I had several interviews with him at difterent times, in the latter 
l)art of iS’ovember and early in December last, at NTo. 258 Broadway. I 
never knew him by the name of Lawrence Farrell. He stated his name 
A\ as William Pearce. He stated to me that he had a great deal of knowl¬ 
edge with regard to frauds committed at the late election. He stated 
that he knew a large number of persons who had been engaged in 
repeating at the last presidential election in this city for the democratic 
party, who received their instructions on the round on slips of paper 
containing the names and residences by AAhich they Avere to A'ote, from 
Mr. Sherili' O’Brien. He stated that he had been at considerable expense 
and taken great pains to get these men together, and spent money on 
them, and he AAmuld produce several hundred men Avdio had been engaged 
in repeating,* that they Avould be unwilling to testify Axduntarily, but if 
arrested they AAmuld ^‘squeal,” to use his expression, and tell the whole 
story; that he did not Avant to be connected Avith it himself, but that he 
AvouI(l indicate the men, giving their names and residences, and if they 
Avere arrested he Avould guarantee that they Av^ould, on being arrested, 
tell that they had repeated, and giA^e the names and residences from 
Avhich they had Amted, and Avould testify that Sherilf O’Brien instructed 
them and gaA^e them the names. He called upon us several times in 
succession, telling this story. We told him Ave Avould take no action in 
the matter unless he Avould bring the men to our office so tliat Ave might 
examine them. At the last interview I had AA itli him, which Avas the 
third or fourth, I asked him Avhat the men would SAvear to. He said, 
‘‘Tliey will swear to anything you want.” I said, “We don’t Avant men 
to swear to anything Ave want. I Avaiit men that have a knowledge of 
important facts, and Avaiit them to swear to the truth about it. I Avill 
have nothing to do Avith your Avitnesses. You must haAX your men here 
and let me examine them myself, so that I may be satisfied as to the 
truth of their statements before I Avill luwe anything to do Avith them.’^ 
He gave me the names of four men, Avhich Avere written doAvn on a slip of 
])aper at the tune, all of whom, he stated, Amted in some up-toAAUi district, 
Avhieh I now forget. Beferring to the registry of that district or dis¬ 
tricts, because there Avas more than one district named, I found some of 
the names he gave us registered; whether all four or not, I do not 
lemember. One of the names on that slip of paper Avas James Farrell. 

I did not know then that his name Avas Lawrence Farrell. I only knew 
him as William Pearce. He left me, making an appointmenL This 
Avas shortly before the charter election. He appointed the time to bring 
four of these men to the office and let me examine them. None of them 
ever ai)peared, and I have not seen or heard anything more of him until 
I heard he Avms a Avitness here. 

(3()31. Q. State if you eAW saw these papers before? (Papers shown 
Avitness.) 

A. Yes, sir; a man came to our office, 258 Broadway, who gaA^e the 
name of Weiss, and brought these papers. 

(>(>32. State whether any money was paid ? 

A. This man Pearce receiA^ed altogether from our office, I think, $35. 
u])on stating that he had expended a good deal of money in finding out 
these men and keeping them together. 1 haA^e no personal knoAAdedge 
of the payment of all of it. I think I handed him fiA^e dollars myself, 
and the balance aa^s paid to him by some one in the office. 1 understood 
him to have received $30 besides Avhat I paid him. He was coming 
there for some two Aveeks almost every day. At the last two interviews 
I had Avith him I declined to talk Avith him at all, and insisted that he 
should produce men for my examination, and Avould not, without his 
doing that, take any fiufher pains Avith it. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 597 

GG33. Q. State if you ever said anytliiug' to him about getting wit¬ 
nesses to testify falsely ! 

A. Notliiug ex(tept what I have stated—his stating to me, in reply to 
my question, “What will your men testify to that “They will swear 
to anything you want,” and my telling him that was not the kind of men 
I wanted to deal with; and that I did not want men to swear to Avhat I 
wanted, but men having facts bearing upon the investigation, and Avho 
Avould tell the truth about it. 

By Mr. Boss: 

GG34. Q. Was this Farrell first employed by the Union League? 

A. He Avms neA^er employed by the Union League at all. 

6G35. Q. By a\ horn was he employed ? 

A. I don’t know. 

GG3G. Q. You do not knoAv that he was employed at all? 

A. No, sir. 

GG37. Q. Do you know anything about his being employed by the 
League ? 

A. He Avas never employed by anybody excepting General Foster and 
myself. I haA^e stated Avhat my connection with him Avas. 

GG38. Q. Are you in the habit of paying money out of the funds of 
the Union League to men you do not employ ? 

A. We have j)aid money in that instance. 

GG39. Q. Are you in the habit of doing so ? 

A. I think he was the only man Avho had any money from us wlio is 
not a regular employe. 

GG40. Q. What office have you ? 

A. I am of counsel, employed by the Union League to conduct this 
examination. 

GG41. Q. How many counsel are emidoyed with you ? 

A. Only one—Mr. Foster. Mr. White is connected Avith us, partially, 
being a member of the committee. Other members haA^e been employed; 
but so far as making this investigation is concerned. General Foster and 
myself only are emi)loyed by the League. 

GG42. Q. Who dreAv the draft for the payment of this money to I^earce ? 

A. There Avas not any draft draAvn. I told somebody in the office to 
give him some money. 

GG43. Q. Did they giA^e it to him ? 

A. I presume so. He said that he had expended a good deal of money 
in getting these men together. He said he had paid oatt $100. He Avas 
in tlie habit of coming in the office, off and on, nearly three Aveeks, and 
I think that money Avas all given him before he made the statement that 
his men Avould SAvear to anything I wanted. 

GG44. Q. If you had furnished him more money, he would have got 
you all the AAutnesses you Avanted ? 

A. I do not know Avhether he Avould liaA^e furnished the Avitnesses, or 
kept on draAving the money without doing it. 

GG45. Q. Don’t you think that Avitnesses could be got in that Avay ? 

A. From Avhat I hav^e been informed of the testimony for the last few 
days, 1 should judge it Avas cpiite feasible; but I know that not a dollar has 
been expended from the funds of the Union League club for that purx)ose. 

By the Chairman : 

GG4G. Q. State if you had any intervieAv or communication AAith Wil¬ 
liam Fearce, otherAvise called Farrell, after he made to you the state¬ 
ment that he could get witnesses to SAvear to anything ? 

A. No, sir j I stated to liim this: “ I do not Avaut aa itnesses who will 


598 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


swear to wliat 1 say. I want witnesses wlio know foots bearing’ npon 
this investigation, and wlio will tell the truth j and hetbre I pay any 
one, 1 innst see them here and examine them myself, and satisfy myself 
that they will tell the truth.” He left me, saying that he would bring 
four men, and I have never seen him in our office since, nor did any four 
]nen ever appear. 

0047. Q. Did any of the counsel, or members employed by the Union 
League, have any interviews with him after he made the statement you 
have referred to ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. My relations with the other gentlemen 
have been such that I think 1 should have been informed of it if it had 
occurred. 

New York, January 11, 1809. 

John A. Foster recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

0048. Question. State if you saw IVilliam Pierce, otherwise called 
l^arrell, who has just testified. 

Answer. What his name is I do not know; he never called himself 
Farrell. Pierce, I think, is what he said his name was. I saw him, I 
thiidv, about a month ago. 

0()49. Q. What statements did he make to you about illegal voting ? 

A. He stated he could get evidence about illegal voting at what he 
called Sheriff O’Brien’s headquarters, a place called Jackson Hall, in 
the 21st ward; that on the evening i^rior to the election a gveat number 
of men assembled there, or were brought there by various parties, and 
he instanced different parties; and, among others, said our controller, 
Mr. Eichard B. Connolly, brought a large gang of them and introduced 
them to Sheriff’ O’Brien, and said, ‘‘You know what these men are for,” 
and they staid that night till the next morning; and O’Brien, he said, 
gave them slips of paper, on which were names of parties and residences, 
and told them to go out and vote on those names, and he said he thought 
that others did so. He told me there must be 200 or 300 up there, and 
he could get testimony with regard to them; and he offered to get tes¬ 
timony ; but he did not wish to be known in the case; he did not wish 
it to come to the knowledge of the men, if possible, Iioav 1 had got the 
information. He told me that he would give me the names of those who 
might either be subpcenaed or arrrested—if arrested it would be better; 
they would probably then, as he called it, “squeal;” he said he Avould 
bring me four men first who would be willing to give testimony; then 
he wonld give a large list of them—he said 300; and after the first 
four, who Avere to “ squeal” as tliey were taken and brought before the 
committee, the others, hearing that the first had, would also “squeal,” 
and tell the whole story, where they Amted and under Avhat names, so 
far as they could remember. I saw him, I suppose, five or six times in 
relation to that, and related the matter to Mr. Glassey, and he met him 
Avith me. I think I saAV him tAvo or three times before Mv. Glassey did. 
lie was indisposed to talk with but one. He promised to bring the four 
men there, and afterwards he told me he Avas sick the day he Avas to 
bring them and he could not get them; and he told me if I could get 
an order of arrest to have them arrested, and bring them doAvn here, he 
Avould Inwe them in a place Avhere they would understand it, and Avould 
alloAv themselves to be arrested to excuse themseHes to their democratic 
fiaends for giving evidence. I told him 1 did not know of any such pro¬ 
cess as that, but they could be subpoBiiaed. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


599 ' 


0050. Q. state if you liacl intervicAYS with liiin when Mr. Glassey Avas 
not present. 

A. O, yes; I suppose in the majority of them I Avas alone. 

()(>51. Q. What time Avere these intervieAA^s 1 

A. They AA^ere all of them Avithin the past tAvo months since the elec¬ 
tion. I could not say exactly, but they were before the congressional 
committee had come to the city of NIcaa’^ York. A large portion of Avhat 
1 noAv state came to our knoAvledge and was stated in the memorial that 
Ave made to Congress. 

0052. Q. State if DaA^enport Avas present at any of the interAuews. 

A. He Avas present at several of them. 

0053. Q. AYliom did this man have wdth him ? 

A. A man Ave called Weiss. Weiss was generally after the first few 
interviews left outside. He was indisposed to haA^e more witnesses 
present than Avere necessary. 

0054. Q. Hid he furnish any AAitnesses to you ? 

A. He neA'er did bring any of these Avitnesses. 

0055. Q. Did he furnish any names ? 

A. He furnished none of the names to me. Yes, he did,, too; he gave 
the names of four he was to bring doAvn, I think. I think he ga\^e some 
other names. I knoAA^ he did give the names of those aaTio aa ere to be 
the four. 

0050. Q. At what time did you cease to have further intervieAVS Avith 
him ? 

A. It Avas the time latterly Avhen he talked about being paid. He 
wanted us to pay him so much. He did not state the amount. I told 
him I AYOuld pay him for such time as he expended and nothing more; 
a fair and reasonable rate for his time I Avould pay him, but as to pay¬ 
ing him in any other AA^ay I would not do it. He told me he had spent 
a great deal of time, I think nearly tAvo Aveeks, in hunting up and get¬ 
ting these names and where the men liA^ed, and stated that he Avas out 
of pocket, and that it had cost him, I think, for board, OA^er $10. I told 
him he ought to be reimbursed for that. 

0657. Q. State if you made any otfers to him of the payment of 
money.to catch Sheriff O’Brien. 

A. Yo, sir; he told me he had paid $10 for some board bill, and I 
told him that ought to be paid, and instructed that it should be paid ; I do 
not knoAV Avhether it Avas. He afterAvards Avanted some more, and I told 
him if he got $20 and the $10 he had expended I thought it would be 
enough, for it would be a dollar a day, and I did not suppose he had 
spent OA^er an hour. 

0058. Q. State if any suggestion was ever made to him to secure wit¬ 
nesses to testify falsely. 

A. On the contrary, he was told not to bring Avitnesses Avho did not 
knoAV the facts, and I explained to him as AA-ell as I could, in detail, that 
Ave were after the truth, and that in all probability we should be al3le to 
detect any man who SAVore falsely. I explained to him that my experi¬ 
ence had been that, as a rule, an experienced hiAvyer Avould kiiow Avhen a 
man lied, and that if he brought men there who should lie to us, 
Ave Avould find it out immediately. I did not believe it Avas possible for 
a man to go through a rigid examination and lie, Avithout being found 
out, but if he brought the men doAvn he could decide Avhether their 
statements were true or n,ot. He told me it AA^as true; he himself Avas 
a ])arty; he bad repeated, and had received his instructions from Sheriff* 
O’Brien, and all of these others had repeated; that it was true and that 
it could not be broken down. He also stated that he did not think that 


600 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


lie had better be a witness, because, said lie, I can be iinpeaclied.’^ I 
asked liiiii in what way. He would not answer directly, but be sug¬ 
gested that lie bad been convicted of some crime that would disquality 
bim under our statute. Sometbing was said that implied tliat be bad 
been a iiickpocket; I do not know Avbat was tbe exact expression used. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6659. Q. How long bad you been in conference with bim ? 

A. I suppose I saw bim six or eight times. 

6660. Q. Kunniug tbrougb bow long a time f 

A. 1 judge it was about tbe middle of November when I first saw bim, 
and I do not tbink I have seen bim to speak to bim since tbe congres¬ 
sional committee lias been in tbe city j if so, it must bave been tbe first 
day; I tbink not, tliougb. 

6661. Q. At wbat time in your conferences did be make an intimation 
to you from wbicb you inferred that be bad been a pickpocket I 

A. I tbink it Avas early in tbem, because I Avanted bim to become a 
witness rigbt off; to baA^e bis name down as a witness, and to call bim 
before tbe congressional committee. 

6662. Q. About bow long from tbe time you bad your first conference 
witli bim did you retain bim in your employ 

A. We never bad bim in our employ. 

6663. Q. Hoav long did you bold conferences witli bim about getting 
ui> witnesses f 

A. I supiiose for about a montli, perhaps more. 

6664. Q. These casual conferences about getting up testimony ? 

A. Yes, sir; be came to my bouse one night; be did not stay o\"er a 
minute, for I told bim I would not talk about business there; it Avas tbe 
only time I bad to rest. 

6665. Q. How many times did be Ausit the Union League ? 

A. They were all there except tbe one I baA^e mentioned; at tbe room 
of the sub committee on Broadway, tbe corner of Warren street. 

By tbe Chairi^iAN : 

6666. Q. With Avbicb political party did tbe repeaters generally A"ote ? 

A. He said that they all Amted tbe democratic ticket “ straight,” as be 

called it. That is a common expression in Noav York. 

6667. Q. Wbat signification 1ms tbe term squeal” here in NeAv York ? 

A. That is a common slang expression for a person turning State’s 

evidence Avben cornered. It is another Avord for confessing to a crime. 

6668. Q. Will you state Avbat officers, under tbe laws of Noav York, 
canAmss or count tbe votes or ballots cast at an election, and what facili¬ 
ties they bave for changing tbe votes ? 

A. Tbe board of canvassers is composed of two persons in each election 
district in tbe city, appointed by the police commissioners. They bave 
to assist tbem tAvo clerks. Tbe clerks count tbe tally of those who bave 
voted during tbe day, and tbe two canvassers count tbe ballots tbem- 
selves. Nobody is alloAved to interfere, and they can even make it so 
that nobody can oversee tbem excei)t at a distance. If they choose they 
can reverse tbe idles of tickets, and Avbat is apparently a republican pile 
can be given to tbe democrat, and tbe democratic pile can be giA^en to 
tbe republican, and if tbe two agree nobody could detect the fraud 
except by calling tbe Alters and asking for Avbom they A^oted, Avbicb lias 
been done in some contested elections. This has been tbe ordinary Avay 
of committing frauds in elections. 

6669. Q. Wbat are tbe duties of tbe two clerks ? 

A. To keep tbe tally as it is called by tbe canvassers, and foot up tbe 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


601 


number of tlie votes cast; acting as clerks for both boards, the inspectors 
and the canvassers, and upon tlie announcement by the canvassers, to 
write down the total number of votes for each candidate. That is the 
ordinary practice, although the law does not require them to do it. 

G()70. Q. Does the law require the inspector to be i^resent ? 

A. No, sir; the law requires the room to be cleared, and under that 
the construction is to clear the room. It is generally a small narrow 
room. 

(>G71. Q. What disposition is made of the ballots after they are counted ! 

A. Very generally they are burned. 

6072. Q. Is there any law requiring them to be preserved ! 

A. The construction of the law generally is that they are required to 
be burned. I do not think that is a fair construction, but it is the 
habitual construction. 

6073. Q. You have spoken of the republican pile of ballots becoming 
the democratic pile. Are the ballots kept in a pile in the ordinary way! 

A. The ordinary way is to keep them in a large pile, except what are 
called ^‘scratches,’’ where a name is altered, in which case they are i)ut 
upon a tile ; they are put upon spikes in tlie ordinary way. They are 
put in a large pile, except thovse which are scratches. The spike is a long 
sharp wire, placed upon a piece of wood at the bottom, and standing up, 
and upon these the scratches are placed; but the great mass of the bal¬ 
lots are in two jiiles. Ordinarily, each canvasser makes up his tally, and 
passes them to tlie other, and he counts the tally, and if it is right they 
are put in a i^ile, and linally these tallies are counted, and that is the 
Avay the number of the ballots is usually decided. 

6674. Q. The canvassers are appointed by the board of police commis¬ 
sioners ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6675. Q. What is the iiolitical complexion of the board of xiolice com¬ 
missioners ! 

A. A tie; two of each jiarty. 

6676. Q. What is the result of that as to the politics of the canvassers 
appointed by them ! 

A. The practical result has been that in four-fifths of the districts one 
is republican and one is democratic, and in the other fifth of the districts 
there are two democrats. 

6677. Q. In those districts where both canvassers are democrats what 
check is there upon fraud by them in counting republican votes for 
democratic candidates! 

A. I know of no check. They attempt to have a check by instructing 
a policeman to be near enough to overlook, but he makes no pretence to 
count at all; only looks over to see that there is no x>uttiug in votes 
other than are taken out of the boxes. 

(>678. Q. In those cases where there is one democratic canvasser and 
one republican, if there should be corruption or bribery of either of the 
canvassers, what check is there to prevent the fraudulent count of the 
votes ! 

A. There is nothing to prevent a fraudulent count. There is a way 
of finding it out afterwards, if we will take the trouble to ask each voter 
how lie voted, as was done last year in one of our districts. 

6679. Q. Have you any knowledge of the comx)etency of the can¬ 
vassers ! 

A. I know there have been appointed canvassers that were incomxie- 
tent to x)erform the duties iiroperly. 

6680. (.^. State if there is any provincialism or expression to indicate 
the x>ractice of a fraudulent canvass or count of the votes in this city. 


602 


ELECTIO^N" FRAUDS IX NEW YORK. 


A. There is an expression, l^nt I do not recollect it at this nioinent. 
They often speak of a man being- counted in or counted out. That would 
mean fraudulently counted in or out. There is another expression that 
is also used. 

By Mr. Boss: 

(>G81. Q. Yon say there was one place where tliere were two dem¬ 
ocrats ? 

A. I say there have been places where there have been more than one 
democrat. 

GG82. Q. More than one democratic canvasser f 

A. I spoke of that. In those places a republican and democrat have 
been appointed and both turned out democrats. 

GG83. Q. Do you say that there is no check upon the canvassers? 

A. I say there is no great check; because if they Avere honest men it 
AA'ould not affect the count at all, and if they are dishonest men I do 
not know how they can be prevented from giving a false count if they 
choose. 

GG84. Q. The clerks would have to be implicated in it ? 

A. Yot necessarily, The clerks are sitting at one end of the table 
and are at work making their computations, and that takes up all their 
time. They could cheat in one way as well as the other. They might 
reverse the tickets and giA-^e the democrats the republican ticket or the 
republicans the democratic ticket; or they can take a handful of ballots 
from one bundle and put them upon the other, or count them from one 
bundle into the other. 

GG85. Q. It AAmuld not hurt the republican i^arty much to giA^e them a 
democratic Amte? 

A. Sometimes it might. I think to gh^e the republicans the demo¬ 
cratic vote in my district Avould be A’ery apt to elect the republican, and 
that it would not injure us if they gave ours to them. 

NTew York, January 11, 18G0. 

John I, Davenport SAvorn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

GG8G. Question. State Avhat you know about these transactions of 
Pierce. 

Answer. It was along about the 10th or 12th of YoA^ember 1 first saAV 
Mr. Pierce, at 258 Broadway; he Avas brought there by a young man by 
the name of Weiss, aaJio Avas endeavoring at that time to get the nom¬ 
ination for assistant alderman in the 15th ward, I think. Two or three 
days after I first saw Mr. Weiss he apt)eared in company Avith a man 
AAiio gave his name as William Pierce—the man who has been here 
to-day. Mr. Pierce, at and after that time, had se\xral intervieAvs A\'ith 
Mr. Glassey and General Poster—sometimes one and sometimes the other, 
and occasionally Avith both of them. - At more or less of those inter\TeAvs 
IAAMS present. I also held interviews Avith Mr. Pierce AAdien neither of 
the other gentlemen AA^ere present; he oftentimes came there when they 
AAwe not in, and I, being there all the time, took him into our priAmte 
office; on those occasions he generally remained, howeA-er, until they 
came. On the 28th of YoA^ember, I see by a memorandum in my book, 
he gave the names of four men and their residences, stating that these 
men were four out of some 200 or 300 that he could produce; subse¬ 
quently he said that he thought he could bring doAvn 1,100. I remember 
his telling me on one occasion that the greater part of them were present 


ELECTIOX FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


603 


at the Jackson Clnh, the headquarters of Sheriff O’Brien, and were 
engaged in repeating; that lie himself was engaged in the business 
and knew the men; that he lived in two or three places—one of his 
residences was up in the Third avenue, another one in Greene street— 
and that these four men were willing to be examined and testify as to 
what they knew; that he had seen them and they had agreed that they 
would give their statements ; hut they desired to he arrested, in order 
to affVml them some excuse for testifying relative to Sheriff* O’Brien and 
the repeaters in the uii-town wards. If they were arrested he desired 
that one should he examined first; this one, he said, would make a full 
and free statement; the next day he wanted the second examined, who, 
he said, would tell something, hut not as much as the first; the third 
would hold out a day or two, hut finally would state his knowledge of 
frauds; and then the fourth man would tell because the other three had, 
unless the democrats came to his assistance; this man would, however, 
before exposing an^dhing, write to them for assistance, and if they 
refused to get him out he would tell all that he knew. The names he 
prve were James or John Story, registered from 309 Thirty-second street, 
in the Gth district of the 21st ward; James Farrell, from 32G East Thirty- 
third street, the same district and ward; Thomas Bradhurn, 498 Third 
avenue, 14th district, 21st ward, (the right name, he said, was Dickas;) 
Lewis Bullman, 484 Third avenue, (his rightname was William Mulligan,) 
14th district, 21st ward. These names I took down in shorthand, and 
are now given from those notes. Pierce examined the registers or 
copies of them in the office at the time with myself. AYe looked over 
tlie hooks together, and found three, if not four, of those names there 
as registered and voted. 

GG87. Q. Did he give the names before you examined the registry 
and i)oll-list! 

A. He gave the names before we examined the registry and poll-list. 

GG88. Q. And you found them on the registry and poll-list as he had 
stated ? 

A. Yes, sir; he further stated that these men had no moiijey, and that 
he had loaned them some, and had spent his time in finding them and 
getting them to be willing to testify, because they were afraid to do so, 
and he Avanted to be i)aid for it. lie had made this request on several 
oc(;asions, but never received anything, to my knowledge. Subsequently, 
or about that time, I paid Mr. Glassey $5, which, he informed me, he 
had paid Pierce. I had the charge of all the expenditures of the Union 
League Club committee in that office. That night Pierce Avanted $50. 
We told him he could not haA^e it; that we Avould gh^e him $20 for his 
time and trouble, and that Avas all aa^c should give. He said he woidd 
be damned if he would take $20, and stopped for some time in my office, 
during Avhich time I paid no kind of attention to him; finally he said 
that if I Avould giA^e him $30 he would go aAvay and not bother me any 
more, and I gave him that amount, and that, Avith the $5 before men¬ 
tioned, is all the money AAdnch he eA^er receiA^ed from the club committee. 
From the time he got that $30 he iieA^er Avas at the office but once, and 
then came in company Avith Mr. AAYiss, a long time afterward, having 
broken his appointment to bring the four men there in order that they 
might be examined. We ne\"er kiieAv him until he appeared Avith Mr. 
AYeiss. He was the x y z of an unknoAAui quantity until he came and 
stated that he had this information, and if it Avas of any value to us he 
could i)roduce it. 

GG89. Q. State if any suggestion Avas made to him to procure false 
testimony. 

A. Never, in any wajy manner, or shape. 


604 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Boss: 

CG90. Q. What office did you hold in the League? 

A. I was secretary of the sub committee of counsel and attorney 
of that committee in the matter of investigating the election frauds. 

G691. Q. What time did you receive that appointment? 

A. About the 5th or Gth day of November. 

GG92. Q. Have you been in the employment of the Union League 
ever since? 

A. I suppose so, to a certain extent. My signs were taken down, 
and I no longer acted as secretary, some three or four weeks ago. 

GG93. Q. You are still in the employ of the League, are you ? 

A. I have never had any settlement with them as yet. 

GG94. Q. You understand that you are still in their employ? 

A. I understand that I am, for certain purposes. 

GG95. Q. For what purposes ? 

A. For the purpose of managing the matter of getting the registry 
and poll-books compared in reference to certain houses and certain 
men, and other matters of that kind. 

GG96. Q. You are also employed as clerk of this congressional com¬ 
mittee, are you not ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

New York, January 11, 18G9. 

William H. Cook sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

GG97. I reside in the Gth ward. 

GG98. Q. What do you know of persons voting more than once in 
that ward in the last presidential election? 

A. I know nothing, sir. 

GG99. Q. In Avhat business are you engaged? 

A. I am sui)erintendent of wharves, piers, and slips in the citv of 
New York. 

G700. Q. From Avlioni is your appointment derived? 

A. From the street commissioner. 

G701. Q. Can you furnish any means to enable us to ascertain whether 
repeating was done in that ward ? 

A. No, sir. 

G702. Q. You have no information that would enable us to ascertain? 

A. No, sir. 

G703. Q. Do you know Lawrence Farrell, alias William Pierce ? 

A. No, sir; I do not know the person. I know a witness by the 
name of Lawrence Farrell, alias something, who testified here to-day. 
I know him as a witness ; that is all I know about him. I acted in tlie 
capacity of a sort of adjunct to our democratic friends on the commit¬ 
tee here, and therefore I have seen him, and that is the only means I 
have of knowing. 

By Mr. Boss: 

G704. Q. If you know of any republican frauds we would like to hear 
of them. 

A. No, sir. I only know one circumstance; it is not precisely fraud, 
but it looks very much like it. 

[Circumstance stated and excluded as irrelevant.] 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


605 


New York, January 11,18G9. 

Francis Murray sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

G705. I reside in the 8tli ward, 102 Greene street. 

()70(). Q. State if you voted at the last iiresidential election in this 
city? 

A. I believe I did. 

G707. Q. How often? 

A. I voted three times, I believe. I was pretty full. 

G708. Q. What wards? 

A. The 7th and 8th. 

G700. Q. In different districts? 

A. I could not tell you as to tliat. I was pretty full of whiskey, to tell 
tlie truth about it. 

G710. Q. AVhere did you procure the names and numbers to vote uiion ? 

A. They came to my house, a party of them. 

G711. Q. Who came to your house ? 

A. I could not give their names. There were about fifteen of them, I 
should think. They wanted me to go out with them. I was pretty full, 
and went along Avith them, and I could not tell you where it Avas— 
betAA ixt Avhat streets I a oted—to saA^e my neck from the gallows j and I 
don’t AAmnt to tell any lies about it. 

G712. Q. Did this party Amte on their oAvn names or false names? 

A. That is something I could not tell you. 

G713. Q. Did you A^ote under different names? 

A. No, sir ; I did not as I recollect. 

G7li. Q. What name did you vote on ? 

A. The name 1 gave here. 

G715. Q. All the times? 

A. Yes, sir; I think I did, if I am not mistaken; I am not positive, 
liOAveA^er. 

G71G. Q. State A\hat you saw, if anything, about slijis of paper with 
names and ifumbers on them. 

A. There was a slip of paper handed me; I could not tell the name or 
the number; I aa as under the influence of liquor. 

G717. Q. Where did you get it? 

A. At the corner house Avhere I live, 102 Greene street, right on the 
corner. 

G718. Q. State if any of these other persons had slips of paper with 
names and numbers. 

A. I could not say Adiether they had or not. 

G710. Q. With Avhich political party did you act ? 

A. The democratic part^y^ 

G720. Q. What ticket did you A'ote? 

A. I voted the democratic ticket. 

G721. Q. What ticket did those other men that Avere engaged Avith you 
Amte ? 

A. I could not tell you; I did not look. 

G722. Q. One of the votes you gave I suppose Avas a legal A^ote ? 

A. Yes, sir ; I aauis entitled to one Amte. 

G723. Q. What compensation were you to have for this sendee? 

A. I Avas to have some money—five dollars. 

G721. Q. Who proposed to pay that? ' 

A. I could not tell you; it Avas betwixt the party; they AATre to make 
it up betwixt them.' They got me pretty well liquored up. That is 


606 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


sometliiiig I am not in the liabit of doin<^; Iain a poor boy and have 
got a mother and two sisters to support, and work pretty hard to sup¬ 
port them. 

By Mr. Ross: 

G725. Q. You were pretty drunk, were you? 

A. Yes, sir; I was pretty full, to tell the truth and no lie. I don’t 
want to tell no lie whatever. 

6720. Q. What time in the day did you get drunk ? 

A. I got drunk early in the morning. I was druidv all day. 

0727. Q. Were you so drunk that you had no distinct knowledge of 
what you were doing ? 

A. Yes, sir; I do not recollect the party; I don’t recollect the names ; 
I could uot tell you to save my life. 

0728. Q. Can you recollect whether you voted more than once ? 

A. I recollect voting once, my own legal vote. 

0721). Q. Is that all tlie time you have any recollection of voting? 

A. I am pretty certain I voted three times. 

0730. Q. Still you were not sober enough to know certainly whether 
you did or not? 

A. Yo, sir ; I would not swear to a thing I am not positive of. 

0731. Q. Did somebody tell you you voted more than once? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0732. Q. That is what made you think so ? 

A. Yes, sir; I know I was at the polls a second time, and the man 
gave me a ticket and I walked up the polls and put it in; I think I did 
anyhow, that is the second time. 

0733. Q. Were both times at the same place ? 

A. Yes, sir; in the 8th ward. I put two votes in the 8th ward and 
one in the 7th. 

0734. Q. Was it at the same polling place? 

A. Yes, sir; I think it was. I am not positive, but I think it was. 

0735. Q. You have no distinct recollection of what transpired that 
day, have you ? 

A. Yes, sir; but not a great deal, to tell you the truth. 

0730. Q. You were pretty boozy ? 

A. I had been drinking considerable. 

0737. Q. You did not intend to do anything wrong ? 

A. Yo, sir; I did not. 

0738. Q. You don’t know whether you did vote more than once or not ? 

A. I think I voted the second time; I think I can recollect that; but 
after that I could not recollect more. 

0739. Q. After the second time you were sodrun'kyou cannot recollect 
anything about it? 

A. Yo, sir; I was pretty drunk. 

0740. Q. You have no knowledge what ticket you voted ? 

A. I voted the democratic ticket. I would not vote the republican 
ticket, I never did and never would. I am a democrat to the back-bone. 

0741. Q. Who paid you the $5 ? 

A. That I could not tell. 

0742. Q. Did you get the $5? 

A. I did, sir; it was made up betwixt the party, and a fellow came and 
slipped it in my hand. 

0743. Q. You took the $5 ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0744. Q. Was it on Saturday you went over to Jersey City ? 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


607 


A. I went over to-day. 

0745. Q. Have you not been over tliere before in relation to giving 
your testimony ? 

A. No, sir *, not before. 

0740. Q. Did you get $5 before you started, or after you came back ? 
A. No, not 111)011 tliis; I didn’t get anything, not a cent. 

0747. Q. Who got you to go over there ? * 

A. I went over there of my own good free will; I heard about it; there 
was no man asked me whatever; I heard them talking of it where I 
lived; they were talking about what was going on; that they were 
looking to get tlie men that voted twice or three times to go over and 
testify about it; and I thought I would take pains to go over on my own 
responsibility, and nobody hired me ; I would not be hired for any such 
thing as that. 

0748. Q. How many went over there with you ? 

A. I went over alone. 

0749. Q. How many were in the room Avliere you made your statements 
over there ? 

A. Three, I think; two or three; I am not certain. 

0750. Q. About what time was it ? 

A. Betwixt 10 or 11, or 11 and 12; I am not sure. 

0751. Q. What promises did they make over there? 

A. They made no promises whatever. 

0752. Q. What did they say to you ? 

A. Nothing; only they asked my name and residence, and how many 
times I voted, and "l told them to the best of my knowledge. 

0753. Q. Did they promise you any protection against prosecution ? 
A. No, sir. 

0754. Q. Didn’t they tell you that you should not be prosecuted if you 
would testify ? 

A. No, sir; not a word about it ? 

0755. Q. Did you see any jnoney paid over tliere to anybody ? 

A. No, sir, I did not; not a cent. 

0750. Q. How long have you been here at the building ? 

A. I have been here ever since about 1 o’clock, I think. 

0757. Q. In Marshal Murray’s room ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0758. Q. How many of you were in there ? 

A. I could not tell "you how many there was; it was full most of the 
time, but I could not say whether they were witnesses or what they were. 
0759. Q. Did you talk with Marshal Murray about it ? 

A. No, sir. 

0700. Q. What did Colonel Wood say to you? 

A. He didn’t say anything to me; I did not speak to Colonel Wood. 
0701. Q. Where did you see him ? 

A. I saw him below here, but I did not speak to him or he to me. 
0702. Q. You saw him to-day? 

A. Yes, sir. 

0703. Q. Was he over at Jersey City when you were there ? 

A. I could not say whether he was over there or not; I don’t think he 
was ; I don’t recollect seeing him there. 

0704. Q. Who administered the oath to you over there? 

A. I suppose it was bis clerk. 

0705. Q. Colonel Wood’s clerk ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


608 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Going on tlie last tliree or four years j pretty nmcli all the time in 
the same place. 

G7G7. Q. How long have yon lived at 102 Greene street? 

A. A year and a half or two years. 

G7G8. Q. What business are you in ? 

A. I work on the docks ; anything that I can get hold of. 

G7G9. Q. Are you married? 

A. ]Ko, sir, I am not; I am a single man and have a mother to sup¬ 
port ; I live with Johnny or Jimmy Shay j mother lives there Avith me 
and two sisters. 

G770. Q. Hoav long has Jimmy Shay been living there? 

A. That is something I could not tell you. 

G771. Q. Does he keep the boarding-house? 

A. Yes, sir. 

G772. Q. Did you know it was AATong to vote more than once? 

A. Well, I don't know that I could saj^ I knew it Avas Avrong, because 
I cannot read or write; I ahvays had to work hard for what I got. 

G773. Q. Were you AAulling to commit a criminal offence for the sake 
of getting $5 ? 

A. No, sir: I would never have done it if I had not done it under the 
inliuence of liquor. 

G774. Q. Ha\"e you drank any liquor to day ? 

A. I have not drank any liquor to-day. 

G775. Q. Not a drop? 

A. None, Avhatever. 

G776. Q. How long liaA^e you been known by the name of Francis 
Murray ? 

A. I have been known by that name a good while ; it has ahvays been 
my name. 

G777. Q. Were you CA^er called by any other? 

A. No, sir. 

G778. Q. What was that charge they had ^gainst you before the court 
here ? 

A. No charge against me AvhateA^er. 

G779. Q. Were not you oaw on the island a while? 

A. No, sir; not over on any island whatever. I was newer con auc ted, 
ncAww arrested, newer had a Avarrant seiwed on me in my life. I don’t 
Av ant to get into any scrape whatever; but I came to tell the truth, the 
Avhole truth, and nothing but the truth. I ncA^er had a warrant served 
on me yet. 

G780. Q. Whom do you work for? 

A. I work for anybody I haA^e to Avork for. 

G781. Q. HaA^e 3 011 an^' regular employment from auj^bodj^? 

A. No, sir. 

G782. Q. How long have you been out of employment, if at all ? 

A. I could get Avork to-day, but I left it to come" up here ; on the pier, 
47 East riA^er. 

G783. Q. What Avere 3^011 to have for 3 mur day’s work ? 

A. I was to have $2; that is, if I aa as to work on the dock. 

G784. Q. What Avere you to have for coming here ? 

A. Nothing said about it. 

G785. Q. Nothing said about $5, or about pa 3 ^? 

A. Nothing AvliateAwr to me. 

By the Chairman : 

G78G. Q. Do you understand that an oath was administered to you 
over in Jersey City, or did you make a statement of Avhat you kncAV ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


609 


A. I made a statement of wliat I knew. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6787. Q. Did you swear to that! 

A. No, sir; I was not sworn at all 5 I just made a single statement, 
and that was all. 

New York, January 11, 1869. 

John McCabe sworn and examined. 

To tlie Chairman: 

6788. I live at 26 Monroe street. I voted at tlielast presidential elec¬ 
tion in this city, three times at Madison street and in the Bowery; three 
times between Jackson and Monroe; and two or three times, I could 
not say which, in Bayard street and Hester, near the Bowery. I voted 
under my own name, not every time—sometimes under other names. 

6789. Q. How were you furnished with names to vote upon "? 

A. They were given to me on a slip of paper. There was a party 
promised to meet me on the day of election. 

6790. Q. Where were you the night before election ? 

A. I was in the house. I came from working and went round with a 
few friends until 10 or 11 o’clock, and then went home. 

6791. Q. State what you know about other persons voting more than 
once on the day of election. 

A. These parties—I could not tell you the names, but I met them on 
the corner of Boosevelt and the new Bowery, four or five of them—they 
gave me tickets and told me to go and vote, and they would give me $10 
if I would vote those tickets ; and they fetched me round and gave me 
drink, and I got so drunk I didn’t know what I was doing after a while. 

6792. Q. How often did they vote? 

A. I could not say; they voted two or three times in each place. 

6793. Q. Each one of the men? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6794. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. The democratic ticket; it was supposed to be democratic; I did 
not look at it. 

6795. Q. Where were slips of paper furnished to you ? 

A. At the polls, the corner of Eoosevelt and the new Bowery, in the 
4th ward. 

6796. Q. Do you know who gave you the slips ? 

A. I do not. 

6797. Q. Do you remember any of the names you voted upon except 
your own ? 

A. No, sir, I do not. 

By Mr. Koss: 

6798. Q. You say you were pretty drunk that day ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6799. Q. What time in the day did you get drunk ? 

A. About 8 o’clock in the morning. 

6800. Q. How drunk were you ? 

A. I was so drunk that I had to be carried home; I did not know 
where I was when I was in the house. 

6801. Q. What time in the day did they help take you home ? 

A. I could not tell, and I could not tell who fetched me home, or 
nothing about it. 

39 T 


610 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


6802. Q. Were you right druuk all day! 

A. Yes, sir, I was drunk all day. 

6803. Q. Tlieu you caiiuot recollect much of what did transpire ! 

A. No, sir, I cannot. 

6804. Q. You do not know with any accuracy how often you did vote ! 

A. No, sir 5 1 may have voted 30 or 40 times for aught I know j I was 

too beastly drunk. 

6805 Q. You know whether you voted more than once! 

A. Yes, sir j I voted as many times as I have stated; I am certain 
about that. 

■ 6806. Q. Do you know any of the parties that were with you ! 

A. No, sir, I don’t; I know them by sight, but nothing more than that. 

6807. Q. How do you know what ticket you voted ! 

A. They gave me the tickets in my hand and told me they would give 
me $10 to vote for this party; they did not tell me what it was. It was 
supposed to be the democratic ticket j they gave it to me as the demo¬ 
cratic ticket. 

6808. Q. Don’t you know that the republicans were getting demo¬ 
crats drunk that day and getting them to vote their ticket! 

A. No, sir; I don’t know anything about that. 

6809. Q. You are a democrat, I sui)pose ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6810. Q. You would not vote the republican ticket if you were sober, 
I suppose! 

A. I don’t believe I would. 

6811. Q. You would be just as likely to vote the republican ticket 
when you were drunk ! 

A. Yes, if I was beastly drunk. 

6812. Q. As drunk as you were that day! 

A. Yes, sir; just as likely to vote the republican ticket as any, but I 
don’t believe the parties were voting the republican ticket themselves. 

6813. Q. When were you to have the $5 for voting that day ! 

A. It Avas $10. 

6814. Q. Were you to have the $5 forgoing oAwto Jersey City before 
you A\ ent over, or after you came back ! 

A. I don’t know nothing about that; I heard men talking about it, 
but I did not hear when I Avas to get it. 

6815. Q. Whom did you talk with OA^er there ! 

A. I talked with the clerk over there. 

6816. Q. Did not somebody tell you that they were paying something 
to get men to swear to frauds! 

A. No, sir. 

6817. Q. What did you hear when you went oaw ! 

A. I was going past and I heard men talking of some people that were 
OA^er there and got some money, and I thought I would go over myself 
and see A\4iat it was about. 

6818. Q. It Avas trying to make testimony to prove frauds, Avas it! 

A. Yes, sir. 

6819. Q. How many went over there with you ! 

A. No one went over but myself. 

6820. Q. How many Avere in the room when you were examined ! 

A. There were two or three. 

6821. Q. What room were you in at Jersey City ! 

A. I could not say. 

6822. Q. When did you go over to Jersey City! 

A. I Avent over there Saturday morning; I staid there for about tAvo 
hours. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


611 


C823. Q. They did not pay you the five dollars^ 

A. l!^o, sir. 

6824. Q. Did you go over again to-day? 

A. No, sir; not to day. 

6825. Q. Where have you been to-day? 

A. I have been at home pretty much all day; I was up at a wedding 
nearly all night last night, and 1 did not feel well. 

6826. Q. Who was it that swore you over in Jersey City? 

A. A young man ; I did not know w^ho he was. 

6827. Q. Did you see anything of Colonel Wood ? 

A. No, sir. 

6828. Q. You know him, don’t you ? 

A. No, sir; I don’t. 

6829. Q. Where have you been since you have been here in this build¬ 
ing? 

A. I have been outside. 

6830. Q. In the first room at the left, in Marshal Murray’s office? 

A. I suppose so: it was the first room at the left- 

6831. Q. How many were in there wdth you ? 

A. Two more. 

6832. Q. When are you to be paid for coming here ? 

A. I heard I was to be paid to-day—over in Jersey City.. 

6833. Q. Do you know who is to pay you ? 

A. No, sir; I don’t. 

6834. Q. Are you swearing false now? 

A. No, sir; I am not. 

6835. Q. How long has your name been McCabe ? 

A. It has been that ever since I have been born. 

6836. Q. How old are you ? 

A. Twenty-two years of age- 

6837. Q. Where were you born ? 

A. New Haven, Connecticut. 

6838. Q. How long have you lived here ? 

A. Ever since I have been two years of age- 

6839. Q. How long have you lived at 26 Monroe street ?^ 

A. Two or three or four years, 1 could not say. 

6840. Q. Whom did you live with ? 

A. I lived there witli my father; my father is a laborer- 

6841. Q. You are a single man, are you? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6842. Q. What have you been engaged in lately? 

A. A printer. 

6843. Q. Where have you been working ? 

A. At Nesbit’s printing office, the corner of Pine and Pearl streets. 

6844. Q. Are you working there now ? 

A. No, sir; I have not been working there these last couple of days. 

6845. Q. You have been absent from your work for two days? 

A. Yes, sir. 

New York, Jamiary 12, 1869. 

John Gunn sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6846. I am bookkeeper for Mr. George Wilkes, editor of the Spirit of the 
Times. He is in very poor health, and went to Paris for the improve¬ 
ment of his health. He sailed from here on the 28th of November last, 
direct for Paris, and was there on the 18th of December—the last time 
I heard from him. 


612 ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

New York, January 12, 18G9. 

Joseph Gillard sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

G847. I do not know where William Dorans, a witness summoned to 
appear before the committee, is now. I saw him here in the hall last 
Saturday j he was standing near a man named George something. 
Dorans called to me, and 1 was going over to him when a deputy sherift 
named Moore put his hand on my shoulder and shoved me back, saying 
that I could have no talk with that man. He said he was under 
arrest. I went to the United States marshal’s office and told my chief. 
Colonel Wood, and Marshal Murray, that Dorans Avas arrested. • I saw 
Deputy Sheriff Moore take him out of the hall and through the New 
City Hall; I liaA^e not seen Dorans since. 1 do not know where he is to 
be found. I Avent to his house yesterday to notify him to come here, but 
his wife told me he Avas not there; I made no further search than that. 

New York, January 12, 18G9. 

Jaimes Dennis sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

G848. I Avas register and inspector at the last presidential election in 
the 7th district of the 21st Avard. I knoAv of two cases of fraudulent 
naturalization x)apers in that district. In one case the man (I do not 
know his name) SAvore that he had been in the country only two years, 
had ncA’er appeared in any court, had ncA^er taken out any papers, and 
that he had got his naturalization xiaper at the corner of Second avenue 
and Thirty-second street. The other swore that he got his xmxier at the 
corner of Twenty-fourth street and Third avenue, and had never been 
to any court, nor made ax^xhication for citizenshixi. 

By my challenging all of them who came uxi, most of them backed out. 
I believe that many of them swore falsely to their haAuug taken out their 
first xiaxiers and to their residence. I Avas A^ery active in keex)ing out 
illegal registering, even at the xieril of my life. I had to keex> a revolver 
loose in my xiocket all the tiuie, and they knew it. I ax^x^rehended peril 
from the gangs of cut-throats, Amgabonds, and robbers, Avho Avere going 
around registering; but I was regardless of their threats. The x)olice 
caxitain had to send policemen home AAuth me from the registering xilace 
eA^ery night. I am a rexmblicau ; those aaJio threatened me acted with 
the democratic xiaHy* On election morning, Avhen on my way to the 
X)olling x)lace, I Avas arrested by tAvo men claiming to be dei)uty sheriffs. 
They showed me a xi^iper xmiporting to be a Avarrant for my arrest, 
signed by Judge Alansfield, for assault and battery committed on a man 
the Saturday preAuous. I was taken doAvn to Ludlow street jail and 
locked up until 44 o’clock. In the mean time a large number of my 
friends started in pursuit of me AYitli bail, and I sent a report of my 
arrest to headquarters, to the Fifth AA^enue Hotel, and to the State com¬ 
mittee. About II o’clock I was taken before Judge Mansfield, and 
admitted to bail; I liaA^e never ,been pi’osecuted for the assault; I 
demanded of the judge to pi’oduce the person Avho filed the affidavit 
against me; but he could not do so. I am satisfied, in my oAAm mind, 
that no person made any such affidaAut. The person who piH'ported to 
have made it gaA^e his address at the number of a street in which there 
Avas no such number. I had not committed any assault, and no CAudence 
was produced against me. Judge Mansfield denied knowing anything 
at all about the warrant, although it x>iH‘ported to have been issued by 
him the Monday xirevious. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


613 


To Mr. Eoss: 

0849. My republican colleague was Jacob W. Cooper, and my demo¬ 
cratic colleagues were a Mr. Yard and a Captain Mullaly. I believe I kept 
away from the registry over 200 illegal votes. They would come in gangs 
of 10 or 15, and when I would commence challenging the others would 
back out. There were 404 votes registered in that district and 362 votes 
l)olled. When I got to the polls on election day the illegal votes which 
I had marked for challenge had all been put in. My republican associate 
did not have the backbone to challenge them. 

To the Chairman : 

0850. The warrant which I read charged me, along with Charles H. 
Eogers, with beating and assaulting this man on the 31st of October. 
I had not seen Mr. Eogers for over a week. He was arrested the night 
before, and was also locked up. He was also a register in another dis¬ 
trict. He was a republican. I cannot call to mind any person who has 
been punished in this city for illegal voting. 

New York, January 12, 1809. 

Abrahaih Yoorhees recalled. 

To the Chairman : 

6851. I have examined applications for naturalization in the superior 
coui't of this city from September 30, 1808, to October 10, with the 
exception of the 9th. I present to the committee a tabular statement, 
giving the number of times each day when the same witnesses appeared 
for a number of applications for naturalization. I also present to the 
committee a statement showing the total number naturalized in the 
superior court on September 30, October 1, and October 2, showing an 
aggregate of 1,224, of which there were 1,000 naturalized as minors. It 
is very difficult to examine these naturalization papers in the superior 
court for want of office accommodation, though the officers of the court 
furnished us all the facilities they could. This last paper also shows the 
whole number naturalized in that court from October 8 to October 10, 
both days inclusive, (except on the 9th, the papers for which day 1 have 
not yet examined.) 

The papers are as follows: 



00 

CO 

00 


00 

oc 


00 

00 

00 

00 


rH 


00 

00 

00 

00 

00 

00 

GO 

s 

Names of witnesses. 

o" 

CO 


ci" 

CO 

lO 

ccT 


oo" 

oT 

o' 


w 

Oct 

O 

Oct 

o 

o 

Oct 

"S 

O 

o 

o 

o 

O 

o 

O 

lVff*nn-fTrp.y .. ... _ 

16 

11 

44 

37 

22 

26 


8 

17 



Patrick Goff .... 

16 

10 

6 

4 

4 

1 


.. . - _------ 

2 

8 

8 

7 

19 

9 



2 

"P 1 ffi RrnwTi . -.. 

3 

2 

2 

3 

7 

6 

2 


8 

TVfiphnpl P.nlli^an . .. .. 




23 

21 

22 

2 

3 


6 

. .- 


2 

4 

12 

5 

8 

11 

10 


1 

Ji'.. 




25 

7 

2 



Jnhii WflrH . .------ 


7 

18 

25 

16 

23 

25 

29 


4 

rj-iilln^bpr .. . 



15 

11 

6 

20 

1 


2 

"p) .. 


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614 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Superior Court, N'ew York City. 

Wliole number naturalized, 1868: September 30, October 1 and 2, 
1,224; minors, 1,006; not complete. October 3, 781; minors, 652. Octo¬ 
ber 5, 1,354; minors, 1,125. October 6, 1,317; minors, 1,075. October 
7,1,321; minors, 1,074. October 8, 1,125; minors, 965. October 10, 
812; minors, 731. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6852. There may be ordinary mistakes in the calculation. There 
must be 20,000 papers tied up there, but they have kept them in pretty 
good order. For four or five days I had the whole run of the office to 
myself. Mr. Sweeney told the clerks to give me a desk and to clear 
out; and even his deputy was turned out for that purpose. If there is 
any mistake at all in the paper it is that there are not enough cases set 
doAvn. 


Heav York, January 12, 1869. 

Wriuht Banks sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6853. I reside at White Plains, Westchester county, and am deputy 
county clerk of the county. I produce the book containing the records 
of naturalization of that county. 

6854. Question. Turn to the names of DuAud AYelsh, John Lee, John 
Eogers, Patrick Haley, Thomas Fitzgerald, AYm. Lawler, Win. King, and 
John Courtney. 

AnsAver. David Welsh was naturalized August 26,1868, his Avitnesses 
being John Lee and Hugh Ward; John Lee Avas naturalized August 26, 
1868, his Avitnesses being Hugh Ward and Thomas Smith; John Eogers 
was naturalized August 26,1868, his witnesses being John Lee and Hugh 
Ward; Patrick Haley Avas naturalized September 19, 1868, his wit¬ 
nesses being Michael O’Donnell and Thomas Smith; Thomas Fitzger¬ 
ald was naturalized October 17, 1868, his Avitness being Lewis C. Platt; 
Win. Lawler was naturalized August 26, 1868, his Avitnesses being John 
Lee and Win. King; Wm. King was naturalized August 26, 1868, his 
witnesses being John Lee and Wm. Lawler; and John Courtney AA^as 
naturalized September 19, 1868, his Avitnesses being Daniel Daly and 
Michael Higgings. 

6855. Q. Are all naturalization records kept in a book in that way? 

A. Yes. They are recorded at the time of naturalization. Each appli¬ 
cant and witness has signed his name in this book, or made his mark. 

6856. Q. State generally what you knoAv of any fraudulent naturaliza¬ 
tion papers being issued from that court or office. 

A. I do not; not in a single instance. 

6857. Q. State what has been the practice in that court on the subject 
of naturalization in reference to parties appearing in open court. 

A. For five or six years, and up to the latter part of August last, the 
practice Avas to have the witnesses sworn by the clerk in the clerk’s office, 
and the papers Avere ahvays understood to be issued on the authority of 
the judge, though not in his presence. In August, or early in September, 
1868, Judge Cochrane, the present county judge, directed that the clerk 
should examine and record the application for naturalization in the open 
court room, in his presence; and with the exception of about 50 of the 
naturalizations in 1868 all were examined and naturalized in that way in 
open court, the judge being present and judging of the (lualifications of 
each applicant. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


615 


G858. Q. Had those 50 been naturalized prior to that order ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

G859. Q. And all since that order have been examined in OT)en court? 

A. Yes. 

G8G0. Q. State what means yon have of knowing what the practice 
has been in previous years. 

A. In 1850-’511 was a clerk in the clerk’s office in Westchester county, 
and had charge of naturalization as one of my perquisites. At that 
time the business was invariably done in the office, with or without the 
presence of the judge. I remained in the office about two years. I had 
some business connected with the office again in 1868, when, I am 
aware, the practice existed j and again in 1865-’GG, up to the present time. 

68G1. Q. You know of your own knowledge that that is the way the 
business has been conducted ? 

A. I do. 

6862. Q. When did this judge come into office? 

A. The 1st of Januarjq 1868. 

6863. Q. To what political party is he attached? 

A. The democratic. 

6864. Q. Who were the judges previous to his administration? 

A. John W. Mills, in 1850-’51. For 12 years i)rior to the 1st of 
January, ^68, Judge Win. H. Eobertson was judge of that court. He 
is now a member of Congress. Judge Mills w as a democrat and judge 
Eobertson a republican. 

6865. Q. Was that the practice under Judge Eobertson? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6866 . Q. With his knowledge ? 

A. Yes. 

By the Chairman : 

6867. Q. Between pages 220 and 236 of the book which you have pro¬ 
duced I find the record of naturalization of persons, wdiose names, with 
date of naturalization and date of cancellation of certificate, are as fol¬ 
lows: 


Names of persons naturalized. 

Date. 

When cancelled. 

Daniel Murphy. 

August 21, 1868. 
.do. 

October 3, 1863. 
.do. 

Patrick Slaven....... 

Michael Donohoe....... 

August 29, 1868. 

.do. 

Thomas Darnely .. 

.do. 

Michael Dashman _ __ _ _ 

.do........ 

.do. 

Thomas Kelly _________ 

.do. 

.do. 

John Grady______-____ __ 

.do. 

.do. 

Edward McCarty... 

.do_'. 

.do. 

Timothy Keily........... 

.do. 

.do. 

Patrick Riley . _ __ 

.do. 

.do. 

Thomas McCarty.........___ 

.do. 

.do. 

Thnma.s Mnra,n _ . __ _ _ 

_do_ 

.do. 

Erlrrmiifl Tlnrke_ _ .. .. _ .. .. 

_do. 


James Dean_ __ 

. .. . do. 

.do.. 

Michael Donnelly ........ 

.do. 

.do. 





Across the face of each one of these records of naturalization are 
found these words: ^‘Certificate cancelled by order of the court, Octo¬ 
ber 3, 1868. J. M. S., clerk.” State why that entry of cancellation was 
made. 


















































616 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I cannot state wliy in all instances. It was made on an order to 
show cause, wliicli was granted on the application of some parties, the 
certificate having been informal or defective in some way. 

6808. Q. Was not that done after the people had begun to complain 
of the mode in which things were done in that court? 

A. I think not; I think the contrary. 

6869. Q. On page 230 of this book I find a record made up, dated 
August 29, 1868, signed J. M. Smith, clerk,’^ in two places, with the 
words written across it: ^‘Cancelled by order of the court, Octobers, 
1868. J. M. S., clerk;” and two erasures where the blank is found for 
the signature of the applicant; nothing, therefore, being left to indicate 
who signed the name which has apparently been erased. State why 
that alteration of the record has been made. 

A. I did that myself on application of one of the witnesses, (Patrick 
Mara,) stating that the applicant (Patrick Kearns) was not entitled to 
be naturalized. I made the erasures at Mara’s instance, without the 
order of the court. 

6870. Q. Did you feel authorized to obliterate the record of the court ? 

A. I did; I felt authorized to correct an error. The certificate of 

naturalization had issued, but I destroyed it and tore it up, as I would 
any other i^aper, and threw it into the waste basket. 

6871. Q. By what authority do you claim the right to altei^nd oblit¬ 
erate the record of the court, without the knowledge or order of the 
court ? 

A. I recognize the right of any clerk or officer to correct his own error. 
This error which I corrected was my own. 

6872. Q. Were these orders of cancellation written across there, with 
or without the knowledge of the judge? 

A. AVith the knoAvledge of the judge. 

6873. Q. AAffio called his attention to it ? 

A. I cannot tell. 

6874. Q. Was process issued against the parties naturalized? 

A. An order to show cause was. 

6875. Q. Do you not know that complaint was made about the mode 
in which things were done in the court ? 

A. Kot at this date, I think. 

6876. Q. Who made the representation to the court that these persons 
had improperly procured certificates of naturalization ? 

A. I am not positive; but I think some of the applicants themselves. 

6877. Q. Because they felt alarmed, did they? 

A. Perhaps they did; I cannot say what induced them. 

6778. Q. On page 204 I see some blanks left; for what purpose? 

A. Possibly a mistake in tmming over the leaf. 

6879. Q. At page 384 I find about one-third of the leaf cut out; for 
what purpose was that done ? 

A. I did that in order to send the form of the affidavits used to some 
gentleman who applied to know the rules and regulations. 

6880. Q. I find the leaves between pages 381 and 384 cut out; for 
what puri)ose ? 

A. That was done before my time. 

6881. Q. I find other leaves cut out of the back of the book ? 

A. I think I tore out from both forms. 

6882. Q. I find on all these records that the jurat to the affidavit says: 

Sworn in open court.” Is that record true or false ? 

A. In the instances I have spoken of I think I should be safe in say¬ 
ing that it is true. It was done by authority of the court. 


ELi::CTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. * 617 

6883. Q. Is it true in those cases where the work was done in the 
clerk’s office, without the knowledge of the judge ? 

A. I think it is ; I think it is done in open court if the judge orders it 
to he done in the clerk’s office. I think the meaning of the statute is 
that the judge shall have the control of the matter. There is no instance 
in my record there that was not done in oi^en court hy the authority of 
the judge, according to my judgment. 

6884. Q. By being done in open court yon mean that naturalizations 
taken before the clerk, with applicants and witnesses sworn before the 
clerk, in a room where the judge is not sitting, and where he knows 
nothing of tliem at all, are made in open court ? 

A. I think so. 

6885. Q. In those cases the judge was not present, and did not see the 
applicants or witnesses sworn ? 

A. There w^ere very few such instances in Mr. Smith’s administration. 

6886 . Q. If Mr. Smith stated that this work was done in the clerk’s 
office, without the judge knowing what persons appeared as applicants 
and what persons as witnesses, did he state the truth or not ? 

A. As to some part of it he did; I do not know that I gave certificates 
in such cases; I think I did, but I do not know of any instance of it. 

6887. Q. Present to the committee, and make part of your testimony, 
a copy of the record of one of those naturalizations of a person who 
came to the United States after he was 18 years of age, and of one who 
made what is called a minor’s apifiication, having come to the United 
States before he was 18 years of age. 

A. I present such forms. They are as follows : 

State of York, Westchester county. 

In the matter of John Eogers, on his naturalization. 

State of New York, Westchester county., ss : 

John Lee, Hugh Ward, being severally duly sworn, each for himself, 
say that they are well acquainted with the above named applicant, and 
that the said applicant has resided within the United States for the con¬ 
tinued term of five years, at least, next preceding the present time, 
without being at any time, during the said five years, out of the terri¬ 
tory of the United States, and within the State of New York one year 
at least immediately preceding this application ) and that during that time 
he has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the i^rin- 
ciples of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the 
good order and happiness of the same. 

JOHN LEE. 

HUGH WAKD. 

Sworn in open court, this 26th day of August, 1868. 

J. MALCOM SMITH, Glerh. 

I, John Eogers, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitu¬ 
tion of the United States, and that I do absolutely and entirely renounce 
and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to every foreign prince, potentate, 
state or sovereignty, whatever, and particularly to Victoria. 

JOHN EOGEES. 

Sworn in open court this 26th day of August, 1868. 

J. MALCOM SMITH, Cleric. 


618 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


State of New York, Westchestey' county. 

In the matter of John Courtney, on his naturalization. 

State of New York, Westchester county, ss: 

John Courtney, the above-named applicant, being duly sworn, says 
that he has arrived at the age of twenty-one years ; that he has resided 
in the United States three years next preceding his arrival at that age, 
and has continued to reside therein to the present time; that he has 
resided five years within the United States, including the three years of 
his miiiority, and one year at least immediately preceding this applica¬ 
tion within the State of New York, and that for three years next pre¬ 
ceding this application it has been his bona fide intention to become a 
citizen of the United States. 

JOHN COUETNEY. 

Sworn in open court this 19th day of September, 1868. 

J. M. SMITH, Cleric. 

State of New York, Westchester county^ ss : 

Daniel Dailey and Michael Higgins, being severally sworn, doth, each 
for himself, depose and say, that he is well acquainted with the above- 
named applicant j that the said applicant has resided in the United 
States for three years next preceding his arrival at the age of twenty-one 
years ; that he has continued to reside therein to the present time; that 
he has resided five years within the United States, including the three 
years of his minority, and in the State of New York one year at least 
immediately preceding this application ; and that dimiig that time he 
has behaved as a man of good moral character, attached to the i^riuciples 
of the Constitution of the United States, and well disposed to the good 
order and happiness of the same; and deponent verily believes, that for 
three years next preceding this application it has been the bona fide 
intention of the said applicant to become a citizen of the United States. 

DANIEL DAILEY. 

his 

MICHAEL + HIGGINS. 

mark 

Sworn in open court this 19th day of September, 1868. 

J. M. SAIITH, Cleric. 

State of New York, Westchester county^ ss: 

I do declare, on oath, that it is my bona fide intention, and has been 
for three years next preceding this application, to become a citizen of the 
United States, and to renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to any 
foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, and particu¬ 
larly to the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland. 

JOHN COUETNEY. 

Sworn in open court this 19th day of September, 1868. 

J. M. SMITH, Cleric. 

I do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United 
States, and that I do absolutely renounce and abjure all allegiance and 
fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state or sovereignty whatever, 
and particularly to Victoria, Queen of Great Britcin and Ireland. 

JOHN COUETNEY. 

Sworn to in open court this 19th day of September, 1868. 

J. M. SMITH, Cleric. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 619 

G888. Q. State if you issued certificates of naturalizatiou iu tlie mode 
you have described while you were a minor. 

A. I did. I signed the clerk’s name to them; not to a great many of 
them. At that timej before these books came in vogue, the papers were 
filed. 

6889. Q. How many persons can be naturalized in an hour, to do it 
fairly and properly 

A. It depends upon what clerical force there is; the principal labor is 
with the clerk in making up the record and certificate. I think 1 could 
naturalize 10 or 11 in an hour. 

6890. Q. Can a judge make proper examination and naturalize more 
than 10 persons in an hour, doing it right 1 

A. If all the applications were of men who had their first papers and 
produced them as evidence, a judge might naturalize 25 or 50 in one 
group; he would examine the papers and satisfy himself of those facts, 
and the witnesses would be sworn as to the five years’ residence. 

6891. Q. Should not the witnesses identify each applicant ? 

A. They do that invariably. 

6892. Q. Can a judge naturalize more than 10 or a dozen in an hour, 
examining each witness as to the identity of the applicant'? 

A. One man may be witness for a dozen; the questions can .be asked 
and answered very rapidly. 

6893. Q. How many can a judge properly naturalize in an hour of per¬ 
sons who had not their first papers"? 

A. I should think not more than 10 or 12 or 15. 

By Mr. Ross: 

6894. Q. Those sheets of paper which the chairman called your atten¬ 
tion to as having been cut out of the book, was anything written on 
them"? 

A. nothing at all. I may have filled the forms in pencil for the infor¬ 
mation of some gentleman who wrote to us to ascertain the form of natu¬ 
ralization ; I probably did. 

6895. Q. It was no naturalization paper that you cut out"? 

A. no, sir. 

nsw York, January 12, 1869. 

John M. Rowel sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

I reside at White Plains, Westchester county, new York. I am clerk 
in the county treasurer’s office. I have been deputy county clerk in the 
county of Westchester for eight and a half years, from 1859 to July 1867. 
I had charge of the business of naturalization. 

6896. Q. State what was the practice of the court during that time, in 
the naturalization of foreigners, in reference to the parties being in open 
court. 

A. When I first took possession we used to bring the parties in open 
court; that was in 1859-’60. But the numbers became so great that, 
under the direction of the court, (both the supreme court judge and the 
county judge,) we took the persons into the county clerk’s office, which 
was most convenient. We took them there in consequence of the noise 
and confusion which they created in court. It was very rarely, after that, 
that we naturalized iu the court-room proper; I do not recollect a single 
case of the kind; all of it was done, under the direction of the court, in 
another room. 


620 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G897. Q. Under tlie direction of what judges was this business done in 
that way ? 

A. I cannot tell exactly the judges who were holding terms of court 
at that time. Judge William H. Eobertson was the only judge under 
whom I naturalized any person. 

6898. Q. Was it done in that way under his direction and authority? 

A. It was. He even gave us more latitude than that; he directed us 

that the county court was open for the purpose of naturalization, he not 
being present himself. 

6899. Q. Were naturalizations made in his absence, in that way, under 
his directions ? 

A. They were. 

6900. Q. For how many years ? 

A. Four or five years, I should think—up to the time when he ran for 
Congress. At that time, under the influence of some outside parties, he 
countermanded his order j this was while he was running for Congress. 
After he countermanded the order we did not naturalize unless he was 
present. 

6901. Q. How long was that before he left the bench ? 

A. About five or six months, I should say; it was while he was can¬ 
didate for Congress. He was elected in November, and his term of office 
of judge expired the following January. He continued to hold the office 
of judge up to the 1st of January, 1868. 

6902. Q. Do you know of any fradulent naturalization papers being 
issued from your office last fall? 

A. I do not. 

6903. Q. State if there were any i)recautions taken to prevent frauds. 

A. There were. 

By the Chairman: 

6904. Q. With what political party do you act? 

A. The democratic. 

6905. Q. With what political party did the clerk in office prior to the 
time of Smith act? 

A. The democratic. 


New York, January 12, 1869. 

James Smith sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6906. I reside at 163 Greene street. New York. I voted often at the 
last presidential election. I voted twice in Greene street, near Spring; 
once in Prince street, between Greene and Wooster; and twice in Bay¬ 
ard street, between Elizabeth street and Bowery. I got intoxicated 
afterwards and do not recollect what I did. 

6907. Q. What ticket did you vote? 

A. The democratic ticket, as I understood. 

6908. Q. Did you vote in your own name ? 

A. I voted on my own name once. I do not recollect the other name 
on which I voted. Slips were fiumished to me near the polls, containing 
the name and residence of the persons on whose name 1 was to vote. 
There were eight or ten in the gang at first, but when we got in front of 
the Atlantic Garden we got quite a crowd, and we then went together. 
I knew some of the persons by sight, but not by name. I was promised 
a reward for voting, but did not get any. I was promised ten or fifteen 
dollars. I do not know the name of the person wffio promised it to me. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


621 


To Mr, Eoss: 

0909. I have been living about eight months at 103 Greene street. I 
nsetl to live at 05 Spring street, about t^YO and a half years ago. I 
drive ai coach for Morgan L. Phillips, of 94 Mercer street. I have been 
driving for him, off and on, about four years—probably little over two 
years in all. I am at work for him now. I have lived in the city all my 
lifetime. I never went by any other name than my own. I never was 
convicted of any criminal offence. I always worked for a living. 1 am a 
married man. I can read and write. I did not take notice what tickets 
I voted; we were rather in a hnrry and did not pay much attention to 
the tickets, but I am very well aware that it was the democratic ticket. 
I never could find the man who promised me money for voting. I gave 
my statement in Jersey City last Saturday; I went over there alone and 
paid my own passage; I went to Taylor’s Hotel, the other side of the 
ferry; there were two other men with me in the room; I do not know 
them; they gave their statements ahead of me, and I gave mine after¬ 
wards; I was paid nothing for it and do not know that I am to be paid 
anything. I do not know Colonel Bliss nor Mr. Baker. 

6910. Q. Who administered the oath to you"?. 

A. A young man sitting at a table wrote out my statement. I did 
not kiss the book or take any oath, that I saw. I came over from Jersey 
City alone, about five minutes after I had made my statement. I have 
been waiting here to-day and yesterday in the marshal’s office. 

By the Chairman : 

6911. Q. Were you challenged on the day of election at any time? 

A. No, sir. 

6912. Q. Who furnished the drinks that day? 

A. That I cannot say. I did not see any money paid. We would 
merely go into a plabe and one of the gang would mention the name of 
some one who would make the thing good. 

New York, January 12, 1869. 

Charles Ferguson sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman: 

6913. I live at 16 Eldridge street. I voted at the last presidential 
election 14 or 15 times, to the best of my knowledge. I cannot say what 
ticket I voted, but I suppose it was the democratic ticket. I voted in 
Bayard street three times; twice in Hester street, near Forsyth, and 
seven or eight times, I guess, in the 8th ward. 

6914. Q. Were you challenged at any time? 

A. No, sir. We were furnished with slips of paper containing the 
name and residence of the person on whose name we were to vote. I do 
not know the name of the person who furnished them. 1 cannot recol¬ 
lect any of the names I voted on. There were between 20 and 25 in the 
gang. We had identy of drink. There was a leader in the gang who 
‘‘put up” everything. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6915. Q. I can read and write. I did not notice what ticket T voted. 
I suppose the rest of the party voted the same ticket that I did; but I do 
not know what that ticket was. I have been in the city seven or eight 
years. I am a cabinetmaker. I am not at Avork at present. I ha\"e 
been out of work since before Christmas. I had sufficient funds to sup¬ 
port me since then. I last worked for a man named Taylor, on Eighth 
avenue, near Thirty-second street. He is in the furniture business. I 



622 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


first made this statement yesterday morning in Jersey City. I did not 
get anything for it, and was not promised anything. I am 25 years of 
age. I have been living at IG Eldridge street since September last. 
The woman who keeps the house is Mrs. Lehman. She keeps furnished 
rooms and a few boarders. I attended bar at 111 Spring street last 
winter for a man named James Alfred. There was no promise Avhatever 
made to me for making this statement about voting the democratic 
ticket. A young man took me over to Jersey City yesterday morning. 
He said to me, ^Mf you Avant to get square with them come with me to 
Jersey City.” We had been promised pay for repeating, but did not get 
it. The idea AA^as to haA^e satisfaction. I Avas promised $20 for repeat¬ 
ing, and the money was shoAvn to me,* but after it Avas all through with 
I did not get a cent. There Avere others with me in Jersey City. I sup¬ 
pose they were repeaters. I suppose they Avere got together for the 
puriDose of testitying before the committee. I do not knoAv that any of 
them Avere paid. I did not see anything paid. Nothing Avas promised 
to me. It Avas said that we should be protected for coming OA^er to tes¬ 
tify, that there woidd be no legal proceedings taken against us for illegal 
A’oting. 

6916. Q. Hid they gh^e you any written paper on that? 

A. I belieA^e it Avas written on paper; I do not know. 

New York, January 12, 1869. 

John Hughes sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6917. I voted at the last presidential election in this city, three times 
at one place, three times at another, and twice at another; I do not 
know what ticket I A oted; I got the ballots and xmt them in. 

6918. Q. With what political party do you act? 

A. I do not know. 

6919. Q. You knoAv what party you act with ? 

A. No, sir. 

6920. Q. Hid you vote on your name? 

A. Yes, on my own name; I voted on other names after that; I was 
intoxicated; there were 20 or 25 others voting in the same AAvay; I got 
the tickets and the slips of names from men whom I met at the polls; 
all hands were drinking; a man who was with us furnished the drink ; 

I do not know him by name; I might knoAV him if I saAv him. 

6921. Q. Were you challenged? 

A. No, sir. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6922. I do not knoAv what ticket I voted, or the others voted; I do not 
know how many times they voted; I was to get $20 or $25 for it; I got about 
$10,1 guess, from the man who had the party; I do not know his name, 
and never heard it; I never suaa^ him after that; I got so intoxicated that I 
did not know what I Avas doing; 1 got intoxicated about 3 o’clock; I was 
drinking all the time, but after that I do not recollect; I have been in the 
city about five years; I have been engaged in butchering; the last place I 
worked was in the Third aA-enue, No. 228, Avith Mr. Campbell; I worked 
there six months; I worked for a spell in Brooklyn; I have been out of 
the city for a month or tAvo at a time, and was Avorking in Brooklyn for 
19 months, as a laborer in the ship-carpentering shop in the navy yard; 

I worked in tlie na\-y yard under my oAvn name; I first made this state¬ 
ment yesterday in Jersey City; no inducement Avas ofiered to me to make 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


it ; I met a man at the clock (I knew him by siglit but not by name) wlio 
asked me to take a drink, and who said I would do a favor for a friend 
of his if I Avould make a statement to that effect ; he did not say who 
his friend was ; this man had never done me any favor that I kiuiw of; 

I was under no obligation to him; he did not go over to Jersey City with 
me. 

0923. Q. Are you of an accommodating disposition in that respect? 

A. When I can do a man a favor I do it; I do not exi)ect any x)racti- 
cal benefit to follow; I live at 25 Elizabeth street, and boarcl in the 
nearest saloons; Mrs. Williams keeps the house; it is a private house: 
she furnishes lodgings for gentlemen; I have lodged there for the last 
three or four months; I did not know exactly that it was wrong to vote 
as I did on election day; I suppose it was wrong; I had no special 
interest in the election any more than that I was to be paid for what I 
did; I was not particular which of the parties succeeded; I am a native 
of this country; I got no pay for going to Jersey City or coming here. 

Kew York, January 12, 18G9. 

Joan Kagle sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6924. I live at 6 Pike street; I voted four times at the last presiden¬ 
tial election—twice at the corner of Canal and Ludlow, and twice at the 
corner of Market street and East Broadway; I forget the names I voted 
on; I was under the influence of liquor; I voted the democratic ticket 
all through ; there were about 25 of us altogether; they were repeating; 
I was not challenged; I cannot say that any of our party was; I do 
not know who furnished me with the names; I am a native of this 
country. 

To Mr. Boss: 

6925. I am sure it was the democratic ticket I voted; I was told so; 
that is all I know about it; I have not been in the habit of repeating 
at other elections; that was the first time I went into it; a young man 
whom I associated with got me into it. 

6926. Q. What kind of men do you associate with? 

A. I suppose they are gentlemen; they pretend to be so. 

6927. Q. Do gentlemenhere follow repeating? 

A. They did then. 

6928. Q. ^‘Gentlemen”of high standing? 

A. Yes, sir. 

6929. Q. Of moral integrity and worth? 

A. They are supposed to be. 

6930. Q. How many of that class of men were engage in repeating? 

A. About 25 or 30. 

6931. Q. Give me the names of those men who were with you ? 

A. I do not know any of their names. 

6932. Q. Kot a single one of them ? 

A. Not one, except a man named Johnson, who follows the sea for a 
living ? 

6933. Q. And still you say you know them all to be gentlemen of good 
moral standing and character?. 

A. They pretend to be so; they look well. 

6934. Q. Did the whole of them get drunk ? 

A. Yes; they all got drunk. I commenced voting about half past 10, 
and I got drunk about 2 o’clock, so drunk that I left and went home; I 
am a carman, and drive a horse and cart; my stand is 62 and 64 KutgePs 




624 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


slip; I drive for the firm of A. J. Briggs, who lives in Henry street 5 I 
am not at work now; I have been ill for three months; I have been 
rather ‘‘hard up,” and have been living on the bounty of relatives—anuts 
and uncles; 1 have had no other name besides John Kagie; I am living 
with my wife and child at my uncle’s (Frederick Smith) at G Pike street; 
I was never convicted or prosecuted for any criminal offence; I first made 
the statment about repeating last Saturday, in Jersey City; I went 
there in order to retaliate; I wanted to get square for the way I was 
used; some of the repeaters got something, but I got nothing, and 
expected the same chances as the rest. 

6935. Q. Are there many men in this city who can be got to swear 
almost anythiug for pay^ 

A. That I cannot say. 

693G. Q. Are you in the habit of attending gambling places 

A. I go to them once in a while; I am generally lucky. 

N^ew York, January 12, 1869. 

Egbert Costello sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6937. I reside in 219 Sullivan street. I voted at the last presidential 
election seven or eight times. I voted the Grant and Griswold ticket. 
I voted at the 8th district, 15th ward. There was a whole crowd of us 
going around—about 20. They all voted the same ticket. They voted 
about as many times as I did. A man asked me to go with him, and 
said he would pay me $10. 

To the Chairman : 

6938. I do not know who the man was ; I never saw him before. I 
was pretty drunk that day. I cannot think of the names of the men I 
was with, or of any of them. I have lived at 29 Sullivan street about 
10 years. 1 am a harness-maker. I used to work at Trainor’s, corner 
of Broadway and White streets. It is four years since I worked there. 
I am not working now. I drove a car on the Broadway railroad for four 
months. I left that work about three months ago. Nobody asked me 
to come here and testify. I was not summoned; 1 came voluntarily. 
Nobody asked me to come here and testify. I never went by any other 
name than that I now go by. 

New York, January 12, 1869. 

John Clark sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6939. I live at 99 West Houston street I voted at the last presiden¬ 
tial election. I voted for Grant and Griswold. I voted five times at 
least in the several districts of the 8th ward. I was short of money at 
the time and could not find any easier way of getting money. I was 
with a gang of seven or eight. They voted as I did. I cannot tell how 
many times they voted. I voted in Greene street, Thompson street, 
and Eenwick street. A man whom they called Charlie furnished us 
with slips containing the name and residence of the person on whose 
name we were to vote. 

To the Chairman : 

6940. I looked at the tickets which I voted. 1 voted the republican ticket 
right through. I was paid five dollars every time I voted. I never saw 
the man before or since. A man of the name of Glennon voted in this 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


625 


gang. [ caimot tell where he cau be found. I eannot tell any name 
that 1 voted on. I do not know the number of any district where I 
voted. 1 know where they are situated. I was not summoned here. "I 
saw in the papers that tliey were taking evidence here. 1 have always 
been a republican. I have been doing nothing since 1 came from sea 
last August. 

New York, January 12, 1SG9. 

John (Ilennon sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Koss.) 

To IMr. Ross: 

6941. I reside in Grand street. 1 voted at tiie last presidential elec¬ 
tion. I voted the republican ticket. Several of my friends came around 
saying that money could be made easy, and that no one would know 
anything about it. I voted in the 15th, 9th, and 16th wards. 1 do not 
know how many times I voted—eight or nine times. There were about 
a dozen in the party with me. I only know one of them; I think his 
name is Frost. He handed me the republican ticicet to vote. 

To the Chairman : 

6942. I am a cabinet-maker. 1 am not working at my trade now j I 
am bar-tender at 182 Bleecker street. I have been seven months there 
at that business. Prior to that I worked at cabinet-making at Yonkers. • 
I did not go by the name of Evans. 1 do not know the names I used on 
election day. I voted in the 2d precinct of the 15th ward. A man of 
the name of John Burtis was Avith me voting; 1 do not know his resi¬ 
dence; also Jacob Roome; he lives in Mercer street, near Spring; he 
keeps a bar-room and dance place ; I do not know his politics. My feel¬ 
ings are Avith the republican jiarty. 1 was not summoned to come here. 

1 Avas asked to come here by a man named Greene, who OAvns the bar¬ 
room called the Opera House, on 14th street; I do not knoAY his politics. 
The paper now produced to me containing my statement was Avritten in 
a little office across the street, close by the sheriff’s office. It Avas Avritten 
about two hours ago. Jacob Roome was there. I do not knoAA' anything 
about Cook. I got nothing for going there, and no promise of anything. 

The chairman offered to proA^e the handwriting of the memorandum. 

Mr. Ross objected, and withdreAV the memorandum, saying that it was 
his private paper and that he had only shoAvn it through courtesy. 

Neav York, January 12, 1869. 

Jacob Roo:aie sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. Rqss.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

6943. 1 liA' e at 87 Mercer street; 1 voted at the last presidential elec¬ 
tion nine or ten times, in the 8th and 15th Avards ; I voted the republi¬ 
can ticket ; I voted on different names ; they Avere furnished on slips 
of paper; 1 do not knoAV Avho gaAm them to me. There Avere some 15 or 
20 in the party. 1 cannot say hoAV many times they voted. T suppose 
they voted as often as I did ; perhaps more. It was the republican party 
that we were trying to help. I do not recollect any of the names^ that 
I voted on. 

To the Chairman : 

6944. I did not tell anybody that I knew about repeating. 1 never 
spoke to anybody about it. I do not knoAV where the memorandum Avas 
Avritten that Mr.*Ross had in his hand Avhen he w as examining me. 1 
am bar-tender at 87 Mercer street. I have been there about four months. 

40 T 



626 


EliECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Before that I worked at gas-fitting for Mr. Young, of 112 Prince street, 
and at silversraitliing for Mr. Hughes, 104 Pulton street. I am a native 
of Ncav' York< I do not know John Eurtis, nor John Glennon, nor a 
man named Evans. I was not y)roinised anything for coming liere. I 
am 28 years of age. 

New York, January 12, 18()0. 

Edward Clark sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6945. T live at 40 Essex street, with George Hyam, a soap manufac¬ 
turer. My business is card-writing. I voted at the last election 15 or 
18 times. I voted in the 10th and llth wards, and in different wards 
afterwards. 1 voted the democratic ticket—the Seymour ticket. The 
evening x)revious to the election 1 was met by two men, who asked me 
if I Avanted to make a few dollars. They said there was no risk in it. 
They furnished drink, and licpior, and cigars. I put in my first vote 
next morning at the barber’s shop in Christie street, near Broome. I 
voted in the name of Karsch. Between Christie and Porsyth streets I 
put in a vote by the name of John Cutter. We had drinks between 
each voting. I put in tAvo votes at the next place, changing my hat and 
coat after all the rest had Amted. Then AA^e came to East Broadwuiy, and 
•1 put one Amte in there. They promised to gwe me $10 for each vote; 
but they got me so drunk that I did not knoAV what I Avas about. 1 
found them next morning in the bar-rooin of tlie New England Hotel, 
and asked Avdiy they did not pay me. They said, You have yuit in 28 
votes, and we have paid you $28.” I am a native of Prussia. I cannot 
tell the names of any of the gang. I know one or two by sight. There 
AAwe five besides myself engaged in voting. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

6946. I have lived at my present yfiace of residence over a year. I 
haA^e no family. Wlien I asked for the money for Amting thej" licked me. 
That is the reason I make this statement. I want satisfaction. I got 
nothing for repeating except Avhat I had to eat and drink. My politics 
are republican. I do not like the democrats much. I liuA^e got a grudge 
against them. I haAU^ been in the army, and fought for a different party 
altogether than the party I Amted for. I made this statement this morn¬ 
ing in Jersey City. A young man, who peddles cigars, told me to go 
over there. I do not know his name. I Avrote a dozen or 25 cards for 
him some time ago, but I liaA^e forgotten his name. I Avas not to haA^e 
anything for going to Jersey City. I did not vote at all in my own 
namej and yet 1 am a good republican. I did not vote because"! Avas 
not registered. I haA'^e been naturalized. I would not liaA^e Amted the 
democratic ticket only for the money that Avas promised me. 

Neav York, January 12, 1869. 

Edavard Cobb sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6947. I live at 19 Hester street j I A^oted at the last presidential 
election betAveen 15 and 16 times at least; 1 voted the democratic 
ticket; the night before the election some gentlemen picked me up and 
got to talking to me, and treated me; and in the morning they gave me 
names to vote, and said that after I was done voting they w^ould giA'e me 
$30 ; I voted in the 8th ward, in EenAvick street, eight or nine times; in 
the 4th ward four times; and in the 6th ward, in Bayard street, at a 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


627 


barber’s shop, near Bowery; I voted there by the name of Edward Wil¬ 
son, 30J Bowery, (the Kew England Hotel;) they gave me considerable 
drink; there were 20 in the party, and they all repeated at the same 
time; I saw Alderman Cuddy eight or nine times that day; he had a 
gang with him—repeating, I suppose; I saw W. H. Cook on election 
day; he gave me a slip to vote on at Bayard street, in the name of 
Edward Wilson; he was with Cuddy that day; I saw Cuddy all the day; 
he was leading a gang of repeaters around; Cook and Cuddy act with 
the democratic party, I believe. 

To Mr. Boss: 

0948. I cannot recollect voting more than 15 or 10 times; 1 voted 
between eight and nine* times in succession at the one place in Ben wick 
street, near Spring; I put them all in between 15 and 20 minutes; I 
recollect only one name that I voted on—the name of Edward Wilson; 
I am a jeweller by trade, and have been working, until within the last 
two weeks, at Ball & Black’s, Broadway; I had no recollection next 
morning of w^hat I had done till I was told by ditferent parties; I know 
it was the democratic ticket I voted, for I was with democrats all the 
day; I first made my statement in Jersey City; I did so for satisfaction 
because I had been promised $30 for voting and got nothing; I had 
always voted the republican ticket until that day; my father is an old 
republican, and I always follow his ways; I have been always a repub¬ 
lican in i^rinciple; 1 voted once that day in my own name at ito. 11 Suf¬ 
folk street, in the 12th district of the 11th ward; I live near there at 19 
Hester street; T voted the republican ticket. 

To the Chairman : 

()949. I was not challenged at any of the polls that 1 can recollect; 
there were a great many others repeating that day; I saw between eight 
and nine that day; there were 10,15, 20, 8, 3, and 4 in the various gangs; 
I did not know of miy republicans repeating that day; I got no pay. 

To Mr. Boss: 

6950. I have a pretty bitter spirit against the democrats; I never 
voted the democratic ticket before; my father is a deacon in the Presby¬ 
terian church; I was very strictly brought up; I sustain a good reputa¬ 
tion. 


Ne^v York, Jcmvmij 12, 1869. 

John H. McCunn recalled. 

By Mr. Boss: 

6950. Question. Ho you know why the population of the 6th ward 
decreased from 1860 to 1865 f 

Answer. That is easily explained; the reason why the population of 
the lower wards of the city, including the 6th, decreased is this: Stores 
have crept in where the tenement houses were before; in fact, the tene¬ 
ment houses have nearly all been pulled down and stores erected on theii 
vSites; with the exception of the porters who stay in the stores at night, 
and some clerks, there are no persons residing in those stores; these 
men of course vote from those places; one of these wards with a popula¬ 
tion of say 18,000 may in this way have 4,000 voters—very few tamilies 
living there; a much larger proportion of the population, therefore, has 
a right to vote than in the up-town wards where fiimilies live. 

6951. Q. Can you approximate the relative strength of the foreign and 
of the native population ? 



628 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I could do so by examiuiiig the statistics; the foreign population 
very largely predominates; not only that, but the Irish part of it under¬ 
stands imlitics better than any other class of people that comes here ; 
consequently they devote more attention to politics. 

6952. Q. State how many men the city of New York sent to the war. 

A. I find from a “report of the special committee on volunteering in 

the county of New York,” signed by Orison Blunt, Win. M. Tweed and 
Win. B. Stewart, that the Avhole number of men furnished from first to 
last, during the rebellion, by the city and county of New York was 
148,676; I furnished 1,600 Irishmen to the 37th New York volunteers, 
and never received one cent from the government, city. State or federal; 
that was my contribution to the war, and I challenge its equal in this 
city. 

6953. Q. State some facts in relation to the riglit of citizenship given 
by enlistment. 

A. The fact of enlistment, if the men were only a day in the service 
and were honorably discharged, entitled them to vote if they had only 
lived here a year; the law shows that; the men who went into the army 
from the city were principally foreigners; a very large number of those 
who were naturalized last fall were soldiers, and men who had taken out 
their first papers; the naturalizing of such persons occupied only two or 
three seconds, because they had certificates of previous declaration of 
intentions, or of an honorable discharge from the army. 

New York, January 12, 1869. 

The follo^Nfiug-named witnesses were sworn and examined as to the 
character for truth and veracity of Henry Lyle, one of the witnesses pre¬ 
viously examined, viz: Samuel Watson, his brotlier-in-law, who testified 
as to the dissipated habits of Lyle, which he said made him ready to do 
almost anything; Henry K. Murray, deputy collector of the port of New 
York, who testified as to Lyle having been a clerk in the New York cus¬ 
tom-house and having been dismissed on account of repeated absences 
from his desk, but that he knew nothing of him which would make him 
disbelieve him under oath; John Horner, cashier, and Moses S. Koberts, 
chief book-keeper of the Western Union Telegraph Company, in which 
office Lyle had been emifioyed as clerk, and whose testimony was to the 
same general effect; and Cornelia A. Lyle, his sister, who testified to 
her brother’s habits of dissipation, which liad been increased since her 
motlier’s deatli last spring, though he had promised lier on her death¬ 
bed to reform, but who knew no reason why he should not be believed. 
The last-witness also testified to Judge McCunn having been at her house 
inquiring for her brother Henry, and for her brother-in-law Samuel Wat¬ 
son. John Horner and Moses S. Roberts testified, also, that a telegram 
purporting to have been sent from New York, 1st July, 1869, to' Dan 
Noble, in Elmira, (signed William P. Wood,) in these words, “That will 
do. Come on at once,” was written on the regular blanks used by the 
company, but they could not otherwise identify it. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

John Mullaly sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

To Mr. Ko>SS: 

6954. I Avas inspector of registry and election last fall in the 7th dis¬ 
trict of the 21st ward. I do not know of any fraudulent registry or 
voting in that district. Native-born citizens were registered AAdthout 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


629 


question. JNaturalizecl citizens had to produce theit papers, and some 
of them were rejected when there was a suspicion on the part of the board. 
My republican colleague, Mr. Dennis, was put under arrest on election 
day on account of some charge that was preferred against him. He 
m^e his appearance about 12 or 1 o’clock. 

6955. Q. State if you and your other two colleagues used the same 
precautions while Mr. Dennis was absent that you did while he was there. 

A. Yes, sir. 

6956. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes that were given ? 

A. Not one. 

6957. Q. State if many were sworn either at registry or voting. 

A. A great number were sworn at the registry. 

6958. Q. How was it at the voting ? 

A. Any who were challenged at the polls were sworn ; but went gen¬ 
erally according to the registry. 

6959. Q. State whether any violence wms used to Mr. Dennis, or any 
threats of violence. 

A. Not that I know. Mr. Dennis was a very obstinate man, and he 
intimidated persons who were legal voters by his questioning and cross¬ 
questioning them. I do not* know that any were rejected who were 
sworn. 

6960. Q. Do you know of Mr. Dennis keeping out 200 illegal voters.? 

A. I know that he did nothing of the kind. He would question voters 

as to the names of persons boarding or living in the same house j and I 
thought that some of the questions were uncalled for. One man who 
had lived in the same house with me for 12 months did not know me, 
although I was an inspector. There are a great many persons constantly 
coming into the 21st ward and living there, but who are often absent 
boating and working. 

6961. Q. Is it not true that in the city men often live in the same 
house without knowing each other ^ 

A. Yes, sir; men live in the same house who never get acquainted. 

6962. Q. Do you know of any gangs of 10 or 15 repeaters trying to vote 

A. Not in that district. 

6963. Q. State whether Mr. Dennis, by his challenging and cross-ques¬ 
tioning so many, kept honest and legal voters from voting 

A. I cannot say actually; but I have not the slightest doubt of it. 
There were about 60 votes that were registered, but not polled. 

To the Chairman : 

6964. I act with the democratic party. All who were registered and 
who came to vote on election day had an opiiortunity to do so. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

The following statement w as directed to be placed on the record, at the 
request of Mr. Ross: 

The New York Directory for the year ending May 1, 1869, contains 
the name of John Moran at the following residences, and the following 
occupations are given, as also their places of business : 

John Moran: 

1. House 86 Cannon. 

2. Agent, Eleventh West Twenty-third: house Madison avenue, corner 
East Fiftieth. 

3. Boilermaker, house 635 East Twelfth street, 

4. Boilermaker, house 394 Eighth street. 


630 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


5. Carpenter, 118 East Forty-first street. 

0. Carpenter, house 121 Tenth avenue. 

7. Driver, liouse 302 West Tenth street. 

8 . Laborer, liouse 104 Cherry street. 

9. Laborer, house 33G East Twenty-fourth street. 

’lO. Laborer, liouse 352 East Thirty-second street. 

11. Laborer, house 73 Goerck street. 

12. Laborer, house 397 Madison street. 

13. Laborer, house 81 Sullivan street. 

14. Laborer, house 8 Yandewater street. 

15. Laborer, house 131 West Eighteenth street. 

10. Laborer, house 213 West Fifty-first street. 

17. Marbler, 130 West Thirty-eighth street; hoase 221 West Thirty- 
sixth street. 

18. Plasterer, house 002 West Thirtieth street. 

19. Plasterer, house 215 West Thirty-third street. 

20. Police, house 39 Clarkson street. 

21. Seaman, house 131 Leroy street. 

New York, January 13, 1809. 

Jacob W. Cooper sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

G9(>5. J was inspector of registry and election in the 7th district of the 
21st ward. Mr. Dennis was one of the registers ; he was absent nearly 
the whole of election day. 

0900. Q. Did you and his colleagues, during his absence, try to prevent 
illegal votes. 

A. We had no means of knowing who were not entitled to vote; I do 
not know that tliere were any persons sworn ; I am not aware that any 
were challenged. 

0907. Q. If anybody was challenged you would swear him % 

A. I suppose so. 

0908. Q. Did you see any disposition evinced by any of the board to get 
in illegal votes ? 

A. I cannot say that I did any further than there not being any chal¬ 
lenging ; anybody had a right to challenge if he was willing to take the 
risk, which I was not. All the voters had time to vote, and a number 
voted after the time for closing the polls, which I protested against. 
After the time to close the polls there was a party of four or five or more 
entering the door. I ordered the chairman to close the polls, but he 
being somewhat intoxicated, let them in and let them vote. I protested 
against it, and so marked it on my book. 

New York, January 13, 1809. 

John Fox sworn and examined, ((tailed at the instance of Mr. Boss.) 
To Mr. Boss: 

0909. I voted four or five times at the last presidential election, in the 
8 th, 9th, and 15th wards; I believe I voted the republican ticket; I do 
not know the names that I voted on. I got the name and address on a 
slip of paper. There was a crowd with me, but I cannot say whether 
they voted or not. 

To the Chairman : 

0970. I did not make the statement to any one before now; 1 did not 
know the gentleman who employed me to vote more than once; I never 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


631 


saw him before or since. He ^j^ave me, 1 guess, about $10. I did not 
hear of anybody else voting more than on(‘.e that day. I am a paper- 
hanger by trade; I am not working at it now, nor since last May. I do 
not gamble; I was not summoned to come here; I saw it in the papers 
and thought I was in duty bound to come here and give testimony. I 
did not tell anybody what I knew; nobody knew that I was coming 
here; I do not know Sheriff Odlrieu or any of his deputies; I have been 
at 81 IVlereer street about three yefirs. 


New York, January 13, 1809. 

Charles McCarthy sworn and examined, (called at the instance of 
Mr. Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

0971. I live at 57 Grand street; 1 voted at the last presidential election 
in this city between seven and eight times; I voted the republican ticket. 
There were as many as a dozen Avith me; they all voted the same ticket; 
I voted in the 4th district of the 8th ward, in the 1st district, and in fact 
in pretty nearly all the districts of the ward. I voted once on my own 
name, once in the name of Jeremiah Sullivan, once in the name of Charles 
O^Connor; the other names I do not recollect. They Avere furnished on 
slips of paper. 

To the Chairman : 

6972. I gaA^e no information of what 1 knew to anybody; 1 saw in the 
papers what Avas going on, and thought I might as Avell come down. I 
am a piano forte maker; I have not Avorked at my trade since about a 
year ago. I was driAung an ice wagon all last summer for the Commer¬ 
cial Ice Company. I was born in the house where I li\^e, and liaA’e been 
Imng there all the while—22 years. 


Neav York, January 13, 1809. 

Paul Vol^ier sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

0973.. 1 live at 121 Bleecker street; 1 voted four times at the last pres¬ 
idential election, in the loth ward ; I do not recollect the places. I voted 
the republican ticket^ I got $10 for it; I was intoxicated at the time; I 
do not recollect any conference on the subject with any leading republi¬ 
can. There Avere about 10 of us in company; they all a oted the republi¬ 
can ticket; the others A^oted as often as I did, and perhaps oftenor. 

To the Chairman : 

0974. I have liA^ed a year and a half at the place AAhere I now live; 1 
Avas a conductor on the Broadway railroad—the Greene street line—till 
two days before New Year; I had been there for live months. I told 
nobody about what I kneAv; I saw an advertisement in the pajiers and 
came doAvn.- 

0975. Q. What paper did you see the advertisement in ? 

A. In the Herald. 

0970. Q. MJiat did it state 

A. 1 saw an advertisement about illegal voting. 

0977. Q. How long ago'? 

A. A couple of days after the election. 


632 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, January 13,1869. 

Peter Loftus sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

6978. I live at 108 Thompson street. 1 voted three times at the last 
presidential election; I voted the republican ticket; there may have 
been live or six in the gang; they were all repeaters; they voted the 
same ticket that I did; I voted in the 4th district of the 8th ward, in 
Grand street; that is my proper district; I voted in the 1st district, in 
Greene street, and in the Gth, in Prince street. The names were fur¬ 
nished to me through other hands; I cannot recollect the names. I was 
paid $8; I cannot say who paid it to me. 

To the Chairman : 

6979. I do not know any ])romineut republican that was engaged in 
reiieating or that knew of repeating. 1 did not talk with any republican 
about it. I voted for Grant and Griswold and also for Robinson. I was 
not summoned to come here; I felt it my duty to come; I came with a 
friend of mine, who came to state the same thing; his name is Charles 
McCarthy; he lives in Grand street. I lived at my present place of resi¬ 
dence two weeks; before that I lived at 61 Grand street; I follow the 
seafaring business; I was at sea about a month ago. 

New York, January 13,1869. 

James Allen sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

6980. I live at 659 Hudson street; 1 was engaged last presidential 
election in repeating in the interest of the republican party; there were 
four or five in the company; they were all repeaters; they repeated four 
or five times; I only repeated three times myself; I cannot tell the 
names I voted under; slips, with name and residence, were furnished; 
I knew by sight the men who were voting with me; I did not know 
their names; I have not seen them since the election^ a man named 
Frost paid me $5; I do not know where he lives; I never saw him before 
or since; I have been living at my ju'esent residence 10 or 11 years; I 
was in the butchering business; I have been out of it since January last; 
T was not summoned here as a witness; I came of my own accord. 

New York, January 13,1869. 

Cornelius Doherty sworn and examined, (called at tlie instance of 
Mr. Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

6981. I live at 87 Mercer street; 1 voted eight or nine times at the 
last presidential election; I voted in Perry street, Washington street, 
Hudson street, twice in Prince street, in Fourtli street, near Jay, in 
Crosby street, Greene street, and Spring street; 1 voted for Griswold; 
I voted the full republican ticket; I guess there were 20 or 22 in the 
gang; they all voted the same ticket; some of them voted 18 or 20 
times; I left in the afternoon at 2 o’clock; 1 voted once under the name 
of Williams; that is the only name 1 can recollect; T was promised $25 
for voting, but I did not get it. 


ELECTION FRATOS IN NEW YORK. 


633 


To the Chairman : 

(>982. I was not summoned to come here; I came of my own accord; 
I saw in the Herald that the committee was sitting here j I cannot name 
any prominent republican who knew that repeating was going on; I am 
an iron moulder by trade, but I have been out of business since last 
winter; I have attended bar since then for Jacob Eoome, 87 Mercer 
street; he has been sergeant-at-arms for the common council of this 
city; he Avill not speak to me because I acted with the republican party. 

6983. Q. Is not Eoome a democrat 

A. So they say; but he has got a brother-in-law a republican. I know 
that Eoome voted the republican ticket for sheriff last year. There are 
girls at his place. He keeps a dance-house. I live there with a girl. 

6984. Q. Is she a prostitute 

A. Yes, sir. 

6985. Q. You are one of that sort of men ? 

A. I live with her for my pleasime. 

6986. (5,. Eoome was sergeant-at-arms for the city council? 

A. He is now, I believe. 

6987. Q. And the members of the common council are democrats, 
are they not ? 

A. A great part of them are. 


Kew York, Jamcary 13, 1869. 

Henry A. Gumbleton sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

6988. I am assistant deputy county clerk in the county clerk^s office 
in this city. The county clerk is also the clerk for the sui)reme court. 
I have been in the office nearly four years. 

6989. Q. Wlio signed the name Charles E. Loew, clerk,” to the cer¬ 
tificates of naturalization issued from that court during the year 1868 ? 

A. I suppose John B. McKean signed them. 

6990. Q. Who signed the name of Charles E. Loew to the applications 
and affidavits of witnesses and applicants ? 

A. John B. McKean, Joseph Coach, Edward H. Kent, Isaac Heyman, 
Daniel Scully, and, in a few instances, myself. 

6991. Q. In what room was the name of Charles E. Loew signed to 
the certificates of naturalization ? 

A. In the court room i)roper, where the witnesses appeared. They 
were not signed until the applications were endorsed by the court; then 
the clerk issued the certificates of naturalization. 

6992. Q. Where Avas the name of Charles E. Loew signed to the appli¬ 
cations and affidavits ? 

A. I should say in the large room of the county clerk’s office. It is in 
another building from that where the court-room is. 

6993. Q. Will you furnish to the committee a copy of the appointment 
of deputy county clerk ? 

A. I Avill Avhen I am able to find it; I have not yet been able to find it. 

6994. Q. Do you know that there AAms a written appointment ? 

A. I do. 

6995. Q. Who is the de])uty county clerk ? ' 

A. Edward V. Loew. 

6996. Q. Is there a special deputy county clerk under the hiw regu¬ 
lating special deputies ? 

A. There is not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


()34 

6907. Q. Does the law authorize the ai)])oiiitmeiit of a special deputy V 

A. So I uuderstaiid the law. 

6998. Q. Plas any appointiiieiit of special deputy been made ? 

A. There has not been, to the best of my knowledge. 

6999. Q. Do the other clerks have any written appointments ? 

A. Some of them have. Others, like jnyself, hold over from the pre¬ 
vious county clerk. 

7000. Q. What is Edward Y. Loewis business ? 

A. Deputy county clerk. 

7001. Q. How much time has he devoted to the business of the office 
for the last three months ? 

A. I can state that he has been there, but as to the length of time he 
devoted to the office I cannot say. 

7002. Q. Has he any other business ? 

A. Yes; he is a real estate agent, I believe. 

7003. Q. Has he devoted any considerable time to the clerk^s office, 
or has his time been mainly devoted to the real estate business ? 

A. 1 cannot state as to the latter part of the question, but as to the 
former, he has devoted not an inconsiderable portion of his time to the 
county clerk’s office. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

John Kennell sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

7004. I live at 57 Vesey street; I am one of the firm of Hall & Ken¬ 
nell, hatters; I was inspector of election in the 2d district of the 3d 
ward; there were some 290 odd voters registered there, and some 260 or 
270 polled. 

7005. Q. Do you know Barney Aaron ? 

A. I have seen him. 

7006. Q. What is he ? 

A. He is one of the great prize fighters. 

7007. Q. Did you see him on election day f 

A. I think I did. I saw him in the ward somewhere; where I cannot 
state. 

7008. Q. Did he vote at your i)oll ? 

A. I cannot swear that. His name is not recorded on our iioll-list as 
having voted. If I am not mistaken I saw him in front of our poll-box. 
There were some 25 men with him. 1 cannot say that any of them voted 
there. 

7009. Q. With what political party do you act ? 

A. With none, I guess. 

7010. Q. What ticket did you vote f 

A. I voted a split ticket. 

7011. Q. For whom did you vote for President i 

A. For U. S. Grant for President, and for John T. Hoffman for gover¬ 
nor. I do not know as to the balance of the ticket. I believe I voted 
the straight democratic ticket. I was appointed school trustee last year 
by Mayor Hoffman. 

7012. Q. Do you know Barne^' Aaron’s reputed politics ^ 

A. If you offer him five dollars to vote the democratic ticket and 
another person offers him ten dollars to vote the reiKiblican ticket he 
will vote the republican ticket. That is his iiolitics. I do not believe 
that a man like him has got any principle at all. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


635 


To Mr. Itoss : 

7013. So far as I know, the inspectors of registry and election tried to 
do what was right. There were very few who came there to be registered 
who were not challenged. They all swore in. When a man swears in 
he must be registered. 

By the Chairman : 

7014. State Avhether, toward the close of the polls, a crowd of persons 
came there and Amted on the unappropriated names ? 

A. That Avas not allowed. The clerk had charge of the unappropri¬ 
ated names. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7015. Q. It was not the intention to have it done '? 

A. No, sir. 

7016. Q. And Avas not done, so far as you know ? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

7017. Q. Can you state if there Averemen going about in gangs on the 
day of the iiresidential election ? 

A. I saAv one gang. That Avas with Barney Aaron and some friends 
of his. There Avere 20 or 25 of them. Where they were going or what 
they were doing I do not knoAV. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

Charles 11. Booers SAvorn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7018. Question. What office did you hold at the last election ? 

AnsAver. I Avas inspector of registry and election, in the 8th distinct of 

the 21st Avard. 

7019. Q. Were you present all day on election day ? 

A. Not all day. I Avas arrested the night before and did not get 
released until 12 oYlock that day. 

7020. Q. For what were you arrested f 

A. It Avas said that a man swore that Mr. Jlennis and I knocked him 
down and kicked him in the head. Mr. Dennis and I had not seen each 
other for ten days before; and I had made no assault upon anybody. 
The charge AAms wholly groundless. 

7021. Q. Why were you kept so long in custody^ 

A. I can only conjecture as to that. As soon as 1 Avas arrested 
1 demanded to be taken before Justice Kelley. The officers said they 
would take me there. But as soon as they got me 100 feet from the 
house they both grabbed me and took me to the Second avenue cars and 
to the Eldridge street jail, and there I was locked up. About 10 o’clock 
next morning I was taken before Judge Mansfield. He asked us Avhat 
we had to say to the charge. We told him it Avas Avholly groundless 
and he let us go on our recognizances to jirocure bail. I went and pro¬ 
cured bail and gave it and Avent to the election. 

7022. Q. What are your politics ? 

A. Bepublican. 

7023. Q. Who arrested you % 

A. 1 do not knoAV; they claimed to be deputy sherift's. 

7024. Q. State to what extent you had made challenges Avhile the 
registration Avas going on ? 

• A. 1 challenged quite a number. When these neAv naturalization 
papers came in the democratic inspectors generally turned them o\"er to 
me, saying that if I AAms satisfied, they were. I questioned them and if 


636 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


I considered them too doubtful I challenged them. Some of them swore 
in, and some of them would not swear at all. 

7025. Q. What do you know of threats being made against republican 
inspectors ? 

A. I received an anonymous letter that I must look out or T would be 
arrested. 

7026. Q. What business are you engaged in? 

A. I am inspector of sewers at present. 

7027. Q. Do you know anything of persons being arrested for illegal 
voting? 

A. NTot at the last presidential election. I challenged a man who 
came to vote under the name of Elijah Baker. I told the young man he 
was not Elijah Baker ; as I was acquainted with Elijah Baker, who lived 
in the same house with me. He persisted in voting, and he was sworn 
in and voted. Then I made out a warrant for his arrest and the demo¬ 
cratic inspectors would not sign itj it therefore fell to the ground. 
Another young man came to vote in the name of Frederick Eevers, of 
483 Third avenue, whom I also knew. I told the young man that I was 
acquainted with Frederick Eevers. He persisted that he was the person ,* 
but I cannot really say whether he voted or not. 

7028. Q. State what you know of men going about in gangs on elec¬ 
tion day ? 

A. There were a number of gangs. About 12 o’clock there was quite 
a rush. There had not been any considerable number of votes polled 
for some time, but there came in then at once 25 or 30 men. 1 chal¬ 
lenged some of them. Some of them would not swear their votes in j 
others did. In the afternoon there was another rush • and then, about 
three minutes before the polls closed, there was a large rush—so many 
that only two or three got their votes in, because there was not time. 

7029. Q. Can you state what ticket the men composing these gangs 
voted ? 

A. By the endorsement on the tickets, tliey were mostly democratic. 
1 do not recollect taking a republican ticket from one of these gangs. I 
may have done it. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7030. Q. Have you any knowledge of any illegal votes having been 
given at your polling place? 

A. Only that one given in the name of Elijah Baker of 242 East 
Thirty-fifth street—the house where I live. I saw Elijah Baker after 
election, and he told me he did not vote that day. I cannot swear that 
there were any other illegal votes cast. Most of the voting was done 
before I got there. All the names that I had checked on my register 
iis doubtful (10 or 15) had been voted before I got there. 

7031. Q. How many persons were at the i)olls when they were closed 
who could not get in their votes ? 

A. In the last rush that came I should think there were from 16 to 
20. It wanted about three minutes of the time to close the polls, and I 
think that only about six or eight voted. There may have been 10 or 
12 who could not get their votes in. 

Hew York, Jamiary 13, 1869. 

Adam Gillespie recalled. 

To the Chairman : 

7032. I am assistant naturalization clerk in the superior court. Joseph 
Meeks is the deputy clerk. I am not aware that there is any sjiecial 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 637 

deputy clerk. There are six of us altogether. Thomj^sou and I are 
assistant naturalization clerks. The others are docket clerks. 

7033. Q. Who signed the name of Janies M. Sweeney, clerk, to the 
certificates of naturalization issued from the superior court during the 
year 1868 ? 

A. I was in the hahit of signing them up to about the 1st of October. 
From the 1st of October to the 23d of October Joseph Meeks signed them. 
On ordinary occasions it is Thompson’s business and mine to sign them. 
At present we do so, under the authority of Mr. Sweeney. 

7034. Q. Did Meeks sign any certificates of naturalization till the first 
of October? 

A. I rather think not. 

7035. Q. In what room did Meeks sign the name of Sweeney to the 
certificates? 

A. There were several rooms—first, the chamber of tiie board of 
aldermen; next, the cliamber of the board of councilmen; and next, in 
what is called the old sheriff’s office. Tlie court was not held in any of 
these rooms. 

7036. Q. State if you signed any certificates of naturalization in the 
room where the court was held. 

A. Not during the month of October. Prior to that we signed them 
in room 18, City Hall; not in the room where the court was held. 

7037. Q. Who signed the name of James M. Sweeney, clerk, to the 
applications of naturalization ? 

A. They were signed by six or eight of us—by Syl. Nolan; Tom. Ben¬ 
nett, John A. Thompson, O. E. NcNearney, Edward Keeffe, and myself. 

7038. Q. In what room were they signed? 

A. Generally in room 18; and in the evenings we all assembled together 
ill the chamber of the board of aldermen, and signed them. 

7039. Q. None of them were signed in the room occupied by the court ? 

A. No, sir. 

New York, January 13, 1869. 

7040. William Ward, called by Mr. Eoss, being sworn, testified that 
he had inquired for John Hughes, at 25 Elizabeth Street; for Edward 
Clark, at 46 Essex street; for John Kagle, at 6 Pike street; for Charles 
Ferguson, at 16 Elizabeth street; and for James Smith, at 163 Greene 
street, (the persons named having been witnesses to prove repeating and 
having given those addresses as their respective residences,) and that no 
such persons resided or were known at any of the places indicated. 

7041. Witness, in reply to the chairman, stated that he was an officer 
of the superior court, appointed by the four judges of that court. None 
of the judges liad talked with liiin about this matter. He had been 
merely sent as a messenger. 


New Y^ork, January 13, 1869. 

John Heath sworn and examined. 

To the Chairman : 

7042. I live at 34 Gouverneur street. I voted the democratic ticket at 
the last presidential election, at 68 East Broadway, and in Canal street 
twice. There were about 25 in the party, and they all voted, 1 suppose, 
a couple of times. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

7043. I voted four times. I met the party about 11 o’clock, and got 
drunk about 3 o’clock. I voted on slips given to me. I do not know the 



638 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


man wlio gave them to me. I suppose lie was a democrat. The whole 
crowd was drunk. Two or three of them were fighting drunk.’^ I am 
22 years of age. I was born in this country. I never repeated^’ before. 
I was promised money or I would not have done it. I got no money. 
My father is a republican. If I had not been drunk I would have voted 
the republican ticket. I have been over to Jersey City and made a 
statement. I got nothing for it, and do not expect to get anything. I 
have been living at 34 Gouverneur street for two years. 1 am a printer. 
I am not working at present. I worked last at 41 Centre street, with 
Mr. Stiidolf. I have never been convicted of any criminal offence. I 
do not make a regular practice of gambling. I never made anything by 
gambling, and never had much to lose. I worked in StudolTs printing 
office 18 months. 


New York, January 13, 1869. 

WiLLiABi Iv. W. Chambers sworn and examined, (called at the instance 
of Mr. Eoss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

7044. Question. Are you acquainted with M. B. Leverson, who has 
been a witness before this committee 

Answer. I have known him for some time back. I Avas employed 
in the city inspector’s department, and he used to be in and out of the 
office. I always kneAv him as Lawyer LeA^erson. 

7045. Q. Do you knoAv his general reputation for truth and veracity? 

A. Yes; his general reputation is bad. 

7046. Q. From that general reputation would you believe him under 
oath? 

A. No, siiq I would not. 

By the Chairman : 

7047. Q. With what political party do you act? 

A. The democratic. 

7048. Q. Hoay long have you known Mr, LeA^erson? 

A. I was in the city inspector’s department 11 years, in one position, 
and he Avas in the habit of coming in, two or three years prior to the 
abolition of the department, which was in 1866. I have knoAvn him five 
years by general reputation. I never had any personal conversation 
Avith him. I never heard anybody outside of the city inspector’s depart¬ 
ment speak of his reputation for truth. We used to call him “shyster” 
there. I am in Sheriff' O’Brien’s office as clerk. 1 have been there 
about five days. The sheriff never spoke a aa ord to me on the subject 
of this testimony. 

7049. Q. Do you knoAv Mr. Leverson’s handAvriting? 

A. No, sir; I never saw it to ray knoAvledge. 

7050. Q. Do you knoAV that Mr. Le\Trson is a scientific gentleman, to 
whom a book has been dedicated in these words; A Montayue Richard 
Leversoiiy au courageux defenseur du droi% le prosm'it; h Vhomme loyal 
et genereux: Vami au penseur Uhre. I?Auteur. 

(Question objected to by Mr. Boss; objection overruled.) 

A. I do not knoAv Mr. Leverson in connection Avith any book. 

7051. Q. How long back have you knoAAm Mr. Leverson? 

A. About a year before the city inspector’s office Avas abolished. That 
was in 1866. 

7052. Q. Are you sure you knew him in the year 1865? 

A. Yes, sir; he was in and out of the office in 1865. 


ELECTION FRArOS IN NEW YORK. G39 

7053. Q. Do yon not know that he was in Enj^land dnrino- the whole 

ofl86r)f 

A. Xo, sir ; I do not know ahytliing about it. 

7054. Q. Do you not know that Charles Francis Adams, our minister 
to England, employed him in the service of the Union cause during the 
whole of 1865 ? 

A. 1 do not. 


jMew York, January 14, 1869. 

Marcus C. Stanley sworn and examined. 

Bif tlie Chairman : 

7055. Question. AVliere do you reside ? 

Answer. No. 226 West TJiirty-ninth street. 

7056. Q. State if you had any interview with Marshal Murray at the 
Fifth Avenue Hotel, with David Hogan, John Jones, Hiram D. Fm guson 
or either of them, a week or two before the last presidential eleclfon in 
this city, or about that time ? 

A. I have not spoken to Marshal Miuray since he sent me to Fort 
Lafayette, in 1864 or 1865, nor have I had any communication with him, 
directly or indirectly, iqion any subject whatever. I have no recollection 
of those other names, and I have had no interview with such persons to 
my knowledge. I certainly never had any business with them. 

7057. Q. State if you were at the Fifth Avenue Hotel with George 
Wilkes, editor of the Spirit of the Times, about that time 

A. I saw Mr. Wilkes several times at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, but 
never in company with either of those persons or with Marshal Murray. 

7058. Q. State if any arrangement was made, to your knowledge, at 
the Fifth Avenue Hotel, or at the Hoffman House, by you, or Marshal 
Murray, or George Wilkes, or either of you, with any of those persons 
named, or with any other person, in reference to repeating,’’ as it is 
termed ? 

A. Never. 

7059. Q. State if you saw any money paid at the Hoffman House, or 
if you know of any money having been paid by a man with black whis¬ 
kers, or by any other man, to Hogan, Jones, or Ferguson, or to any other 
person, prior to the last presidential election, in connection with or about 
the business of repeating. 

A. Never. 

7060. Q. What was the condition of the health of George Wilkes 
prior to the presidential election ? 

A. Some two weeks previous to the election Mr. Wilkes was seized 
with violent vertigo. He consulted Dr. Mott and Dr. Flint as to his 
mental and physical condition and was prohibited from all excitement, 
even from reading the newspapers. I saw him daily. Frequently when 
I called he was not in a condition to converse with me upon matters 
relating even to his own private affairs. 

7061. Do you know to what extent he went out during the day, or 
at night, after he was attacked with this disease ? 

A. We rode every fine day in the park, but he went out very rarely 
of an evening. 

7062. Q. Where is he now f 

A. On the 28th of December he was in Paris. 

7063. Q. Did you see any money paid to David Hogan at the Hoffman 
House, or at any other place, prior to the presidential election? 

A. I did not, T do not know any such person. 



640 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7064. Q. State wlietlier you had any conversation with any of these 
persons upon the subject of repeating prior to the presidential election 

A. I had no conversation with these persons upon that subject. 

7065. Q. With which political party have you been generally in the 
habit of acting 7 

A. I belong to no political party, to no association or ward committee. 
I have not been to a political meeting for 11 years. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7066. Q. You say you are not much of a party man ? 

A. Not by any means; I vote for a democrat, if I like him. 1 voted 
for John T. Hoffman last election, and I voted for A. Oakey Hall, both 
democrats, and I voted for the republican electors. 

7067. Q. What connection have you with the republican organization 
in this city 

A. None whatever. 

7068. Q. What was it that Marshal Murray had you in prison for ? 

A. The charge was that I was causing soldiers to be mustered from 

one regiment into another to the detriment of the public service. I have 
never seen the affidavit upon which my arrest was based, xlll I know 
is that 1 was sent to Fort Lafayette and was discharged after the exam¬ 
ination, and had a letter from Mr. Seward regretting the mistake that 
he had made in tapping his little bell. 

7069. Q. Do you know whether Marshal Murray had any authority 
to arrest you ? 

A. I do not know that he had ; I guess that he is in the habit of exer¬ 
cising a little authority j I souglit to learn, but was never able to ascer¬ 
tain. 

7070. Q. How long did he keep you there? 

A. Nine days. 

By the Chairman : 

7071. Q. Do you know of any republicans who were engaged in repeat¬ 
ing at the last j^residential election ? 

A. I do not. 

7072. Q. Do you know of any person being employed, authorized or 
requested to repeat at the last presidential election by a republican ? 

A. No, sir j nor by a democrat either. 

7073. Q. State if you are acquainted with James Gorrey, a canvasser 
in the 15th district of the 18th ward. 

A. I think I Avas introduced to a man of that name at the police head- 
(piarters in Mulberry street by Scannell previous to the election. 

7074. Q. State if you asked him his politics. 

A. I did not. 

7075. Q. State if you said anything to him about making a mistake in 
counting up the Amtes. 

A. My conversation Avas not upon that subject at all. 

7076. Q. State Avhat offers of money you made to him. , 

A. I made no offers to him; he asked a faAmr from me. 

7077. Q. State if at any time you made a request of Florence Scannell 
that he should register names for republicans to vote on ? 

A. No, sir. 

7078. Q. State if Scannell made any request about getting (?anA assers 
appointed in his interest ? 

A. He handed me two names upon a paper, one of Avhich, I believe, 
Avas Gorrey. I took the names and went to Mr. Manuierre, one of the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


641 


police commissioners. These men were not appointed. Scannell gave 
me these two names upon a paper, and refiuested that I would have 
them appointed as canvassers, with a promise that if I did so a nnmher 
of men whom lie had registered should not vote. I asked him his 
object. He said he wanted the canvassers for his election in December 
as assistant alderman. He wanted the Tammany Hall nomination, 
which had been refused him, and then he wanted to run on a» independ¬ 
ent ticket. I i>resented those names to Mr. Mannierre. He declined to 
appoint them, upon the ground that they were indicted in Philadelphia, 
having been carried there by Scannell to vote at the October election. 
I returned to Scannell with that message from Mr. Mannierre, and said, 
in his familiar way: “Boss, you must get me out of this thing, because 
1 have got to go to Philadelphia every spring to buy horses.” 

By Mr. Boss: 

7079. Q. What benefit was to accrue to the republican party from this 
arrangement ? 

A. He was to vote for the republican assemblyman in that district, 
to beat Jim Irving, whom he had previously shot in a bar-room fight. 

7080. Q. Was he, or not, to vote the entire republican ticket? 

A. N'o, sir; I had no such understanding with him. I was simjily 
obliging him, as I have frequently done upon many other occasions. 

7081. Q. Whom did jmu vote for for President? 

A. I voted for the republican electors. 

7082. Q. Did jmu promise this man that you would trj^ and get such 
canvassers as he suggested appointed? 

A. The best evidence that I did so is that I took the names that he 
offered me and went and solicited their appointment. 

7083. Q. Do you know of his having any conference with any other 
republicans to have canvassers appointed in his interest, or in the inter¬ 
est of the republican party? 

A. I have never been present at any interview between Scannell and 
other reimblicans. I have seen him speaking to republicans at the Fifth 
Avenue Hotel, but I do not know the subject of the conversation. 

7084. Q. Was he not running at that time with the republicans, as 
against the regular Tammany nominee, the republicans supporting him? 

A. No, sir ; he was supporting the democratic nominee, but his per¬ 
sonal hostility to Irving, and the refusal of the democratic party to give 
him canvassers that he thought he was entitled to as a councilman, made 
him hostile. 

7085. Q. Were the republicans sympathizing with and aiding him? 

A. They were willing to do so. 

7086. Q. State whether you savr him in frequent conferences with lead¬ 
ing republicans. 

A. I do not think I did; I have seen him in a miscellaneous crowd in 
and around the Fifth Avenue Hotel. 

7087. Q. Were you at the Fifth Avenue Hotel an evening or two before 
the election, when the registry books were brought in and examined? 

A. I was there almost every evening. 

7088. Q. Do you recollect the night when the registry books were 
brought in ?• 

A. There was a room appointed for that purpose, but not being an 
inspector or canvasser, I do not know anything about it. 

7089. Q. Did you get to see these registry books at the Fifth Avenue 

I Hotel ? . 

41 T 



642 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I never examined any books there. 

7090. Q. Do you know they were there ^ 

A. I know that what puiported to be copies of the registry were 
there 5 my impression is that the originals were left at police headquar¬ 
ters ; I went there to examine them. 

7091. Q. Were they not also at the Fifth Avenue HoteH 

A. NTot that I am aware of j I understood those to be copies. 

New York, January 14, 18G9. 

Henry E. S^veetzer recalled. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

7092. Question. State whether you have examined those tables made 
by General Foster which I presented to you. 

Answer. Yes, I have examined them. They seem to be accurate so 
far as the calculation goes. I fail to see that they prove anything what¬ 
ever. 

7093. Q. State if you know of any cause why there should be a very 
considerable increase in the vote of the city of New York at the last 
presidential election 

A. Yes, sir; two causes. One is a very large influx of people from 
the south, which is estimated at from 10,000 to 30,000; it might be 
20,000, I have no means of knowing accurately; and the other is the 
large number of people entitled to naturalization since the war, people 
who had not been naturalized during the war on account of their liability 
to be drafted. 

7094. Q. How was it in regard to those people who had come here 
under 18 years of age; did they postpone naturalization on account of 
the war? 

A. That I do not know. I know that a great many failed in being 
naturalized during the war on account of their liability to be drafted; 
and when the w^ar w^as over, of course there was an end to that appre¬ 
hension. 


New York, January 14,18G9. 

John J. McMullen sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7095. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. No. G7 Grand street. 

709G. Q. State what you know of persons registering on false names 
prior to the last presidential election in this city. 

A. On the first registering day I was going down Cortlandt street, near 
the corner of Washington, when I met a young man, whom I recognized 
as Matthew Strip ; he keeps a grocery store in Albany street. He re¬ 
quested me to go in and register. I stated that I did not belong to that 
district. He said it made no difference. I went in and registered under 
the name of J. J. Mullen, of 15G Greenwich street. The registering 
clerk knew me, and knew that I did not reside there. He gave me a 
wink that it was all right. His name is Michael Loftus. He keeps a 
livery stable in Washington street, between Liberty and Cedar. While 
I was in there, some 18 or 20 persons came in with papers and regis¬ 
tered from 41 Yesey street. The other clerk, who was opposed to it, 
passed an insinuation that it must be a very large house, as some 40 had 
already registered from there. I came out "from there about G o’clock in 
the evening, and was requested to go down to Washington street, near 
Albany, where they were registering. There I registered again. I met 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


643 


Strip again there, and Dennis Hogan, brother of the Police Justice 
Edward Hogan; they asked me if I had registered there yet. I told 
them no; they told me to go in. I asked what number I would give; 
they told me to give 117 Washington street. I Avent in and registered, 
and then Hogan said it was all right. I made a mistake and gave the 
nnmber as 113 Washington street, and Strip went in and told the land¬ 
lord there. From there I went with Strip and Hogan to 31 GreeiiArich 
street and registered there, giving my residence as No. 8 Washington 
street. Then I went to Patrick Moore’s, brother to Alderman John 
Moore, and had a drink. I had to vnite there the names and places that 
I had registered under, and gave the memorandnin to the bartender and 
he put it behind the bar for future reference. Then I stalled up town, 
and informed Captain Pettit, of the liftli precinct, that Alderman Moore 
was issuing naturalization papers, and requested him to send Detective 
Field to seize them. Alderman Moore in my presence issued out, I sup¬ 
pose, OA^er 200 naturalization x)M^ers, taking tliem two by two out of a 
cigar box. He Avonld draw the men aside and instruct them, and told 
them that the judge (meaning Judge Hogan) was there to protect them, 
and that they could get into no trouble. Hogan saw me registering there, 
although he knew that I liA^ed in the 8th Avard. He saiv me registering 
again at 101 CreenAvich street, and he said nothing. 

7097. Q. How many persons Avere engaged in registering at the time 
you speak of? 

A. The street was crowded Avith men waiting for their turn to come- 
in, long-shore men, steamboat men, farmers and greenhorns. The^^ got 
a few glasses of drink and were instructed that on election day they 
were to get $2 apiece for every time they voted. 

7098. Q. Where were the headquarters of the gang that you belonged’ 
to ? 

A. There were two- headquarters; one at Morris PoAver’s, in Albany 
street, between Greenwich and Washington; and the other, I think, 
was at 57 Greenwich street, Alderman Moore’s place. PoAver is married 
to the alderman’s sister. 

7099. Q. How many gangs Avere there at these headquarters ? 

A. I went in one gang of ten, in another of seven, and in another of 
four or five. The alderman told me two places in the 2d ward aa here 
I could register. I told him I did not knoAv the names or numbers, and 
he said he would fix that for me. They would go into a building where 
they k lie AY anybody, and Avould tell the people there to say that so-and- 
so boarded Avith them ; and Avhen an ofdcer Avent to inquire Aidiether a 
person who had registered did reside there, they would always ansAver 
yes. I registered twice under the name of MiUer, and twice under the 
name of Mullen. I registered altogether ten times. The names I do not 
recollect, but they were written doAAUi and SAVorn to at police headquar¬ 
ters. I registered under the names of Murphy, Morgan, Moran, Gannon 
and Gray. I went with a gang of 18 from Allen’s place up to the 15th 
Avard to register. We all registered from a hotel up there. I took one 
man’s name Avho had registered from the same place last year, and the 
clerk looked at the registry book and said: ‘‘That man voted last year; 
it is all right;” no questions were asked; I Avent back to the hotel and 
had some more drinks, and I gave the bartender there also the list of 
our names. Then I registered in King street. No. 7, near Sullivan, giv- 
ino’ the name of J. J. Mullen, and giving my residence as 54 Sullivan 
street, AA hich is a lager-beer saloon. John O’Neill Avas the clerk there. 
He knew me, and kneA^ that I did not reside there. The other clerk was 
Charles Fairchild. I gave this statement to Inspector Wallen at police 
headquarters. Mr. Marsh, the stenographer, wrote it out. 


G44 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7100. Q. AVliat are the politics of Matthew Strip, Dennis ITogan, Police 
Justice Hogan, Patrick Moore, and Alderman Moore? 

A. They are democrats. 

7101. Q. In the interest of which political party was this registration 
being made ? 

A. The democratic party. 

7102. Q. State if any violence has been threatened to you by reason of 
your having communicated these facts to police headquarters ? 

A. Hot many nights ago my wife and I were walking along near Sulli¬ 
van street, in Broome street, and I got a blow that knocked me senseless. 
I heard a voice singing out: ‘‘That is the son of a bitch who sold us! 
kill him! kill him!” My wife screeched “murder!” two colored women 
threw themselves on the top of me, and two colored boys shouted “mur¬ 
der!” I do not know where the police were. When I came to I ran to 
the station-house. My wife lost her hat and cloak. They knocked her 
down for ho^^'ling, and it appeared that these colored women were the 
only persons to save me. I went up in the morning and made a com- 
l>laint against Higgins and his brother, and several other i)ersons whose 
faces I recognized. I thought I saw’ a knife, but I have been since 
informed it was a revolver. I know^ there is a hole in my hat,* but 
whether it wms made by a bullet, or by a knife, I do not know. I w’ent 
to Police Justice Dodge in the morning, and stated the case to him just 
as it occurred. He told me to go to Judge Dowding, at the Tombs, as I 
lived in the 5th precinct. I went to Judge Dowding, and he told me to 
clear out. 

7103. Q. What are his politics ? 

A. He is a democrat; so is Dodge. Then I went down to the district 
attorney’s office. There w^ere two clerks in there and Mr. Gunning S. 
Bedford, now’ city judge. I stated the case to them, and they told me 
that if Dodge and Dowding took no notice of it they would not. I told 
them I would appeal to the public for protection. I came up and went 
into the Hews office to have a statement written out, but they would not 
l^iiblish it, and would not have anything to do w ith it. I am registered 
at 1)0 Amity street; as Owen Gannon at 233 Thompson street; at 32 
Grand street as Edw’ard F. Mullen, residing at 403 Canal street; I am 
registered in Prince street, between Wooster and Greene, in the name 
of Jas. Gray, residing at 93 Prince street, and other idaces I forget; but 
the list of them is up at police headquarters. 

7104. Q. State if any of those men engaged in this false registration 
have been indicted or punished, to your knowdedge. 

A, I do not know that any of them have been. 

By Mr, Boss: 

7105. Q. How long have you been living at G7 Grand street? 

A. A w^eek yesterday; I have had to move three times from those 
parties wdio followed me. 

7100, Q. Where did you live before that ? 

A. At Ho. 4 Yarick street. 

7107, Q. What is your business? 

A. I am a canvasser for Mr. Purrington, 28 Barclay street, for a patent 
carpet sweeper. 

7108, Q. Have you ever been engaged in any other business? 

A. Yes; I have been a canvasser for another company. I have lived 
in this city 28 years. I was born in Ireland. I never have been natur¬ 
alized. I never voted but once. I did not vote last election at all. 

7109, Q. Did you know it w’as unlawful to register in that way? 

A. Yes. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


645 


7110. Q. Wliat made you do itt 

A. To get in with these parties, and to find out what kind of a swindle 
was going on, in order that I might expose them. 

7111. Q. Who put you up to do this 

A. Superintendent of police John A. Kennedy; he told me to find out 
all that 1 could. 

7112. Q, When did Kennedy tell you this? 

A. He told me on Sunday morning before the election; it was too late 
then to capture those papers. 

7113. Q. Did you see Kennedy the second time ? 

A. Yes, sir; I was five hours in the building, while they were taking 
my statement. 

7114. Q. What did Kennedy tell you to do? 

A. He gave Inspector Walling instructions to take me in hand, and 
furnish me with money to go and obtain those papers from those parties. 
I went into a house in Hudson street, Mitchell’s place, where I under¬ 
stood papers were being given out. Whether the i)arties suspected 
something or not, I do not know; but they said I had been registered 
often enough, and that they did not want me any more. They said I had 
put in 10 votes, and that I would realize $20 on it. I got from Inspector 
Walling, at police headquarters, $10 to S])end with these parties and to 
get all the information I could. I told Walling that if I had some 
money I could procure information where there were 400 or 500 of those 
naturalization papers stored away; that I could get those parties tight 
and sift it out, and that he could send down a force and seize upon the 
papers. 

7115. Q. Was that the first conference you had with Kennedy? 

A. Ko; it Avas the second. 

7110. Q. When had you the first ? 

A. On Sunday morrning before the election; I had the second the next 
day. 

7117. Q. Where did you see him that day? 

A. At police headquarters. 

7118. Q. Did he send for you ? 

A. Ko; I was ordered to come up next morning. I did not spend 10 
minutes with Kennedy at that time; he sent me up stairs in the reporter’s 
room. 

7119. Q. What other money did you get? 

A. Kot a cent. 

7120. Q. How much were you to have ? 

A . I was hot to have anything; I Acas neA^er offered anything. I asked 
for the loan of $5 up there, and they would not give it to me. 

7121. Q. Which other republicans did you have a talk with in regard 
to this matter ? 

A. I never had a talk with anybody. 

7122. Q. Hoav did you come here ? 

A. I read an account in the Kcav York Herald the other day about the 
investigation of this committee, and I came to Marslial Murray and 
asked him if he did not recollect AAdien I came to him and offered to A\mrk 
this thing up for a little money. As I was a caiiAmsser I could get into 
the confidence of ’long-shore men by giving them a few glasses of rot- 
gut, and could coax them and ascertain were the papers Avere. 

7123. Q. Did Marshal Murray recollect the talk you had with him ? 

A. He did. 

7124. Q. Did he recollect ghing you money ? 

A. He did not giA^e me any. That conversation was four or five days 


646 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


after tlie election. He said lie bad no money appropriated from Wasb- 
ington. 

7125. Q. Wbat did be say about tbe prospect of getting some ? 

A. I do not recollect that be said anytbing. He said be bad been 
enougli out of pocket already, and be would not be any more out of 
pocket. He said if tbe autborities would not give bim money to inves¬ 
tigate tliis tiling, be was not going to investigate it out of bis own pocket. 

712G. Q. AYliat encouragement did be give you about getting money 
in future'? 

A. He did not give me any. I dropped tbe subject and never went 
near bim until yestei day. He asked me wby I was not bere before, and 
told me to go np to police beadquarters and see Inspector Walling. I 
saw Inspector Walling last nigbt, and met bim down bere tliis morning. 

7127. Q. Did you liave any talk with tbe marsbal tbis morning ? 

A. No, sir. Tbe inspector instructed me not to tell anytbing but tbe 
plain facts, so that there could be no contradiction. He told me to be 
very careful and very cautious, and to tell nothing but tbe truth, but to 
take my time and deliberate upon it, so that I would not make any mis¬ 
take. 

7128. Q. Wbo told you that this morning ? 

A. Inspector Walling. 

7120. Q. Did you have any talk with Mr. Kennedy to-day I 

A. No, sir. 

7130. Q. Or with Marshal Murray? 

A. No, sir. He called me in this morning, and told me to sit down and 
wait, as the inspector would be down very soon. I sat down in the pub¬ 
lic room. 

7131. Q. How long have been knovm by the name of Mullen? 

A. I never bad any other name that I know of. 

7132. Q. How many times have yon been convicted of criminal offence? 

A. I have been convicted twice; that is all I recollect. 

7133. Q. No more tlian twice? 

A. I have been convicted twice for assault and battery and twice for 
petty larceny. 

7131. Q. AVbat was tbe punisbment for the assault and battery? 

A. One month in the Tombs the first time, and two montbs tbe second 
time. 

7135. Q. AVben were you convicted first of larceny ? 

A. In 1800. 

7130. Q. Wliat did you steal that time ? 

A. I did not steal anytbing. 1 was a city messenger, and got a package 
to deliver; I lost my receipt-book, and got intoxicated, and was brought 
to the Tombs. They tried me seven different times in the court, and each 
time remanded me. I told the judge at last that if I was innocent he 
should discharge me, and if I was guilty he should punish me, and he 
gave me six months in the penitentiary for my impudence. 

7137. Q. What did you steal the other time? 

A. There uus a ])oor girl in Hudson street living a life of prostitution, 
and sbe applied to me to get her clothes from the washwoman to go home. 
When I went for them the washwoman was out; and 1 shoved the door 
in and took the giiTs clothes and went and pawned them, and then 
started with my Avife to give the girl the $2 I had raised in the paAvn 
office. It Avas for stealing these clothes I was competed; it Avas the 
Avrong clothes I took. My Avife was arrested for it, and I went up and 
said it was I Avho took the goods, and they let my wife go and held on 
to me. 

7138. Q. You were conAucted of larceny at that time ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


647 


A. ir6s. 

7139. Q. You were tried by a jury ? 

A. Yes. 

7140. Q. And found guilty ? 

A. Yes; of petty larceny. 

7141. Q. Wbat was your sentence ? 

A. Six montlis’ imprisonment, and $100 fine. 

7142. Q. Did you serve out your six months? 

A. Yes. 

7143. Q. How long Rave you been in the penitentiary altogether? 

A. About two years. 

7144. Q. And how long at the Tombs ? 

A. I suppose about three months. 

7145. Q. Are these the only times you have been arrested ? 

A. The only times. 

7140. Q. You have been engaged in a good many such things? 

A. jS^o, sir-, I have always borne a good reputation. 

7147. Q. You now sustain a good reputation in the city of Kew York? 
A. Yes, sir 5 and I hope to continue so. 

7148. Q. Are you moving in the best society? 

A. ]No, sir. 

7149. Q. But you have a good reputation ? 

A. Yes. 

7150. Q. An unblemished one ? 

A. Yes. 

7151. Q. You did not think there was anjdhing particularly wrong 
about registering ? 

A. Yes,- I knew it was wrong, but my intentions were good. I did 
not intend to vote. 

7152. Q. Who induced you to go into registering? 

A. The first who induced me was Strip. 

7153. Q. Did Strip gh e you anything for it ? 

A. 17o, sir. 

7154. Q. How long have you known Strii> ? 

A. Since I was a baby. 

7155. Q. You and Strip are old cronies? 

A. Yes. 

7156. Q. Was Strip ever in the penitentiary with you? 

A. hTo, sir. He was always an honest, hard-working boy, and he 
maintains a good reputation. 

7157. Q. Had he ever done anything for you? 

A. No. 

7158. Q. How came you to be accommodating to Strip? 

A. I did it so as to get into the secrets of the parties. 

7159. Q. Do you know what party Strip belongs to? 

A. Yes; he belongs to the democratic party. 

7160. Q. What party do you belong to ? 

A. I do not belong to any that I know of. I hardly know the differ¬ 
ence between a democrat and a reiiublican. 

7161. Q. That is the only inducement you liad ? 

A. Dennis Hogan induced me, and so did his brother; and James 
Dolan, who keeps a large liquor store on the corner of Thompson and 
Amity streets, came with me, and gave me a name and number, and 
took me to the place and had me registered in Amity street. Eighteen 
of that gang were all registered. James Dolan is a notorious character 
and a i)rofessional thief. 


648 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


71G2. Q. Do you associate with men of that character f 

A. No, sir. 

7163. Q. You feel above that ? 

A. Yes. 

7164. Q. What kind of a thief are you ? 

A. I am no thief. I never stole the worth of that paper that I know 
of. When I get intoxicated 1 am unconscious of what I am doing, and 
I do anything. 

7165. Q. A man who only steals a few times is not a professional thief 
in New York ? 

A. A man who does not make a living by it is not a professional thief. 

7166. Q. Do you really think that anybody should pay attention to 
what you say'? 

A. I give my affidavit and run the risk, and no man can contradict it. 

By the Chaieman : 

7167. Q. After you had been registered in the way you have stated, 
you saw Superintentent Kennedy ? 

A. Yes. 

7168. Q. How did you happen to see liim after you registered 

A. I went first to the 5th ward station-liouse, and told Captain Petty 
how these parties were working. He told me to wait till Detective Field 
would come in, and he would send him with me. I waited for a whole 
day, but Field did not come. Then I went to the 3d ward station-house 
and notified Captain TJllmann. He told me I had better start up to 
l)olice headquarters and notify Superintendent Kennedy. Then I went 
to police headquarters. I started down to Moore^s and had a drink there. 
While I was in there, Alderman Moore, brother to Patrick Moore, came 
running in and said, ^‘Some God damned son of a bitch has been up 
and told Captain Ullmann that we were issuing papers by the liimdred 
to all who came along.^’ The alderman then rushed in behind the bar 
and grabbed hold of a cigar box where the papers were kept. I was sitting 
at a round table in the Ijack room, where I suppose there were over 200 
of us. He iq)set a table in his haste to get ui) stairs with these natural¬ 
ization papers, and ran up stairs, and I immediately sneaked. The 
alderman’s brother said, “If I knew the son of a bitch who did that he 
would not leave the Axard with his life.” I knew then it was Cai^tain 
Ullmann who gaA^e me aAvay. I went up to accuse him to his face. I 
said to the officers there, “He has been down there and betrayed the 
whole secret, and I am going up to police headquarters to make a com¬ 
plaint against him.” I started to the 8th a\ ard station-house, but I could 
get nobody to assist me. I then went ui) to police headquarters and 
saw Superintendent Kennedy, and a reporter Avrote doAAui my statement, 
and I swore to it. 

7169. Q. Then you had no communication with Superintendent Ken¬ 
nedy until after the registry ? 

A. No, sir. 


New Yoek, January 14, 1869. 

John H. White recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

7170. Question. State if you know Larry Farrell, alias Win, Pierce. 
Answer. I do. 

7171. Q. What interA iews have you had with him recently ? 

A. I have had quite a number of interAiews with him within the last 
month j not any, hoAA'ever, Anthin the last Tavo Aveeks. He called ui>ou 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


649 


me at my office, first in company witli a young man named Weiss. Weiss 
I had known some few weeks, but tliis man. Pierce or Farrell, I had never 
known previously to that time. He desired to inform me that he was 
privy to election frauds; that he knew of parties who had been called 
‘‘repeaters;” that they had procured their tickets and their names at a 
certain headquarters; and he went on and gave an exxdanation of what 
he knew. He said he had four men under his charge who were repeaters, 
and that he could prove by them that they procured their fictitious 
names from Sherift O’Brien; that he was present when O’Brien gave the 
names to be registered upon at Jackson Hall; that although these parties 
were not willing voluntarily to be witnesses, still, if I would have them 
arrested, they would, using his own term, “squeal,” and tell all about it. 
1 told him I would take the matter into consideration. I think he 
called ux)on me as many as ten times after that, at my office, at my house, 
and at various other i)laces, wanting to make the arrangement, but 
desiring to be paid a certain sum of money, I think $150, as he said, to 
cover his time and exi)enses. I made inquiries, then, into the character 
of the man, and I found that he was a disreputable person, and had a 
bad reputation, and I told the gentlemen who were, acting with me not 
to have anything to do with him, and I dismissed him myself. That is, 
substantially, all that transpired with this man Farrell. He stated that 
he had actually expended for the board of those persons some $25 or 
$30, and as he had been kept in abeyance somewhat by my oavu action, 
I thought it was not imxmoper that he should be reimbursed. 

7172. Q. You have testified in relation to an alleged interview between 
yon and Gilford & Darling, on the sidewalk, near the Union League club 
house, in this city, which interview is alleged by them to have taken 
place two weeks ago last Tuesday night. State where you were that 
night at the time of the alleged interview. 

A. Two weeks ago last Tuesday, in the afternoon, I had a meeting of 
I^ew York merchants, creditors of a party, who met respecting a failure. 
I should think there were at least 40 gentlemen present at 3 o’clock in 
the afternoon. The interGew continued until it was so dark that they 
adjourned in consequence of the darkness. It was held at my office, 109 
Broadway, corner of Cortlandt street, xlfter the meeting had substan¬ 
tially adjourned, two or three of the party remained talking over the events 
of the afternoon, and it was not until near 8 o’clock that I left my office to 
go ui^ town to my home. I think that about a quarter before 8 o’clock I 
took a Sixth avenue car at the Astor House, and went to my house, 32 
West Thirty-fifth street. I reached there, I should think, about 20 minutes 
past 8 o’clock, and did not leave my house that night. 1 have not been at 
the Union League club rooms but twice since Christmas. A week ago 
last Tuesday evening, about 7J o’clock, I went to the Union League 
club rooms from the direction of Fifth avenue, crossing along the Park 
and Madison avenue. As I got about midway across Madison avenue 
I overtook Sherift* O’Brien and bid him good evening, and he returned 
the salutation. We passed on to the front of the Union League entrance, 
on Twenty-sixth street. I said, “Well, sherift*, you had better come in 
here, and we will make a good republican of yon.” He remarked that 
it was too late. I said to him in badinage, “You had better come in.” 
He said he guessed not to-nigl^t. We bid each other good niglit, and 
he passed on, and I went to the club. 1 have not been there since that 
time. He was the only man whom I ever met outside of the club-rooms, 
to my knowledge. 

7173. Q. What disposition is made, by law and usage, of the registry 
books after they are made out f 


650 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Daring tlie time that the registration is taking place eacli registrar 
keeps his own bookj and an extra copy, if the law be strictly carried out, 
shonld be made for the purpose of being hung up in the room for iJiiblic 
inspection. The registrars keeps their books, and, on election day, use 
them—becoming then inspectors. Then there is a poll-list made out with 
the names of the voters taken down on another book by the poll clerk; 
and these books are given, one copy to the metropolitan police, and 
another copy tiled Avith the county clerk, or with the board of super¬ 
visors—depending upon whether the office for which the election Avas 
held is a city or a county office. 

7174. Q. Then certain of the copies are kept by the registrars them- 
seh^es! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7175. Q. Do they permit persons to see thein? 

A. The AAdiole object is that they may be examined by any one, that 
all citizens may liaA^e access to them to see what names are registered, 
and to A^erify the correctness of it if they desire to do so. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7176. Q. Does the hiAv require any of these registry books to be depos¬ 
ited at the Union League headquarters? 

A. No, sir. 

7177. Q. By Avhat authority are they deposited there? 

A. The registry books were not there. We had books there which Ave 
had made u]) ourseh^es. I had charge of that matter. 

7178. Q. Mdiat time did you liaA^e the meeting AAhen the hackman 
took a load of books to the Union League headquarters for inspection 
and examination ? 

A. There never were any registry books examined there. 

7179. Q. What connection luiA^e you had with the republican party 
during the past year in an official capacity ? 

A. I hold no official position; I haA’^e been a member of what Ave call 
the republican general committee. 

7180. Q. HaA^e you been in the employment of the party ? 

A. No, sir; any more than other citizens. 

7181. Q. Have you been acting as attorney for it? 

A. No, sir. 

7182. Q. HaA^e you got any pay from it? 

A. Not a dollar. 

7183. Q. State if you did not tiy to get Farrell to trumi) up testimony? 

A. No, sir; any statement of that kind is utterly false. He proposed 

to furnish testimony and I Avould not hav^e it. 

7184. Q. HaA^e you not been engaged in sending those thieA^es and 
pickpockets oA^er to Jersey City to manufacture testimony ? 

A. No, sir. 

7185. Q. Do you know aaTio has done it? 

A. No, sir; I have had nothing AvliateA^er, directly or indirectly, to do 
with it. 

7186. Q. Do you knoAv that Colonel Wood has been doing it? 

A. I do not know Colonel Wood. 

7187. Q. Do you knoAv this man Dan Noble to AAdioni Wood telegraphed 
to come to Elmira and help hunt up this case ? 

A. 1 knoAv Dan Noble by reputation. 

7188. Q. What is his reputation ? 

A. I think it is bad. 

7180. Q. Is he a suitable man for the republican party to call to its 
aid? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


651 


A. He is known as a yery strong democrat in his operations here. 

7190. Q. Do you know of his having been sent for 

A. No, sir. 

7191. Q. Was it with your advice or consent ? 

A. No, sir *, I never heard lie was sent for. 

7192. Q. Do you know that there has been a string of thieves and 
cut-throats in here ? 

A. I understand that there have been some of those “ repeaters” exam¬ 
ined. 

7193. Q. Do you not know that tliey are thieves and pickpockets gener- 
ally? 

A. I do not know them personally; I know that generally men who 
will x)eri)etrate frauds on the elective franchise may not be regarded as 
very honorable men. 

7194. Q. You are at the head of the republican party in this city? 

A. No, sir; I have not any such honor. 

7195. Q. How many attorneys has the jiarty got emxdoyed to work ui) 
tliis case ? 

^V. All who have been employed I einjiloyed myself. 

719G. Q. Who are they? 

A. I emxiloyed Mr. John A. Foster and Mr. Samuel J. Glassey. 

7197. Q. As attorneys for the Union League? 

A. No, sir; to assist me in this matter; 1 had not the time. 

7198. Q. You feel yourself responsible for the prosecution of this mat¬ 
ter before the commi'tee ? 

A. No, sir ; I have had very little to do with it. 

7199. Q. You hired these men because you had not time to attend to 
it yourself ? 

A. I selected these gentlemen because I had not time to give the mat¬ 
ter my personal attention. 

7200. Q. And they are acting as counsel? 

A. They are assistants, anyway. 

7201. Q. In Avhose emxiloyment are they ? 

A. I emxdoyed them. 

7202. Q. For whom ? 

A. I emxdoyed them because I was authorized by the committee that 
w as appointed to investigate these naturalization frauds. The commit¬ 
tee consists of William E. Dodge, Moses H. Grinnell, John Jay, Horace 
Greeley, Isaac H. Bailey, Marshall O. Eoberts, Legrand B. Cannon, Isaac 
Sherman, and myself. 

7203. Q. For what salary are these attorneys working? 

A. Thej' are not under any salary at all; it is a matter entirely for 
future consideration. 

7204. Q. Was it a part of the duties of these men when you employed 
them that they should testify as Avell as wmik ? 

A. No, sir; it w\as not their duty to testify unless they had some infor- 
ination to communicate; unless it was necessary and became their duty. 

7205. Q. It w as not a part of their duty that they should be witnesses 
as well as laAvyers ? 

A. Not unless they had information which they thought w^ould beiin- 
X^ortant. I selected these men because they have as high a reputation, 
for young men, as any in the city and county of New York. 

7200. Q. Is not that generally the case w ith members of the republi¬ 
can poli ty ? 

A. I think they comx^are favorably with members of the democratic 
party, as a general thing. 


652 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Adam Gillespie recalled. 


I^EW York, January 14,18G9. 


To the Chairman : 


7207. I now produce, as directed by the committee, a statement of 
tlie number of persons naturalized in tbe superior court of tlie city of 
Kew York, from 1856 to 1868 inclusiYe. It is as follows: 


Year. 

Number.* 

1856. 

. 6,014 

1857. 

. 2,134 

1858. 

. 1,887 

1859. 

. 2,090 

1860. 

. 5,414 

1861. 

. 968 

1862. 

. 903 


Year. 

Number. 

1863.. 

. 871 

1864. 

. 6,540 

1865. 

. 3,274 

1866. 

. 6,558 

1867. 

. 10,814 

1868. 

. 27,897 


JOSEPH MEEKS, 
Deimty Clerk 8u][)erior Court, 


Kew York. January 14, 1869. 

John E. Brady sworn and examined. 

By tlie Chairman : 

7207J. Question. Wbat office do you bold in tbis city ? 

Answer. Judge of tbe court of common pleas. 

7208. Q. How long bave you beld that position? 

A. For 13 or 14 years ; I tbink I was elected in 1856. 

7209. Q. Wbat bas been tbe mode of naturalization in your court? 

A. Tbe process bas been to bave parties appear before tbe judge in 

open court. He examines tbe Avitness, and sometimes tbe applicant; 
sometimes more tliaii one witness, as tbe case may be; of course, it 
varies in different cases. 

7210. Q. Is tbe examination oral ? 

A. Tbe examination is ahvays oral, Tbe witness is asked from tbe 
bench tbe necessary questions; to see that be understands tbe oatb 
that be is to take, and tliat be bas tbe necessary information or knowl¬ 
edge to justify bim in taking tbe oatb. Sometimes, Avben I bave enter¬ 
tained a doubt about tbe age, as stated by tbe party, I ba\^e bad tbe 
party inspected by bystander^, and baA^e asked tbem to give tbeir opin¬ 
ion upon tbe subject. Sometimes I bave lield cases for reflection for 
balf an boiir, or an bour, or an bour and a balf. 

7211. Q. Wbat is tbe practice as to requiring eAudence of tbe identity 
of persons applying to be naturalized ? 

A. Kotbiug more than tbe question to tbe witness: ^‘Do you know 
tbis to be tbe i)ersou ?” 

7212. Q. Wbat bas been your practice as to naturalizing persons in 
gangs or batches—more persons tliaii one at a time ? 

A. I never did it j I neAW knew it to be done in tbe court of common 
pleas. 

7213. Q. Can more than one person be naturalized at the same time, 
so as to comply Avitb tbe requirements of tbe laAV ? 

A. In my opinion, decidedly not. 

7214. Q. Wbat length of time will it require, fairly and properly, to 
naturalize an applicant ? 

A. Tbe time employed depends A^ery much upon tbe intelligence of 
tbe Avitness. Sometimes it bas been done in from three to live minutes j 
















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 653 

sometimes it will take more, because in involves tlie examination of tlie 
applicant and the witness, and perhaps a re-examination of them, to see 
if the two stories are harmonious. It might be done, in some cases, in 
two minutes, if the witness is intelligent. I should say it miglit be 
done, on the average, in from three to live minutes; I can probably run 
through the process by my watch and give you an idea of it. (After a 
calculation by his watch.) I should think from three to five minutes; 
I cannot give a closer estimate; it might exceed that; it depends so 
much ui)on the intelligence of the parties. This is in the naturalizing 
of the persons who have come here under the age of 18 years. In refer¬ 
ence to applicants whose application is founded upon declaration of 
intention, it takes a little less time, but it also depends very much upon 
the intelligence of the witness. Sometimes the answers of the witness 
are not satisfactory, or the answers of the party are in conflict with 
those of the witness, and sometimes it iin^olves an examination and 
re-examination of both the witness and the party, to satisfy the court 
that the application is proper. As to the class of soldier applications, 

I should say it occupies about the same time on the average. Some¬ 
times they present a certificate of a counsel, declaring that the papers 
have been sent to Washington, in order to procure the man a pension. I 
think the average would be from three to five minutes. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

7215. Q. How many questions do you usually have to ask a witness 
for naturalizing? 

A. I ask him sometimes: “ What is your name ? Are you a citizen of 
the United States?’’ (this I do not do in all cases.) How long have 
you been in the country? How long have you known the applicant? 
I)o you know him *to be so and so ? How long has he resided in the 
United States ?” The witness may give an answer that may lead to 
these questions: ^AYhere has the applicant resided for the last year ? 
How do yon know that?” 

7210. Q. Upon an average, how many questions do you ask? 

A. I should tliink about six questions. 

7217. Q. How many answers would that involve? 

A. Certainly* six answers. 

7218. Q. Computing by seconds, how long do you think it would take 
to ask a question ? 

A. (After computing by his watch.) About four or five seconds. 

7219. Q. And it would take about the same length of time to answer. 

A. If the answer is direct, it may be answered in the same time 5 but 

that rarely occurs. 

7220. Q. According to your computation, then, it would take 48 
seconds to ask six questions and to have them answered? 

A. Oh, no; I say it would take about four seconds, according to my 
watch, to ask one question; and I say that, if the question is answered 
directly, it can be answered in the same time; but that is rarely the 
case. Sometimes questions have to be repeated, and sometimes addi¬ 
tional questions have to be asked in reference to the same subject- 
matter. 

7221. Q. If you have a reasonably intelligent class of witnesses and 
applicants, and if the business is pressing, and you are very desirous of 
naturalizing people as rapidly as you can, how long do you think it 
would take you to naturalize a man and do it fairly ? 

A. If you should come in to me, and I should ask you the same ques¬ 
tions, I suppose I might naturalize you in a minute. 

7222. Q. Could you not do it in half a minute ? 


654 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, I could, under those circumstances; and I suppose I have 
naturalized persons in half a minute. T have had sometimes a lawyer, 
wliom 1 kiie^v to be a gentleman, come in with his paper signed, contain¬ 
ing the necessary statement to justify naturalization, and f have simply 
said to the witness: “ You know^ this gentleman ^ You have read this 
affidavitIt is correct V’ and I would order the oath to be administered. 
It could be done in half a minute and be done properly. 

7223. Q. You thiiilv that when a judge desires to do it as rapidly as 
he can, and has intelligent witnesses, he may get them through as fast 
as two a minute ? 

A. I would not like to say that; I should say one in a minute. 

7224. It is not necessary to delay the court to swear the witnesses 
after they have been examined 

A. Yo, sir j that is done by the clerk. It would not create any delay 
whatever. 

7225. Q. The i)arties can then pass right on and others come in ? 

A. Yes ) they are naturalized sometimes in this Avay: The applicant 
and the witness are before the court, the applicant standing a little back, 
and the Avitness being examined by the judge, and there is another per¬ 
son waiting to take his place the instant the order is signed directing 
him to be made a citizen of the United States. The other person is then 
called to take his place, and so the examination goes on from one to 
another. 

7226. Q. What wmuld be the objection to swearing half a dozen appli¬ 
cants and half a dozen witnesses together, proAuded they are examined 
separately ? 

A. I cannot see any objection to that. 

7227. Q. The oath is the same to all: you shall true answers make 
to such questions as may be demanded of you V 

A. Oh, yes } fifty might he sworn at a time, if they could i)ut their 
hands on the book. 

7228. Q. And it would be a legal, good swearing? 

A. Oh, yes, certainly j I do not tliink it is the best practice, but such 
a thing might be done, and done hiAAdully; if it is done in such a Avay as 
that each person understands the oath that is taken, I do not see any 
illegality in it. 

By the Chairman : 

7229. Q. In your estimate of time for naturalizing, do you include 
the time occupied by administering the final oath of allegiance ? 

A. Yo, sir. 

7230. Q. In naturalizing a person who came to the United States 
under 18 years of age, state if the applicant is also sworn to certain 
facts in addition to the witness ? 

A. Yes, sir; the applicant makes oath that he has arriA^ed at the age 
of 21 years; that he has been in the country fiA’e years j and that for 
three years he has had the bona fide intention to become a citizen of the 
United States, and has resided in the State for one year. 

7231. Q. He is examined orally as to these facts? 

A. Yes; except as to his intention to become a citizen of the United 
States j that I have rarely examined about. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7232. Q. Are not the questions to the Avituess these: “ Ho you know 
this man; hoAV long liaA^e you known him j do you Imow that he has 
expressed his intention to become a citizen of the United States ?” 

A. I very rarely asked the latter question; nor do we ask, as a general 
thing, about his moral character. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


655 


Is^'EW York, January 14, 1800. 

William Ward recalled. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7233. Question. State if you made an examination at 34 Gouverneur 
street for John Heath. 

Answer. Yes; I went there and inquired in the liquor store. They did 
not know him, and they referred me np-stairs. I went up-stairs and 
found that there were four tamilies living in the house; I went all 
tliroug’h and inquired of all of them; none of them knew such a man. 

7234. Q. Have you been observing tlie Avitnesses here, Avho testified 
about repeating, as they went in and out? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7235. Q. State Avhat you knoAv in regard to their character and stand¬ 
ing. 

A. I am not personally acquainted with any of them ; but on Monday 
afternoon, at 5J o’clock, I saAv the sergeant-at-arms of this committee 
go to the marshal’s room and fetch two young men down here. Two 
policemen stood at the door, and, as the Avitnesses passed them, they 
hung their heads doAvn. 

7236. Q. Do you know anything about our sergeant-at-armsJiaAung 
kept those men up-stairs ? 

A. I haA^e seen him fetch witnesses from the marshal’s office here. 

7237. Q. State whether he has or has not been keeping the Avitnesses 
who Avere summoned here by the majority of the committee, in Marshal 
Murray’s office. 

A. Yes, sir; there haA^e been men kept there every day. 

7238. Q. By our sergeant-at-arms, Mr. Le Barnes? 

A. I do not knoAV who put them there; but I have seen him take them 
out. 


JSTeav York, January 14, 1869. 

M. Eichard Leverson recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

7239. Question. When did you come to the United States ? 

AnsAver. In January, 1867. 

7240. Q. Are you acquainted with W. E. W. Chambers? 

A. I never heard the name, and have no idea of the person. 

7241. Q. State whether you had any interview or business with him 
in the office of the city inspector’s department. 

A. I never heard of the city inspector’s department till this day. 

7242. Q. Did you have any busiuess in the city inspector’s depart¬ 
ment ? 

A. HeA’er. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

7243. Q. /You have been a practicing lawyer here a good while ? 

A. 1^0, sir; I was only admitted to the United States bar in the month 
of ]May last. 

7244. Q. Since that time you have been practicing lawyer for the 
Union League ? 

A. Uo, sir. I have had a little business in the United States court. 
I had no business of imjmrtance until I was retained by the citizens’ 
committee of the Fifth Avenue Hotel. I have had no business at all 
for the Union League. 


656 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


N^ew York, Jamiary 14, 1869. 

John Norton, Jr., Victor Bishop, and M. J. Newiviark, were sev¬ 
erally sworn, and testified to the fact that the last witness, M. Eichard 
Leverson, did not come to this country till January, 1867. 

Eew York, January 14, 1869. 

WiLLiAH Davison sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7245. Question. Where do yon reside ? 

Answer. Yo. 187 Spring street. 

7246. Q. State what was said to you last evening about testifying 
before this committee. 

A. I went down last evening to get something to eat in a basement in 
Thompson street, between Spring and Prince. There came down there 
a party of about six. One of them was Charles McCarthy, and another 
Pete Loftus. One of them came to me, and said he : Scotty, do you 
want to make five dollars"^ (That is a kind of name that I am known 
by among them.) Said I: What with Said he: Go before the 
committee to-morrow, and I will get five dollars into your hand.” Said 
I: What have I got to say Said he: “ All 3^011 have got to do is to 
go before the committee and tell them how many times you repeated 
last election for the republican party, that you voted five or six times 
for Grant, and that you got five dollars each time ) that is all 3^011 have 
got to do.” I said I could not say that. McCarthy, I believe, was here 
3 esterday afternoon, and so was Pete Loftus, and I believe the 3 ^ got five 
dollars apiece. 

7247. Q. Did they tell you that? 

A. Yes, sir. They got five dollars apiece. They said it was a gift, in 
their strange way of talking. 

7248. Q. Did they tell 3^011 what the 3 " testified to ? 

A. Tliey testified to the same thing. 

7249. Q. Did they say whether what they had told was true or not? 

A. They did not, on account of my not wishing to interfere with them. 

7250. Q. Has Pete Loftus any other name ? 

A. That is the only name I know him b 3 \ I believe he had got down 
Alfred. 

7251. Q. Has Charles McCarth 3 ^ an 3 ^ other name ? 

A. Not that I know of. 

7252. Q. What are these men called? 

A. They have nicknames; one of them is Skid, and another is Slips. 
They have a good many nicknames. We never think of hearing right 
names an 3 ^where. 

7253. Q. Has McCarth 3 ^ got a nickname ? 

A. Not that I know of. 

7254. Q. What is the character of these men ? 

A. When they get any work, they work; I know them to run around 
from one night to the other, loafing here and there. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7255. Q. How man 3 "names have you got? 

A. They call me Scotty. 

7256. Q. Are you known as well by the name of Scotty as by that of 
Davison ? 

A. Among a kind of a class of people. 

7257. Q. Do those whom you associate with call you Scotty ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


657 


7258. Q. Is that the only other name you have! 

A. That is all. 

7259. Q. What is your business ! 

A. I am a boatman, and I sometimes go to sea. 

7260. Q. How long have you lived in this city! 

A. I came here about three years ago. 

7261. Q. How long is it since you went to sea ! 

A. I quit going to sea two years ago. 

7262. Q. What have you been doing since ! 

A. I had the chills and fever last summer. 

7263. Q. Is that all you have been doing! 

A. 1 have been attending bar once in a while in the 4th ward for Ed. 
Flynn. He keeps a sailors’ boarding-house. I attended bar for him 
about 18 months. 

7264. Q. What wages did you get! 

A. I got my board and clothes. 

7265. Q. How many times have you been convicted! 

A. Never in my life; I am certain of that. 1 do not gamble any. I 
have got a wife, but no children. She lives with me at 187 Spring street. 
We keep house there. 

7266. Q. You do not know anything against McCarthy or Loftus! 

A. No, sir. 

7267. Q. They are men of good character, so far as you know! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7268. Q. Of good reputation for truth and veracity! 

A. Yes, so far as I hear. 

7269. Q. From their reputation, would you believe them under oath! 

A. I cannot say. All that I know of them is that they run around at 

night, and people give them a pretty bad name. 

7270. Q. Do you run around with them! 

A. I do not. 

7271. Q. Who brought you in here to impeach these witnesses! 

A. I came myself. I told a friend who got licked the other night, and 
he told me to come up here. 

7272. Q. State whether you do not make your living by stealing. 

A. I do not. 

7273. Q. Would you be willing that the police should see you and say 
whether you are a thief or not! 

A. Yes, sir. 

New York, January 14, 1869. 

George F. Hallam (called by Mr. Eoss) was sworn, and testified 
that he had made inquiries for J. J. Mullen at 67 Grand street, and that 
no such person lived there. 

In answer to a question by the Chair, witness said that he was a 
messenger in Judge McCunn’s court. 

New York, January 14, 1869. 

Terence Foley was sworn, and testified that he inquired at 157 
Laurens street for Michael Edwards and for George Thompson, and that 
neither of those persons lived there. 

In reply to a question by Mr. Boss, witness stated that Colonel Wood 
had sent him up there. 

New York, January 14, 1869. 

Wm. H. Bogart was recalled and testified that he had taken subpoenas 
to serve upon Cornelius Dougherty, 87 Mercer street, and James Allen, 
42 T 


658 ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

659 Hudson street, and that no such persons lived at either of those 
places. 

In answer to a question by Mr. Ross, witness stated that he was in 
employment of the Union League committee, as writer and messenger. 

Kew York, January 14, 1869. 

P. F. Tupper sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7274. Question. What is your occupation ? 

A. I am a stenographer. 

7275. Q. State if you took down the statements of persons who appeared 
recently at Taylor’s Hotel, Jersey City; and if so, what precaution you 
used to have the statements made truly. 

A. I did take down most of those statements. As to the precaution 
that was used, that was a matter for Colonel Wood more than for me. 
I know that Colonel Wood said to several of them in my hearing that he 
wished them to tell nothing but the truth. He said furthermore, that 
he did not wish any bribing; but that, of course, he w^ould pay those men 
for the time they lost in attending to this matter. I took the statements 
•of 58 or 59 persons as to repeating. I think there were about 15 state¬ 
ments taken besides. Those statements were all taken between a week 
.ago Monday and to-day. 

To Mr. Ross: 

I am engaged in the office of Warburton, Bonynge & Devine, sten- 
■ographers. Iffiey do business at 39 Park Row^ Mr. Warburton brought 
me over to the marshal’s office and introduced me to Colonel Wood. I 
was not told at the time what the business was, only that it was a matter 
to be kept a secret. Colonel Wood told me that. I do not know whether 
that was in the presence of Marshal Murray. I think Mr. Warburton 
told me the same thing before going into the marshal’s office. Colonel 
Wood was in the marshal’s office wffien I w^ent there with Mr. Warburton. 
Wood and Murray w-ere talking together. Nothing w hatever was said 
:about this matter. Mr. Warburton simply introduced me as a stenogra¬ 
pher w ho would do the work that w^as to be done. There was nothing 
whatever said about the work they wanted done. 

7276. Q. Why did they say they wanted it kept secret? 

A. Colonel Wood did not give me any reason for it. He told me that 
biefore he told me what the business was. 

7277. Q. Did he not tell you afterwards that he wanted it kept secret ? 

A. I think he repeated his instructions afterwards. 

7278. Q. Was Colonel Wood over at Taylor’s Hotel when you took 
those statements f 

A. He was, part of the time. I think he was in the room when I was 
taking the first five or six statements, and occasionally after that he 
would come in when I was taking the statements of other witnesses. 

7279. Q. What part did he take in the matter? 

A. At first lie put the questions to the witnesses, in order to get their 
statements in the shape in which he wanted them, and after I got familiar 
with the mode of putting the questions he directed me to put them. 

7280. Q. How did you manage to get witnesses before you? 

A. I had nothing to do with that. 

7281. Q. Did you pay the witnesses? 

A. I had nothing to do with anything of that kind. 

7282. Q. Do you know who did pay them? 

A. I do not know that they were paid. Colonel Wood said in my 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 659 

presence once or twice that he would pay them for their time, but that 
he did not wish any bribery. He was very particular about that. 

7283. Q. Do you know how they were paid and who paid them? 

A. I know nothing further than what I have stated about that. 

7284. Q. Did Colonel Wood tell you who was to act as paymaster? 

A. Ko, sir. 

7285. Q. What was the class of witnesses you had before you? 

A. I can give you my opinion about it. 

The Chairman. You need not state your opinion. 

By Mr. Boss: 

728G. Q. State the character of the witnesses, from their appearance, 
as they appeared before you to give their statements. 

(Objected to, and objection sustained.) 

7287. Q. What was the appearance of the men before you? 

A. Some of them were rough-looking menj others appeared pretty 
respectable—one or two in i^articular. 

7288. Q. Were any of them under the influence of liquor? 

A. That is a question I find it difficult to answer. I do not think that 
any men whose statements I took were intoxicated. 

7280. Q. Did you swear them? 

A. INo, sir ; they were not sworn. 

7290. Q. Did you not know at the time that you were taking the 
statements of a lot of thieves and luckiiockets ? 

A. I have no personal knowledge that any of them were thieves. 

7291. Q. State, if you know, the general reputation of any of them. 
A. I do not. I do not know that I ever saw any of them before, or 

heard of one of them before. 

7292. Q. Was there not quite a number of them pointed out, at the 
time you took their statements, as thieves and pickpockets ? 

A. No, sir. 

7293. Q. What other persons connected with the republican party 
visited your office while you were over there ? 

A. Marshal Murray was there once. He was there on Tuesday or 
Wednesday last week, I think. 

7294. Q. What was he doing there ? 

A. He was in the room where I had been taking statements, and where 
I was writing out my notes. 

7295. Q. Who came with Marshal Murray ? 

A. I do not recollect that any one came with him. I think Colonel 
Wood was there, and perhaps came over with him. 

7296. Q. Were Colonel Wood and he in the room in conference 
together ? 

A. Yes; they were talking about this business. 

7297. Q. What did Marshal Murray say about it? 

A. I do not recollect what he said. 

7298. Q. State any remark that was made between them in reference 
to this business. 

A. I do not recollect anything that I could state positively. There 
was something said about naturalization frauds. 

7299. Q. How long did Marshal Murray stay there? 

A. Fifteen or twenty minutes, perhaps. 

7300. Q. Who was in the room at the time besides Wood and Murray? 
A. No one, I think. Perhaps one of the operators in the secret service 

came in at the time; it is not at all unlikely. 

7301. Q. Is that the only time you saw Marshal Murray over there? 
A. Yes. 


660 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7302. Q. Do you recollect any otlier republicans over there ? 

A. No. 

7303. Q. You said something about the secret service that Colonel 
Wood is engaged in—what is it ! 

A. He is chief in the secret service division of the United States. 

7304. Q. Where does he hold his office ? 

A. In Washington; he has a room at Taylor^s Hotel. I think he also 
stops there. 

7305. Q. Do you know why these witnesses were taken over there? 

A. I suppose it was because Colonel Wood’s headquarters were there. 

I do not know any other reason. There are two or three others stopping 
at the same hotel, who are operators in the secret service division, and 
who are under his orders, I suxq:>ose. 

7306. Q. Who examined the witnesses over there? 

A. I examined most of them. 

7307. Q. What instructions did you have to make their testimony bear 
in a i)articular direction ? 

A. I had no instructions of that kind. Colonel Wood told me several 
times that he wished me to impress upon these men, if I could, that he 
wished the truth, and nothing but the truth. 

7308. Q. Did any of them state to you that they were thieves and 
pickpockets ? 

A. One man, in answer to a question of Colonel Wood, as to what his 
occupation was, said, “ I steal for a living when I get a chance.” 

7309. Q. Was his statement taken? 

A. His statement was taken. 

7310. Q. And forwarded over here ? 

A. I sux^i)ose so. The name he gave was Harris. 

7311. Q. Colonel Wood made no objection to taking his testimony? 

A. No, sir. 

By the Chairman : 

7312. Q. Was that fact put down on his statement? 

A. No, sir. This question was not put as a regular question to the 
witness. 

New York, January 14, 1809. 

James Collins sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Boss.) 

By Mr. Boss: 

7313. Question. State if you know anything about fraudulent natu¬ 
ralization papers. 

Answer. Only in this way: I had been “knoeking around” the City 
Hall, off and on. I got a situation there once in a while. At the time 
these naturalization papers were coming up Councilman Gilmore came 
and asked me if 1 would naturalize men for him. 1 said I would do so— 
the same as the rest of the men were doing. He asked me how that was. 
I told him to fetch me the men and I would get them naturalized for $2 
apiece. 1 said, If you get the witnesses, I will make the application.” 
He said, have got no witnesses; I wmnt you to go witness.” Next 
day he came to me, and I told him I would naturalize for all that he 
wanted. I have naturalized from 500 to 700; that is, I said I knew the 
men so long. Some I had never seen before; some I had. That is all 
that I did in the naturalization business. 

7314. Q. For what political party did you do this? 

A. The republican. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


661 


To the Chairman : 

7315. I have lived at 122 Prince street two months. I do business in 
W a shin gton Market. 

7310. Q. You were a witness for 500 applicants for naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7317. Q. In what court % 

A. In the supreme court, the superior court, and the court of common 
pleas. 

7318. Q. In what month ? 

A. It was while the naturalization business was going on. I do not 
know what month. I think it was November. 

7319. Q. You are sure of that, are you ? 

A. Yes. 

7320. Q. How many times did you appear as a witness before Judge 
McCunn % 

A. Not a great many times. 

7321. Q. Two hundred times ? 

A. I suppose so. 

7322. Q. Two hundred times in the month of November ? 

A. The naturalization business was only going on for three or four 
weeks. 

7323. Q. AYas not that in November ? 

A. I do not know when it was. 

7324. Q. Was you a witness some 200 times before Judge McCunn % 
A. Not before Judge McCunn alone. There were McCunn, Garvin, 

and Jones. I have been in that court, I guess, 200 times. 

7325. Q. Did the three judges all sit together when they were natu¬ 
ralizing % 

A. Sometimes two would sit, and sometimes one judge would sit. 

7326. Q. Which one of the judges naturalized most while you was a 
witness in the superior court ? 

A. Judge McCunn. 

7327. Q. How many times did you appear as a witness before Judge 
McCunn % 

A. I should say over 100. 

7328. Q. Are you sure of that many ? 

A. Yes. 

7329. Q. AYhat other judges did you appear before ? 

A. Garvin and Jones. 

7330. Q. How many times before Judge Garvin ? 

A. Seventy-five or eighty, or may be more. I am sure of 80 anyhow. 

7331. Q. For how many persons was you a witness before Judge 
Jones ? 

A. Not a great many. I guess 75 or 100. 

7332. Q. You are sure of 75? 

A. Yes. 

7333. Q. What other judges did you appear before ? 

A. Judge Barnard. 

7334. Q. How many times before him ? 

A. I cannot count. 

7335. Q. About how many? 

A. Between 200 and 300. 

7336. Q. Did you sign the affidavits ? 

A. No, sir. 

7337. Q. Did you sign any affidavits at all ? 

A. No, sir, except blanks. 


662 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7338. Q. Where did you si|[?n the applications for naturalization ? 

A. In tlie court where we used to get them. 

7339. Q. How did you sign your name ? 

A. Sometimes as Mara, and sometimes as Collins. 

7340. Q. Always one or the other ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7341. Q. ilo other name ? 

A. No, sir ; Michael Mara or James Collins. 

7342. Q. Did you know that you swore falsely? 

A. Certainly;* I had to do so. Some of the men I did not know; 
some I did know. 

7343. Q. And you swore falsely ? 

A. Yes. 

7344. Q. And you sit here now and acknowledge that you committed 
perjury? 

A. Yes. 

7345. Q. And you think that peo^de believe your oath here now? 

A. No, sir. I came here to tell the truth. I went into court to make 
a living. I liad nothing else to do at that time. 

7346. Q. Do you know Judge McCunn ? 

A. Only by sight. 

7347. Q. Does he know you ? 

A. No, sir. 

7348. Q. You signed your name as a witness in all these cases in the 
court itself, did you ? 

A. No, sir. 

7350. Q. Where? 

A. At No. 1 Centre street, in the basement. I think they gave me 
the papers over there. I signed some in the City Hall and some there; 
I guess they were about equal. 

7351. Q. What room in the City Hall ? 

A. In the basement, where the old sheriff's office was. 

' (Witness, by direction of the chairman, wrote the two names, Michael 
Mara and James Collins.) 

7352. Q. Whom did you know at No. 1 Centre street ? 

A. I did not know any one except one by eyesight. I heard i^eople 
call him Judge Gale. I believe he had charge of the office. I was in 
there every day—in and out. • 

7353. Q. Did he see you there signing papers as a witness ? 

A. No ; I do not think he did. His clerks attended to the business. 

7354. Q. Did Gale’s clerks take the papers to the court ? 

A. No, sir ; we took them to the court ourselves. 

7355. Q. Did you know anything about the men for whom you were 
a witness ? 

A. No, sir; only wffiat Councilman Gillmore told me. He said they 
were old citizens who never took out their papers. 

7356. Q. You knew nothing about their politics ? 

A. Only what Councilman Gillmore said at No. 1 Centre street, or- at 
the basement in the City Hall. He worked very hard at those places. 

7357. Q. Did he devote a good deal of his time at those places ? 

A. Yes, sir; he used to be there before I got there. 

7358. Q. How long had you known Councilman Gillmore ? 

A. Two or three years. He was councilman in the 20th ward. 

7359. Q. You got acquainted with him two years ago? 

A. Not so thoroughly acquainted as to go up and speak to him. 

7360. Q. When did you first get acquainted with him well enough to 
speak to him ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


663 


A. Just before the election for governor. 

7361. Q. How many clays before! 

A. Three or four days. 

7362. Q. Did you ever speak to Councilman Gillmore about naturali¬ 
zation business till three or four days before the election for governor ! 

A. No, sir. 

7363. Q. You are certain of that fact, are you! 

A. Yes. 

7364. Q. Did you ever have any conversation with Councilman Gill- 
more until two or three days before the presidential election ! 

A. No, sir; not to my knowledge. 

7365. Q. Did you use red tickets! 

A. Yes. Councilman Gillmore furnished the tickets. He sometimes 
gave me white tickets and sometimes red. 

7366. Q. Most generally red! 

A. About equal, 1 guess. 

7367. Q. Have you spoken to Councilman Gillmore since the presiden¬ 
tial election ! 

A. No, sir. 

7368. Q. What business are you engaged in now! 

A. None at present. 

7369. Q. How long is it since you have been engaged in any business! 

A. About a month, I guess. I was then a conductor on the Tenth 

avenue railroad. I was in that situation four months, I guess. Before 
that I kept a stand in Washington Market. I was in tlie produce busi¬ 
ness, potatoes and vegetables. I Avas there 14 or 15 years continuously. 
I Avas in the street department after I left Washington Market, working 
in the streets. 

7370. Q. Were you in the street department the whole five years 
between your leaAdng Washington Market and getting a position as con¬ 
ductor ! 

A. No, sir. 

7371. Q. What were you doing that whole fi\^e years! 

A. Living ofi* my money. 

7372. Q. How long Avere you in the street department! 

A. Four or five months, I should think. 

7373. Q. What time was that! 

A. In 1866—in the summer of 1866. 

7374. Q. What were your Avages ! 

A. Two dollars and fifty cents a day. 

7375. Q. What Av^ere you engaged at for the balance of the fiA^e years! 

A. I was on the Bleecker street railroad as conductor. I worked there 

about four or five months. For three or four months I did not have any¬ 
thing to do. 

7376. Q. Do you know that if you should swear falsely about what 
Councilman Gillmore said to you, you would be liable to indictment for 
perjury ! 

A. Yes, sir; but I did not come here to swear falsely. 

7377. Q. Did you not go into court to swear falsely ! 

A. No, sir. 

7378. Q. Did you not do it! 

A. No, sir. 

7379. Q. Did you not swear that you knew men whom you did not 
know! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7380. Q. You swore falsely there, did you not! 

A. Yes. 


664 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7381. Q. And you went tliere to do that, did you not? 

A. Yes. 

7382. Q. When you worked on the Tenth avenue railroad what hours 
did you work ? 

A. I used to go to work about 5_o’clock in the morning and stay at 
work till half-past 9. 

7383. Q. Did you stop for any length of time between those hours? 

A. No, sir; except for half an hour two or three times a day. 

7384. Q. ^^en you got the red tickets at No. 1 Centre street and in 
the basement of the City Hall in the old sheriff’s office, did you give 
them to the officers of the court? 

A. No, sir; we gave them to the men who had the papers. Eed tick¬ 
ets were mostly used. 

7385. Q. Did you vote at the last presidential election ? 

A. Yes; in Green street near Spring. I did not vote myself. They 
did not let me vote; somebody voted for me. 

7386. Q. Then when you said just now that you voted, you did not 
state the fact ? 

A. I did not get there in time to vote. When I got there somebody 
had voted for me. I think it was in the 2d district of the 8th ward that 
I registered my name. It was near Spring street in Greene. I registered 
as James Collins, 122 Prince street. I have a wife ; 1 have been married 
some three years and have been livjng with my wife all the time. 

7387. Q. You were acquainted but with very few of the men whom 
you appeared as a witness for ? 

A. Very few. 

7388. Q. Do you know anything about their politics? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

7389. Q. State if it was for republicans and in the interest of republi¬ 
cans that these certificates of naturalization were got ? 

A. I suppose so. I suppose Mr. Gillmore would not be working the 
other way. 

7390. Q. Is he a republican? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7391. Q. You got in such men as he wanted ? 

A. Yes. 

7392. Q. How did it happen that you used the red ticket of the deijio- 
crats ? Did you commit a fraud upon them by getting their tickets ? 

A. I do not know about that. 

7393. Q. You could not get them without getting them fraudulently by 
pretending that the persons to be naturalized were foreigners ? 

A. I never asked how they got them. This republican gave them to 
me. Part of them were red tickets and part white. 

New York, January 14, 1869. 

Edward Hooan sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Eoss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

7394. Question. What is your official position? 

Answer. I am a police justice in this city. 

7395. Q. Do you know John J. Mullen ? 

A. There was a John J. Mullen who was in controversy some time 
isince with the commissioner of public charities and correction, this man 
charging the commissioners with bad treatment of prisoners on Black¬ 
well’s island. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 665 

7396. Q. State whether you know of any person registering illegally 
in this city ? 

A. I do not. 

7397. Q. Were you present at the registry at 34 or 95 Greemvich 
street? 

A. I have no doubt that I was in both places. 

7398. Q. Did you see any man register there who you knew did not 
live in the precinct ? 

A. I did not. 

7399. Q. Did you see John J. Mullen register at 34 or 95 Greenwich 
street ? 

A. 1 did not. 

7400. Q. Or at any other place? 

A. I did not. The man whom 1 refer to is a professional thief. He 
was committed by me, I think, three or four times within four or five 
years. 

7401. Q. You did not see him register anywhere? 

A. I did not. 

7402. Q. Did you give him any encouragement to register illegally 
anywhere ? 

A. I have never spoken to him outside of the court-room to my 
knowledge. 

7403. Q. Did you give encouragement to any person to register 
illegally ? 

A. I did not. 

7404. Q. Do you know whether your brother Dennis Hogan was going 
“around with a comj)any, including this Mullen, and registering illegally ? 

A. I cannot say of my own knowledge, but I should say not. I would 
not expect to see him in such company. 

7405. Q. Do you know Patrick Moore? 

A. I do. 

7406. Q. And Alderman Moore ? 

A. Yes. 

7407. Q. Do you know whether they were engaged in illegal regis¬ 
tering ? 

A. I never heard it so stated. 

7408. Q. State what you know in reference to this Mullen? 

A. I can only say that I have known him as a professional thief for 
four or five years. 

7409. Q. Are you acquainted with his general reputation? 

A. I should say that I am. 

7410. Q. Do jou know what his general reputation is for truth and 
veracity ? 

A. It is bad. 

7411. Q. From that general reputation would you believe him under 
oath ? 

A. I would not. 

By the Chairman : 

7412. Q. Did you ever hear anybody speak of his reputation for truth? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7413. Q. Who? 

A. Isaac Bell, junior. 

7414. Q. What did he say ? 

A. He said he was an infernal liar. 

7415. Q. When was that ? 

A. Some time between two and three years ago. 


666 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7416. Q. Do you know the witness who has just left the room—James 
Collins! 

A. I do. 

7417. Q. How long have you knowm him! 

A. About three years. 

7418. Q. Where! 

A. About the City Hall. 

7319. Q. What is his reputation for truth ! 

A. I never heard it questioned. 

7320. Q. What is his character ! 

A. I know nothing about it. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7321. Q. Was this man, Mullen, ever brought before you for any 
criminal offence ! 

A. My best recollection now is that he was brought before me four or 
five times for stealing, and for assaulting his wife at a house of prosti¬ 
tution ; she being the complainant. He beat her there because she woidd 
not give him the money which she earned by prostituting her i)erson. 
That was the charge. 

The committee here adjourned its sittings at Bew York. 

The following testimony was taken before a sub-committee consisting 
of Mr. Dickey: 


Peekskill, Westchester County, 

January 12, 1869. 


Hugh McKee sworn and examined. 


By Mr. Dickey : 

I reside in Centre street, in Peekskill. 

7322. Q. Please tell us what you know about naturalization at the last 
election ! 

A. All that I knew about it was that I got the papers from Timothy 
Dwyer ; I went to his house for them. 

7323. Q. Were you in any court to get them ! 

A. Ko, sir; I never left my wmrk. 

7324. Q. Have you got those papers with you ! 

A. Ko, sir; they are in Kew York; I was examined in Kew York ; I 
was examined before the election before Marshal Murray. 

7325. Q. Did you ever take any oath of allegiance ! 

A. Ko, sir; I never took an oath in my life, but this one and the one 
in Kew York. ^ 

7326. Q. How long have you been in the United States ! 

A. 1 guess I have been here noAV about 18 months. 

7327. Q. You gave that paper he gave you to Marshal Murray ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7328. Q. Where does Dwyer live! 

A. I cannot tell the name of the street; he lives in this town. 

7329. Q. Did you register on that paper ! 

A. Yes, sir; I got registered; but I thought I was not entitled to vote 
and did not do it. 

7330. Q. You registered under the advice of some of these people ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7331. Q. Under whose advice did you register! 

A. I came along with Mr. Dwyer, who was entitled he told me to 
furnish papers j I did not know at the time but the papers were all right. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


667 


Peekskill, January 12,1869. 

Timothy^ Dwyer sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

7332. Question. Where do you live % 

Answer. I live in this village—Peekskill. 

7333. Q. Did you deliver a naturalization paper, preceding the last 
election, to Hugh McKee ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7334. Q. Where did you get it ? 

A. I got it at the Peekskill democratic club-room. 

7335. Q. Wbo gave it to you ^ 

A. Well, if I was on my oath at the present time I could not tell 
whether it was Elias Coffin or Mr. Laird ; it was one or the other. 

7336. Q. Had you given them the name of McKee before? 

A. Ko, sir; 1 never knew anything about his papers until there was 
such a crowd around the table, and somebody asked if anybody knew . 
Hugh McKee; I said I did, because I worked with him in the flour 
works. 

7337. Q. Were there any other papers given out at that time ? 

A. I expect there was; I didn’t see no more given out; because he 
and I worked together, and I took his papers down to the house myself; 
and I went to him the next day and told him I got the papers from the 
club-room. 

7338. Q You had your papers regularly ? 

A. Yes, sir; I got my first papers two years before that; and I got 
•my papers in the house this night—in the democratic club-room. 

7339. Q. You got your first papers in court ? 

A. Yes, sir; I got my first papers in the city of Leavenworth, Kansas. 

7340. Q. Did you go to a court to get your second papers ? 

A. No, sir; I didn’t go to court at all; they were handed to me in the 
club-room; I had given my name about six months before. 

7341. Q. Whom did you give your name to? 

A. I cannot say for certain which one took down my name. 

7342. Q. You never took any oath with the last papers ? 

A. No, sir; I never did; I never took any oath for them or went into 
the court for them. 

7343. Q. What court were they from ? 

A. The supreme court in the city of New York, in the State and county 
of New York. 

7344. Q. You gave McKee his papers ? 

A. Yes, sir; it was after a day’s work, after going home. 

7345. Q. Do you know of any other cases of your own knowledge? 

A. No, sir. 

Peekskill, January 12, 1869. 

William Coul sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

7346. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. In Peekskill. 

7347. Q. What is your occupation ? 

A. A. tailor. 

7348. Q. Please state what you know about naturalization papers 
being obtained and distributed here last fall. 

A. I don’t know but very little about where they came from; Thomas 


668 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Harrington came to me and asked if I wanted my papers, and I told liiin 
yes; he gave them to me some days afterwards—ten days for aught I 
know; I didn’t keep them—not ten hours ; it was before the election j I 
am i:)retty sure it was in October j I did not register on them. 

7349. Q. Whom did you return them to f ' 

A. I burned thenv 

7350. Q. Where did they purport to be issued from ? 

A. The supreme court of New York. 

7351. Q. Of the city and county of New York ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7352. Q. How long have you been in the country ? 

A. Eighteen years next June. 

7353. Q. Did you ever file your first papers ! 

A. No, sir; I have a soldier’s discharge. 

7354. Q. You never made any application to any court for the papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

7355. Q. You never took any oath in court to get the papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

Peekskill, Westchester County, 

January 13, 1869. 

Mitchell Laird sworn and examined. 

Calvin Frost, attorney and counsellor-at-law, appeared before the 
committee, at the request of Mr. Eoss, for the purpose of suggesting ques¬ 
tions. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7356. I reside in Peekskill. I acted with the committee in this town. 
I took about 60 or 70 men to New York city to get their naturalization 
papers. I took them down in the steamboat in the morning, and took 
them to the City Hall. I had their papers properly made out. Another 
gentleman, whom I did not know, took charge of them. That gentle¬ 
man told me it was unnecessary to bring tlie men down in the present 
state of things ; that they could procure the papers without. On that 
a list of names wms furnished, and I delivered them to a person wdiom I 
did not know. This gentleman, wdio spoke to me about it, told me to 
send the names; which I did of about—w^ell, I think, somewhere near 
150 names. Then, as I was passing in the street one evening, another 
person, different from the one I handed the names to, one I had never 
seen before, a stranger to me, came up to me and handed me a roll of 
papers done up in brown paper, addressed to me. I took it to my office 
and opened it, and it was these naturalization papers. On these men 
calling for them, I took them to the club room, and there they were dis¬ 
tributed by several parties. I might have handed out a few of them 
myself. 

7357. Q. Did the first 60 or 70 whom you took down go into court 
to get their jiapers ? 

A. This party I gave in charge of this man. I don’t know what 
he did with them. He took them and I handed them these papers. He 
said he would attend to them, and I went oft*. 

7358. Q. Was he connected mth any naturalization committee in New 
York ? 

A. That I do not know. He was a stranger to me. I met him on the 
steps of the City Hall. He came up to me and spoke to me. 

7359. Q. He knew you ? 

A. Noj only he saw me come down with these men. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


669 


7300. Q. tliese 150 adclitional names were sent (lown, were any 

witnesses sent down as vouchers, or only the names of the persons to 
be naturalized? 

A. Just the names of tlie persons and their residence. 

7361. Q. \yere they all got from Peekskill or its vicinity? 

A. I think from this vicinity. The names were furnished me by other 
people. 

7302. Q. To you, as chairman of your naturalization committee here? 

A. Yes. 

7303. Q. The democratic naturalization committee ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7304. Q. Did you send down the 150 names to a committee or to an 
individual ? 

A. It was in a list, and I handed that to an individual. 

7305. Q. You went down again then? 

A. Yes; I donT know his name, and never saw him after that. 

7300. Q. What court did these papers purport to be issued from? 

A. They purported to be issued under the seal of the supreme court. 

7367. Q. Was it the same man that you first saw that got these parties 
through that you gave the names to the second time ? 

A. The man I gave the papers to was the same, but the man who 
handed me the papers was a difierent man. They ascertained my name 
from the fact that I took down those names, in some way. I never knew 
either of the men. 

7308. Q. These 150 papers were taken to the club-room and distrib¬ 
uted to the parties there ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7309. Q. I suppose a majority of those men registered but did not 
vote on these papers ? 

A. I douT know any of them that voted. When I found out that 
these papers were illegal, I took a good deal of pains to go to a good 
many of these men, when I knew personally their names, and told them 
the papers were fraudulent, or I understood they were said to be so, and 
they had better not vote on them; and they did not. They had regis¬ 
tered but did not vote. 

7370. Q. There were arrests made about that time previous to the 
election ? 

A. Yes j but I advised a good many of these men before any arrests 
were made. I advised, I think, this man McKee, who told me he had 
not been in the country but four years. 

7371. Q. He testified he had been here but 18 months. 

A. Then it was some other man, who had been here only four years. 
He asked me if he had a right to vote, and I told him 1 presumed not. 

7372. Q. Were these names furnished to you personally or left at the 
club-room ? 

A. Some of them were furnished by men who came to the club-room 
themselves and gave their names there; others by men sending them in. 

7373. Q. Do you know anything of the number of similar papers pro¬ 
cured for residents of this town ? 

A. I have no personal knowledge; but on information and belief I 
should say there were about 100 more. 

7374. Q. Furnished in the same way, the same kind of papers ? 

A. Yes. 

7375. Q. They did not pass through your hands? 

A. Through the hands of other parties. 



670 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Peekskill, January 13, 1869. 

Charles Snyder sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7376. I live at Yerxdanck’s Point; I work in tlie cove now, in the brick¬ 
yard. 

7377. Q. Did you get a naturalization paper last fall ? 

A. I had one, but I heard it was not good, and gave it to the children 
to play with. 

7378. Q. Who gave it to you? 

A. An old man at Verplaiick’s Point; Barney is his first name; I don’t 
know the second name. 

7379. Q. Was you ever in court before a judge ? 

A. No. 

7380. Q. Did you ever take any oath? 

A. No, sir; I never was in court. 

7381. Q. This paper was handed to you at Yerplanck’s Point? 

A. Yes. 

7382. Q. Did you vote? 

A. I heard right away it was not good, and I would not vote with it. 
I am long enough in this country. 

7383. Q. Did you ever get your first paper ? 

A. No; I never had my first paper, but the men told me 1 could go 
down and get the first and second together. I would not go; it would 
be lost time. Every working day is so much money, and the little money 
I needed; I had a big family. 

7384. Q. How long have you been in this country? 

A. Nearly seventeen years. 


Peekskill, January 13, 1869. 
Adam Horsfelt sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

7385. Question. Where do you live? 

Answer. At Yerplanck’s Point. 

7386. Q. Did you get citizen jiapers last fall? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7387. Q. AYho gave them to you ? 

A. They were given to me on the Point, in Barney Skelly’s. 

7388. Q. Was it Barney Skelly that gave them to you ? 

A. No; I know the man, but I don’t know his name. 

7389. Q. Was it in Barney Skelly’s place? 

A. Yes. 

7390. Q. Was you ever in court before a judge, to be sworn? 

A. No. 

7391. Q. How long have you been in the country ? 

A. I am something over five years in the country. 

7392. Q. Did you ever file your first pajiers? 

A. No; none. 

7393. Q. What did you do with the citizen paper? 

A. I guess I have it at home yet. 

7394. Q. What court does it come from? 

A. I don’t know; I can’t read it. I can’t read any English. 

7395. Q. Did you vote? 

A. No. 

7396. Q. Did you register it ? 

A. No; we went up here to Peekskill to register, and they said the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


671 


papers were of no use because we didn’t get tlie papers ourselves, and 
so we went lioine again. We couldn’t swear that we had got the papers 
ourselves, and so we went home. 

7397. Q. Veiplanch’s Point is in the same town? 

A. Yes. 


PeeIvSKILL, January 13, 1869. 

Bernard Skelly sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

7398. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. At Verplanck’s Point, in Westchester county. 

7399. Q. Please to state all that you know about any naturalization 
papers being brought to your neighborhood without the parties going to 
New York for themj and how many you know of ? 

A. I could not exactly state how many I know of; I know there were 
papers sent to my house, but to say whether they Aveut for them or 
didn’t, I could not say. 

7400. Q. About how many papers were sent to your house, to the 
best of your judgment. 

A. I suppose there was between 50 and 100. 

7401. Q. Where were they sent from to your house? 

A. I cannot tell, sir. 

7402. Q. Who brought them there? 

A. I don’t know; but they were sent directly to my care. 

7403. Were they sent by mail ? 

A. No, sir ; they were not sent in my mail; they were sent in a pack¬ 
age to me with my name outside on it, and then there was a bit of a 
note left to deliver those papers to the owners. 

Q. You gave them to such i>ersons as had their names upon them ? 

A. No, sir; I gaA^e them to no one person. I only opened the pack¬ 
age and saw such and such names on them, and the men that I knew I 
told them their papers were there at my house, and to go for them. 

7404. Q. They Avent there for them ? 

A. I don’t knoAV ; I suppose they did. 

7405. Q. Are there any there yet? 

A. No, sir ; they must be taken aAvay. 

7406. Q. Did you hear any one state at Yerplanck’s Point that if these 
men Avould give their names to send them to New York, they might get 
their i)apers ? 

A. No, sir; a gentleman came there and we held a meeting one night 
there, and Ave called a meeting for any man that Avas entitled to papers 
to go to New York and get them, and eA^ ery man put down his name; 
and these gentlemen called on eA^ery man that came and was entitled to 
his paper, according as some said they Avere in the army and had got 
a lawful discharge, and wanted to know whether they could A ote on that 
discharge, and he said no; he said the laAV would not remedy that, but 
he Avas entitled to his papers, and to put down his name ; and a man 10 
or 15 years in the country was entitled to his papers ; I saw some coming 
up that had been here 20 years ; and I saw some that had not been fi\"e 
years in tlie country; and I saw that man object to those and say they 
could not A ote and could not get their papers; and that is all 1 have 
any knowledge of in the world. 

7407. Q. Did the same men who gave their names at the time that 
Coffin addressed the meeting, come to your house for papers ? 

A. Some of them did, I think; and some of them did not. 



672 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7408. Q. Where did the papers come from ? 

A. New York j the City Hall, New York, I think. 

7409. Q. From the supreme ^ourt, or the superior court? 

A. I cannot exactly tell; I think it was. 

7410. Q. Did you "ask anybody yourself whether they did not want 
papers ? 

A. Well, I might; I don’t know whether I did or not; I might do it. 

7411. Q. Do you recollect asking any persons if they did not want 
their papers ? 

A. I really cannot say whether I did or not; I say so much I could 
not account for half what I say. 

7412. Q. Did you give out any of these papers yourself? 

A. Not of my knowledge. 

7413. Q. Who was left in charge of your house to give them out ? 

A. No one was left in charge of my house but my wife. 

7414. Your wife gave them out ? 

A.-1 don’t think she could read the names; every man got their own 
papers, 1 guess. 

7415. Q. Did you see any taken away? 

A. I cannot say; I might. 

7416. Q. Did jmu see a German by the name of Adam Hors felt, who 
worked in the brickyard there, take away his papers from your house ? 

A. He might have; I know the man; a good many men called at my 
house that I didn’t know at all. 

7417. Q. Called for their papers ? 

A. I don’t know; they had other business with me besides that. 

7418. Q. Were you in any public business ? 

A. No, sir; we had a little association of our own and they made me 
president; it was the benevolent association to support the sick and 
bury the dead. We called it the Laborers’ Association. Manj^ a man 
called on me on a little business lie wanted to know. 

7419. Q. You think there were not more than 50 or 100 of these 
papers delivered to you. 

A. To the best of my opinion; there might be more and there might 
be less. 

7420. Q. Haven’t you stated that there were as many as 250 sent to 
you? 

A. No, sir; not of my own knowledge, I haven’t. 

7421. Q. Do you know who these papers came from? 

A. No, sir; I know nothing about the papers? 

7422. Q. No one told you they were going to send them to you? 

A. No, sir. 

7423. Q. No one told you they had sent them to you? 

A. No, sir, not a word; all I heard was in the public meeting, for 
every man to go down and get his papers that was entitled to them. 

7424. Q. At what meeting did you hear that? 

A. At a meeting we called for the purpose of those gentlemen that 
were entitled to their i^apers to get them. 

7425. Q. Calling upon men to be naturalized ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7426. Q. At your club in your town? In your political club? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7427. Q. Were you connected with that? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7428. Q. Were you president of that also? 

A. I don’t know. I suppose 1 was. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


673 


7429. Q. Whnt kind of a political club! What party! 

A. Well, democratic. We were all democratic. That was our principle. 

7430. Q. Did these parties to whom these papers were delivered 
belong- to the s^ime club of whi(‘h you were president! 

A. That I don’t know. Some of them did, and some of them did not. 

7431. Q, Were these i)apers sent to you as president of the democratic 
club, or as president of the Laborer’s Association! 

A. No, sir; there was no such thing mentioned on the papers at all. 

7432. Were they left at your house when you were away from 
home! 

A. Yes, sir; and that little note inside, 

7433. Q. AVho sent that note! 

A. I cannot tell. There was no name to it, 

Kingston, Ulster County, January 13, 18G9. 

Andreav E. Jansen sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7434. I reside in Kingston, I cannot give names or dates, but 
during the naturalization this last fall, I have been in the county clerk’s 
office and seen them naturalizing iiersous there, 

7435. Q. No judge there! 

A. No, sir. I hav’^e seen the county clerk there and his deputy. 

7430, Q. Swearing in parties and granting natui'alizations! 

A. Yes, sir, 

7437. Q, Hai'c you any idea of the number! 

A. lieally I cannot tell, I have been there on different days, and 
seen probably four or fi ve each day, 

7438. Q. Did you ever see the judge there at all! 

A, No, sir, I will further state that I was one of the board of registry 
here, and the papers were signed by the deputy clerk; I think nearly all 
of them. 

7439. Q. AYliat name did he sign! 

. A. J. Dost wick. dei)uty clerk, 

Kingston, Chester County, January 13, 1809, 

Eeuben Bernard sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7440, I reside in Kingston. I am a lawyer. My office adjoins the 
<*lerk’s office. I was in the clerk’s office every day, usually from five to 
ten times a day. Nearly every day for a number of days preceding the 
election they were engaged in naturalizing foreigners, and the business 
appeared to be conducted by the clerk and deputy; principally I sliould 
think by James Bostwick, the deputy, I have no recollection of ever 
seeing the county judge present at any time during which naturalization 
was being made-, 

7441, Q. Where is the county court ordinarily held! 

A. The county court, when in session, is ordinarily held in the court¬ 
house, which is probably 300 yards from the clerk’s office. The seal 
of the court is kei)t by the (fierk, 

Kingston, Ulster County, January 13, 1869. 

James L. Bostwick sworn and examined. 

To Mr, Dickey: 

7442, My residence is Kingston, St. James street; my occupation is 
deputy cledi for the county of Ulster, 

‘43 T 


G74 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7443. Q. Will you please to describe, as near as you can recollect, tlie 
inetliod by which parties were naturalized in this couiiiy preceding the 
last presidential election, and the number of naturalizations I 

A. 1 presume there Avere somewhere about six hundred, iierhaps 
over and i)erhaps less. They were brought to the office, the most parb 
of them. Some were taken to the court-house; when tlie court Avas in 
session they AA^ere taken to the court-house; AAdien it aa^is not, the judge, 
as a general tiling, came round mornings to the office, and they Aveie 
naturalized there. 

7444. Q. Were they examined by the judge, or by you ! 

A. When the judge aauis present he examined them; AAdien heAAms not, 
they Avere either examined by me or by the clerk. 

7445. Q. What proportion of them Avere examined by you and the clerk, 
and Avhat proportion by the judge ! 

A. That AAmuld be rather (lifficult for me to state. 

7440. Q. Which did the most of it! 

A. The clerk did the most of it. 

7447. Q. Did the court sit any particular hours for this purpose, or did 
you do it as part of the current business of the office ! 

A. There was no particular hour set for it. 

7418. Q. It AAms done AAffieneA^er parties api^lied at the clerk’s office, the 
same as you would any other current business! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7449. Q. What proportion of these cases did a man by the name of 
Haggerty act as a AAdtness upon ! 

A. A (mnsiderable amount of them. 

7450. Q. About hoAV many, by hundreds ! 

A. I should think between one and tAAm hundred. I should judge so. 

7451. Q. Did these i^arties that came forAA ard pay for their own papers, 
or AA cre they paid for by the political jAarties! 

A. A portion of them jiaid for them tliemseh^es, and a portion Avere 
paid for b}" the political parties. 

7452. Q. Both parties! 

A. A political party, I should haA^e said. 

7453. Q. What political party! 

A. The democratic i)arty. 

7454. Q. Was the judge at the clerk’s office CA^ery day on which they 
were naturalized ! 

A. I do not think he was. 

7455. Q. Some days he Avas not there at all! 

A. No, sir. 

745G. Q. When he did come round, how long would he remain! 

A. Sometimes he Avould stay an hour, and sometimes longer. 

7457. Q. In making out these naturalizations, did you examine the 
party and the Avitnesses, or did they simply subscribe the printed affi¬ 
davits according to the printed form! 

A. I usually examined them. I asked the regidar questions. 

7458. Q. What questions did you ask ! 

A. They were asked how long they had been in the country, and when 
they had procured their former papers—that is, if they had not their 
papers, and made their affidavit they had not the papers. They Avere 
asked how long they had the first papers, and different questions that 
Avould arise; I cannot state the questions exactly iioaa’. 

7459. Q. When a party appeared without his first papers what did 
you require! 

A. We required the affidavit of him, and a Avitness that he had had 
his papers. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. G75 

7460. Q. Then yon granted naturalizations upon the affidavit of the 
party, and a witness that he had had previous papers 

A. Yes, sir. 

7461. Q. You did not require any certified copy of the former paper I 

A. No, sir. 

7461}. Q. What proportion of these papers were issued or lost, or 
alleged lost, papers ? 

A. I should presunie probably a hundred of them that were granted, 
and probably more, on i)apers stated to be lost. 

7466. Q. Without the production of any record, or any duplicate of 
sucli certificate 1? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7464. Q. To what political party does this man Haggerty belong! 

A. That would be a hard matter to state. I think it very likely any 

party could get him that would i^ay for it. I have been told so. I do 
not know it of my own knowledge. 

7465. Q, To what political party do you belong! 

A. I have always belonged to the democratic party. 

7466. Q. When you granted a certificate of naturalization, by whom 
was the paper signed ! 

A. All that I signed, I signed my own name to. 

7467. Q. As deputy clerk ! 

A. Y^es, sir. 

7468. Q. You granted naturalizations yourself when the clerk was 
absent! 

A. Yes, sir. 

7466. Q. What proportion were granted by you, in the absence of the 
clerk ! 

A. As nearly as I could judge I should think one-third of them; 
probably not so many; maybe more. 

7470. "Q. What proportion of them were taken into court! 

A. There were considerable many papers taken into court. I could 
^not tell you what proi)ortion. Every court that sat last season there 
were more or less papers tjiken into court. Probably one-third of them 
were granted at the court, and two-thirds out of court. That is a mere 
matter of judgment, I mean. 

Eondout, Ulster County^, January 14, 1869. 

Patrick M. Haugerty sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dicker: : 

7471. I reside in Eondout. I am an officer—a constable. 

7472. Q. State whether you were present at any naturalizations at 
Kingston last fall. 

A. 1 was. 

7476. Q. Who did the business of naturalizing ! 

A. The clerk and deputy clerk. 

7474. Q. State in how many cases you were present, as near as you 
can. 

A. Well, it was over a hundred; I could not be positive now without 
counting. I was there several days, occasionally once a day, sometimes 
twice a day, and sometimes there would be i)robably from ten to fifteen, 
twenty, twenty-five; 1 do not think there were any more naturalized at 
one time in my presence. 

7475. Q. For liow many parties were you witness ! 

A. I would not be positive, but quite a number; I would not like to 
say without looking over the clerk’s records. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


()76 

7470. Q. We will take the best of your judgment. 

A. In the neighborhood of a hundred, more or less, x)robably; I would 
not be right ])ositive whether more or less. 

7477. Q. What proportion of those that you know of being naturalized 
on lost papers I 

The principal part of them were naturalized on the affidavit of 
losing their first papers 

7478. Q. With what party were you associated or connected, politically ? 

A. I always sided Avith the democratic party, except on two occaisions. 

I believe the only two occasions that I ever voted for re|)ublicans was 
for one supervisor last spring, and for Thomas Cornell last fall. 

7470. Q. You voted the democratic State and national tickets ? 

A. I did, sir. I always have identified myself with the democratic 
party. 

7480. Q. In what month were the naturalizations that you spoke of 
made ? 

A. The principal part of them were in October* Some in November; 
September and October. 

7481. Q. In these cases, when thej" were naturalized by the clerk and 
deputy clerk, was there any court—any judge i)resent? 

A. I saw a judge there on some occasions. He might have been there 
every day for aught I knoAV. I saAv him there once Avlien the naturaliza¬ 
tion was going on ; I saAv him there one morning. 

Troy, Keav York, January 14,18G9. 

George E. Olney sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7482. I am studying hiAV at Catskill, Green county. 

7483. Q. Were you one of the clerks or deputy clerks of that county 
during any lAortion of the past year ? 

A. Yes, sir; from the 1st of January until about the middle of 
November. 

7484. Q. Are you fiimiliar with the mode in which naturalization was 
conducted in that county ? 

A. Yes, sir; I had a little experience. The parties to be naturalized 
appeared before the clerk at the court-house—at his office in the court¬ 
house—and the clerk Avould inquire if he had any witnesses Avitli him ; 
Avhether he Avas adivseharged soldier, and if so heAvnuld shoAV his discharge 
paper, and on that he Avould be granted his papers, liaving been over 
one year in tlie State. 

7485. Q. Without a witness ? 

A. I would not say as to that, because there were oidy tAvo or three 
cases Avhere they Avere naturalized on these papers; but in other cases 
he would appear with two Avitnesses; he Avould sAvear that he had been 
in the country so long, if he did not shoAv his first papers, and that heAvas 
over the age of 21 years. 

7480. Q. In case he did not shoAv his first papers, they took affidavits 
to supply them? 

A. Yes, sir ; they took afluhiA its of these men, the witnesses. 

7487. Q. Was there any judge present in these naturalizations? 

A. Not that I remember. 

7488. Q. It was not done in open court then ? 

A. No, sir; it Avas in the clerk^s office. 

, 7489. Q. Did the clerk attest the papers ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. G77 

A. I don’t know that I ever read over these blanks: he bad blank 
forms, and be would hll them up. 

7490. Q, Wbat are your politics ! 

A. I have always professed to be a democrat; it would have been 
impossible, I presume, to get tlie position of deputy clerk if I were not. 

7491. Q. The fact is that you are a democrat ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7492. Q. Was any oath administered to the apidicants except the oath 
of allegiance ? 

A. 1 tbink they had to take an oath that they had been in tbe country 
so long, 

7493. Q. Tbere was no other examination except what wns contained 
in the printed affidavit? 

A. No, sir; tbe form of tbe oath w^as tiikeii from JIull’s Treatise; tbe 
form is laid down there, and the oath x)ut to the witnesses was taken 
from the same. 

7494. Q, Have you ever naturalized any yourself as deputy clerk I 

A. Yes, sir. 

7495. Q. In the absence of the clerk ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


Troy^, New York, January 14, 18G9. 

Oliver Burke sw^orn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7490. I reside at Catskill, Green county ; by occupation I am a post¬ 
master at present; I was present tbere acting as witness for some 
few that were naturalized; it w^as done in the manner w bich my friend, 
3rr. Olney, states; there w^as no judge present; it was done in tbe clerk’s 
office by tbe clerk ; nobody present, I tbink, but the clerk at the time. 

Troy, New York, January 14, 1809. 

IRVIN& Hayner sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7497. lamalawwei’; aiy residence is in this city—Troy, New York; 
I was present at tw o or three different times at tbe justice’s couit, in the 
city of Troy, prior to tbe last election; I saw^ applicants for naturaliza¬ 
tion brought in tbere in squads or scbools of 10, 15, and 20 at a time; 
tbe clerk of the court w^as usually present with the book of oatbs, as it 
is called; tbe book of preliminary declarations, signed b^^ those wiio 
testiffe<l that they came to this country under 18 years of age; they 
would start a file along, each party would sign bis name or make bis 
mark in tbe book of preliminary oatbs, and pass along in that W'ay until 
tbe whole squad had signed their names; tbe clerk would then tell them 
to bold u]) their right bands, and mumble over some kind of oath ; some 
of tbe men, most of them, ])erbaps, Avould lu)ld up theii* hands; some 
would not; just as it happened; the clerk AAOuld pay no attention 
whether they observed tbe formula or not; be w ould then make out a 
list of names from tbe book and band it to some democrat in attendance 
tbere avIio seemed to be overseer of the naturalizations; he Avould bring 
the squads there, coming from different portions of the country or adjoin¬ 
ing counties, make out a list of names, and the leader would take it to 
thejuvstice of tbe court; tbe justice would sometimes be in bis office, 
south of tbe court-house, in a separate building from tbe court room, and 
sometimes in some of the saloons adjoining the court-house—in there 


G78 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


with liis frieiids drinking; the party would take the list of the naiiies 
and inarch the candidates out; the justice would tell them to hold up 
their right hands, and administer the oath without examining the parties, 
or questioning them in his offiite or in the saloon, as the case might be; 
I have no doubt that one-half or two-thirds of all the naturalizations 
were done in that way—that is, in the manner of swearing by the justice; 
the justice’s court-room is in the basement of the court-house. 

7498. Q. After administering the oath, wiiat became of these parties 
and the list ? 

A. They would go out to the street, on the right hand of the court¬ 
house, and the clerk, as soon as he had time, would take the list from the 
leader who marched them over, and the clerk would take the names and 
make out the certihcates, and the leader of the squad would take the 
certificates and distribute them among the men. 

7499. Q. AVere the applications bound in a book? 

A. Yes, sir; they are the records of the court; the clerk would not 
fill up the blanks at the time, or before the oath was administered ; all 
the writing in the blanks would be the name of the alien, and sometimes 
thecountry from which they came, Canada or Ireland, as the case might be. 

7500. Q. The oath, attestation, &c., was filled up afterwards? 

A. Yes, sir ; all that Avas left blank at the time, and i)robably a couide 
of hundred i)ages of that book Avere not filled up until a Aveek or two 
after election (lay ; I aa^is present in court from day to day, and saw the 
clerk filling up these blanks for a couple of AA^eeks after the election. 

7501. Q. Then the dates could only be ascertained from memory ? 

A. From memory or memoranda made in the naturalization book, 
Avhere they entered the dates of naturalization certificates, &c. 

7502. Q. Did the judge, A\dien he handed back these lists of names 
sent to him by the clerk, make any endorsement ui)on it to shoAv that he 
had administered the oath? 

A. lie Avould usually i)ut the initials of his name on. 

7503. Q. On the Avhole paper, or on each name ? 

A. On the Avhole paper. SeA^eral of these papers Avere brought in 
and thrown upon the floor of the court room. I have looked at them, 
l)ut did not preserve any of them. 

7504. Q. Hoav many Avere naturalized in this court,and in Avdiat time? 

A. The Avhole number naturalized by the Troy justices’ court during 

the year 1868 Avas 2,358. I should think during the months of Septem¬ 
ber and October tAvo-thirds of them—three-fourths probably—and, per¬ 
haps, a larger proportion. Out of this number, the number naturalized 
who swore that they came to this country under the age of 18 years 
Avas 2,002. The number AAdio made previous declaration—tAvo years 
preAdous—and those Avho were soldiers of the United States army and 
Avere honorably discharged after one year’s service, Avas 356; oi* that 
number perhaps one-third AA^ere soldiers. I saAv men aaTio had the appear¬ 
ance of being 50 or 60 years old SAATar that they came here as minors. 
Perhaps along about the 20th or 23d of October they Avould come from 
Washington county and Columbia county, in squads of 30 or 40, and 
perhaps more, whose names would appear on the naturalization book, 
one folloAving the other, for pages, all SAvearing, Avithout exception, that 
they came here under the age of 18 years. As a rule, all these squads 
that came on such days SAvore, AAdthout exception, that they came under 
the age of 18 years. 

7505. Q. Hoav many Avere naturalized from adjoining counties? 

A. The number from Washington county naturalized under 18 aa'US 
'257 ; over 18, 10, Avho were soldiers. From'Columbia county, under 18, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


679 

108 ; over 18, 3, and 1 think one ot them was a soldier. From Cohoes, 
under 18,160 • over 18,21. I examined the records to find liow many ot* 
tlie aliens who were naturalized were witnesses for each other. I tind 
there were 505 and upwards; for some eases, of course, I missed in the 
examination, tor it is pretty ditlienlt to examine sneh a lonj^ list to see 
who are witnesses for each other and aliens. There are a few eases 
where one of the judges was a witness, and some eases where the clerk 
was a witness in a ease where he issued the paper himself. The names 
ot those who were witnesses for each other appear on the naturalization 
book, following- one right after the other in succession, showing that it 
was all done at the same time. All the party would sign the book of 
preliminary oaths, and the clerk would enter in the naturalization book 
the name of a princi])al and ask him, who is your witness, ” and he 
would mention some party right at hand under the heading of witnesses, 
lie then asked the next party who is your witness,” and he would give 
him the name of one of the same party to be naturalized ; and thus the 
names would be mentioned right along, one being witness for another, 
and then the Avhole batch would be sent to the judges and all swear 
together. 

7506. Q. What portion of the time, Avhile you were present, Avas the 
judge in the clerk’s otlice Avheii the naturalizations Avere going on'? 

A. I ncA^er saAv the judge there more than tAVo or three times Avhde I 
Avas in the court from time to time. It Avas seldom that he remained 
there A\diile the naturalizations Avere going on. 1 kept no memorandum 
of the names; but 1 saw the clerk engaged in having aliens sign the 
books, administering oaths, and making out the i)apers, and that Avas 
done frequently Avhen there Avas no justice present in the court. 1 IniA'c 
seen the memorandums of names by the clerk handed to Darius Allen, 
chairman of the naturalization (*ommittee here, perhaps oftener than to 
anybody else, lie Avas tlie main man ap])arently that conducted the 
naturalization process. He Avould take the parties, march them out 
from the court room, up to tlie office Avhere the jnsti(‘e Avas, and there the 
oath Avas administered and the initials of the judge marked on the slips. 
Sometimes those slips would lie brought back amt throAvn on the floor, 
and I liaAm looked at some of them. The clerk Avould usually Avrite the 
name of the alien, and Avrite app.,” meaning applicant, 1 supjiose, and 
they Avould liaA^e uiion them the initials ^^W. It.” or T. N.,” signifying 
to tiie clerk, 1 suppose, that they had been sworn. 

7507. Q. In Avhat room Avas tlie clerk aa Iicii these naturalizations aawc 
going on'? 

I have seen him in both rooms. The justice’s court is in the base¬ 
ment of the court-house. There are two rooms, one adjoining the other. 
One is occupied as a court-room, and the other is a record room and 
clerk’s room. The rooms communicate Avith each other by two doors on 
o])posite sides. 1 have seen the clerk making out naturalization papers 
in the court-room proper and in the clerk’s room, both in the absence of 
any justice. 

7508. Q. Is the justice’s room in the same building that they took 
them to to be SAVorn ? 

A. No, sir; that is a separate building. There is a Amcant lot between ; 
it is his private office. I liaA^e seen these parties SAvorn in the justice’s 
room by the justice AA hen he happened not to be in the court room. 1 
IniA^e seen them in one or two instances, perhaps more, SAAmrn in Neary’s 
private office, across the Avay. 

7500. Q. Did the parties thus SAvorii by the justice receive naturaliza¬ 
tion pajiersf 


680 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. From my i)ersoiial knowledge I cannot say, but I saw tlie same 
parties come back afterwards ami s^iw the chairman of the committee 
give back the paper containing the list of names and go back into the 
court-room. 

7510. Q. Were those parties you Siiw go witli Allen with the list of 
names the same parties who were afterwards sworn in your presence and 
signed their names in the book ? 

A. Yes, sir; some of them Avere. Some of them Avould remain out¬ 
side and others would go into the court-room and sit down and Avait 
there, or'^stay around in the clerk’s room until the papers Avere ready. 

7511. Q. lio you knoAV Avhether these ])arties had been previously sAVorn 
in the justice’s court room by the justice himself f 

A. There Avere parties Avho Avould swear that Avere not sworn in the 
justice’s court-room preAdously; men av horn 1 saw sign their names to 
the books and go out with Allen, or other i)arty under Avhose leadership 
they AA^ere, and AAould shortly afterwards come back; sometimes the 
Avhole batch of papers Avould be gi\"en to Allen; in some cases to the 
applicants themselA^es. They Avere men I noticed particularly; I could 
not mention their names, but from curiosity I kept track of some of 
them; 1 should judge there Avere betAA^en one and two hundred i)ages of 
the book of oaths at the time 1 examined it, page after page, Avhere all 
the Avriting in these blanks Avas the name of the ai)plicant—either his 
name or a cross—and the name of the country of his nationality, either 
from Canada or Ireland. [Witness produced a slip of pa])er containing 
names of apidicants, handed him by J. aitd B. Smith, and referred to 
b}’ him in his testimony subsequently.] 

7512. Q. (Suggested by IMr. Smith.) Is it not the practice AAdien per¬ 
sons are Jiaturalized for the ]>arty to stand up, and the Avitnesses to stand 
up oi)posite, and for the clerk to AArite doAvn the name of the party and 
the names of the Avitnesse.s, ranging them in order round Avhere the clerk 
sat, and then to saa ear each one in the order in Avhich they came, the 
Avitnesses and the parties f And did they not make such slips of pajAcr 
for the purpose of arranging them so that they could go through the 
ceremony AA'ith accuracy and despatch'? 

A. If that has been the custom my observation has never convinced 
me of it. 

7513. Q. Do you knoAV Avhether it Avas the habit to range the i)arties 
in line, each applicant and the Avitnesses, and furnish him Avith a ticket, 
so that the names Avould be properly called ! 

A. I should think not. 

7511. Q. Do you knoAV of anything of that kind? 

A. In some cases 1 knoAv it was not. 

7515. Q. In any case did you know it to be done in that Avay ? 

A. Yes; in individual cases. They Avere furnished Avith a ticket, but it 
Avas the custom Avhen a squad Avas marcluHl in for the leader of it to 
take the list of names on one ])aper and march them out. By individual 
cases I mean AAdien there Avas but one and his Avitnesses appeared; I 
Avould not swear that a list Avas taken in all cases. 

7510. Q. You Inwe stated that you find from the books that upon the 
same day when many persons were naturalized they Avere Avitnesses for 
others to be naturalized ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have the names here of 595 jiarties Avho were witnesses 
for each other and aliens; that is, for about tA\m months, from August 
15th to October 21th. There Avas a case that came under my observa¬ 
tion shoAving the laxity of doing business; 1 tind that on October 23d 
a squad came up purporting to be from Columbia county; I stood by the 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


681 


desk and saw the apparent leader of that squad si<?n his name to the 
book of preliminary oaths; it was John M. O’Slianohnessy, I think. He 
then went back and sat down in the court-room, and staid there a little 
while, and when there were two or three around the desk, he came round 
to the trout of the desk and asked the (derk for his naturalization papers. 
The clerk looked at him and asked him if he had been in this country 
tive years, and he said no; whether he came here under the age of 21 
years, and he said no. The clerk told him that he was not entitled to 
his papers. He stood round a few moments and then went out of the 
court-house. I found on inspection of the records that papers were 
issued to him that same day. Mr. O’Shaughnessy was not sworn by the 
clerk while I was iu the court room, that I saw. He signed his name 
and skulked oft* back in the court room and sat there. 

7517. Q. Was there more than one clerk to this court ? 

A. No, sir; no deputy. 

7518. Q. Are you sure that the O’Shaughnessy who received the papers 
was the same man? 

A. I did not see the papers granted; I only knew it was the same 
name and on the same day. If 1 remember right, on the book of oaths 
it is filled ui) that he came to this country a minor under the age of 18 
years. 

7510. Q. Were there a large number of persons naturalized on that day? 

A. Yes; there was a large sipiad that came up from Columbia county, 
and he a])peared to be the leader; I could not swear as to the number of 
the squad, but probably there Avere 15 or 20, and perhaps more. 

7520. Q. How many in all Avere naturalized on that day, as near as 
you can recollect ? 

A. I did not count the number on any particular day, but probably 
there AA^ere as many or more on the 23d and 21th of October than on 
previous days. 


Troy, Neav York, January 14, 18G9. 

James P. Butler SAA orn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7521. I reside at Saratoga Springs. I am attorney-at-law. On the 
23d of October, prior to the election, Pat Brannegan Avas arrested for 
obtaining fraudulent naturalization papers at Troy. A list appeared of 
about 25 Avho had put in their first declaration at BallstoAAm, at the 
count}^ court of Saratoga county, and then AA'ithin tAvo years had come 
doAvn here, tlie large body of them, and had all been naturalized here. 
This Pat Brannegan Avas among those; and he, among others, Avas 
arrested. He had his name registered, and A^oted, and SAVore in his A ote. 
I Avas not present at the time he SAAmre in his AT)te, but I was counsel at 
the time of the trial, and the records of the justices’ court here AA^re 
jiroduced by James el. Jennings, the clerk. On inspecting those records 
1 found from page 1 to page 338 of the book of aliens’ declarations, No. 
10, Avith three declarations on a page, Avere then filled u]). The blanks 
Avere all filled up complete. It extends from the 7th of October to the 
17th of October, 1808. From page 339 to page 480, all the declarations, 
at the time of the trial, were left blank, except Pat Brannegan’s and one 
or two others. He AAms naturalized, according to the record, on the 23d 
of October, 1808, and the blank had Avritten in these A\ords: “that 1 
landed in the United States a minor under the age of 18 years.” 

7522. Q. Did it appear, from the other blanks, Avhether the api)li- 
cants Avere minors or not ? 


682 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I could not observe anything' to intimate what their condition was, 
whether minors, soldiers, or otherwise. On tlie other book, the book of 
naturalization, I think there were about 1,(>82 names. 

7523. Q. Did those names correspond with the blank applications? 

A. As I estimated tliern there were 134 more naturalized than there 
were oaths or declarations on that book; but I suppose it was accounted 
for by those that had put in declarations at other places. Most of them 
that I saw, however, were tilled up that they had arrived here before 
they were 18 years of age. 


Troy, New York, January 14, 1860. 

John D. B. Smith sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7524. I reside in Troy. 1 have been a member of the capitol police 
force, and lately have been employed as detective by the republican 
central committee. 

7525. (^. Go on and state, without being specially interrogated thereto, 
any knowledge you have of any frauds or irregularities in reference to 
naturalization in this county, preceding the last presidential election. 

A. The information that I have is information from tliose that Lave 
been arrested. I was looking for the paper, [produced by Mr. Ilay- 
ner, a previous witness;] it Avas a man that was naturalized in the Troy 
justices^ court. The clerk ga\"e the man this small piece of paper with 
the name of the applicant—O’Brien, 1 think his name Avas—Avhich Avas 
marked soldier, and the name of the AA'itness, and he AAent out. There 
Avas no justice in the court at the time. He came back and handed it to 
the clerk, and the clerk gaA^e him the naturalization papers on that. 
There Avas no application oath in the court, except by the clerk. 

7526. Q. The clerk administered the oath on his application, and gave 
him the paper Avith the names of himself and the AAutnesses upon it, and 
he took that aAvay, and brought it back, and the clerk gaAX him his 
naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir: I was present, and Avas there for the puriiose of noticing. 
I i)icked up this paper and gave it to ^Ir. Hayner. 

7527. Q. AYere you dismissed from the police force? 

A. I Avas not. I offered my resignation, and it Avas accepted j at my 
OAvn suggestion. 

Troy, Neav York, January 14, 1869. 

Thomas Neany sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Smith, who Avas present at the request of Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7528. I reside in Troy. I was born here. I am police justice and 
one of the justices of the justices’ court of the city of Troy. 1 have held 
that position for the last four years. I had previously been clerk of the 
justices’ court for six years. 

7529. Q. State the practice in granting naturalizations preceding the 
last presidential election, and make any exiffanation that you desire 
Avith regard to preAuous years. 

A. The practice has been in said court for the applicant to sign the 
book of declarations, and make his declaration by oath either before the 
justice, if the clerk Av^as not present, or the clerk if present. Then his 
name, with the AAutnesses, Avere inserted on the book of naturalization 
records, and the Avitnesses were sworn by the justice together Avith the 
ffnal oath being administered by the justice to the applicant. This has 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G83 


been done sonietinies in the justices’ conrt-room, tlie room adjoining, tbe 
police court-room up stairs in the court-house, and in tlie office of the 
justice adjoining’ the court-liouse. If tlie justice Avas not present in the 
(*ouit-ioom, the clerh Avould send the name of the applicant, tog'ether 
Avith the names of the Avitnesses, to the office of the justice adjoining the 
court-house, Avith the request that the said justice administer the oath to 
the jiarties. That is the proper oath for naturalization. The justice 
after administering the oath Avould mark the AA^ord “sAAuirn,” AA’ith his 
initials, on the slip of paper—it made no ditference AAdiich side—and 
returned it by the messenger to the clerk, aa’Iio AAmuld proceed to enter 
the names in the naturalization book, and deliA^er to the applicant his 
final ])apers ot naturalization. The form of the oath to the Avitnesses is 
as folioAvs: 

\oii do swear that you have known John Doe (or whatever the name may he) to reside 
within the limits and under the jurisdiction of the United States for the five years last past, 
the last year within the State ot New York, and durinj^ all that time he has behaved as a 
man of good moral character, attached to the principles of the Constitution of the United 
States, and well disposed to the good order and happiness of the same. 

7530. Q. Did you repeat the oath to the parties, or did they merely 
sign it ? 

A. I rejieated the oath in all cases. I required the parties to hohl up 
their right hands, and 1 repeated the oath in these Avords. I then admin¬ 
istered to the applicant himself the oath prescribed by the’act of Con¬ 
gress. I Avish to say that this has been the ])ractice for years in our 
court, and also in the county court of this county. 

7531. Q. It has been stated here in eyidence that the clerk did not fill 
up the character of the applicant, the date of the ai)plication, and the 
jurat, in the application book at the time of the application, but did so 
afterwards at his leisure ? 

A. Yes; 1 knoAV that to be a fact. He administered the oath, though, 
and for the minors he made a memorandum upon the book. He inserted 
the Avord minor” in the blank at the time, so that he Avould knoAv Avhich 
Avere minors. Tliat aajis the rule always. [Corrected subsequently.] 
There got to be such a croAvd that it took a Aveek or tAVO afterAvards to 
fill up all the blanks. 

7532. Q. What Avas the proportion of naturalizations this year com¬ 
pared Avitli preAuous years? 

A. I do not thiidv the increase is 200, compared AAuth the presidential 
elections of preAUOUs years. We do not commence the naturalization 
business until about the first of October. We liaA^e naturalized 1,200 or 
1,300 frequently heretofore during campaigns—eyery i)residential term. 
The greatest number is ahvays naturalized at that time. 

7533. Q. You think the increased number of citizens naturalized, and 
of minors naturalized, Avas OAving to the reluctance to being naturalized 
from the liability to the draft ? 

A. Y^es, sir; I knoAY of my own knoAAdedge that large numbers of 
minors and others refused to ):)e naturalized on that account during the 
Avar. 

7534. Q. Can you giye me any reason Avhy large numbers should come 
here from Washington, and Columbia, and Saratoga counties, to be nat¬ 
uralized, their courts being in session at the same time ? 

A. As I understand it, the reason they came here Avas that they could 
get naturalized more readily, and it Avas more conyeuient for them to 
come. It has been our practice for ten years to naturalize large num¬ 
bers from those counties at eAmry fall election. 

7535. ' Q. Hoav long did it take the clerk to fill up these blanks, and 
Avhy did it take him so long ? 


G84 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. It took liiin several weeks to Avrite up these declaration blanks; 
and this was for the reason that his time in a great measure is occupied 
in court with other business, and he had been snbjxenaed in numerous 
cases thronghont AUashington county and Saratoga county, Avith his 
records, and was not alloAved time to Avrite them out. lie could luiA^e 
Avritten them iij) i]i less than a Aveek; yes, he could haAX‘ Avritten them 
up in three days if he had occupied the Avhole time. He is a A^ery fast 
Avriter; the fastest in the country. 

7o3(i. (^. How long Avas it after the election that he commenced to 
AAU-ite them up ? 

A. Kight aAA'ay. He commenced the next morning, some, but had to 
do it otf* hours. It AA ould not do for any other person to till the records up. 

7537. Q. Will you state the practice of the county court during the 
vacations? 

A. It is the practice of the county court to naturalize at all times, 
Avhether the court is in session or not. It is done by the clerk administer¬ 
ing the preliminary oath, and/Auiting the name of the applicant and the 
Avitnesses on a slip of paper, and sending the applicant to the Judge to 
be sworn, and he l eturns the paper to the clerk AAitli his initials, the 
same as A\ e do in our court. The county judge for the last V2 years has 
been in the habit of practicing in the same manner. Judge Kobertson 
has held the office for the last 12 years, and he has been a leading repub¬ 
lican in this county and chairman of the republican central committee. 
He Avas formerly one of the justices of the Troy justices’ court, and held 
the position of police justice Avhich I uoav occupy. 

7538. Q. When did you see this book of oaths, in Avhich the Avord 

minor” Avas AATitten in? 

A. I saAv it every day. 

7539. Q. Was it the uniform ])ractice to Avrite in the AAwd ‘‘minor?” 

A. ISTot uniform. It Avas indicated either by that or by some remark 

Avritten in, some little check-mark, or simpl}^ a tick, I think, the clerk 
had, or some scratch of the pen. 

7510. Q. Was there anything to indicate the date of the naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir; he Avould start for the day Avith dating the first declara¬ 
tion, and he A\muld date no others until the next day. 

7511. Q. The seA^eral justices of this court Avere each by the law com¬ 
petent to hold a separate court? 

A. A separate court. 

7512. Q. Could they run three courts at one time ? 

A. No, sir. 

7513. Q. But one of them (*ould hold a court at the same time ? 

A. A^es, sir. We took turns by a private understanding. One Avould 
stay until he got tiicd and (^all somebody else in. 

7511. [Book No. 10, containing the naturalizations last fall, ])roduced 
by Avitness, and after examining the book and consulting Avith the clerk, 
the Avitness stated that he did not knowhoAV the minors Avere designated 
by the clerk. 

The explanation of the clerk is that in filling the blanks Avherever the 
name of the country of the a])plicant appeared in the concluding part of 
his application, he aa as not a minor. In all other cases he filled them up 
as minors.] 

7515. The blaidv form is as follows: 

State OP New York, Rkxnsrlarr County, ? .v » i i 

Justices' court of the city of Troy, ss : ^ Alien s declaration. 

Be it remembered, That on the — clay of-. in the year of our Lord 180-, I,- 

-, a native of-, appeared in the justices’ court of the city of Troy, the said court 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


685 


beinora court of record havinpr cominon law jurisdiction and a clerk and seal, and made oath 
in open court that it was bo no fid t my intention to become a citizen of the United States, and 
to renounce forever all allegiance and fidelity to every foreiirn prince, potentate, state or 
sovereignty whatsoever, and more paiticularly to the-of-. 

Sworn to before me this — day of-, 186-. 

Eoctiester, New York, January 15,1869. 

Joseph L. Luckey sworn and examined. 

To IVIr. Dickey: 

7546. A. I am attorney and counsellor, and reside in Eocliester. I 
made a eount yesterday of the number actually recorded as naturalized 
trom January 1, 1868, to January 1, 1869. This count was imide from 
the book keitt in the clerk’s oifice, in which the names Avere recorded as 
tliey Avere naturtilized or suitposed to btc The Aviiole nuiidter is 1,256. I 
did not make an actual count, but probably 1,200 of these were natural¬ 
ized during the campaign, after about the 20th of September; 1 think 
there Avere none after the 3d of NoA^ember. 1 Avas only present in the 
court on two occasions aa hen they AA’ere naturalizing in open court. At 
that time they Avere holding the court in Avhat is called the judge’s 
chand)ers, across the hall liere, (in the court-house,) and the court Avas 
conducted by the county judge. Judge Fuller, and one of the session 
justices. On one of these occasions the county judge asked tAvo or three 
(piestions, and the sessions justice asked tAAm or three, 1 think. On the 
other occasion I think there aa ere no questions asked at all. 

7547. Q. Was the party SAAxmn to the preliminary affidaA its? 

A. They aa ere saa orn by Mr. l^oster, I belicA^e. He is a deputy county 
clerk. 

7548. Q. By Avhom was the final oath of allegiance administered? 

A. My impression noA\" is that it Avas by Judge Fuller, but 1 could not 
say positiA^ely as to that. I have seen them naturalizing in the county 
clerk’s oifice several times during the canq)aign; the exact times are not 
in my memory. I IniYe seen men come in there and SAvear before Mr. 
Bardoe or Mr. Foster, the deputy clerks; no judge there and no court; 
simply in the clerk’s ofiice. They haAU^ been in the habit of doing it. 
That has l)een the habit, 1 think, for several years. 

7549. Q. Is it the practice in your State to do judicial acts Avithout a 
judge ? 

A. Those judicial acts, in this county. It has been the practice, I belieAX, 
for three or four years, to some extent. I had occasion, as clerk of the 
county central committee, to examine the naturalization ])apers after 
they Avere filed, in making out a list of naturalizations, Avhich Avas pub¬ 
lished in the papers. 

7550. (^. What proportion of those naturalizations were minors, AAdiat 
proportion Avere soldiers, and what proportion had declared their inten¬ 
tions? 

A. My examinations in that respect aati’c confined almost entirely to 
those Aviio had been naturalized under democratic auspices. The papers 
on the other {■ ide I did not examine. My impression is that considerably 
more than half Avere upon ])apers declaring that they arrm^l in this 
country under 18; and I should think perhaps an eighth or a tenth Avere 
discharged soldiers. 

7551. Q. Was the record of these naturalizations, Avhether done in the 
clerk’s office or the court, completed at the time the party received his 
certificate ? 

A. Of tliose ])apers that I examined I do not think one-fifth aa ere com- 
jfieted—in tact 1 doubt very much Avhether a tenth of them AV^ere; that is, 
completed as far as the jurat and signatures of the clerk to the order 






686 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


were concerned. For some tliree weeks, wliile these examinations were 
going on, it Avas impossible for the clerk to sign them, becanse he was 
sick. Some of them, however, Avere signed by the deputy clerk. ^ lliey 
Avere signed by Mr. Bardoe, Avho is an assistant deputy clerk. Neither 
of these men are Avhat they call clerks to the court. The clerk appoints 
Avhat he calls special assistant deputy clerks for the courts, ot which Mr. 
Benjamin is one and Mr. Knabit is one. Messrs. Bardoe, Cutler, and 
Foster are assistant deputy clerks in the office. 

7552. (^). At the time these assistant deputies transacted the business 
was the clerk or his deputy in the office ? 

A. The clerk Avas not, but 1 suppose the deputy Avas. From Palmyra, 
in Wayne county, Ave found two papers issued to Timothy CosgroA^e on 
the same day. One of them Ave found Avas issued on a de(;laration that 
he came to this country under the age of 18 years, and the other on the 
first paper of a man by the name of Byan, I think. So Mr. CosgroA^e 
had tAvo papers. 

7553. Q. Were these aliens AAitnesses for each other? 

A. Yes. There are numerous instances of that kind. I am copying a 
paper noAv, of names from Aa^oii, in Avhich there are numerous instances 
of that character 5 and I Avill produce it. 

Kochester, K. Y"., January 15, 18G9. 

Jerome Fuller sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7554. Q. I reside at Eockport, in this county. I liaA’e been acting as 
county judge since the 1st day of January a year ago. 

75.55. Q. Please to state the mode in which naturalizations have been 
granted in your court during the past year. 

A. 1 think I naturalized one or tAvo men last spring, (I do not recol¬ 
lect the time,) in my chambers. By the statute of this State, the county 
court is always open, excejit for business Avhere notice is required. I did 
nothing in relation to the naturalization of any person after that until 
the 8th day of October last. I had a consultation Avith some one of my 
associates on the criminal side of the county court, Avho is also a 
member of the court aboAT^; and he told me tliey AA^ere naturalizing in 
the clerk’s office beloAv. I had heard rumors of that kind before; and 
Judge Smith had had his attention called to it. 1 advised him to go 
down and tell them it Avas all aa rong, and should be stopped, and Avas 
afterAvards inffirmed by him that he did so. Then to relieve the pressure 
on the circuit court abov'e 1 opened my court on the folloAA ing day, AAiiich 
Avas the 8th, for the purpose of naturalization. I kept it open for that 
purpose most of the time (I missed one or two days) until and including 
the 24th of October, Aviiich Avas the last day on Avliich they could be 
natuinlized and vote at the coming election. AYhen I commenced I Avas 
Avholly unacquainted Avith the business of naturalization, and nev^erhad 
read the statutes on that subject; and I had to spend a considerable part 
of the time, for the first day or tAvo, in looking up the hiAV and becoming 
familiar Avith that. During that time a considerable number of persons 
were naturalized; and it Avas done, I i)resume, rather loosely. I am 
informed that in one or two cases papers got by Avithout "sufficient 
scrutiny; and Ave passed, Avithout discoAT.ring it, one or two Avheii the 
declarations of intention had been made less than two years, liaAdng a 
few days yet to run. There Avas considerable pressure on the court. 
They came in in schools, and the room was frequently croAvded. Most 
of the naturalizations took place the first hour in the morning after the 
court was opened, at 11 o’clock. Sometimes there Avould be 15 or 20 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


687 


waiting tor their turns, with all their witnesses, which tilled the room 
ii]). It was ditiieult, therefore, to give the papers that scrutiny which 
was required, in every case; but we aimed to scrutinize them. I called 
to my assistance the associate justices in the court of sessions, i had 
other judicial duties pressing upon me to be performed at the same time; 
and when there was considerable i)ressure on the court one of these would, 
ordinarily, look over the j)apers and hand them to me and say whether 
they were right or not; and the clerk would swear the witnesses, and I 
Avould examine them while they were looking over the papers. We iacil- 
itated the business in that way; and Avhen I was engaged in other busi¬ 
ness my associates examined the i)apers and questioned the witnesses 
also. 

7550. Q. Are they associates of this court for naturalization puri)oses ? 

A. No, sir; they are not on the civil side of the court; they are justi¬ 
ces of the sessions on the criminal side of the court. When naturaliza¬ 
tions took place, I opened my court at 11 o’clock in the morning. A 
good deal of naturalization Avas done before my court Avas open in the 
morning; there the same course was ])iirsued. Judge Smith Avould 
not stop his business to attend to it; and the justices of the sessions 
attended to it there. The court of sessions had been adjourned, not from 
one day to the next, but a day or two later; and Avhen the day of adjourn¬ 
ment came round I kept it open. ]\Iy opinion is, as a judge and a hiAv- 
yer, that the court of sessions has as much poAA er to naturalize as the 
county court. The county court has no original common-law jurisdic¬ 
tion AvhateA^er; none but api)ellate. The court of sessions has original 
common-la.AV jnrisdisction OA^er all dimes Avhere the punishment is less 
than death or imprisonment for life; and the court of sessions has civil 
jurisdiction in some cases. There is a class of quasi criminal cases, Avhich 
are really cIa il cases, as in the case of bastard}^, in Avhich it has jurisdic¬ 
tion. Had I not been aided by my associates I should either liaA^e had 
to neglect the naturalization business or my other judicial duties. 

7557. Q. In your court Avere the parties and Avitnesses subjected to a 
preliminary examination ? If so, AAdiat aa ^is the character of that exam¬ 
ination ? 

A. There Avere three classes of persons offering themseh^es to be nat¬ 
uralized. One class comprised those avIio claimed to have migrated to 
this country before they Avere 18 years old; another class claimed to be 
naturalized on a previous declaration of intentions; the third class Avere 
discharged soldiers, who had, or claimed to liaA e, honorable discharges. 
In the first class the first thing Avhich Avas done Avas to administer the 
preliminary oath, and examine the applicant as to his age, and as to the 
time of his migration to this country; and after the first day I think Ave 
made that examination a rigid one. A large majority of those who 
offered theinselves for naturalization claimed to have migrated to this 
country before they wt‘re 18 years old. The naturalizations upon previ¬ 
ous declarations of intentions Avere comparatively very Icav. There Avas 
a considerable number of discharged soldiers. If Ave Avere satisfied from 
the examination, in the first class, that the applicant had migrated to 
this country before he Avas 18, Ave then allowed his witnesses to be sworn 
as to his five years’ residence, and one year’s residence in the State of 
Ncav York, and A\'e then examined them, except in all cases where the 
discharge from the army showed that they had been discharged more 
thaTi a year, as they did in all cases. We Avere not very particular about 
it then, because Ave considered the discharge itself evidence that they 
Avere in the (country more than a year before. If satislied as to the resi¬ 
dence, Ave alloAved the oath to be administered. 

7558. il. What proportion of those that applied were rejected, if any ? 


688 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I could not tell you tlio proportion, because we kept uo recjord of 
those that were rejected. We injected a good many because we Avere 
satisfied, although they had made aii affidavit to that effect, that they 
did not ndgrate to this country before they Avere IS. A large ])ropor- 
tiou of those that Ave r(‘jected Avere of that class. We Avere satisfied that 
a good deal of fraud Avas being committed in that Avay, and Ave Avere 
more ])articular and rigid in the examination in relation to that than 
anything else. 

Q. So far as you could reach it, you rejected them"? 

A. Yes, sir; and 1 Avould say further that it struck me Axry forcibly 
that tlie applicant’s oath on that subject Avas a A'ery loose aa ay of x)rov- 
ing his age and time of migration to this country, and that it opened the 
door to an immense amount of fraud Avhich there Avas no possible means 
of detecting. In a number of instances 1 rejected them on AicAv; I could 
see for myself that they must be either SAvearing falsely or mistaken. I 
am informed that the business of naturalization, before I came into 
offi(*e, had chieffy been done in the clerk’s office, and Avheii it Avas stopped, 
in the Avay I luiA^e described, there Avas a good deal of criticism because 
it Avas not alloAved to be done in the same Avay that it had been before. 
The papers AA^ere draAA n before they came into court. There AAmre A’ery 
rarely any papers draAvn in the court. I ])aid no attention to the record, 
or form of record, or anything of that kind. I alloAved the clerks or hiAv- 
yers to do that to suit themselAX^s. I kiioAv that the clerk signed the 
jurats in the ('ourt, but the matter of making u]) the record and giA ing 
the certificates of naturalization 1 paid no attention to. The clerk in this 
county has a deputy, Mr. Cutler. He has a special dexuity. Colonel Ben¬ 
jamin, Avhose Avhole business it is to attend on the courts. He attends 
as a clerk to the courts. Keither Mr. Cutler nor Colonel Bowers ever 
attends the court as clerk there. That is the Avhole business of Colonel 
Benjamin, and he attends on the courts as dei)uty clerk, and has an 
assistant, Mr. Knabit. The first day Mr. Knabit Avas sent doAvii after 
I oi)ened court, but aa^^, concluded that on the Avhole that Avouhl hardly 
be sufficient. He officiated the first day, but after that he officiated im 
more. After that, so long as the circuit (^ourt Avas in session, they sent up 
an assistant dei)uty from the clerk’s office beloAv. Sometimes it AA'as Mr. 
Foster and sometimes it was Mr. Bardoe. We had considerable trouble 
to get a clerk, and a good deal (if tlie time Ave had to Avait. In one 
instance, I recollect, I Avent doAvn into the clerk’s office, because Ave could 
not get a clerk up there. After Judge Smith adjourned his court up¬ 
stairs, Avhieh Avas during the last Aveek, Colonel Benjamin officiated as 
the s])ecial deputy to attend uxmn the courts. 

7559. Q, Has it been the practice for county judges in this county to 
naturalize at chambei'S ? 

A. My impression is that the i)ractice in this county Avas to naturalize 
in the clerk’s office, Avithout going to chand>ers at all; but in one or tAvo 
instances I naturalized at chambers last si)ring. In three instances that 
came under my observation, certificates of declaration Avere presented 
Avhich had been altered, and the time of the declaration changed. In the 
first instance I dis(M)A ered that a six had been changed to a ci})her. The 
last day of naturalization AAms the 2Ith of Oiffober, and the date October 
2(), tAvo years before, had been changed to October 20. I discoAmred that 
myself, and rejected it; but I Avas not smart enough in that case to keep 
the ])aper. In the next case I do not recollect Aviiat figure had been 
changed. I exandned the man very closely. He denied being able to 
read, and denied knoAving that it had been altered at all, or anything 
about it. I kept the paper, and reject?d the application. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


689 


Eochester, New York, Jamiary 15, 18G9. 
Joseph L. Luckey recalled. 

To Mr. Dickey" : 

75G0. I have copied tlie names and dates of ])ersons naturalized from 
the town of Avon, Livingston county, and of the witnesses, from the 
papers themselves, as they appear in the records in the county clerk’s 
office of Monroe county. On examination of the record, I find that there 
were 475 persons naturalized in this county from the 1st of September to 
the 28th of October. 

The witness produced the copy above referred to, which is as follows: 

List of persons naturalized from Avon^ Livingston eounty^ in the Monroe 

county clerlds office. 


Date. 


Names of parties. 


Sept. 26 


29 

Oct. I 


3 


10 


n 

17 

22 

24 

23 


Riser, Anthony .... 
Dowd, Michael.... 
O’Brien, Michael .. 

Rook, Michael. 

Sooney, John. 

Dutfy, Thomas .... 

Coyne, Peter. 

Kelly. John. 

McCarley, James .. 
McAvoy, Edward.. 
McAvoy, Patrick J 

Tighe, .John. 

Torpy, Richard.... 

Murtha, John. 

Wall, Richard. 

Agan, .John. 

Boyle, Francis. 

Agan, James. 

Cnllins, John. 

Kelly, Michael 

Kelly, James. 

Leary, Andrew - 
McGraw, .John .... 
Mooney, Thomas .. 

Konrk, Thomas- 

Sheridan, Thomas . 
Tully, Bradley ... - 
Watson, Alexander. 

Welch, Thomas- 

Welch, John. 

Burke, Peter G 
Garvey, Edward--. 
Haynes, James 
Hannatz, Pette - - -. 

Kelly, Thomas. 

Landers, Jerry -. - - 
McMara, John .--- 
McGrath, William . 
Givens, Thomas - -. 
Darby, Thomas. - -. 
Grany, William 
Collins, Michael - 

Kelly, Andrew. 

Careny, Edward... 
Dickson, William.. 


Names of witnesses. 


William E. Pattee and Michael O’Brien. 
William E. Pattee, other name not legible. 
William E. Pattee and Michael Dowd. 
William E. Pattee and Michael Dow^d. 
William E. Pattee and Michael O’Brien. 
James Kearny and M. Kearny. 

John Tighe and Richard Torpey. 

Peter Coyne and Richard Torpey. 

Edward McAvoy and P. J. McAvoy. 

P. J. McAvoy and James McCarly. 

Edward McAvoy and James McCarly. 
William E. Pattee and Richard Torpey. 
William E. Pattee and John Tighe. 

Thonras Murphy and Barney Goggins. 
William E. Pattee and .John Tighe. 

William E. Pattee and Thomas Duffy. 
Thomas Duffy and John Boy Ian. 

Thomas McHugh and Andrew Leary. 

Thomas McHugh and John Agan. 

John McGraw and Thomas Looney. 

Thomas Duffy and John McGraw. 

John Agan and Thomas Duffy. 

Thomas McHugh and Thomas Mooney. 
William E. Pattee and John Welch. 

Thomas Duffy and Thomas McHugh. 

Thomas Duffy and Bradley Tully. 

William E. Pattee and Thomas McHugh. 
William E. Pattee and Thomas Looney. 
William E. Pattee and John Agan. 

William E. Pattee and Thomas Rouch. 

John Coffee and Edw. Mahan. 

Level Hamlin and J. H. Yerkes. 

Barney Goggins and Daniel Sullivan. 

John McGraw and Thomas Looney. 

William E. Pattee and Thomas Duff 7 . 
William E. Pattee and Thomas Duffy. 
William E. Pattee and John O’Connor. 
William E. Pattee and Thomas Duffy. 
William E. Pattee and Thomas Duffy. 
William E. Pattee and P. Curran. 

Patrick Leahy and Charles Chustie. 

William Brown and Andrew Kelly. 
Christopher Rockafellow and Edw. Mclntire. 
William E. Pattee and Michael Rook. 
William E. Pattee and Michael O’Brien. 


44 T 



























































690 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Eochester, Eew York, January 15,18G0. 

Calvin Knowles sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

75G1. I am an attorney practicing law, and farmer* I reside in Avon, 
Livingston county; I Avas inspector of elections of tlie 2d election dis¬ 
trict of tlie town of Aa^ou, and one of the registrars at the election last 
fall. 

75G2. Q. State anything yon know of the registry of illegal A^oters or 
fraudulent naturalization papers in your town. 

A. I can state what persons who Avere challenged swore to. Bradley 
Tulley swore, “I am 35 years of age; I haA^e been in this country about 

14 years; this is my first set of papers.” Thomas Mooney swore, 
suppose I am 40 or 41 years of age; I have liA^ed in this country 20 
years; I was born in Ireland; this is my first set of papers; I liaA^e 
never been in the service of the United States, either army or navy.” 
Michael Dowd sworn, says, am about 45 years of age; I Avas born in 
Ireland; I have been in the United States 25 years.” I do not think he 
stated that was his first set of papers, but from the published list in our 
town—I did not examine the record myself—I liaA^e no doubt of it; 
William Dixon SAVorn, says, “I was born in Ireland; I am about 40 years 
of age; I cannot give my exact age; I have been in the United States 

15 years and no longer; this is my second set of papers; I made my 
application at Geneseo about eight years ago.” There were several per¬ 
sons Avho offered to register who were not entitled to from their papers. 

75G3. Q. From whom did those papers purport to be issued ? 

A. From the clerk of the court of Monroe county. 

75G4. Q. Which is the most conA^enient place to register from Aa^ou— 
the county toAAm of Livingston county, or Eochester 

A. It is 10 miles to Geneseo by railroad, and it is 18 miles to the city 
of Eochester. 

75G5. Q. Please look at this list [produced by Mr. Luckey, the pre- 
aTous witness] and say whether any of the parties you haA'e named are 
on that list. 

A. There are three election districts in the toAAm; part of the names on 
this list voted in the election district of AA^hich I Avas inspector; probably 
about 20 of them registered, and 15 of them Amted. 

75GG. Q. State whether the same parties Avere witnesses and appli¬ 
cants, aliens being reciprocally applicants and Avitnesses for one another. 

A. Yes, sir; they stated that their papers were all made out together 
at the clerk’s office, and they were all sworn and naturalized at the same 
time. 


Eochester, Keav York, January 15, 18G9. 
Anthony Biser sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7567. I live in AA^on, Livingston county; I Avork by the day. 

75G8. Q. Did you come to Eochester last fall to be naturalized^ 

A. Yes. 

7569. Q. How many came with you^ 

A. I don’t know; about seA^en or eight. 

7570. Q. Where did you go to when you first came here? 

A. I went -Avith the rest of them to an office—a laYwer’s office; I don’t 
knoAY where it was. 

7571. Q. What did you do when yon got there? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


691 


A. Took out my paper. 

7572. Q. Was Michael Dowd one of the party ? 

A. Yes. 

7573. Q. Michael O’Brien, Michael Book, John Tooney? [Beading 
names from the Avon list, September 26.] 

A. Yes; that was all, I guess; I showed my first paper, and he made 
out a paper for me and I thought it was all right; he asked me some 
(piestions, but I did not understand what he said. 

7574. Q. Where did you go to then"? 

A. I came up here, I suppose; [to the court-house;] down stairs. 

7575. Q. Who AYent witness for you"? 

A. I suppose Michael O’Brien and Billy Pattee did. 

7576. Q. O’Brien Avas naturalized and got his papers at the same time 
you got yours"? 

A. Yes. 

7577. Q. Were the papers read OA^er to you ? 

A. He read OA^er, but I could not understand Avhat they speak. 

7578. Q. How long had you had your first paper ? 

A. Just a year. 

7570. Q. How long had you been in the country? 

A. About 17 years. 

7580. Q. Did you gWe up your first paper? 

A. Yes; I gaA^e it to the clerk and he gaY’-e it to me back, and I took 
it along home. 

7581. Q. You was naturalized because you came here before you was 
18,1 suppose ? 

A. I don’t know whether he asked that or not. 

7582. Q. He gaA^e back your first paper ? 

A. Yes; and made out another one. 

7583. Q. How old Avas you Ayhen you came to this country ? 

A. O, I was old—about 42 I guess. 

Bochester, New York, January 15, 1869. 

James B. Adams SAvorn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7584. I live in Geneseo, Livingston county; I am district attorney of 
that county at present; the almost uniform practice in that county is for 
the county judge to examine the witnesses AABeiwer he happens to find 
them, usually at his chambers, and to give a slip of paper when he 
admits them to citizenship, addressed to the clerk ordering him to admit 
them; there is no clerk present; the judge there holds that the county 
court is Avherever the county judge is; I have been acquainted for the 
last twelve years with the practice of naturalization as conducted by the 
county court there; during the administration of Judge Hastings, who 
Avas a democratic judge, from January 1,1856, for eight years, he was in 
the habit of traA^eliing around the county—^little more than ten days before 
the election—for the purpose of afibrding facilities to parties to be nat¬ 
uralized in that manner; our present county judge—Judge Hubbard— 
was elected from DansAille, the extreme southern town of our county, 
quite a large Aullage; and he has been in the habit since his election of 
spending one day of the week at Dansville for the purpose of attending 
to business there; he had an office there, and has been in the habit of 
naturalizing at Dansville parties from that part of the county and 
giving an order upon the county clerk at Geneseo, 18 miles distant, to 
give them their naturalization papers; the clerk of Monroe county is a 
democrat, and the judge is a republican. 





692 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YOKE. 


Eochester^ ISTew York, January 15,18G9. 

William S. Foster sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Dickey : 

7586. I am special deputy county clerk in Monroe county; it lias been 
tbe practice here in years gone by for naturalizations to be granted in 
the clerk’s office by the clerk or his deputy, as the case might be, which¬ 
ever was there, without the presence of the judge. 

7587. Q. Without any formal opening of a court? 

A. Without any. 

7588. Q. It was done as part of the current business of the office? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7589. [Witness produced the application of Anthony Biser on the 
ground that he came to this country under the age of 18 years, and 
showing that papers were issued to him as having so come; the witnesses 
being William E. Pattee and Michael O’Brien.] 

To Mr. Dickey: 

7590. The practice has been the same here for a number of years. 

7591. Q. Were all the naturalization papers thus granted indexed and 
entered in a book ? 

A. Yes, sir; they are filed and entered in a book we call the natural¬ 
ization ledger. 

7592. Q. Do you know about the number granted during the last 
■year ? 

A. I do not; I entered them myself; all that were in the office were 
entered. 

7593. Q. Were they all retained in the office regularly and entered? 

A. Yes, sir; I don’t think there was ever one taken from the office. 

The following testimony was taken by the full committee in Washing¬ 
ton, District of Columbia: 


Washington, D. 0., January 25,1866. 

Howard T. Marston recalled. 

By the Chairman: 

7594. Question. State if you made any examination of the apihications 
for naturalization for the month of October, 1868, in the supreme court 
of NTcav York city; and if so, to wliat extent you found papers equal to 
the number of persons alleged to have been naturalized. 

Answer. Yes, sir; I did. I present to the committee a table showing 
the days in October on which witnesses appear on appplications for 
naturalization in the supreme court, and the number of times each wit¬ 
ness appears in the naturalization i>apers, as follows: 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


693 


Days on which witnesses appear, and the number of times each witness appears on the naturali¬ 
zation papers filed in the supreme court, county and State of New York, durincr the month of 
October, 1868,/row the Sth to the 23rf of said month, inclusive. ° 


[About 200 soldiers’ papers in all.] 



00 

o 

ci 

CO 


lO 




O 


Cl 

CO 



u ^ 


rH 





rH 

i-H 




GO 


Names of witnesses. 

.a 'S 
o c 

o 

<V 

o 

x> 

o 

rO 

o 

rO 

o 

o 

o 

CJ 

o 

-o 

o 

s 

o 

-♦J 

O 

o 

o 

o 

Total. 


O 

CJ 

o 

CJ 

o 

CJ 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

o 

O 

o 

O 

o 

O 

o 

O 

o 

o 

o 

O 


Patrick McCaffrey. 

14 

60 

7 

1 

1 

84 

2 



4 

00 

38 

17 


John Ward.. 

3! 

9 

*26 

40 

22 

44 

15 

14 

16 

21 

oo 

24 

40 

324 

John Moran. 

It 

24 

*24 

43 

57 

13 

112 


20 

21 

54 

44 

25 

455 

James Goff. 

*11 








4 

g 

19 

12 

14 


Patrick Goff. 

*75 

*55 

11 

83 

52 

63 

20 

8 

44 

24 

10 

9 


454 

Thomas Selkald. 

9 

27 

13 

9 


31 

15 

12 

25 

20 

12 

25 

5 

203 

Pernard Lachinan. 

o 

10 

5 

3 


7 

6 

2 

3 

2 

1 

2 

1 

44 

James McCabe. 


9 

7 

30 

38 

16 

18 

oo 

4 

27 

0 

ifij 


IQO 

Micliael Marrow. 

o 

*12 

*25 

11 

8 

6 


10 

7 

23 

8 

7 

i 

120 

John McGinnis. 

3 


3 

13 

27 

26 

24 

42 

11 

9 

14 



175 

Joseph jMoore. 

•31 

o 

10 

24 

28 

44 


27 


20 

17 

2 


204 

James O’Douuell. 


13 

13 


1 

6 




1 




34 

David Sanford. 

11 





5 








16 

John McCarthy. 

12 













12 

Jolin Gallegher. 


*37 


9 

7 


1 



1 




55 

Philip Wiley. 

n 



IC 


8 

4 

1 

3 

7 

o 


iifi 

James Gallegher. 



1 




i 

3 

1 

1 

1 

g 

Philip Coonev. 






3 


4 

12 


o 

O 

20 

Jeremiah Coffer. 







13 


19 





32 

John W. White. 








12 





12 

Thomas Fox. 











25 


1 

26 














Total. 

230 

258 

144 

277 

241 

356 

230 

139 

181 

184 

216 

186 

107 

2,749 

Number of papers examined. 

tl,089 

700 

915 

766 

557 

841 

788 

617 

933 

909 

755 

659 

564 

10, 093 

Number of minor papers. 

1, 053 

670 

851 

742 

541 

813 

757 

595 

899 

874 

726 

642 

548 

9, 711 


* Numbers marked thus * show a difference from the paper heretofore sworn to, for the reason that said 
paper was made a part of the evidence before all the naturalization papers of the dates therein were examined, 
except as to .James Goff and Patrick Goff, when the one was taken for the other. 

1590 of October Sth and 9th were examined by Mr. Glassey. 

Ill tlie cases of James Goff and Patrick Goff*, I liad in tlie otlier 
table I presented Janies Goff* alone. But that was a mistake simply as 
to the name. Tlie result of the two is the same, but in the lirst case set 
down to the credit of the wrong man. I give in this table the total num¬ 
ber of papers I examined eacli day, and tlie total number of papers taken 
out by minors each day, and about 200 soldiers’ papers. 

7597. Q. By applications of minors, you mean persons who came into 
the United States under 18 years of age, as appears by the papers in 
the court! 

A. Yes, sir. Out of the 1,089 papers on the 8th and 9th, 590 of them’ 
were examined by Mr. Glassey. Those examined by him I know nothing 
about. 

7598. Q. State what proportion or number of the applications described 
in your table are what are called minor ajiplications. 

A. 9,711 appear as minor papers out of 10,093. About 200 are sol¬ 
diers’ iiapers. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

7599. Q. Did you examine all the iiapers in the supreme court 

A. I examined all the papers that were given to me, except 590 on 
the 8th and 9th days, I believe. 

7000. Q. And you found that of all those applications about 9,711 
were minors ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7001. Q. The whole number being 10,0931 

A. Yes, sir. 



























































































694 ‘ ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 

7602. Q. Wlio auleci you in making tliis examination in tlie supreme 
court; you made none anywhere eise, did you? 

A. No, sir; I had no aid, except a man in the clerk^s office, who took 
the papers, as I passed them over to him, and filed them and put tliem 
hack in their places in the office. He did not aid me further than that. 

7603. Q. With that exception you had no assistance? 

A. No assistance, except as to the 590 papers that I had nothing to do 
with. 

7604. Q. How did you examine these; what was the process? 

A. I looked to see if the judge’s signa tiure was on all of them, the sig¬ 
nature of the clerk on the proper number of times; and where parties 
appeared as Avitnesses a great number of times I noted that, and where 
I believed it to be the same handwriting from a person giving a different 
residence I noted that. 

7605. Q. In the case of these numerous witnesses, did you gHe any 
special attention to the examination of the.handwriting to each applica¬ 
tion where the same name appeared as wdtness? 

A. Yes, sir; I did. 

Q. What did you find to be the case? 

A. I found a good many of these witnesses in the same handwriting, 
and I found them in different handwriting; sometimes the same name 
Avould appear written back-handed; sometimes the same name and a dif¬ 
ferent place of residence; sometimes, for instance, I found Patrick Goff, 
and sometimes P. Goff, and sometimes I found Patrick Goff‘’s cross Avith 
the same liandAA'riting all through the papers. In his case it was a fre¬ 
quent occurrence. 

7606. Q. In what proportion of the applications vsigned, for example, 
by John Ward, as a Avitness, did you find the name written with a cross? 

A. I do not think I found his name; if I did it is in my notes. The 
only person that I remember particularly as to that Avas Patrick Goff*. 

7607. Q. Hid you examine all the signatures purporting to be the sig¬ 
nature of John Ward, with a view to determine whether each one had 
been Avritten by the same hand or not ? 

A. Yes, sir; that was my intention when I looked at the signature to 
see it* it AA^as the same liandAATiting, and if it was designated by the same 
house or place of residence. 

7608. Q. What did you find to be the result as to John Ward? 

A. I think he registered all the time from one house. 

7609. Q. I am speaking now of the handwriting; the absolute identity 
of the handAvriting in the signature in each case*. 

A. Well, I believe it to have been written by the same man; that was 
my opinion about it upon examination. I only took that which I believed 
to be the same hand. 

7610. Q. Hid you reject any that were in the same name? 

A. No, sir, I do not mean to say that I did. 

7611. Q. Ho you mean to say that eA^ery signature of John Ward was 
absolutely the same as every other in the handwriting ? 

A. No, sir; I only mean to say that in my judgment it was. 

7612. Q. What experience haA^e you had in the comparison or detecticn 
of similarity in handwriting ? 

A. Well, I have been used to writing all my life, and reading it. I 
never had any business for the purpose of detecting Avriting, but I have 
examined a great many different handwritings. 

7613. Q. Such as came up in your business only? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7614. Q. How was it as to the signatures of John Moran in the par¬ 
ticulars to which I haA^e referred? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. • 695 

A. His name was a signature. In one case it was written exceedingly 
well, and in another case exceedingly bad. 

7015. Q. It might be written by different hands? 

A. I think his signature might or might not; I could not tell. 

7010. Q. How about Patrick Goff? 

A. The same—the same handwriting; sometimes he made a cross. 

7017. Q. Did he sometimes sign with a cross, and sometimes without? 

A. Yes, sir; and sometimes P. Goff’and sometimes Patrick Goff. 

7018. Q. What proportion of the signatures of that name were with a 
cross? 

A. Well, there were a great many with a cross; I should think there 
were from 50 to 75, perhaps more. " ' 

7019. Q. Do you have any distinct recollection of Thomas Selkald? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7020. Q. How was his name executed, with a cross or in handwriting? 

A. In handwriting; I do not remember seeing that with a cross. 

7021. Q. How was it as to continual indentity of the signature in form ? 

A. That name, I think, was continual right through; I think that is 

one of the plainest of any as to being in one handwriting. A great many 
of the papers were right through except the signature of the clerk, and 
any person who was any judge at all of handwriting could not help see¬ 
ing it at a glance. 

7022. Q. Do you remember the name of James McCabe? 

A. Yes, sir; I do. 

7023. Q. What do you say about that? 

A. I took them to be the same handwriting right through. 

7024. Q. Were they in crosses ? 

A. I think some of them were in crosses and some were not. 

7025. Q. How was it with the name of John McGinnis ? 

A. They appeared to be in the same handwriting. 

7020. Q. Have you any distinct recollection about it at all? 

A. Ho, sir; not so much as I have about some of the other names? 

7027. Q. What is your recollection about the name of Joseph Moore ? 

A. That name appeared to be in one handwriting as many times as I 

noticed. 

7028. Q. How many did you notice with a view to detect that fact— 
the similarity of the handwriting ? 

A. I noticed every paper with his signature under it, for that purpose. 

7029. Q. How much time did you give in all these cases to d compari¬ 
son of each name as you went along? 

A. I averaged, I think, in the examination, between 700 and 800 papers 
a day, from 9 to 4 o’clock, in the county clerk’s office, with half an hour 
for lunch; so that I had about six hours’work each day. In that time I 
did between 700 and 1,000. 

7G30. Q. You did two or three a minute? 

A. Yes, sir; it would seem so. But, perhaps, I might modify that a 
little. When 1 would come to a paper that had not the proper witnesses 
on I just passed it one side; but when I came to papers with the wit¬ 
nesses on I gave it more time than the others. I simply looked at the 
clerk’s or judge’s signature, or any other peculiarity that I might happen 
to see, and passed them one side. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7631. Q. You stated something about John Moran. Don’t you recol¬ 
lect that his name was written in two or three different handwritings, 
and registered at different places ? 


696 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I recollect that liis name was written, in some cases, in very excel¬ 
lent handwriting, and in other cases in very had handwriting. 

7G32. Q. Apparently quite dilterent ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7G33. Q. And registered from different places? 

A. I am not sure about his registering from different places. 

By the Chairman : 

7G34. Q. State if you examined the applications for iiaturalization with 
a view to ascertain any irregularities or defects; and if so, state any that 
you can now remember. 

A. I have a good many noted, but it would take a good while to go 
over them. 

7G35. Q. Will you furnish the committee with a statement of these irreg-" 
ularities, to be appended to your testimony? 

A. I will. 

The statement is as follows: 

7G3G. In the matter of the application of Henry Miller, 411 Cherry 
street, hied October 15,18G8, to become a citizen, &c. Clerk^s signature 
wanting to the oath to support the Constitution and abjure foreign 
princes, &c. 

7G37. In the matter of the application of Robert Iloage, 41 East Tenth 
street, hied October 20,18G8. Clerk’s signature wanting to his intention 
to become a citizen and to the oath of allegiance. 

7G38. In the matter of the apidication of Michael jSTolan, 400 First 
avenue, hied October 22, 18G8. Clerk’s signature wanting to the oath 
to support the Constitution, &c. 

7G39. In the matter of the application of Hugh Bracken, Goerck street, 
no number, hied October 22,18G8. Clerk’s signatui'e wanting to the oath 
to support the Constitution, &c. 

7G40. In the matter of the application of John Burke, 34 City Hall 
place, hied October, 18G8. Clerk’s signature wanting to the oath to sup¬ 
port the Constitution, &c. 

7G41. In the matter of the application of Charles Miller, 297 Stanton 
•street, hied October 23, 18G8. Clerk’s signature Avantiug to the oath to 
support the Constitution, &c. 

7G42. In the matter of the application of Michael Greene, 24 City Hall 
place, hied October 13,18G8. Judge’s signature wanting to the order, &c, 

« 

Washington, D. C., January 25,18G9. 

John I. Davenport recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

7G43. Question. State if you know what inquiry and search were made 
for applications for naturalization in the superior court in September and 
October, 18G8, particulaiiy as to those alleged to be missing. 

Answer. Having been appointed one of the committee to make the inves¬ 
tigation in the superior court, or more properly one of the committee 
under whose supervision the investigations were to be made, I, with the 
other members of that committee, appointed Air. Callan and Air. Voorhies 
to do the actual work in the court in the presence of the clerk or his 
deputy. On Saturday morning last they coiniheted their labors and 
reported the number of papers found by them. As Mr. Sweeney had 
acted very fairly throughout the whole investigation, and given "every 
assistance possible, I thought it was but right he should have some 
knowledge of the fact that a large number of the papers were not found, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


697 


that he might explain it in any way that he desired. I went to his office, 
and not findiug hpn, saw Mr. Meeks, his deputy, who was in charge of 
the office, and stated to him that the report showed some 8,000 papers 
short of the number testified to by Mr. Westlake. He said he did not 
see very well how that could be j that there must be some mistake about 
it. I suggested to him that I was going to Washington that evening, 
and it would be best to see if they could not find those papers. He and 
I then went into the naturalization office, where we found Mr. Thompson 
and Mr. Westlake. Mr. Meeks stated to them what I had said to him, 
and I repeated it to them, stating also that on the 12th some 1,800 papers 
had been sworn to by Mr. Westlake, and our men reported over 2,000 
found, whereas tliej^ had sworn the 14th was the day on which there were 
over 2,000. I desired to know whether there were over 2,000 on both 
days. They said it was the 14th that was tlie heavy day. I said sup¬ 
pose we count the papers noAv and see. A i)ile of papers were brought 
out, and Mr. Meeks asked if they Avere all the papers for the 12th. He 
Avas informed they AA^ere. I began counting, and Mr. Thompson asked 
me, if 1 Avoiild take his count; I told him I Avonld. He sat down beside 
me and Mr. Westlake did the same, one on each side of me, and Ave each 
took a package and began counting. Mr. Thompson took an envelope, 
and as each one of ns finished counting, Ave stated the number found in 
the package by us, AAffiich Mr. Thompson marked on the envelope. We 
found 1,0(10 papers. “There,” said he, “you see there must be some 
mistake about it j your men must liaA^e made some mistake; it must be 
the 14th.” I replied, Mr. Westlake testified there AAcre nearly 1,800 
papers on this day, and there certainly must be some mistake here. He 
said, “]No, these are all the papers Ave can find, and you can see for your¬ 
self,” taking me into a closet Avhere he said they Avere kept and repeat¬ 
ing “these are all of the papers for the 12th; there is where they were 
kept, and there is the vacancy out of Avhich this bundle was just taken.” 
I said I would go to my office and see my clerks and they must return 
there and explain the matter, for they had reported over 2,000 papers, 
Avhen now 1,000 appeared to be all the papers on file. Just as 1 was 
going out one of the clerks came in, and going into the little room brought 
out another bundle, and said, “Thompson, here is another bundle.” Mr. 
Thompson, with great apparent surprise, said he didn’t knoAV where 
they Arere, and that they must have been put away. Then those papers 
were taken out and counted, and Ave found 2,033 in the two bundles— 
that is, those in this last bundle added to the 1,000 in the other bundle 
made 2,033. We did not open these papers, but counted them as they 
were tied up in the bundles; and that is the number Ave found on that 
day. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

7044. Q. Hid that number correspond Avith the investigation made by 
your clerks I 

A. It exceeded it a little. Their report was 2,015, and ours 2,033. I 
then asked them if they could give any explanation in regard to the 
deficiency betAA^een Mr. Westlake and our clerks. They said they could 
not, unless it occurred in thisAvay: they did not in the first instance 
count the papers; they counted 100 and put them in a bundle AAuth a rub¬ 
ber band around them, and laid them on a table. They then took a lot 
of papers and laid tliem along side of this bundle, and when they thought 
they matclied evenly, and amounted to what they estimated to be a 
hundred, they did that pile up in the same way, and so on Avith each suc¬ 
cessive bundle. They said the trouble must have been in these estimates; 


698 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


that accounted for the 8,000 short. “ To he sure,’^ they said, it is a large 
iiiimher, hut we cannot account for it in any other way.”, But,” I said, “ on 
one day, the 9th, according to your statement, there must have been nearly 
18 hundles; there were 1,760 papers reported hy Mr. Westlake; conse- 
cpiently in laying them out in hundles there must have heen 18 hundles. 
Our men found hut 601, which woidd make hut six hundles. Certainly 
there could not have heen a mistake of that difference in hundles that 
day. They said they could not account for that at all. There were sev¬ 
eral other days when there were 800, or 700, or 600 short. 

7645. Q. You say that the clerks in the office of the superior court 
accounted for the deficiency hy the way they estimated them in bundles'? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7646. Q. But your clerks counted them separately? 

A. Yes, sir; all that were produced. Mr. Westlake testified as to his 
counting of them; hut the clerks in the office told me that was the way 
the count was made up, they believed. 

7647. Q. How many days had they heen indexed? 

A. Indexed, I think, only the first four days. 

Washington, D. 0., January 25,1869. 

Samuel J. Glassey recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

7648. Question. In the examinations you made of the applications for 
naturalization, in October, 1868, in the supreme court of Hew York city, 
state what you observed. 

Answer. I examined nearly 600 of those papers in the county clerk^s 
office on the 2d and 5th days of January. I observed that nearly all the 
persons whose papers I examined were naturalized upon affidavits stat¬ 
ing that they were under 18 years of age when they came to this country. 
I mean all of them were of that kind. And a number of persons, whose 
names I became familiar 'with by having seen evidence of their appear¬ 
ing as witnesses in the superior court, were witnesses in a large number 
of cases in the supreme court; in a number of instances the same 
person appeared to have 'written the names of a number of the witnesses. 
In quite a large number of cases in which two persons, Patrick and 
James Goff*, were witnesses, the signature of the witness in each appears 
to be in the same hand'writing. The same thing appears as to some 
other parties. The number of papers which I x)ersonally examined, 
according to a memorandum I made at the time, is 590. I may possibly 
be in error as to a very few. The number may be a little over or a little 
under that, but cannot vary more than five or ten from that number. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

7649. Q. You are a lawyer ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7650. Q. What advantage would the applicant derive from stating in 
his application for naturalization that he came to this country under 
18 years of age ? 

A. It dispenses with the necessity of producing evidence of his hav¬ 
ing filed his declaration of intention two years before. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

7651. Q. Did you make a return of the examination you made to this 
witness, Mr. Marston ? 

A. I stated the number that I had examined, and, I think, the number 
of times that certain persons appeared as witnesses in those cases. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


G99 


7651. Q. Do you know wlietlier you did, or did not, make suck a 
statement to kim f 

A. I know tkat I did state to kim tke number, and I am pretty certain 
also tke number of times tkese persons kad appeared as witnesses on 
tke papers I examined. 

7652. Q. Do you mean to state tkat wkat you stated to kim was true, 
or not 

A. Wkat I kave stated kere is according to my recollection of wkat 
I said to kim, and I meant to tell tke trutk botk times. 

7653. Q. Do you mean to say tkat wkat you told kim is correct, wketker 
it be consistent witk wkat you kave stated to tke committee or not ? 

A. I know it to be correct, and am not aware of any discrepancies 
between my statements. 

7654. Q. You speak now witk confidence as to tke number of times 
tkese witnesses executed tkeir names witk different kands ? 

A. Tkat was a matter of wkick I made only very general statements 
to kim. I kad my notes before me at tke time. 

7655. Q. Didn’t you give kim a list of tke number of times tke names 
appeared in tkat way? 

A. Yes; tke number of times tkat certain persons appeared as wit¬ 
nesses—tkat is to say, on tke papers wkick I kad examined. 

7666. Q. Did you give kim a list of tke number of times tkat tkese 
several witnesses kad tkeir names executed by different kands ui^on 
tkose various applications ? 

A. IS'o, sir; I tkink not. I kad some conversation witk Mr. Marston 
on tkat subject. 

7667. Q. Did you tell kim kow often in tkose cases tkose names were 
executed witk a cross ^ 

A. No, sir; not to my recollection. I may kave. 

7668. Q. Did you tell kim kow often, in any of tkose applications, tke 
entire filling up seemed to be in tke same kand except tke signatime of 
tke clerk % 

A. I do not tkink I gave kim any exact number. 

7669. Q. Did you keep an exact number yourself? 

A. No, sirj not all. The first 40 or 50 papers I examined I took 
pretty full notes, and I then went over them rapidly and took notes only 
in a few cases. I have not a distinct recollection myself as to tke num¬ 
ber of times. I kave notes of some 25 or 30 cases—notes wkick I made 
at tke time. 


Washinuton, D. 0., January 25,1869. 

Christopher Oallan sworn and examined. 

By tke Chairman: 

7670. Question. State if you kave made any examinations of tke appli¬ 
cations for naturalization on file in tke superior court in tke city of New 
York, for the year 1868 j and if so, witk wkat result. 

Answer. I present a table on wkick is a list of the names of persons ap¬ 
pearing as witnesses on applications for naturalization in tke superior 
court, and opposite to tkeir names are tke dates in September and Octo¬ 
ber on which they appeared as witnesses, witk tke number of applica¬ 
tions on wkick each witness appeared on each of tkose days. Tke table 
is as follows: 


Names of persons tcho appeared as witnesses on application for naturalization in the superior court, in the city and county of New York, from the 30<A of Sep¬ 
tember, 1868, to the 2‘Sd of October, J868, inclusive. 


700 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


ciC5iot^t^oocciooff}srjO-j— 

Qi-sO Oi a (U >o oi 

CJ -H r-( fH r-H 



















































































































































































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 701 

7072. Q. State what number of applications you found on file for tlie 
days indicated in tlie table. 

A. Seventeen thousand five hundred and seventy-two, from September 
30 to October 23, 1808, inclusive. 

7073. Q. State if there is any date in October not included in the 
statement. 

A. Yes, sir, the 17th of October; we could not find our memorandum 
of the number of papers Ave examined that day. I remember making 
out that day; and, as far as I can judge from memory, the aiAplications 
on that day for naturalization papers Avere from 500 to 000. 

7074. Q. Will you state if you made any representation to the clerks 
in charge of the office of the superior court as to the number of applica¬ 
tions for naturalization which Avere said to liaA^e been approA^ed; as to 
Avhether that number of applications could be found, and if any of the 
applications AA^ere not found, AAffiat reason was assigned for their non-i)ro- 
duction. 

[Question objected to by the minority of the committee. Objection 
overruled.] 

AYitness. Oi) each day that we examined the jiapers we found them 
all tied up in bundles, or else (from the 16th ui) to the 23d of October) we 
found them in pigeon-holes. We found them ranging from the 5th up 
to the 16th of October; A^ery large on each day, but from the 16th to 
the 23d they AA ere A^ery small, averaging 400, 500, or 600 each day. I 
asked one of the clerks there (1 think his name is Wesley) if there were 
any more papers on those days, and he said that they were all there. 
Mr. Wesley, whom I asked, has charge of the applications for naturali¬ 
zation. Mr. Thomi)son is the chief clerk, and Mr. Wesley is his deputy, 
as I understand it. 

7675. State the total number of applications for naturalization 
which you found and examined in the office for September and October, 
1868. 

A. SeAXiiteen thousand fiA^e hundred and seA^enty tAVO. 

7676. Q. State if you found any except that number, as shoAvn by the 
table Avhich you haA^e i^resented to the committee. 

A. I did ]iot. 

7677. Q. State what inquiry and search you made for any others. 

A. All the inquiry and search I made Avas that I asked the deputy 
there, Mr. Wesley, about it, as I have stated. 

7678. Q. State if you made inquiry of anybody else about the matter. 

A. 17o, sir, I do not think I did. 

7679. Q. State what proportion of these applications for naturaliza¬ 
tion had on them the initials of Judge McCunn. 

A. I slioidd think about eight-ninths; the others Avere between Judge 
Eobinson and Garvin. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

7680. Q. Who examined these papers with you ^ 

A. Mr. Voorliies. 

7681. Q. Were you alAA^ays together, or did you examine separately f 

A. We examined together and separately both. 

7682. Q. And reported to each other ^ 

A. And reported to each other. 

7683. Q. Is Mr. Yoorhies here? 

A. Ko, sir, not that I knoAV of. 

7684. Q. How did you report to each other? 

A. By counting up the numbers of papers. He took one bundle and 


702 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


I took aiiotlier j we would count them, and then rei^ort together 5 I was 
right at the same desk along with him. 

7085. Q. You did this work at the same desk? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7086. Q. Your table, then, is made upon what you yourself ascer¬ 
tained upon personal examination, and what you were informed by him? 

A. Yes, sir; from these papers and from him. 

7687. Q. You do not know whether his examinations were correct or 
not. 

A. N^o, sirj I could not swear, of course, only so far as I saw the 
pai)ers and to the best of my knowledge. 

7688. Q. How did you ascertain the proportion of applications endorsed 
with the initials of Judge McOuun ? 

A. Well, I examined a greater i)art of the i)apers myself, and I found 
Judge McOunif s nam.e on th at proportion that I examined. That I would 
swear to. 

7689. Q. How many did you examine ? 

A. By referring to the memorandum I find I examined on the 5th, 
6 th, 7th, 8 th, 9tli, 10th, 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, part of the 16th, 20th, 21st 
and 22d days of October. 

7690. Q. How many did you examine between those dates ? 

A. I examined 13,377. 

7691. Q. With a view to see the judicial endorsement? 

A. Yes, sir. I took each paper as I examined it, opened it, looked at 
the names of the applicants and the witnesses, and at the judge’s and 
clerk’s signature. 

7692. Q. Hid you ever see the clerk of this court, James M. Sweeney, 
in reference to these papers that were sui^posed to be withheld or not 
found? 

A. No, sir; I never saw him that I know of. 

7693. Q. Whom did you see on that subject? 

A. Mr. Wesley, the deputy in the office. 

7694. Q. Repeat again what he said ? 

A. When I came to the 16th of October papers, and afterwards, I saw 
that the number of the papers ranged very small—some four, five, or six 
liundred, and so on—smaller than they had ranged on i)revious dates. 
When I came to these papers I asked him wffiere the i)apers of the 16th 
of October were, and he showed me right up over the desk where I was 
examining the papers, in a pigeon-hole. I said: “Is this all the papers 
that are here.” He said they were all there for those days. 

7695. Q. Hid you inquire if all the papers for that day were in that 
];)igeon-hole ? 

A. Yes, sir; and I made the remark, “these days are very small,” 
and he said they were all there. He said he knew nothing about them 
except they were all there. I think he made that remark. 

7.696. Q. Hid you ask him to make inquiry of other clerks, or the chief 
clerk? 

A. No, sir. 

7697. Q. Hid you tell him that there was any inconsistency between 
the number found there and the reported number taken on that day? 

A. No, sir. 

9698. Q. Hid you have a list before you of the number reported by 
the clerk previously to have been taken on that day ? 

A. No, sir; I did not have any report of the clerk at all. I neverliad. 

7699. Q. When you were going over this list with a view of determin¬ 
ing the number of applications in each of which any one person appeared 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 703 

as a witness, did you take pains to examine the liandwriting of tliat 
witness to each of these applications ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7700. Q. What do you say about it? 

A. 1 found that several of the parties were witnesses a great many 
times on those different days, from the same place, the same number and 
street in New York city, and in the same handwriting. I comi)ared the 
handwriting, and became familiar vdth it, so that I would swear, to the 
best of my knowledge and judgment, that the handwriting was the 
same in each case where the number and the street were the same. 

7701. Q. I did not inquire so much about that as about the identity of 
the handwriting. You may have been persuaded from the other facts, 
in connection Avith that handwriting, that it was the same j I now ask you 
to express your judgment on the handwriting alone. 

A. On the handwriting alone, all the notes I have made I will swear 
to—to the handwriting of the different parties who were witnesses. 

7702. Q. You state in the list that the name of Patrick McCaffrey 
appears as a witness 251 times. I ask you now if you examined these 
251 signatures ? 

A. No, sir; I did not—not all of them; but 1 can tell you what I haA^e 
examined. 

7703. Q. You can tell how many you have examined? 

A. Yes, sir, by going through the papers. I examined 13,377 papers 
out of that proportion found on file. 

7704. Q. I want to know, now, whether, in all those you did examine, you 
can swear that the handwriting of Patrick McCaffrey to each one was 
written by the same hand ? 

A. In one or two cases his signature was changed; but it was always 
the same name and from the same place. 

7705. Q. I want to disconnect the idea of the name from the place 
entirely. I am simply talking about the style of liandAvriting. 

A. I would SAvear to that—^that is, to his handAATiting —I mean to the 
handAvriting as witness to the applications. 

7706. Q. But you do not know anything about him, and cannot swear 
to his handwriting ? 

A. I mean, from my examination of the papers. 

7707. Q. You AYill swear to what? 

A. That I found his name so many times. 

7708. Q. You found the name of Patrick McCaffrey signed to the 
papers, but was the name of Patrick McCaffrey in each instance signed 
by the same handwriting ? 

A. I would say it Avas. 

7709. Q. In each instance? 

A. Yes, sir ; except in two cases. 

7710. Q. Did you give any special attention to the comparison of hands 
in the examination of these signatures ? 

A. Yes, sir; I did. 

7711. Q. Was not Patrick McCaffrey’s name sometimes signed Avith a 
cross ? 

A. I do not remember it. 

7712. Q. Were not a good many of the names signed with a cross ? 

A. Some were; for instance, the name of Patrick Mahan Avas signed 

with a cross frequently. 

77 1 3 . Q. Any others? 

A. The greater part of the others were in handwriting, without any 
cross. 


704 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7714. Q. Didn’t you find a great deal of disparity between the hand¬ 
writings of these witnesses ? 

A. I did in some cases. I did in one name that appears very often. 

7715. Q. What name is that ? 

A. John Moran. I find that name hailing from different places, and 
in different handwritings. 

7710. Q. How was it with the name of Solomon Berliner ? 

A. It was always the same handwriting, I should say. 

7717. Q. How with the name of Henry Jacobs ? 

A. The same. 

7718. Q. Do you recollect anjThing about John Ward ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7711). Q. How did that name run? 

A, In that name the signature was changed considerably. 

7720. Q. Wasn’t that often signed with a cross? 

A- I do not remember seeing it signed with a cross, but always in 
handwriting. 

7721; Q. When you were making any of these examinations were any 
of the clerks by and assisting you ? 

A. No, sir; those in the clerk’s office never assisted me. 

7722. Q. Did you make the examinations in the office, or take the 
papers out ? 

A. In the office. 

7723. Q. How long were you in making those examinations? 

A. About two weeks; a little over that, I think. 

7724. Q. Why didn’t you go to Mr. Sweeney, the chief clerk, and inquire 
for any other papers there might be in the office ? 

A. I could not state any reason why. I was ordered to go there and 
make an examination of these papers. I had no order to the contrary, 
and I did net seek to inquire there at all. 

7725. Q. Who procured your services to make these examinations? 

A. Mr. Glassey. 

7726. Q. What is his first name ? 

A. I do not know. 

7727. Q. In whose behalf did he hire you to do it ? 

A. He liired me in behalf of the Union League club, I think. 

7728. Q. What is your business ? 

A. A lawyer by profession. 

7720. Q. Where do you practice ? 

A. I do not practice anywhere at present. 

7730. Q. What is your business now, then? 

A. My business is in their employ now. 

7731. Q. You mean you are not practicing otherwise than in the ser¬ 
vice of the club ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7732. Q. How long have you been in their service ? 

A. Three weeks, to-day. 

By the Chairman : 

7733. Q. State if you made any memoranda of any irregularities or 
deficiencies in the applications for naturalization which you examined j 
and if so, state what they were. 

A. I did } the memorandum I made is as follows: ' ♦ 

Same handwriting all through: October 22,7; October 21, 10; October 20, 3 ; October 
19, —; October 16, 7; October 15, 7; October 14,13; October 13, —; October 12, 41; 
October 10, —; October 9, 3— judge’s and clerk’s names not signed ; October 8, 15— clerk’s 
name not signed; October 7,2— clerk’s name not signed; October 7,1— judge’s name not 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


705 


attached but clerk’s IS. Witnesses’name not signed to affidavit: October 22,2; October 
1 ; October 20, 2; October 19, 4—parties’ papers made out by one man, J. Coffey ; 
October JC), 1 ; October 15, 3; October 14, 1; October 13,5; October 12,8; October 10,2; 
October 9,1; October 8, —. > > > 

By Mr. Ejerr : 

7734. Q. Do you mean that you and your associate found these irregu¬ 
larities ! 

A. No, sir } they are taken from my special notes. I have not taken 
them from my associate’s notes at all, because I could not swear to his 
notes. 

7735. Q. What was your business before you studied law? 

A. I never had any business. I was at college all my lifetime until I 
studied law. 

7736. Q. Was it ever any part of your business to give special atten¬ 
tion to the comparison of handwritings, the detection of similarities or 
discrepancies in handwriting ? 

A. No, sir; I never had any special business of this kind before, only 
so lar as I was conversant with different signatures and different hand¬ 
writings. 

7737. Q. Do you know whether any final certificates Avere ever issued 
upon these applications not signed by the judge or clerk ? 

A. I could not swear to that. All I can say is, I found the papers 
there. 

7738. Q. Did you take the names of the apifiicants of those papers? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7739. Q. Have you a list of them ? 

I 

7740. Q. What are they? 

A. The list I took is as follows: 


October 12, 1868. 


John Ey.. 

Solomon Berliner... 

Jacob Hoffman. 

.John Nixon. 

Philip Wiley. 

James O’Donnell..- 
Patrick McMahon... 
George Williams.... 

Jaques Smitz. 

James Flynn. 

Henry Jacobs. 

Patrtck McCabe.... 

James Scott. 

Joseph Ferguson.... 

John Moran. 

James Jones. 

James McEnany.... 


1 

20 

18 

1 

16 

29 

21 

5 

4 

2 

29 

4 

9 

13 

33 

4 

8 


Jeremiah Coffey.. 
Bernhard Lachman 
Thomas Wheeler.. 

Charles Tales.. 

Michael Culligan. 
Charles A. Skell.. 

James Collins.. 

James Tracy. 

John Ward. 

Patrick Gallagher. 

Richard Curry- 

Patrick McCaffrey. 

John Ward. 

Chauncey Grey... 

•Patrick Goff.. 

James Goff. 


Franz Kafka, same-writing all through, by.Solomou|Berliner. 
James McCarron, same writing all through. 

John Mackey, same writing all through. 

Thomas Dunn, same writing all through. 

Thomas Ross, same writing all through. 

Patrick Farley, same writing all through. 

Joseph Kemp, same writing all through. 

Hugh Sullivan, witness’s name not signed to affidavit.^ 
Michael Corregan, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 
Michael Conroy, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 

John Campbell, same writing all through. 

Jeremiah Sheehan, same writing all through. 

Patrick Fitzgibbons, same writing all through. ? g 
Thomas Madigan, same writing all through. 5 

45 T 


5 
8 
7 

11 

11 

6 

5 

15 
1 
1 
2 

16 

6 
1 
3 
2 




































706 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Edward Fenton, same writing all through. 

Edward Sands, signature of witness for Jeremiah Ahern written by J. Ward. 

Edward Mulrooney, same hand all through. 

John Walsh, same hand all through. 

Samuel McCracken, same hand all through. 

Patrick McDermott, same.hand all through. 

James Flannen, affidavit and witness’s name written by J. Ward. 

Albert Thilhom, same hand all through. 

Thomas Burke’s, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 

Jerimiah Hastings, same writing all through, written by J. Tracy. 

John Hagety, same writing all through. 

Patrick Sullivan, same writing all through. 

Jeremiah Corekran, same writing all through. 

Thomas Shea, J. Coffey, witness, and J. Tracy; seems to be thp same identical hand 
writing. 

Felix McCarthy, same handwriting all through.' 

James Hannoks, witness’s not signed to affidavit. 

John Hastings, same hand all through, by J. Tracy. 

John Cantwell, same hand all through. 

Thomas Lawler, same hand all through. Jeremiah Coffee, witness. 

James Gorman, same hand all through, by J. Tracy. 

Patrick Boyleu, same hand all through. 

Patrick Bourkis, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 

Mark Brennan, same handwriting all through. 

John Egan, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 

John O’Keefe, same hand all through. 

James Coleman, same hand all through. 

John Hardyman, same hand all through. 

John Sheehan, same hand all through. 

James Reilly, same hand all through 
Hugh Cassidy, same hand all through. 

Rupert Kiltman, same hand all through. 

John O’Brien, same hand all through, by J. Tracy. 

Patrick King, same hand all through. 

Michael Kattel, same hand all through, by J. Tracy. 

Bernard McGuckin, same hand all through, by J. Tracy. 

Dennis Nugent, same hand all through, by Jeremiah Coffey. 

Ernst Jansen, witness’s name not signed to affidavit. 


Washington, D. 0., January 27,1869. 

Abraham Voorhees recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7741. Question. State what examination yon have made in the superior 
court of the applications for naturalization and affida^dts of witnesses on 
file in that court, in the city of 'New York, for the months of September 
and October, 1868. 

Answer. I have examined the applications for naturalization and the 
affida vits of witnesses in the superior court in New York city for the 30th 
day of September, the 1st, 2d, 3d,, half of the 16th, the lOtli, and 23d of 
October, 1868. 

7742. Q. State if you correctly reported to Christopher Callan the 
number of applications for those days, so that he might embody them in 
a tabular statement. 

A. Yes, sir, I did, and I have the original papers here upon which I 
made the count. 

7743. Q. Did you observe any irregularities^ 

A. I did; I have a list of some such. 

7744. Q. State if you observed any deficiencies or irregularities, and 
describe them. 

A. I did not examine all the papers with a view of finding defects 
upon them. I did not take time to do that 5 indeed did not have time 
enough so to dp; but I discovered the following noticeable defects: On 
the 5th day of October—and I may say that I have looked over a large 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


707 


number of the papers of days other than those I have previously men¬ 
tioned as hawng been examined by me—I found three papers to which 
there was no witness’s signature, and two papers with no judge’s signa¬ 
ture ; also four papers that I remember with no applicant’s signature. 
On the same day there were nine, at the least calcidation, I am confident. 
There were more papers, however, where the names of the witness and 
applicant were both written by the same hand. There were dozens upon 
dozens where the witness’s signature and the applicant’s signature were 
written in the same hand and a mark made. On October 7th there are 
three papers to which there are no witness’s signature, and one with no 
applicant’s signature. On October 8th there are five* papers with no 
witness’s signature. On October 10th there are four with no witness’s 
signature; nevertheless the judge’s signature is there. On the 4th there 
is a George Washington, an Andrew Jackson, and a John Morrissey, all 
naturalized on the same day. On the 13th of October there are nine 
papers without the witness’s signature. There were also four without 
any applicant’s name in. On the 14th of October there were ten without 
any witness’s signature; on the 15th, four; on the 16th there were three; 
on the 21st, two; October 23d, six. This you understand is only what I 
remember to have seen from my partial examination. 

By Mr. Boss: 

7745. Q. Do you know whether any final certificates issued on these 
papers 

A. I could not say. I know these are original applications, and I have 
seen them issue on similar papers. 

7746. Q. Do you know whether there were certificates issued on these 
papers ? 

A. I could not tell, of course. 

7747. Q. Who employed you to make this examination? 

A. Mr. Samuel J. Glassey. 

7748. Q. Who is Mr. Glassey? 

A. A lawyer in NTew York. I first assisted him, but after a day or two 
went at it myself alone, so far as he was concerned. 

Washington, D. C., January 29, 1869. 

John McOlusky sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

7749. Question. Where do you reside? 

Answer. No. 132 White street, in the city of New York. 

7750. Q. How long have you lived there ? 

A. About 11 years, but in the ward about 44 years. 

7751. Q. What connection, if any, have you had with any of the courts 
in that city? 

A. I have been a police officer and a clerk—have been first clerk to 
the city judge. 

7752. Q. When were you clerk to the city judge, and for how long a 
time? 

A. For the last six years; five years under one judge, and one year 
prior to that as secretary to another. 

7753. Q. State if you were in the supreme court in New York city in 
the month of October last, at any time when persons were being natur¬ 
alized. 

A. I have been in there several times. 

7754 . Q. Do you know what was the last day on which naturalizations 
were made in that court, prior to the presidential election ? 


708 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


A. Which way do you mean by that? 

7755. Q. I understand that naturalization closed on the 23d of Octo¬ 
ber—that was the last day I believe. State if you know how that is. 

A. If that was the day, it is well known to the committee. I was there 
on the last day—on the last evening. 

7750. Q. Well, where? 

A. In the supreme court. 

7757-8. Q. State which room you were in, or if you were in more than 
one, state that fact. 

A. The supreme court is all one; there may be different apartments. 
7759. Q. What judge was presiding when you were there? 

A. Judge Barnard, I think. 

7700. Q. What was he engaged in? 

A. I can’t answer that; just at that time he might have been perform¬ 
ing a dozen different duties. 

7701. Q. State what you saw him do? 

A. State what I saw him do? 

7702. Q. State if you saw him have any papers? 

A. I saw him talking with friends present; shaking hands with per¬ 
sons in a very friendly manner. 

7703. Q. Was any court in session any time when you was there? 

A. Not for hearing causes; I don’t think it was, at least. 

7704. Q. State if it was in session for any puri)ose? 

A. I think the court was open for the purpose of naturalizing men— 
making citizens of parties. 

7705. Q. State if you saw a man named McCaffrey there that night. 
A. Am I bound to answer those questions ? 

7700. Q. Yes, sir, you are. (Question repeated.) 

A. I think I did. 

7707. Q. Did you see a man named Moran there? 

A. There might have been a dozen men there by the name of Moran. 

7708. Q. Did you see any one there by that name that you knew? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7709. Q. State if you saw a person named Eepper, Frederick Eepper, 
get any naturalization papers there that night. 

A. 1 saw a man there who is called by that name. 

7770. Q. State if he got any naturalization papers through that night. 
A. That is a statement I could not make on oath. I saw him have 

those papers in his hand. 

7771. Q. How many? 

A. Standing eight or ten feet from him, I could not count them. 

7772. Q. Well, about how many? Describe, as near as you can, the 
size of the package ? 

A. Might be five or ten, more or less. 

7773. Q. What were these persons doing that were in the court-room 
that evening? I mean McCaffrey, John Moran, and Frederick Eept)er. 

A. What were they doing? 

7774. Q. Yes, sir. 

A. That is too far fetched; I can’t recollect what they were doing just 
at that time. 

7775. Q. How many others were in the court-room that evening. 

A. There might have been—I can’t tell how many—well, say from 10 
to 20 or 30; no, there must have been nearly 40—say from 10 to 40. 
7770. Q. What were they engaged in? 

A. I did not see them engaged in anything. 

7777. Q. State if any of them were sworn as witnesses. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


709 


A. Am I obliged to answer all those questions ? 

7778. Q. Yes, sir; and you must answer more promptly than you do. 
I now repeat the question. 

A. Yes, sir. 

7779. Q. For what? 

A. That I can’t tell; they were sworn. 

7780. Q. How much light was there in the court-room at that time? 

A. Gas-light. * 

7781. Q. How much ? How many burners? 

A. I can’t tell that; I don’t go into a room to look at gas-burners. 

7782. Q. Was the room well lighted, or otherwise? 

A. It was well lighted around the front part, by the judge’s desk. 

7783. Q. State if Judge Barnard left the court-room at any time or 
times while you was there. 

A. I think he did. 

7784. Q. How often? 

A. Once I am positive of. 

7785. Q. How long was he absent ? 

A. From a minute and a half to five minutes; I can’t tell exactly. 

7786. Q. Where did he go? 

A. I could not tell you where he went. 

7787. Q. Did you have any blank applications for naturalization with 
you that evening ? 

A. I had rather not answer that question; I think it would criminate 
me, perhaps. 

7788. Q. That is no excuse, sir; you must answer. 

A. I had some applications there; they could not have been blanks, 
for they were filled up. 

7789. Q. On blank printed forms ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7790. Q. How many did you have? 

A. Well, probably 10 or 15 or so. 

7791. Q. Where did you get the blanks? 

A. In the county clerk’s office. 

7792. Q. From whom? 

A. I can’t say who it was. 

7793. Q. Did you procure any certificates of naturalization that even¬ 
ing from the judge or from the clerk or from the court ? 

A. No, sir. 

7794. Q. Did you procure certificates of naturalization from that court 
any time in October ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7795. Q. When? 

A. The day after I left my blanks. 

7796. Q. From whom did you get them ? 

A. From the clerk of the court. 

7797. Q. Which clerk? 

A. Mr. McKean. 

7798. Q. How many certificates of naturalization did you get from him ? 
A. I can’t give the exact number. 

7799. Q. State as near as you can. 

A. About 40, sir. 

7800. Q. State if they were certificates of naturalization to real per¬ 
sons or the names of fictitious persons. 

A. They were persons I imagined wanted naturalization i)apers. 

7801. Q. Where did they reside ? 


710 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I can’t tell. 

7802. Q. Do you know that there were persons of real names corre¬ 
sponding to those for whom you procured certificates of naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7803. Q. Where did they reside? 

A. These names I passed in did not want any papers. 

7804. Q. Where did you get the certificates of naturalization for them ? 

A. I will have to decline answering that. 

[Mr. Kerr, to the chairman, insists that the witness shall not only Answer 
the question, but shall be made to answer iiromptly and clearly, and 
without hesitating or trifling with the committee. The chairman so 
instructs the witness, and the question is read by the clerk.] 

Witness. Must I answer that ? 

7805. Q. You will have to answer. State whether you made out a list 
of names, and if for those names you received certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion issued by the court. 

A. I made out such a list; yes, sir. 

7806. Q. What did you take it from j simi)ly from your imagination, 
or how ? 

A. Partly imagination, partly otherwise. 

7807. Q. Did you know of the existence of persons having those 
names ? 

A. Some I think 1 did. 

7808. Q. How as to others? 

A. Some not. 

7809. Q. You say you procured certificates of naturalization for all 
those names 5 did any applicants appear before the judge or the clerk or 
the court to get those certificates ? 

A. I was not there to see, sir. 

7810. Q. Do you know of any persons making application for them ? 

A. There was none to my knowledge. 

7811. Q. Have you any information which leads you to suppose any 
person did make such application ? 

A. Well, parties might have—some of them whose names I handed in 
might have come and I not know anything of it. 

7812. Q. Did any applicants for naturalization ask you to hand in those 
names ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7813. Q. YYho? 

A. A man named Oakley gave me two names. 

7814. Q. Give Oakley’s full name. 

A. Alfred or Al. j I don’t know which. 

7815. Q. Did any person in whose name a certificate of naturalization 
was granted ask you to make application for him ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7816. Q. How many? 

A. One. 

7817. Q. Is that all. 

A. Yes, sir, that is all. 

7818. Q. Did any witness appear to testify for the issuing of‘any one 
of those 40 or more certificates of naturalization which you procured? 

A. I was not there to see whether any witnesses appeared or not. 

7819. Q. Had you then, or have you now, any knowledge of any witness 
appearing for those papers ? 

A. They might have appeared without my knowledge; I don’t know 
about that. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 711 

7820. Q. Can yon state any fact tending to show that any witnesses 
(lid appear in those cases ? 

A. I should judge that was the court’s province to prove that; I can’t 
prove what belongs to the court’s province; I took no witnesses there. 

7821. Q. Do you know of any other persons having any connection 
with the procurement of the certificates issued for those applications 
which yon took there but yourself? 

A. From hearsay I have; I have heard of others getting out papers, 
but I would not like to mention their names; it is only hearsay. 

7822. Q. Do yon know, I ask, of any other person than yourself being 
engaged in obtaining or assisting in obtaining those certificates of natu¬ 
ralization which were given to you ? 

A. I saw one person there. 

7823. Q. Who was it? 

A. His name was Harris. 

7824. Q. Give his full name. 

A. I can’t tell his given name. 

7825. Q. Did he tell you, or do you know, that he was getting out any 
of those papers which you procured, or was he getting out other papers ? 

A. He was not getting out any that I procured. 

7826. Q. Then you know of no one who assisted in getting out any of 
the papers procured by you ? 

A. Ko one got any of my papers. 

7827. Q. How did you pay for those certificates of naturalization ? 

A. With tickets. 

7828. Q. What sort of tickets ? 

A. Eed tickets. 

7829. Q. Where did you get them ? 

A. It might be No. 1 Tryon Eow or No. 1 Centre; it is on the corner 
of Tryon Eow and Centre; it is generally called No. 1 Centre street. 

7830. Q. In what room were those certificates of naturalization deliv¬ 
ered to you ? 

A. In the supreme court room. 

7831. Q. In the room where Judge Barnard presided and held his 
court ? 

A. Yes, sir; he was sitting on the bench then. 

7832. Q. State if you know anything of persons procuring certificates 
of naturalization in a room across the haU from that court-room in which 
you say he was presiding. 

A. I don’t know across the had. I never was in the room across the 
hall except in chambers. 

7833. Q. What ward do you reside in in the city of New York ? 

A. The 6th ward ? 

7834. Q. State if you were at the polls on the day of the last presiden¬ 
tial election. 

A. I was there. 

7835. Q. In what district ? 

A. The 10th district of the 6th ward. 

7836. Q. State if you saw any slips of paper with the names of persons 
written on them, and numbers of houses and names of streets. 

A. Yes, sir. 

7837. Q. Did you have any yourself ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7838. Q. How many ? 

A. I can’t tell. 

7839. Q. State as near as you can. 


712 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. From 40 to 60. 

7840. Q. State if you furnislied tliose slips to any person that daj^ 

A. I gave out plenty of tickets. 

7841. Q. Did you furnish those slips to any person'/ 

A. To some. 

7842. Q. Did you give out all the slips you had ? 

A. Not quite all. 

7843. Q. How nearly alH 

A. Well, considerably lacking. 

7844. Q. Did you see Police Justice Dowling there that day? 

A. No, sir. 

7845. Q. Did you see Captain Jourdan there that day ? 

A. I don’t remember seeing him. 

7846. Q. What political party was you representing that day ? 

A. The party I have always represented. 

7847. Q. What was that ? 

A. The democratic party. 

7848. Q. State if you observed men voting more than once at that poll 
that day. 

A. Are those fair questions to be asked ? 

7849. Q. Yes, sir. 

A. Yes, sir, I did. 

7850. Q. How many of them? 

A. Two or three. 

7851. Q. State if you know of others being engaged in the same 
business. 

A. Yes, sir. 

7852. Q. State if you have been familiar with the voting population 
of the 6th ward. 

A. Has that got anything to do with the last November election ? 

7853. Q. Yes, sir. We want to know if you have been familiar with 
it in years past, so as to enable you to know what it should have been 
this last year. 

A. I know they polled the heaviest vote there last November that 
they ever polled. 

7855. Q. State if you have been familiar with the voting population 
of that ward for some years past. 

A. I think the largest vote it ever polled was when Mat. T. Brennan, 
its favorite candidate, ran for comptroller. He got an almost unanimous 
vote—Shaving about 180 against him. We made extra exertions that year 
to bring out the vote. 

7856. Q. From your knowledge of the voting population of that ward, 
and your knowledge of it at previous elections, will you state how many 
legal voters there are in that ward ? 

(Mr. Kerr objected; the objection was overruled.) 

A. I can’t tell anything about that. If there is five thousand come 
in there ten days prior to election, they are voters. 

7857. Q. State if you have means of judging as to the number of legal 
voters of that ward. 

A. A man’s judgment varies, and mine is not any better than any one 
else’s, and not as good as some. 

7858. Q. State if you have means of judging what is the voting popu¬ 
lation ? 

A. I have no 'more means than a man who has lived there three years; 
although I have lived there more than forty. I am no census taker. 

7859. Q. State if you have such means of knowledge as will enable 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 713 

you to form an estimate of somewhere near tlie number of legal voters 
in the ward. 

A. That question should be asked of some one who puts himself uj) for 
ofi&ce and not of me. 

7860. Q. State if you know. 

A. I don’t know the total vote of the ward. 

7861. Q. State what are your means for knowing. 

A. I have no means of knowing what the population of the ward is. 

7862. Q. State if you were summoned to appear before this committee 
when it sat in New York. 

A. Well, what if I was ? 

7863. Q. You must answer my questions. Was there a summons 
served on you ? 

A. There was one. 

7864. Q. Anymore? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7865. Q. State if you attended before this committee or failed to do 
so. 

A. Business prevented me from attending. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

7866. Q. Where do you live in New York? 

A. White street. 

7867. Q. What is your number ? 

A. No. 132. 

7868. Q. How long have you lived there ? 

A. Eleven years next May. 

7869. Q. In the same place and number? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7870. Q. You say you are clerk of the city judge ? 

A. I was until the 1st of January last. Indeed I have not yet been 
notified of my removal. 

7871. Q. You were acting then as his clerk until the 1st of the present 
month ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7872. Q. Who is the city judge? 

A. Judge Bussell was then. 

7873. Q. And who now? 

A. Judge Bedford is now. 

7874. Q. What were your duties? 

A. Attend to office business, and attend the judge at coiu’t. 

7875. Q. How long do you say you were in that service ? 

A. Five years. 

7876. Q. What were you doing before that time? 

A. I was one year with Judge McCunn; that makes six years. 

7877. Q. You say you have not been notified of your discharge? 

A. I don’t think it is a legal discharge, if he has appointed any one in 
my place. 

7878. Q. You mean you were clerk of the court? 

A. My position was clerk. In court I acted as an officer of the court; 
I was detailed on special duty. 

7879. Q. Who appointed you ? 

A. Judge McCuuii first. 

7880. Q. Who appointed you last ? 

A. Judge Bussell. 

7881. Q. What were your duties ? 

A. I was clerk in his office. 


714 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7882. Q. Not the clerk of his court? 

A. No, sir 5 Mr. Vandervoort and Mr. Sparks are the clerks of the 
court. 

7883. Q. You were the individual clerk of the judge ? 

A. I was the clerk of his office, his individual clerk—yes, sir—not the 
clerk of the court. 

7884. Q. And you think you have a right to serve Judge Bedford in 
the same capacity ? 

A. Not being notified of my discharge, there is doubt about it yet. 

7885. Q. Why did you not obey the order of this committee while it 
was in New York ? 

A. I had some other special business to attend to. 

788G. Q. Who advised you not to come before the committee there, 
but to wait until it came here ? 

A. No one advised me not to go before it there. 

7887. Q. Did no one advise you to wait until the committee returned 
here, and then to come before it and testify ? 

A. No, sir, no one. 

7888. Q. Who employed you to come here and give this testimony? 

A. No one employed me. 

7889. What compensation do you expect for testifying here? 

A. I expect no compensation except my proper witness fees—expenses. 

7890. Q. How did you happen to come over here? 

A. I was subpoenaed. 

7891. Q. By whom? 

A. Yesterday afternoon at 6.30. 

7892. Q. Who by? 

A. A man named Barnes, I think. [Mr. Le Barnes is the special mes¬ 
senger of the sergeant-at-arms to this committee.] 

7893. Q. What did he say to you ? 

A. He came to my house and subpoenaed me, and said that the com¬ 
mittee had had a great deal of trouble about me, and I would get myself 
into difficulty if I did not take care, , and that I had better go right on to 
Washington now in accordance with my subpoena. 

7894. Q. Do you know Colonel Wood? 

A. No, sir. 

7895. Q. You say you got blank applications for naturalization from 
Mr. McKean ? 

A. No, sir, I did not say any such thing j I got them from the county 
clerk’s office; that is what I said. 

7896. Q. I misunderstood you. Of whom in the clerk’s office did you 
get them ? 

A. A young man. 

7897. Q. Do you know the chief clerk of that court in which you got 
these applications ? 

A. I got them in the county clerk’s office j he is the clerk of the 
supreme court. 

7898. Q. Do you know the clerk? 

A. I know Mr. Loew personally. 

7899. Q. Do you know any one else in his office ? 

A. No, sir. 

7900. Q. Did you get these papers of him? 

A. No, sir. 

7901. Q. When did you get these blank applications? 

A. Some time in October; I don’t know the day. 

7902. Q. What did you say to the clerk of whom you got them? 

A. I told him I wanted some minor papers. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


715 


7903. Q. Did you tell him you was going to use them unlawfully? 

A. No, sir; never. 

7904. Q. Did you tell a^iy one you was going to use them unlawfully? 

A. No, sir; I never did. 

7905. Q. From whom did you get your red tickets ? 

A. I could not name the party. 

7906. Q. Where did you get them ? 

A. No. 1 Centre street; on the corner of Centre street and Tryon row, 
in the basement. 

7907. Q. What did you get them for ? 

A. To make use of. 

7908. Q. What did you state was the* purpose you had in getting 
them ? 

A. To cover the expense of making the applications. 

7909. Q. You wanted the tickets to pay the cost of getting the cer¬ 
tificates ? 

A. Yes, sir; they represented the cost of the certificates. 

7910. Q. Did you tell any one you wanted them to pay the costs on 

papers unlaAvfully obtained ? ^ 

A. The application showed I wanted tickets. 

7911. Q. Did you tell any one you wanted them to pay the costs on 
papers unlawfully obtained ? 

A. They made no such inquiry. 

7912. Q. Did you give them any reason to suppose you wanted those 
tickets to pay for fraudulent naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

7913. Q. You procured some final certificates of naturalization ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7914. Q. How many? 

A. Somewhere near 10 or 40. 

7915. Q. And I understand that you say that for these certificates 
you i)rocm*ed blanks and filled them out fraudulently? 

A. That question was not asked of me in that way. I filled out the 
blanks, or caused them to be filled out, and left them there and received 
my papers. 

7916. Q. You left them where ? 

A. At the clerk^s desk in the supreme court room. 

7917. Q. In whose hands did you leave them ? 

A. In Mr. McKean’s hands. 

7918. Q. What did you tell him ? 

A. I said they were all “ sworn to”—were all right.” 

7919. Q. Is that all you told him ? 

A. That is all I said, save that I wanted to know when I could get them. 

7920. Q. Did you teU him that the witnesses or applicants would 
come there ? 

A. No, sir. 

7921. Q. Where was this desk to which you refer ? 

A. In the court-room. 

7922. Q. When you said to him, They are all right; they have been 
sworn to,” did you mean they were “ all right” because they had been 
sworn to before the court by proper parties ? 

(Mr. Dawes objected to the question, but subsequently withdrew his 
objection.) 

A. I made no distinction whatever. I said, “There is a package. 
Can I have them to-night ? They have been all sworn to and are all 
right.” 


716 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7923. Q. What did he say? 

A. He said, “ NTo, sir j to-morrow you can have them.” 

7924. Q. Don’t you know that he understood from what you did say 
that those papers had been sworn to before the court so that he might 
pass upon them ? 

A. I can’t tell what he thought. 

7925. Q. Did you say anything to him that could have led him tb 
believe that was not what you meant ? 

A. Nothing but what I have told you. 

7926. Q. Directly or indirectly, by words or signs, did you give him 
to understand that the persons named in those applications represented 
persons who did not exist ? 

A. I said nothing to him but what I have stated. I don’t know what 
he thought. 

7927. Q. Did you give him to understand that those were fraudulent 
papers that you desired him to put through ? 

A. I have told you all I said to him; no, sir. 

7928. Q. Do you kn^w whether he knew you were practising fraud 
upon the court ? 

A. I can’t tell his opinion or his knowledge. 

7929. Q. Well, now, I would like you to be a little more particular in 
stating what you did, say to him when you handed him those papers. 

A. I said, ‘‘Here is a bundle of papersj I want to get them as 
quickly as possible.” • 

7930. Q. Had you been engaged in this business long ? 

A. Last year was the first. 

7931. Q. I mean during that time—^for days befi're this particular 
time of which you are speaking ? 

A. On two days. 

7932. Q. Before? 

A. No ; only two days in all ? 

7933. Q. Had you been there on the preceding day—^the day before? 

A. I think I was there on the 21st, and I know I was there on the 

last day. If you say the last day was the 23d, that was the last day I 
was there. 

7934. Q. You think, then, you were there the day before this conver¬ 
sation took place ? 

A. No ; two days before. 

7935. Q. Did you have a similar conversation on that day? 

A. There was no conversation. I merely tied up the bundle and left 
it there, saying, “ Get them through.” 

7936. Q. Did that conversation take place on two successive days? 

A. Once only in succession. 

7937. Q. In order to get these applications through the court so as to 
hand them to the clerk, did you procure the signature of the judge in 
any way ? 

A. No, sir. 

7938. Q. Do you know whether his name was to those applications in 
any way? 

A. No, sir. 

7939. Q. Do you mean to say that the judge’s signature was not upon 
those applications ? 

A. I saw him signing his initials on the back of papers. They might 
have been those of mine. The way the business was done was for par¬ 
ties to hand the papers to the clerk, and he generally told them to come 
the next day. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


717 


7940. Q. You say you got these papers—applieations—filled them up, 
and took them to the court j that there they were handed to some of 
the court officials, and passed from one to another until they reached 
the judge, and after being passed upon by him they went into the hands 
of the clerk ? 

A. NTo, sir; that was not asked me. In the court-roohi there were 
eight or ten clerks; five or six anyhow. These clerks generally took 
the applications from parties and handed them to the judge. When 
the papers were properly endorsed on the back naturalization certificates 
were made out. 

7941. Q. Do you mean, then, that this committee shall understand by 
what you have said that those papers were fraudulently passed and en¬ 
dorsed by J udge Barnard that you say you procured ? 

A. 1 can’t prove perjury, or anything like that. I have told you how 
I got the papers. The committee must draw its own inferences. The 
papers I passed to the clerk had not been signed by the judge. 

7942. Q. Did Judge Barnard know that you were trying to practice 
fraud upon the court ? 

A. I can’t teU what he thought. 

7943. Q. Do you know? 

A. I can’t tell that. 

7944. Q. Did you tell him or intimate to him that you were so 
engaged ? 

A. No, sir. 

7945. Q. Did you go into the court alone, or m company with some 

one ? ' * 

A. Alone. 

7946. Q. Who were in the court-room when you went there? 

A. I saw some that I knew and a great many that I did not know. 

7947. Q. How many did you see that you knew? 

A. Well, five or six, eight, ten or twelve, that I knew. There were two 
or three hundred waiting around to get their papers. 

7948. Q. Was there such a crowd there every time you was there? 

A. I went once to get my papers when the court was in session. 

7949. Q. That was the time you got them from the clerk? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7950. Q. Well, this time you were speaking of, you say you saw numer¬ 
ous persons you knew and some two hundred or so you did not know ? 

A. Three or four hundred. 

7951. .Q. Is it true that you got through a single paper—one of those 
applications of Avhich you have spoken—^without some person, either 
falsely or honestly, went before the judge as an applicant, and some 
other person, either falsely or honest, went before the judge as a wit¬ 
ness ? 

A. I got nobody. No one went before the judge for my papers. 

7952. Q. Do you mean to say that a single one of those applications 
you so procured—or upon which you procured naturalization certificates 
—was passed by the judge and approved by the court where some per¬ 
son calling himself or acting as an applicant, and some other person 
calling himself a witness, did not appear before the judge and pass an 
examination ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7953. Q. State precisely how that was done, t 

A. You drew that out of me in the first place. 

7954. Q. WeU, I want you to state it again and carefully. 

A. I went up and handed in a roll of papers—blanks that were filled 


718 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


up—minor papers, and the next day I went and got the citizen papers 
therefor. 

7955. Q. To whom did you hand them ? 

A. Mr. McKean. 

795C. Q. What was that roll 5 how many papers ? 

A. I can’t* tell that. It was a roll of minor papers—applications of 
minors for citizenship. 

7957. Q. When did you hand those to him—about what day and what 
hour of the day ^ 

A. From the 18th to the 23d of October—about the 21st. 

7958. Q. About what hour of the day? 

A. It was in the afternoon—I can’t state the hour exactly—say from 
one to four. 

7959. Q. Do you mean to say that that roll of papers handed him at 
that time were mere applications filled up but not endorsed by the 
judge? 

A. They were simply filled up by me or dictated by me. 

7960. Q. Dictated to whom ? 

A. There was a young man in Judge Eussel’s office to whom I dic¬ 
tated the names. 

7961. Q. You dictated the names to this young man and he wrote 
them in the papers ? 

A. He filled some up and I filled some up. There were two different 
handwritings, so as to make them look genuine, and we changed our 
handwriting sometimes, and sometimes signed with a mark. 

7962. Q. Were all these papers so filled up in Judge Eussell’s office ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 all done there. 

7963. Q. Give me the name of this young man? 

A. Theodore Taylor; but I can state that he had no knowledge of what 
was going on; he is a very young man and knew nothing about it. 

7964. Q. Where does he live ? 

A. I don’t know. 

7965. Q. How long have you known him? 

A. I know he lives somewhere In Harlem, but I don’t know where. 

7966. Q. How long, I ask, have you known him? 

A. A year, or 18 months. 

7967. Q. What what his business? 

A. He was a clerk. 

7968. Q. Do you mean a clerk in the court or .ludge Eussel’s private 
clerk ? 

A. The city judge is allowed clerks by the city and county. I was 
one clerk of his and Taylor was another. 

7969. Q. What were Taylor’s duties ? 

A. He had nothing to do but to sit in the office and copy papers. 

7970. Q. Did you two fill up all those applications upon which you 
obtained certificates ? 

A. No, sir. A young man named Edward Eitter filled some up. 

7971. Q. What excuse did you make to them for asking them to fill 
up those papers ? 

A. I told them that it was none of their business. 

7972. Q. Did they know you were in this fraudulent business ? 

A. I think I told Eitter so. 

7973. Q. Did he approve of the business you were engaged in. 

A. I don’t know whether he approved of anything of the kind or not. 
He is quite a young man, only just a voter. 

7974. Q. Did he make objections to doing this work ? 

A. No, s|r. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


719 


7975. Q. Did Mr. Taylor? 

A. No, sir j he knew no more about what was going on than a boy 10 
years of age. I told him to fill up one portion of the paper and I would 
fill up the other. That is all he knew about it. 

7976. Q. Did you sell these applications ? 

A. l!7o, sir. • 

7977. Q. What did you do with them ? 

A. I gave them to various people. 

7978. Q. Foreigners? 

A. Some. 

7979. Q. Can you recollect their names? 

A. i7o, sir. 

7980. Q. Did you give them to foreigners or citizens ? 

A. I gave them to both classes. 

7981. Q. Did you give them away or sell them ? 

A. I gave them away. I never sold one of them in my life; never got 
a penny nor a dollar for them. 

7982. Q. When you handed that roll of papers to McKean did you 
tell him they were naturalization i^apers ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

7983. Q. Did he know it in any way ? 

A. I can^t teU what he thought. 

7984. Q. Had they the judge’s initials upon them ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

7985. Q. What did you go back the next night for ? 

A. I went back the next day—not night—and got the certificates. 

7986. Q. The business you did in court the other night was entirely 
different business ? 

A. Then I saw them endorsed by the judge. 

7987. Q. These applications ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7988. Q. This was the subsequent evening you saw this ? 

A. Kot the subsequent evening j no, sir. One or two days intervened. 
The time I handed them in was in the afternoon. 

7989. Q. At that time, then—^whenever it was—after you handed in 
you applications, you saw the judge endorse them? 

A. Yes, sir. 

7990. Q. And you mean to say that no persons personated applicants 
or witnesses, or ai)peared before him so to do ? 

A. In my direct examination- 

7991. Q. I want you to answer my question. 

A. The answer to that is very difficult to give. If you will allow me. 
I will explain, if you will not have it taken down, and then when I am 
through the substance of what I state may be taken down. 

7992. Q. Ko; it must all go down. 

A. Very well, then. Judge Barnard came in from the other room, 
where he was naturalizing, and sat down and said, “Have these papers 
all beeq sworn to ?” and then signed them, an officer attached to the 
court having said, “Yes, sir.” 

7993. Q. What officer said that ? 

A. I don’t know his name. 

7994. Q. Do you know the names of any officers about that court ? 

A. Very few of them. 

7995. Q. Can you describe that officer ? 

A. I can describe him. 

7996. Q. How did he look ? How tall was he ? What age ? 

A. About 28 or 30. 


720 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


7997. Q. Color of liis hair ? 

A. Dark. 

7998. Q. Go on, sir, and describe him. 

A. He was dark complexion, low sized person. 

7999. Q. Is that the only way you can describe him ? 

A. Yes, sir j that is about all. 

8000. Q. You say the judge was absent from the court-room from a 
minute and a half to five minutes ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8001. Q. What had he been doing in the court room ? 

A. Swearing in regular voters. 

8002. Q. You mean naturalizing x^ersons ? 

A. Yes, sir; naturalizing them. The clerk’s business was to get them 
in rotation, and call the names of the princiiial and witness. They 
would all stand around the book—the Bibles. I went in and helped for 
a while to get them in line and order, and then they would swear. 

8003. Q. In that way your i>apers as well as the others were put 
through ? 

A. I^ot quite. 

8004. Q. What was the difference ? 

A. Well, sometimes the clerk swore one gang in and the judge another; 
but no one was sworn for my papers. 

8005. Q. Were men being sworn as you have just described at the 
same time ? 

A. Not at all. 

8006. Q. Which was the first operation ? 

A. I don’t know which was first or which was last. 

8007. Q. Was this swearing aU done in the same room ? 

A. No, sir. 

8008. Q. In different rooms ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8009. Q. In adjoining rooms ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8010. Q. When these men whom you say were sworn by the clerk were 
being put through were they not sworn for the puiq)ose of passing through 
your list ? 

A. I did not inquire. After leaving my list I went away. 

8011. Q. Were there not persons there for the purpose of passing your 
list ? 

A. No, sir; not for my list. 

8012. Q. Was there no one there to pass through your i^apers ? 

A. No, sir; not to my knowledge; no, sir. 

8013. Q. Could it have been done without your personal observation ? 
A. I can’t say it could not have been done. It might have been done. 

I have no knowledge of it. 

8014. Q. Where did you stand while this was being done ? 

A. To one side of the bench. 

8015. Q. How near to the judge ? 

A. The judge was not present when this was being done. 

8016. Q. How near to the clerk ? 

A. About five or six feet. I stood at one end of the judge’s bench 
and the clerk in the centre. I should say about five feet. 

8017. Q. When this gang come in what did the clerk say to them ? 

A. The gang were in when I went in. 

8018. Q. Had your papers been put through before you went in. 

A. No, sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


721 


8010. Q. What did the clerk say wlien yours were put through ? 

A. I urged him to put them through quick. 

8020. Q. What did he say to this crowd or gang'? 

A. He called off some names and they would answer promiscuously. 
I don’t know whether they were their right names or not. Sometimes 
one, or two, or three would answer for the same name. 

8021. Q. You don’t know, do you, whether the same one would answer 
twice, or whether some man would answer as a witness when the name 
of the applicant was called and he had answered ? 

A. No, sir. 

8022. Q. What hour in the night was this? 

A. Between half-past six and eight o’clock. 

8023. Q. After dark? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8021. Q. By gas-light ? 

A. Gas-light? YYs, sir. 

8025. Did you not know when you engaged in this business that 
you were violating the laws of the State of New York and the laws of 
the United States ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8026. Q. And yet you did it without any reward or promise of reward? 

A. Without any hope of reward, or any reward, or promise of reward. 

8027. Q. Did you ever before engage in any such business ? 

A. Not naturalization. 

8028. Q. llave you engaged in fraudulent practices of any kind before? 

[Objected to by Mr. Dawes j a vote taken, and objection sustained.] 

8021). Q. I ask you to state whether you are a gambler by profession 

or engaged in that kind of business ? 

A. No, sir. 

8030. Q. Do you not habitually visit faro banks? 

A. No, sir. 

8031. Q. Were you ever prosecuted in any of the criminal courts for 

any violations of the laws of the State of New York ? * 

A. Never. 

8032. (^. Who told you that if you came here to testify before this 
committee you would be exempted from punishment ? 

A. My own common sense. 

8033. Q. You state here that you have violated certain laws both of 
the State of New York and of the United States j it is your opinion you 
are liable to punishment for violating those^ laws ? 

A. I violated no law. 

8031. Q. Will you have the kindness to explain that ? 

A. If I write out a certain lot of applications here and present them 
subsequently to a court and go there the next day and get certificates 
of naturalization, no one being sworn for the papers, I think I violate no 
law. It is not peijury and it is not bribery. 

8035. Q. That is your construction of the law ? 

A. I think that way. 

8036/Q. You think there is no fraud or violation of law involved in 
filling in names of applicants and procuring certificates therefor ? 

A.*^There is where there is money involved. There was no money 
involved there. 

8037. Q. On that ground you think you go free ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8038. Q. Very well, I only want to get your construction of the morality 
of this thing. You say you were also engaged in the business of repeating ? 

16 T 


722 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I never voted more tlian once, tliat is, at any general election. Do 
you mean at a primary ? 

8039. Q. How many of these slips did you distribute yourself? 

A. I can^t name certainly. 

8040. Q. About how many? 

A. Say ten. 

8041. Q. To whom did you give them ? 

A. I can’t name one person to-day. 

8042. Q. Did you give them to strangers or persons you then knew? 
A. I gave them to those I knew Avere willing to take them. I knew 

them at the time by sight, and know them now by sight. 

8043. Q. Did you hear them called by no name? 

A. Their names would be too numerous to mention. I could not go 
through that ordeal. 

8044. Q. You have forgotten them all ? 

A. Yes; I guess so. 

8045. Q. Say if you are acquainted with a fellow by the name of Wil¬ 
liam H. Travis, and if you can’t think of some others of those you gave 
these slips to? 

A. I think I know a man—no, sir, I do not know William H. Travis. 
I do not know any such man. 

8046. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Peter Norton ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8047. Q. Did you give him any ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

8048. Q. What candidate for office procured you to distribute those 
slips and secure votes that way ? 

A. No candidate. 

8049. Q. Were you not promised reward if you would do that? 

A. No, sir. 

8050. Q. Were you iu the company of any candidate when you distri¬ 
buted these slips ? 

A. No, sir. 

8051. Q. At what district poll did you distribute those fraudulent slips ? 
A. The 10th district of the 6th ward. 

8052. Q. Anywhere else? 

A. No, sir. 

8053. Q. Do you live in that district ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8054. Q. No. 132 White street is in that district ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8055. Q. You say the vote of that ward was very large this year? 

A. Yes, sir; I said the vote of the ward Avas large. Did you ask me 
of the ward or the district ? 

8056. Q. The ward. What was the vote of the 6th ward ? 

A. The vote of the 6th ward topped 5,000 a little. 

8057. Q. Were you ever engaged in the business of taking a census or 
count of the citizens or voters of that ward ? 

A. No, sir. 

8058. Q. Did you say you were once a police officer ? 

A. I don’t think I said so, but I was once a police officer: I don’t 
remember stating it before. 

8059. Q. When were you on the police force? 

A. In 1856, 1855, 1854, and 1853. 

8060. Q. How many years were you on the force ? 

A. Five or six; I was on two years and then off one, and then from 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


723 


1852 I was on until tlie old police force busted. I was on the old force 
with his honor Fernando Wood, whom 1 saw down stairs to-day; I left 
when he left. 

80G1. Q. You don’t mean he was on the police force ? 

A. Ko, sir; he had charge of it. 

8062. Q. Are you ac(iuainted with Robert Murray, marshal of the dis¬ 
trict court of the United States for ]^ew York ? 

A. I never spoke to him in my life. 

8063. Q. Are you acquainted with him ? 

A. I know him when I see him. 

8064. Q. Are you acquainted with General John A. Foster ? 

A. I don’t know him. 

8065. Q. Are you acquainted with John H. White 1 
A. I never spoke to him to my knowledge. 

8066. Q. Are you acquainted with Samuel J. Glassey ? 

A. 1 know the person. 

8067. Have you seen him lately ? 

A. I saw him a few days ago. 

8068. Q. What day ? 

A. Yesterday, I think it was. 

8069. Q. Where did you see him ? 

A. William street. 

8070. Q. Who was with you ? 

A. No one. 

8071. Q. Hid you have any conversation with him ? 

A. Not one word more than ‘^Good day.” 

8072. Q. When did you last have a conversation with him ? 

A. When I was with Judge McOunuj about six years ago. 

8073. Q. Not since then ? 

A. I have never had a conversation with him except to say Good day,” 
or “ How do you do?” since that time. 

8074. Q. I want you to be certain now, if you can, whether when you 
got these fraudulent papers in the manner in which you have stated, you 
gave clerk McKean to understand, in any way whatever, that you were 
engaged in the business of getting fraudulent papers. 

A. He did not know what I was doing; I simply told him I wanted 
those papers, and what I have already stated. 

8075. Q. You know him well ? 

A. Pretty well. 

8076. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A. Two or three or four years, by meeting him often around the coui*t; 
would generally say How do you do, John ?” and pass the compliments 
of the day. 

8077. Q. Are you familiar with him particularly ? 

A. Not familiar with him—no, sir; nor an associate of his. 

8078. Q. Did you ever give Judge Russell to understand, in any way, 
that you were engaged in this unlawful business? 

A. Are you trying Judge Russell or me; which? 

8079. Q. Answer my question. 

A. I think he knew of it. 

8080. Q. Answer my question, will you ? 

A. I think he knew I was engaged in unlawful business. 

8081. (To the clerk. Read the question to the witness again.) 

A. I told him I was doing extra work. 

8082. Q. What else did you tell him ? 

A. Nothing that I can recollect at this time; I told him I was doing a 
little extra work. 


724 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8083. Q. Did you explain to liiin wliat tliat meant I want you to 
answer more promptly. 

A. I have got to think; it is some time ago. I told him I was getting 
out naturalization papers; he walked away and shut the door^ and I had 
no more conversation with him. 

8084. Q. Did you tell him you were getting out naturalization papers 
fraudulently ? 

A. No. sir. 

8085. Q. Did you explain to him what your expression extra work” 
meant % 

A. No, sir. 

8086. Q. Did you explain what you meant hy saying you were get¬ 
ting out naturalization papers'?” 

A. I did not. 

8087. Q. What did you say that would lead him to think you were 
doing it fraudulently % 

A. I don’t know that he thought so; I simply said that because he saw 
me bothering around with i^apers; filling them up and the like of that. 

8088. Q. Did you ask him to be relieved from your regular duties so 
that you might attend to this business % 

A. No, sir. 

8089. Q. What was it you said to him that makes you believe that he 
knew you was engaged in this business fraudulently? 

A. I don’t know that he believes it. 

8090. Q. What made you then, or makes you now, believe it? 

A. Because I told him I was doing extra work. That is all the reason. 

8091. Q. Did you advise with him about the matter—whether it was 
right or wrong; or with any person ? 

A. No, sir; I got no advice from any person. 

8092. Q. Are you in the habit of becoming intoxicated at times ? 

A. Sometimes I take a load of ale aboard. 

8093. Q. Were you sober or intoxicated when you got these papers ? 

A. I don’t think that I had drank a drop of liquor of any kind in 

almost five months. 

8094. Q. Have you been intoxicated since then ? 

A. I have been under the influence of ale, or liquor if you so choose 
to call it. I have not been intoxicated or drunk. 

8095. Q. Do you mean to say you have been drunk since that election; 
how is the fact? 

A. I have been under the influence of ale, but not drunk; and before 
the time I took out those papers, at that time I had not tasted liquor 
for about five months. 

8096. Q. Did Judge Eussell allow you to remain in his office and ser¬ 
vice until his term expired? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8097. Q. What compensation did you receive for that service ?, 

A. One hundred dollars a month. * 

8098. Q. Have you a family? 

A. I have, sir; four children and a wife—a wife and four children; I 
put the wife first. 

8099. You are engaged in no business now? 

A. Not at present. 

8100. Q. What is Eitter’s full name ? 

A. Edward. • 

8101. Q. His residence ? 

A. I can’t tell. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


725 


By the Chairman : 

8102. Q. You have stated that you procured on the last occasion 
about forty certificates ot naturalization. Who signed the names of 
persons purporting to be applicants and witnesses to the applications 
upon which those certificates were issued f 

A. Those two young men I spoke of and myself. 

8103. Q. Theodore Taylor^ Edward Bitter, and yourself? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8104. Q. What other certificates of naturalization did you get besides 
those on this last day, the 23d of October j I mean, how many did you 
get the first time, which you say was about the 21st ? 

A. From 12 to 15 or 18., 

8105. Q. Were those issued to fictitious persons also? * 

A. They were names of men that I knew, most of them j but I put 
them down as I thought of them. 

8106. Q. Had any one asked you to procure certificates for any of those 
names ? 

A. Two or three, I think. 

8107. Q. How as to the others ? 

A. Bo person. 

8108. Q. State what the purpose was of procuring those certificates of 
naturalization for those persons in the manner in which you have 
described. 

A. My purpose was to spread them around to swell the vote up. 

8109. Q. State how many voters reside at Bo. 132 White street, Bew 
York. 

A. There is a person there by the name of' J. H. Owens, and myself, 
(John McCluskey;) that is all. 

8110. Q. State what names were registered at the last presidential 
election from that house. 

A. I don’t know. 

8111. Q. State how many voters lived at 130 White street. 

A. I think there were two; there might have been three; I am 
positive of two. Mr. Monahan lives there, and another man whose name 
I am not certain of. 

8112. Q. State who lived at Bo. 134 White street; voters, I mean. 

A. Mr. Bapoleon Wooldridge and Mr. Eeagan. 

8113. Q. Did any such persons as Owen Cavanagh, John Dwyer, 
Arthm* Campbell, Owen Cavanagh, and Boger Murphy live at Bo. 132 
White street ? 

A. Bo such persons at all. 

8114. Q. Did any such persons as James Brady, Hugh Mitchell, or 
Thomas Kerrigan reside at Bo. 134 Wlpte street. 

A. I can’t answer as to who lived at other persons’ houses. 

8115. Q. Do you know any such persons as those ? « 

A. I do not. 

8116. Q. Did James Boyle, Thomas Higgins, or Adam Hahn live at 
Bo. 130 White street to your knowledge ? 

A. I can’t tell; but they did not to my knowledge. 

8117. Q. Do you know of any such persons ever living there ? 

A. I don’t know any such persons; no, sir. 

8118. Q. Who signed the names of applicants and witnesses to the 
first batch of applications on which you procured certificates ? 

A. I have answered that. They were not done by real applicants or 
witnesses. 


726 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8119. Q. The names of the witnesses you say were not signed by real 
witnesses, but by some other person ? 

A. By some olher person. Yes, sir. 

Ee-examined by Mr. Kerr : 

8120. Q. Do you mean to say that you procured two batches of final 
certificates, or only one % 

A. On two different occasions I received certificates. 

8121. Q. One you have fully described as having happened at night j 
was the other before or after that! 

A. Before that. 

8122. Q. How long before? 

A. Two or three days, or four days. 

8123. Q. When you took these applications to the clerk for the first 
batch what did you tell him % 

A. I have got some papers I want fixed up. 

8124. Q. What clerk was it you told that ? 

A. Mr. McKean. 

8125. Q. What did he say? 

A. He asked me if they were “all right,” and I said, “Yes.” 

8126. Q. What did he mean by that? 

A. I can’t tell. 

8127. Q. What did you mean by that answer ? 

A. To give him to understand it was all right. 

8128. Q. In what particulars did you mean he should understand they 
were all right ? 

A. He asked if they were “all sworn to” and were “all right,” and I 
said, “Yes.” 

8129. Q. He meant sworn to before the judge ? 

A. I can’t tell that. 

8130. Q. Where was he sitting when you handed them to him ? 

A. Standing at his desk in the supreme coiu’t. 

8131. Q. Was the court in session? 

A. I can’t remember whether it was or not. 

8132. Q. How many persons were about at the time ? 

A. There may have been four or five or six. 

8133. Q. How many more ? 

A. There might have been more sitting around there. 

8134. Q. How many were there in the court room ? 

A. It is hard to get a man to tell how manj^ men are in chambers— 
the lawyers running in and out and people going to and fro all the time. 

8135. Q. You can approximate ? 

A. Ko, I can’t. 

8136. Q. Were there as manylis 100? 

A. I don’t think there were. 

8ft7. Q. Seventy-five? 

A. I don’t think there were. 

8138. Q. Fifty? 

A. I hardly think there were. 

8139. Q. Forty ? 

A. Well, along in that neighborhood—from 15 to 40. 

8140. Q. When you handed the clerk these papers you did not say to 
him they were fraudulent ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8141. Q. Or give him any intimation that they were not all right ? 

A. I said they were “all right.” 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORIC. 


727 


8143. Q. ^Tio filled up tliis first batcli of 16 or 18 ? 

A. I think it was those young men I spoke of—Taylor and Eitter—and 
I think I had a hand in it. 

8143. Q. They were filled up by the same men ? 

A. We all changed our difierent handwritings. 

8144. Q. Did you put the signatoe of the clerk to them, too? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8145. Q. How did you get that ? 

A. I don’t know how that got there. They were all filled up and com¬ 
plete Avith the exception of being sworn to and putting in the clerk’s 
name and the judge’s name. 

8146. Q. Did you stay to see them put through ? 

A. I did not. I left them with the clerk and then went away. I got 
them the next day. 

8147. Q. This in the daytime or at night ? 

A. In the daytime. 

8148. Q. What time of day ? 

' A. Between 1 and 4 o’clock. 

8149. Q. How long did you stay ? 

A. From two to five minutes—may haA^e been ten minutes. 

By Mr. Eoss : 

8150. Q. Was the court then open for naturalization ? 

A. They did not naturalize in the supreme court in the daytime ; at 
least I didn’t see them. 

8151. Q. McKean sat by the side of the judge ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8152. Q. Who did? 

A. I don’t know. 

8153. Q. McKean Avas in the same room with the judge ? 

A. I don’t know whether the judge Avas there when I handed McKean 
the papers. 

8154. Q. This was the same court-room ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8155. Q. Where was the clerk sitting ? 

A. On the right hand side of the judge’s seat. 

8156. Q. You gave him 18 papers ? 

A. Some 15 or 18. 

8157. Q. What did he say ? 

A. Asked me if they were “all right.” 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8158. Q. Did you take any witnesses with you ? 

A. Ko. sir. 

8159. Q. Did you know the parties ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8160. Q. You got the papers the next day signed by the clerk and the 
judge? 

A. I got naturalization papers then. 

8161. Q. Was the judge’s name on them ? 

A. I think not; I don’t know. I Avould not like to answer positively 
about that; I think only the name of the clerk of the court. 

8162. Q. The seal of the court ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


728 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


By Mr. Boss: 

81G3. Q. You say that you saw the judge write on your papers ? 

A. I saw him put something on the t3ack of papers; I don’t know 
what it was he put on—he might have done nothing. He made a motion 
with his pen^ I know. 

Washington, February 1,18G9. 

Joseph Meeks recalled, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

81G4. Question. State to the committee what you know and how you 
came to know it, as to the numher of persons who were naturalized 
during the month of October last, by the superior court in the city of 
Kew York. 

Answer. As I stated before, I had charge of naturalization in the 
superior court for the month of October, 18G8, and signed the certificates 
that were issued from that coint. When parties were naturalized and 
received their certificates they handed in a ticket. At the close of each 
day’s work these tickets were handed to me and I took charge of them. 
I counted them and put them up in packages of 100 each, and put the 
packages in my office. As the tickets accumulated I put them up in 
bundles of 1,000 each. After Ave got through naturalization, in order to 
arrive at the number naturalized, I counted all the tickets that were 
receiA^ed for naturalization, and made the count some little over 18,000. 
I furnished that information to Mr. Sweeney, clerk of the court, that that 
was the number naturalized. On my iireAfious examination I SAvore that 
we had naturalized 18,000. When the statement was presented to me 
showing that we liad naturalized a larger number, I was surprised at 
the increase OA^er my count. I then made inquiry as to the manner in 
which that count had been made. At that time Mr. Glassey, I think, 
or some person representing this committee, had asked permission to 
alloAV" a count to be made in the office. After the count had been made 
Mr. Glassey informed me of the discrepancy between the count as ren¬ 
dered by Mr. Westlake and the count as made by the clerks represent¬ 
ing this committee. I then directed Mr. Gillespie to make an actual 
count of each and every paper in the office, which he did, and furnished 
me AAfith the result. In consequence of the statement Avhich Mr. Gillespie 
furnished me, I found that the count Avhich I had originally made was 
correct, and found that it agreed Avith the search made by the clerks 
sent by this committee. These clerks made the count over 18,000, and 
on actual count Mr. Gillespie made it 18,432. 

81G5. Q. If you knoAv Avhat the report of the examiners sent by this 
committee was, you may state it. 

A. I made the count originally and furnished it to Mr. SAveeney. In 
consequence of moAung I Avas not at the office for the space of one Aveek, 
and when I went before this committee I did not knoAv that any other 
count had been made, or that any statement had been SAvorn to. I then 
swore to over 18,()()() naturalization certificates, and Avhen I was shoAvn a 
statement of 2G,000 I AA^as very much surprised and could not account 
for it. When I Avent back to the office I thought I discoA-ered the reason, 
and subsequent investigation has proved to me that I have. 

By the Chairman : 

81GG. Q. Did you count personally, yourself, the tickets which you 
received ? 

A. I did ] I counted them and put them up in bundles of 100 each. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 729 

S1G7. Q. Have you counted tlie applications for naturalization yourself^ 

A. I have not. 

8168. Q. Are Mr. Gillespie’s means of counting the number any better 
than those of Mr. Westlake, who made the count before^ 

A. I do not know that Mr. Westlake made the count before. 

8169. Q. If Mr. Westlake made the count and swore to it, are not his 
means of making a correct count as good as those of Mr. Gillespie'? 

A. Just as good if it was made in the same way, but it was not made 
in the same way. 

8170. Q. Did you not just now state that you did not know that Mr. 
Westlake made a count? 

A. I did not know at the time I gave my testimony. 

8171. Q. Then do you know anytliing about how he did it? 

A. I do not know personally. I was not there at the time. 

8172. Q. Did you call on Mr. Westlake to make any count since you 
testified before ? 

A. No, sir. 

8173. Q. Is he still a clerk in the office? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8174. Q. There was no index made at the time Westlake made the 
account ? 

A. The index was only for a few days j there was nothing but the papers. 

By the Chairman : 

8175. Q. Is the index—the list of names naturalized in the superior 
court—^yet complete ? 

A. I do not know. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8176. Q. At the time this count was made for the committee previously 
who had charge of the papers? 

A. They were in charge of the clerks in the naturalization office, Mr. 
Gillespie and Mr. Thompson. 

8177. Q. Then how did it happen that Mr.Westlake was in charge of them? 

A. Because I was away from the office, and he acted in my place as 

deputy and went in and directed them to make the search. 

8178. Q. Then both searches were made by the same parties? 

A. Yes, sir; but in. a different way. 

8170. Q. Were there any persons naturalized in the superior court of 
New York except those who were naturalized on party tickets—were 
there none naturalized who paid for their own papers ? 

A. Very few. 

8180. Q. How many do you suppose paid for their own papers ? 

A. I do not suppose there were 30. 

8181. Q. How many of the tickets were Tammany and how many 
republican tickets ? 

A. I suppose that about ten to one were Tammany tickets. 

By the Chairman: 

8182. Q. Were you present all the time that naturalization was going 
on—every day and every hour ? 

A. Every day and every hour. 

8183. Q. Did you receive the tickets from the applicants for naturali¬ 
zation ? 

A. Not personally. 

8184. Who did receive them? 


730 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. One of tlie clerks wlio sealed. There was a basket put by the 
seal, into which the tickets were thrown. 

8185. Q. Are you personally able to state that you saw all the tickets 
that were delivered ^ 

A. Yes, sir j for the reason that no man could get his papers without 
a ticket. 

By Mr. Daaves: 

818G. Q. If you did not give the papers and take the tickets how do 
you know 

A. I sat quite close to the clerk who took them. 

8187. Q. You mean to say that you did not see anybody Avho did not 
give*^a ticket when he got his papers? 

A. I mean to say that nobody got his papers without giving his ticket, 
because I gave instructions to that effect, and I was watching the whole 
proceedings. I was watching to see that the seal was put upon the papers 
and that tickets were given for them. 

8188. Q. Y^ou mean to say that you did not see anybody who got his 
papers without a ticket ? 

A. I mean to say that nobody got them without the ticket. 

8189. Q. Have you any other knowledge except that you did not see 
anybody take papers Avithout his ticket ? 

A. I have this knoAvledge, that if a man appeared without a ticket the 
clerk would demand of him the money, and if he did not pay for his 
papers he did not get them. 

By Mr. Hicicey : 

8190. Q. I understood you to say on your previous examination that 
you were not in court Avhen the papers were passed ui)on ? 

A. No, sir. 

8191. Q. You only issued certificates when the applications were pre¬ 
sented to you endorsed by the initials of the judge ? 

A. That is all. 

8192. Q. Hid you keep any register, index, or memorandum of any 
kind of the certificates that were issued from jmur court ? 

A. No, sir. 

8193. Q. Then do you know, or haA^e you the means of knowing, that 
the applications now in the rooms of the naturalization clerk are the 
same applications on which you issued papers ? 

A. I certainly do not. 

8194. Q. Then you do not know whether these papers that haA^e been 
counted are really the same papers on which you issued certificates ? 

A. I only know that the clerk examined all the papers to see that they 
were genuine papers. 

8195. Q. But are there any means of telling whether these are the 
same papers on which you issued certificates of naturalization j there 
Avas no record kept of the naturalizations that you issued ? 

A. There Avas no record kept at the time ; it could not be made out. 
The record is being kept noAv because Ave are taking those papers to 
index them. 

By the Chairman : 

8196. Q. In the forms used in your court there was no fiat or order 
of the judge directing that the applicant be admitted to citizenship ? 

A. No, sir; other than the initials of the judge put upon the margin 
of the application in all cases. 

8197. Q. There was no order (in your forms at all ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


731 


A. No regular order. 

8198. Q. "Or irregular order? 

A. Nothing but the judge’s initials. 

8199. Q. There was no printed order ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Dickey" : 

8200. Q. There was nothing done except the filing of these papers— 
there was no record of the evidence kept ? 

A. The clerks are indexing the papers now. So far as they have got, 
there is a perfect record of the name of the applicant, the place of birth, 
the name of his witness, residence, and everything else. 

By the Chairman : 

8201. Q. Is there anything else? 

A. His name, age, place of birth, residence, and the name of his wit- 
IIGSS* 

8202. Q. That is all ? 

A. That is all; and then there are the original papers, with the appli¬ 
cant’s oath and the oath of the witness and the fiat of the judge. 

8203. Q. There is no fiat? 

A. There is the same fiat as there is on a great many court papers. It 
is simxdy the initials of the judge. I do not mean to say that there is a 
regular order. By the fiat I mean the initials of the judge. There are 
orders after orders granted in that court every day in the general term 
of the court in the same way. 

8204. Q. There are no journal entries made on the minutes of the 
court ? 

A. No, sir 5 the names are being entered now in the books. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8205. Q. You are making it up from the applications? 

A. Yes. 

820G. Q. But you do not know that those papers are the same ones on 
which certificates were issued ? 

A. I knoAv it as well as I know anything else. 

8207. Q. Did you put any file-marks on those papers in your hand¬ 
writing ? 

A. Not in my own handwriting. 

By tlie Chairman : 

8208. Q. How long were you away from the clerk’s office ? 

A. Four or five days. 

8209. Q. Wlien. 

A. Between Christmas and New-Year. 

8210. Do you know that Patrick McCaffrey was about the office, where 
these naturalization papers were, very frequently ? 

A. I only know from what Mr. Davenport, or somebody else, called my 
attention to. 

8211. Q. You did not see him ? 

A. No, sir; I have no recollection of seeing him. 

8212. Q. Do you not know that he was expressing great solicitude 
about the papers there ? 

A. No, sir. I think that Mr. Glassey called my attention to the fact. 
I then Avent into the office and gaA^e directions to the clerk not to allow 
McCaffrey or any other man to overlook those papers or stay in the 
office. 


I 


732 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8213. Q. How many clerks are tli^re in your office ? 

A. I suppose about a dozen. 

8214. Q. And all have access to the naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

8215. Q. IIow many of them have ? 

A. Two. 

8216. Q. Who are they ? 

A. Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Thompson. They are responsible for the 
papers. As deputy clerk I have access to all the papers. But Mr. 
Gillespie and Mr. Thompson are in the naturalization office. They are 
the only clerks in it, and they are responsible for the papers in it. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8217. Q. When you speak of the whole number of persons naturalized 
what time do you cover by that expression ? 

A. The month of October, from the 1st to the 23d, inclusive. 

8218. Q. State to the committee whether yop have any knowledge, 
directly or indirectly, by hearsay or of your own knowledge, that any 
of those applications, since the naturalization of the persons named in 
them, have been lost or misplaced or abstracted or otherwise disposed of. 

A. No, sir. 

8219. Q. Have you any reason to suppose that any of them have been? 

A. I have not 5 and I am confident that none of them have been. 

By Mr. Hawes : 

8220. Q. Have you seen any of the testimony that was taken before 
this committee ? 

A. I have seen my own—no other. I asked Mr. Kerr to get me a copy, 
to see whether I was reported correctly. I did not see it till this morning. 
My own was all that I saw. 

By the Chairman : 

8221. Q. Did you get the whole testimony, or only your own ? 

A. I got the book. 

8222. Q. You had possession of the whole testimony ? 

A. Yes; but only for a few minutes. I asked Mr. Kerr to let me look 
at it. I did not have it more than 5 or 10 minutes, and did not read any 
of the testimony except my own. I just looked over my own to see how 
I had sworn as to the 18,000 naturalizations, and I found that I then 
testified that I had counted the number and that it was 18,000. 

Washington, February 1,1869. 

Adam Gillespie recalled, (at the instance of Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8223. Question. State to the committee whether, Avithin the last few 
days, you made a count of the entire number of applications for natural¬ 
ization in the superior court of the city and county of New York; and 
if so, what the result was. 

Answer. I have. The result has been that the whole number of appli¬ 
cations on which certificates of citizenship were issued in the superior 
court from the 1 st to the 23d of October, inclusiA^e, was 18,432. 

8224. Q. When did you make that examination ? 

A. About a Aveek ago. 

8225. Q. By whose direction ? 

A. By the direction of Mr. Meeks and Mr. Sweeney. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


733 


822G. Q. How did you make it"? 

A. By counting eacli paper. 

8227. Q. AVlio lias charge, and has had since the commencement of 
this business in October last, of these applications? 

A. I have. 

8228. Q. State whether any of these applications, since they were 
placed in the court and became files of the court, have been lost or mis¬ 
laid or abstracted or destroyed. 

A. I can safely swear that none have been destroyed or abstracted, and 
that all are at present on file in the office of the superior court—all that 
ever were there. 

8229. Q. State how the custody of these papers has been kept since 
the business was done and since they were executed and left in the court 
by the respective parties. 

A. They were locked up. 

, 8230. Q. Were you present during the examination made of them by 
the persons aiipointed by the committee ? 

A. I was present the greater part of the time. 

8231. Q. Was any other clerk i^resent? * 

A. Yes; one of the clerks always remained in the office during my 
absence—at dinner, for instance. I speak of the examination by Mr. 
Glassey and others. 

8232. Q. State to the committee if you know how this error in the 
original count was made. I mean in the count reported to the com¬ 
mittee by Mr. Westlake. 

A. There were some four or five engaged in making the first count. 
It was done in a very hasty manner and under the impression that it 
was an estimate of the number that was required by the committee. It 
was done in a few hours, at night, in about three or four hours after 
business hours had closed. 

8233. Q. State who were present. 

A. Mr. Edward B. Heath, Mr. Owen Westlake, Mr. Owen McYeirney, 
Mr. Jesse Oakley, and myself. 

8231. Q. How could this error have occurred? 

A. I do not know of my own certain knowledge how it could have 
occurred j I can only presume that it occurred by counting some i^apers 
over a second time. The place where these papers were counted is a 
very small office or room, about the size of this table. I sui)pose that 
the papers were counted over a second time. They were not counted 
singly or separately. There was a package put up containing 100 papers, 
ancl the remainder of the papers were put up in packages approximating 
the size. I now present to the committee a statement of the number of 
applications for naturalization according to my count, which statement 
shows the iiumber of applications each day from the 1st to the 23d of 
October, inclusive. 

By tlie Chairman: 

8235. Q. How did you count these papers the last time? Hid you do 
it all yourself? 

A. Ho, sir. 

823G. Q. mo helped you? 

A. Mr. Westlake, Mr. elohn A. Thompson, and Mr. James Early. 

8237. Q. You know nothing about the correctness of their count ? 

A. Yes, I do, for I assisted in counting. 

8238. Q. Did you count each paper yourself? 

A. Ho, they were assisting me. 


734 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8239. Q. Wliat proportion of them did you count? 

A. I presume about oue-fourtli. I counted the rest in 100 packages, 
after the others had counted them. 

By the Chairman : 

8240. Q. Who has charge of the office? 

A. Mr. John A. Thompson is the principal in charge of the office j I 
am an assistant. 

8241. What time does he come there in the morning ? 

A. Sometimes at 10 o’clock ; sometimes as late as 11 o’clock. 

8242. Q. What time do you come there ? 

A. Nine o’clock. 

8243. Q. Have yon always been there before him? 

A. Not always; in a few instances he happened to be there before me. 

8244. Q. Since the October election has he been often in the office 

while you were not there? , 

A. Occasionally, when I would be at lunch. 

8245. Q. Has that been the case within the last two or three weeks? 

A. Yes. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

824G. Q. You say that in the first count you put the papers up in piles 
of 100 each, estimated. How did you get the odd numbers each day in 
the report? 

A. After putting up each package approximating to the original one 
in size, whatever papers remained we counted singly. 

8247. Q. Wherein did that count differ from this one; you say that 
you put these papers up in hundreds also ? 

A.. Yes; but in the first instance the papers were not counted at all. 

8248. Q. Could there be any such discrepancy as one-third of the 
whole number in sizing piles of 100 each ? 

A. We found the discrepancy in counting them all the second time. 

8249. Q. Do you know that all of them were counted over the second 
time? 

A. I am not absolutely certain of it, but my impression is that they 
certainly were. 

8250. Q. How did these papers get into that little office where they 
are kept ? 

A. They were carried up there by me and one or two other clerks. 

8251. Q. What other clerks ? 

A. Mr. Heath assisted me, but generally I carried them all up myself 
from the sheriff’s office during the month of October. 

8252. Q. Where were they kept in the sheriff*’s office ? 

A. They were kept behind the desk, on the table, after the certificates 
of citizenship were issued on them. 

8253. Q. Did you take them up every day? 

A. Every day. 

8254. Q. How often in the day? 

A. When there were a large number twice a day, but when there was 
a small number I carried them all up together in the evening. 

8255. The following is the count produced and testified to by the 
witness; 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

735 

October 1,1808... 

. 426 

October 14,1868. 

. 1,569 

2,1868... 

. 723 

15,1868. 

. 934 

3.1868.. . 

5.1868.. . 

. 785 

16,1868. 

. 581 

.. 1,363 

17,1868.. 


6, 1868... 


19,1868. 

. 709 

7, 1868... 

.. 1,415 

20,1868. 

. 517 

8,1868... 


21, 1868. 


9,1868... 

22,1868. 


10,1868... 
12,1868... 

. 2 017 

23,1868. 

.. 618 

13,1868... 



18,432 


Washington, D. 0., February 3,1869. 

Henry Johnson sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

8256. Question. Have you appeared before this committee in New 
York ? 

Ailswer. I did not appear before the committee. 

8257. Q. State if you were in the room where the committee sat. 

A. No, sir. 

8258. Q. State if you were in the building where the committee held 
their session—the United States court-room, on Chambers street. 

A. Yes, sir. 

8259. Q. Hid you notify me, or any member of the committee, of that 
fact? 

A. No, sir; I had no opportunity. 

8260. Q. At what time were you there ? 

A. Between two and three o’clock in the afternoon of Thursday, the 
14th of January; the last day the committee were in New York. I was 
subpoenaed on Wednesday. 

8261. Q. State if the subiioena did not require you to appear on the 
13th. 

A. I cannot state that. The subpoena, as well as I recollect, required 
me to appear forthwith. That subpoena I received on Wednesday. 

8262. Q. Hid you appear on Wednesday at all? 

A. No, sir; I proposed to do so. 

8263. Q. Hid you propose to do so to any member of the committee ? 

A. No, sir; I proposed to do so to the officer who served the subpoena 

on me. 

8264. Q. Who was it ? 

A. That I cannot tell you. He said he was authorized by the ser¬ 
geant-at-arms to serve it on me, which he did about two o’clock Wed¬ 
nesday afternoon. 

8265. Q. In which part of the building in which the committee were 
sitting did you go the next day ? 

A. 1 went in on the first floor, at the entrance on Chambers street, 
and then up-stairs, where I was told by some one the committee were 
sitting. 

8266. Q. Hid you notify any member of the committee, or any one 
whom you saw there, that you were there ? 

A. I asked one or two persons. I was an entire stranger about the 
United States court-room, and did not know where to go to. There were 
a great many persons in the hall—several police officers. I asked two 
or three persons where the committee were sitting, and they told me in 
the court room. I tried the door and found it locked. 

8267. Q. Hid you not know that the committee had not sat in the 
court-room for a week or more? 

A. Not at that time; I knew it the next day. 


























73G ELECTION FEAUI?S IN NEW YORK. 

8268. Q. You knew, tlie uext day, tliat tlie committee sat in tlie grand 
jury-room f 

A. No, sir 5 I did not knoAY wliere it was. 

By Mr. Dicicey : 

8269. (ki. Did you go to 258 Broadway and state to Mr. Glassey tliat 
you were afraid to appear before the committee 

A. When I was subpoenaed at 2 o’clock on Wednesday afternoon, I 
offered to proceed with the officer at once, as I had voluntarily offered 
to do two or three days before, to a prominent republican of the Avard. 

I told the officer the summons required me to appear forthwith, and he 
said it AYas unnecessary for me to go that day j that I was to meet him the 
next day at 11 o’clock, at the rooms of the Union League, 258 BroadAYay. 

I went there at 11 o’clock, met him and had some conversation AYith Mr. 
Glassey in regard to the number of Azotes that had been polled, &C.5 I 
did state to Mr. Glassey that unless it was absolutely necessary for me 
to appear before the committee I should prefer not to appear, unless the 
matter ayus to be kejit secret 5 for there Avere persons Avho, subsequent 
to the charter election, when fraudulent Y^otes had been cast, and I had 
made a correct return and they a false one, meeting me on the street 
had threatened to take my life. 

8270. Q. What did the officer say to you at 258 Broadway about your 
appearing before the committee"? 

A. We stayed there half or three-quarters of an hour, until about 12 
o’clock. He said there would be no trouble in consequence of my ap¬ 
pearing before the committee, that it was only an election excitement 
that had since died away. 1 agreed to go with him before the com¬ 
mittee. He said he AYOuld go OA^er and see if the committee were ready 
to take my testimony that day. He AYent, and Mr. Glassey left the room 
Y^ery soon after that. I remained there as much as an hoiu*, and no one 
returned. I then went to the foot of the stairs and remained there until 
about 2 o’clock; after ayIucIi I went to Chambers street and asked the 
questions I haA^e already stated. 

8271. Q. And AYent to the AYrong room, as you haA^e subsequently 
ascertained 'f 

A. Yes, sir; the next morning, haxing been out of employment for 
some time, I ayus delayed on that subject until half past 9 or 10 o’clock, 
when I saw Dennis McLaughlin, and asked him in regard to my attend¬ 
ance on the committee; to Axhich he replied that the committee had 
adjourned sinedie^ and returned to Washington. There was never but 
one subpoena serA^ed upon me, and that I have carried in my lAocket 
most of the time since. 

By the Chairman : 

8272. Q. Were you subpoenaed to come here at this time ? 

A. No, sir. 

8273. Q. State if you secreted yourself in Ne.AY York to avoid the ser- 
Yuce of a subpoena upon you with'in the last few days. 

A. I did not. 

8274. Q. Did you secrete yourself to avoid arrest? 

A. No, sir. 

8275. Q. Do you know where 5J Centre street is? 

A. No, sir. 

8276. il. Did you tell any one that you was going out of the way of • 
the officer ? 

A. No, sir. 

8277. Q. Did you write to no one that you was ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


737 


A. I did write to a gentleman that I wasj that I was keeping out of 
the way of an officer until 1 heard from him, previous to that evening. 

8278. Q. Did you secrete yourself then? 

A. NToj 1 did not go to look for the officer j but I went my usual 
course. 

8279. Q. What office did you hold in connection with the late presi¬ 
dential election, in New York city ? 

A. Poll clerk in the 3d election district, 4th ward. 

8280. Q. With which i)olitical party were you acting, appointed as 
poll clerk to act with? 

A. The lipt time I was appointed poll clerk was in 1805 or 1866, when 
I was appointed by a democrat; since then I have been re-appointed 
without any questions being asked. 

8281. Q. And you have not since changed your politics *? 

A. I voted for Geheral Grant for President, and John T. Hoffman for 
governor; I dofft know whether that makes me a democrat or not. 

8282. Q. State if you was present during all the time votes were 
being received o'n the day of election in your district. 

A. I was not present during all the time; votes Avere being received 
during the day. I went out to dinner, and once in the afternoon, and at 
supper time. The other poll clerk did the same, and we kept the books 
running for each other. 

8283. Q. State if you knoAV anything of the names of persons being 
put on the poll-list in excess of the actual number of persons who voted 
at that polling place that day, and if so state what the number was. 

A. I do; before stating, however, I would like to ask of the committee 
AAffiether anything I say here as tending to criminate myself can be used 
against me. 

[Witness was informed that his testimony before a committee of Con¬ 
gress could not be used against him in a criminal prosecution.] 

Witness. There were names added to the poll-list during the day of 
Iversons who had not voted—85 names in that district. The total vote 
returned Avas 682; the number of votes actually polled was 597. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8284. Q. Were ballots put in to represent these Amtes ? 

A. If you will allow me I Avill state the whole circumstances. During 
the afternoon names ^Yere taken from one of the registers of one of the 
district inspectors to the number of 85; and 15 or 20 at a time were 
added to the Acting list Avhile there was a lull in the rush of voters. In 
the eA^ening the counting of the presidential Amte was delayed until 
about half-past 11 or 12 o’clock, for some purpose which at that time 
Avas unknoAvn to me, now well knoAvn; the democratic cauAmsser insist¬ 
ing upon counting the vote of each of the 35 electors separately, and 
making out a tally-list for each; and the republican canvasser insisting 
upon taking each ticket with 35 votes, and making out a single tally-list, 
Avhich Avould have taken three-quarters of an hour, while the other way 
would have taken eight or ten hours. By that time the republican can- 
A^asser had become pretty Avell intoxicated, and during the e\wng there 
Avere 85 tickets, containing each of the democratic candidates, obtained 
from some of the booths outside, and when the tickets were shoAmd out 
on the table to be counted by the can\"assers these additional tickets 
AATre thrown in so as to make the number correspond with the number of 
names registered. 

8285. Q. Was Mr. Costello an inspector in that district ? ^ 

A. He was inspector, and had to be taken home by the police for safety. 

47 T 


738 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8286. Q. For what reason? 

A. There were registered in the district over 800 voters. About 150 
were remaining outside unable to cast their votes wlien the poll closed, 
and they blamed him for it. They were mostly Germans and Irish; 
very excited, and a great many had been drinking. They charged liini 
with delaying the voting by unnecessary challenging for the purpose of 
decreasing the democratic vote. A captain came over with a number of 
policemen and took him first to the station-house and afterwards, as I 
understood, home. He retired at sunset. 

8287. Q. What were Mr. Costello’s politics ? 

A. Kepublican. 

8288. Q. What was the puri)ose of delaying the canvassing of the 
votes ? 

A. I only know from hearsay from the democratic canvasser and one 
or two others. 

[The statement of the witness of what he heard was objected to by 
Mr. Kerr.] 

Witness. From the time of the closing of the polls the republican and 
democratic canvassers were wrangling as to the propriety of counting 
the votes, as I have stated. At half-past nine or ten o’clock the demo¬ 
cratic canvasser asked me if I ha{l any objection to keeping the tally. I 
told him I was simply there as clerk along with the other poll clerk, 
and subject to his orders, but I did not like to remain there all night; 
but if they directed that to be done, I should certainly do it. They went 
on and tallied about 500 votes, when two or three gentlemen came in, 
called him one side and whispered to him. He came back and agreed 
to the terms proposed by the republican canvasser. I then asked him 
why he had been objecting to that all this time. He said that two years 
ago the republicans in the interior defeated John T. Hoffman by bolding 
back until they had heard from the city, and that now he meant to be 
even Avitli them and to hold back the count until the interior had been 
heard from. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8289. Q. What was the name of the man who said this ? 

A. I think his name was Humphy. 

8290. Q. Are you not sure of it ? 

A. Ko, sir; I am not. I never saw him before that day. 

By the Chairman : 

8291. Q. Ho you know who the men were Avho came in and whispered 
to Humiihy, the canvasser ? 

A. I do not. 1 saw them round the polls all day, and have seen one 
or two of them several times since. They Avere the same parties Avho 
were sending in liquor during the whole evening. 

8292. Q. To AYhoiii was the liquor sent? 

A. To the canvasser and poll clerks. 

8293. Q. State what you know, if anything, of threats being used 
during the day against the republican inspector Costello ? 

A. One of those men Avho came in at night and whispered to the can¬ 
vasser, as I have stated, came into the voting room about four o’clock 
in the afternoon, probably half or three-quarters of an hour before sun¬ 
set, when the polls closed. Mr. Costello ordered him to leave the room, 
saying that no one Avas to be admitted there during the day. He claimed 
to be a magistrate, and seemed to be someAvhat under the influence of 
liquor at the time. He told Mr. Costello that he had taken him up when 
he was a barefooted boy and given him a position in the Herald estab- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


739 


lisliinent, and that he would see that he was dismissed before night. 
During the afternoon a letter came to him from James Gordon Bennett, 
jr., I think, threatening him with dismissal unless he stopped delaying 
the vote. 

8204. Q. State if you are acquainted with Alderman Curran. 

A. I am not personally acquainted with him; I heard his name men¬ 
tioned frequently during the day; but I cannot state anything of my 
own knowledge. 

8295. Q. State if threats have been used towards you to deter you 
from testifying before this committee here, or in Xew York. 

A. After the committee had returned to Washington 1 met three or four 
ward politicians in the 4th ward, in Pearl street, near Peck slip; they 
told me they had heard I intended to appear before the committee; that 
if I did they would have satisfaction, or some expression of that kind; I 
do not remember exactly the language used. 

8290. Q. State if any one visited you at your house after you received 
the subpceua. 

A. Not after I received the subpoena; the day before, I think it was, 
they made the usual threats; I do not remember what was said; threats 
of violence in case I testified before the committee. 

8297. Q. Who made the threats? 

A. I cannot tell you the man’s name; I know a great many persons in 
that neighborhood whom I see around the polls by the name of Bob, and 
Jim, and Harry; but I do not know any more about them. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8298. Q. Where do you reside ? 

A. At 33J Bowery. 

8299. Q. How long have you lived tliere ? 

A. Since Stqitember last; and for four months previous to that, during 
the interval of two or three months, I lived at 122 Leonard street. 

8300. Q. How long have yoii lived in New York ? 

A. Since May, 1804. 

8301. Q. Where did you live before you went to New York ? 

A. In Dayton, Ohio. 

8302. Q. What is your business now? 

A. Yarnisher and stainer; I have been out of employment, however, 
for six or eight weeks, until Monday. 

8303. Q. Where did you Avork before that ? 

A. I commenced Avork last March and continued until the middle of 
June at the bedstead factory, 48 Ncav Bowery; the bedsteads Avere man¬ 
ufactured in Vermont and sent down there, where they were stained and 
Amrnished. 

8304. Q. How did you come to get on that board as poll clerk ? 

A. I got on the board in 18G6; I Avas first asked by Mr. Martin Y. 
Brown if I was Avilling to do some Avork in the Union republican State 
central committee; the first time Mr. Hoffman ran against Governor 
Fenton he and Henry S. Wallace gave me charge of the Gth and 7th 
election precincts of the 17th Avard for the purpose of arranging the 
names alphabetically first, and then by streets, so that the lists could 
be put into the hands of the police for the purpose of detecting fraudu¬ 
lent voters; I then, for the first time, heard of such a thing as a poll 
clerk; Mr. Wallace Avrote to Mr. B. B. Hasbrouck stating that I was a 
democrat and qualified to discharge the duty of poll clerk; and I was 
accordingly appointed. 

8305. Q. And previously to that time you had been employed by the 
republican committee ? 


740 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I was employed in the service I have stated. 

8300. Q. Are you in the service of the Loyal League now ? 

A. 1^0, sir. 

8307. Q. Or of any person acting in the interest of the lioyal League? 

A. If you mean getting any reward for my testimony, I say emphati¬ 
cally, no. 

8308. Q. To whom did you give the statement of facts to which you 
have testified to-day, before you came here ? 

A. I mentioned it one evening in that bedstead warehouse, about 7 
o’clock in the evening, to two or three gentlemen who were working about 
the place; I supposed then there would nothing be done or said about it; 
two or three weeks after the organization of this congressional committee 
Mr. Henry G. Leask came to me and asked me if I had made such a state 
ment; I told him I had; he asked me if I would swear to it; I told him 
that if I was required to I would, but that I preferred not to do so. 

8300. Q. To whom did you make this statement first ? 

A. I can give you the name of one gentleman, Peter Flannegan, the 
foreman of the shop; Eobert Welch was another, and there may have 
been two or three others in the warehouse at the time, but I cannot fix 
their names now in my mind; it has been two or three months since. 

8310. Q. Have you repeated it since at all to anybody ? 

A. NTot until I was subpoenaed before this committee, that I recollect of. 

8311. Q. To whom did you communicate it then ? 

A. As I said, to Mr. Leask and to gentlemen who were in the Union 
League room, 258 Broadway, the day after I was subpoenaed, when I 
w^ent there by appointment with an officer of the House. 

8312. Q. Whom did you meet there when you went to the Union 
League rooms on that occasion ? 

A. That I could not say. 

8313. Q. Do you know any of the members of the Union League? 

A. 1 know one or two of them when 1 meet them. I know Horace 
Greeley, for instance, but I did not meet him there. 

8314. Q. Was this officer you made the appointment with there at the 
time ? 

A. Yes. I do not remember'his name. I think I have seen him here 
to-day. This was on Wednesday, before the committee left Yew York. 

8315. Q. Did this subpoena require you to report at the Union League 
rooms ? 

A. Yo; it required me to report to the committee forthwith, which I 
proposed to do, but was told by the officer there Avould not be time then 
to take my testimony, and to meet him the next day at the Union League 
rooms. I followed his instructions. 

8310. Q. What did you do when you got to the Union League rooms? 

A. He and another gentleman asked me if there had been any illegal 
votes cast in my election district, and how many. That Avas the sub¬ 
stance of the con\"ersation, and all of it that I now remember. 

8317. Q. What inducement did they ofter you to come here and 
testify? 

A. Yone. The committee Avere in session in the couiT-room at YeAV 
York at’ that time, as I supposed. 

8318. Q. Did they promise no reward at all? 

A. Yone Avhatever, in any shape or form. 

8319. Q. Was it not agreed at the time you were at the League rooms 
that you should not go before the committee in Yew York, and should 
come here to testify? 

A. There was nothing of the kind. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 741 

8320. Q. You were appointed as a democratic poll clerk in 18GC: liow 
came you to get on the board in 1808 ! 

A. Simply by reappointment. 

8321. Q. At whose instance were you reappointed ! 

A. Kot the instance of any one. I knew that for me I could get paid 
for a very good day’s work $0. I Avanted the n^pney, and I made appli¬ 
cation to ’Mr. Hasbrouck to reappoint me. Mr. Hasbrouck is the acting 
clerk of the board of police commissioners, I believe. I do not know 
exactly his title. 

8322. Q. Did he appoint you as a republican? 

A. He did not ask me a question. 

8323. Q. Was it not the practice to appoint one from each political 
party? 

A. I understood it to be so. 

8324. Q. Was your colleague a democrat ? 

A. He was. 

8325. Q. What was his name? 

A. I really do not recollect. I simply said to Mr. Hasbrouck that I 
would like to have an appointment to my old place. He looked at his 
book and said that it Avas filled by mistake, and assigned me to this dis¬ 
trict. 

8320. Q. That was all the conversation that took place in regard to 
the appointment. What consideration did you get for participating in 
this fraud at the polls ? 

A. I did not get any at all. 

8327. Q. What were you promised ? 

A. I was not ])romised anything. 

8328. Q. At Avhose instance did you do it ? 

A. It was agreed upon between the democratic clerk and one of the 
democratic inspectors. This Avas during the day, AA^hile the additional 
names Avere being recorded. I made no agreement to it in the first place. 
Afterwards I chimed in with them A\iien I found what AA^as going on. 

8329. Q. You did in fact participate in this fraud ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8330. Q. Upon whose procurement did you do it ? 

A. I should be unable to tell you that. I cannot tell certainly whom I 
first heard speak about it that day, or precisely what was said AYhen it 
Avas agreed upon. 

8331. Q. I>o you know the names of the parties who acted as inspec¬ 
tors, canAmssers, and poll clerks with whom you talked on this subject ? 

A. I do not think I talked with any inspector on the subject, nor AAdtli 
any caiiAmsser; I did with the poll clerk; and in the evening, while we 
were speaking about it, a canvasser came in. Up to that time I had had 
no conversation Avith any one on the subject, except the poll clerk ; and 
afterAvards there was not much, if anything, said about it until we had 
commenced counting the presidential votes, about half-past 11 o’clock. 
The republican canvasser A\ms then pretty well intoxicated. 

8332. (^. What talk had you then about ? 

• A. I talked Avith the democratic clerk and with the democratic can¬ 
vasser, whose name is Dumphy, I think. I do not thiidi I had five 
words of conversation about it at all, and I cannot tell you now what 
they were; 1 did not treasure them up in my mind. He understood 
from one or both of us that it was being done, and went into it. Prior 
to that time these names Avere being entered on the poll-book. I had no 
conversation with any one about it; and after that only as I have 
stated. 


742 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8333. Q. Do you know wlio this poll clerk is, or wliere he lives f 

A. I do not. I was with him from sunrise in the morning until about 
half-past hve the next morning. 

8334. Q. Mr. Costello did not get drunk so far as you know ? 

A. No, sir. 

8335. Q. Did you see jfny frauds practiced by either the republican or 
democratic inspectors before tlie board of canvassers organized 'I 

A. I did not see any out-and-out cheating. I thought there was 
unnecessary delay and challenging by Mr. Costello, the republican insp’ec- 
tor. It seemed to me to be unnecessary for him to challenge persons 
whom, as he said, he had known well for a number of years. 

8330. Q. State whether, as a matter of fact, in consequence of that, the 
entire legal vote of the district was not i)olled. 

A. I do not think it could have been. 

8337. Q. How did you ascertain the precise number of legal votes cast ? 

A. We kept the names of those who voted, on the inspectors book, 

and there were 685 names registered there as having voted legally. 

8338. Q. Were you able to say whether they were or not all legal 
voters ! 

A. That I had nothing to do with ; that was the duty of the inspec¬ 
tors to ascertain. All I know was that 085 names were regularly regis¬ 
tered by the inspectors. 

8339. Q. I wish you to try to recollect at whose request it was that 
this fraudulent transfer of names commenced. 

A. I am very certain of one thing, that the first intimation I had in 
regard to it, and the first request I had to iiarticipate in it, was from the 
other poll clerk. 

8340. Q. Can you state the precise time of day when the request was 
made ? 

A. It Tvas made after dinner, iirobably about 1 or half-past 1 o’clock. 

8341. Q. You say this inspector, Costello, was pretty seriously threat¬ 
ened that day. State in consequence of what it was that these threats 
were made, so far as you know. 

A. I only know, from the remarks of parties I have mentioned, that 
his removal from the Herald ofiice was threatened, and by tlie shouts of 
the excited crowd outside, calling him all sorts of names, and charging 
him with delaying ])urposely the x)olling of the votes. 

8342. Q. Were these 85 fraudulent transfers actually counted in the 
canvass returns of that district *? 

A. That I am unable to say, because I did not canvass the votes, 
They were returned to the police headquarters. 

8343. Q. Where did you get that return ? 

A. I copied it from the return which I filed the following day with 
the review of election. 

8344. Q. Who brought you here ? 

A. A gentleman attached to the office of the Sergeant-at-arms ; I do 
not know his name. 

8345. Q. You have stated that liquor was sent in during the progress 
of the business of the board of canvassers j do you know by whom it' 
was sent ? 

A. I do not. 

8340. Q. Do you know by Avhom it was imbibed ? 

A. By the whole party, myself included. 

8347. Q. What kind of liquor was it? 

A. Some of it very poor, and some very good j some beer and some 
'whiskey. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 743 

8348. Q. Do you know anytliing personally of tlie discharge of this 
man Costello from the Herald oftice 'i 

A.. N^othiiig except what I liave heard him sa5^ I only know that he 
was dischargea, from what he told me, from the fact that a week after¬ 
wards he received an appointment from the Metropolitan Fire Depart- 
merit. 

8349. Q. If he should swear that he was never, in fact, discharged, 
would you believe him now! 

A. After his statement that he had been discharged 1 should be very 
much inclined to doubt him. 

8350. Q. Who were the canvassers at this election! 

A. Mr. Dumpily was the democratic canvasser. He is a fireman. 
I do not know the name of the republican canvasser. I have no doubt 
I heard him called by his given name, but I do not recollect it. 

8351. Q. You say he was drunk. Did the democratic canvasser get 
drunk! 

A. I think not. 

8352^ Q. Did he drink as often as the republican canvasser ! 

A. ilo; Mr. Dumpily and myself were engaged for a couple of hours 
in tallying those votes for presidential electors, during which time we 
took nothing, while the republican canvasser drank about every two or 
three minutes. 

8353. Q. Was he so drunk as to lie down or lose his senses ! 

A. He lost his senses; he was not so drunk as to lie down. 

8354. Q. Were you sober all day and all the evening! 

A. Yes, sir. 

8355. Q. Was the other poll clerk sober^ 

A. He felt his liquor a little; he was not as tight as the canvasser. 

8356. Q. You say that you were threatened by certain parties, that 
they would have satisfaction if you came and testified before this com¬ 
mittee. Who made those threats ! 

A. I could not name the men; they were persons who were hanging 
about the door and seemingly taking a great interest in the matter. 

8357. Q. Were you threatened except during the evening of the 
election ! 

A. I Avas not threatened then; the first threat I received was after 
the summons had been served u£)on me to attend this committee, and I 
Ciinnot recollect the names of the persons who made it. 

8358. Q. Did you not ask them what right they had to threaten you 
for coming here to tell the truth ! 

A. I was proceeding to state my reasons, that when I stated Avliat had 
occurred in this bedstead Avarehouse I had no intention of making it 
public; and no committee Avas then in existence or had been thought of 
or spoken of, so far as I kiieAv; but that afterwards Mr. Leask got hold of it 
and had me subpcenaed before this committee; but they Avould not give me 
a chance to tell anything; they attempted to batter my head and face; 
they Avere doubling up their fists, and I thought it was time to leaA^e. 
The first threat I had was from a young man on the street in the Bowery; 
and the other was doAvn in Pearl street, near Peck slip. 

8359. Q. Had any of those parties been officers of that election ! 

A. ilo, sir. 

8360. Q. Was the other poll clerk among them! 

A. Ho, sir. 

8361. Q. Have you been threatened by any officers of that election! 

A. Ho, sir. 


744 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


83G2. Q. Have you ever talked with any of the officers since the 
election about these matters ? 

A. Ho, sir; nor have 1 talked with them about any matters; nor have 
I seen any of them, not even the poll clerk, since, except I met them in 
the same relations at the December election, when we were all very 
friendly; the same board acted then. I would say that I have seen Mr. 
McLaughlin since that time, as I have stated, at the rooms of the Union 
League, when he told me, in answer to my question about the committee, 
that the committee had adjoirrned sine die. 

83G3. Q. Do you know Samuel J. Glassey? 

A. I do not. 

83G4. Q. Do you know General Foster? 

A. I do not know him by sight; I have heard of him. 

83G5. Q. When you met Dennis McLaughlin, did you ask him if he 
was aware of the frauds that had been perpetrated that day at the 
election? 

A. I have no recollection of asking that question, because I knew at 
the time that he was aware of them. 

83G6. Q. At the time they were transpiring? 

A. Ho; he was not aware of them then. 

83G7. Q. How do you know that? 

A. Because, as he was a stanch republican, he would not have been 
very likely to allow them to go on; we took particular pains to keep 
him from knowing it. 

83G8. Q. Were these names added to the poll-list by you, in your own 
hand, or in that of your colleague? 

A. By both ; I do not know how many by each; the books themselves 
will show. 

83G9. Q. Were you able, from your knowledge of the politics of the 
voters of the district, to select such names as you knew to be names of 
democrats? 

A. I did not select them, in the first place, and had nothing to do with 
the selection of them; a list was laid on the table before us, on a sepii- 
rate slip, copied from the inspector’s book; at least, that was the under¬ 
standing, and we transferred the names from that list. 

8370. Q. Did you know of any other fraudident votes cast at that 
poll, besides these ? 

A. Only by one person, who was arrested for illegal voting in 
the name of another person. I do not remember his name. He 
came in and offered to vote, giving the name of some person residing 
at a certain number in Pearl street. The republican inspector asked if 
he was willing to swear to that. He said he was. He was allowed to 
vote and immediately arrested; the republican inspector being aware 
of the fact that the person in whose name he voted had gone to 
Europe. 

8371. Q. The man, however, was allowed to vote before he was 
arrested ? 

A. I believe so; I did not give any attention to the matter, because 
it was not a part of my duty. 

8372. Q. Who is the proprietor of this bedstead warehouse? 

A. It is known as the Eagle Square Bedstead Company. They have 
k factory in Vermont. 

8373. Q. Are you a married man? 

A. Ho, sir. 

8374. Q. Are your habits uniformly temperate, or otherwise? 

A. Hot uniformly so. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 745 

8375. Q. During the proceedings, on the day to which you have 
referred, Avliat was your condition as to temperance ? 

A. I was as sober as I am now. I was sober. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8376. Q. You say Mr. Costello was threatened because he delayed the 
voting. In Avhat AAay did he delay it except by challenging'? 

A. That Avas the Avayj and that Avas the charge against him. 

Washington, D. C., February 3,1869. 

John B. McKean recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8377. Question. Do you personally know John McCluskey'? 

Answer. I know him Avhen I see liim; I cannot say I know him per¬ 
sonally. 

8378. Q. Hoav came you to know him? 

A. He was an officer of the court of sessions which met in the same 
building with the supreme court; I met him frequently in going up and 
doAvn ; I do not know what office he held. 

8379. Q. State Avhether, during the month of October last, while the 
business of naturalization was being transacted in the suiireme court 
and by that court, you Avere at any time called upon by this man 
McCluskey and requested to deliver to him any papers connected in any 
Avay with naturalization in blank or filled up. 

A. I Avas not. 

8380. Q. State to the committee whether he ever came to your office 
outside of the court-room, during that time, and asked you for any papers 
of any kind, either certificates, or blank applications, or other papers 
having connection or intended to haA^e connection with naturalization. 

A. He never did. 

8381. Q. State whether, on the 21st of October, or about that time, 
you deliA'ered to him any blank applications for naturalization. 

A. I never delivered to him any such applications, then or at any 
other time. 

8382. Q. Did you ever see him in your court-room, or in your office 
proper, or the clerk’s office, during the time this business was going on 
in October last ? 

A. I cannot sayj I do not think 1 did. If I did I haA^e no recollection 
of it. 

8383. Q. Is your knoAvledge of him by his face sufficient to enable you, 
if you had handed him any such papers, noAV to remember it ? 

A. O, yes, sir. 

8384. Q. Did he CA^er call upon you on any day in October, in the after¬ 
noon of that day, and deliver you any number of applications for natural¬ 
ization filled up by anybody, and say to you he Avanted them put through 
as soon as possible ? 

A. Ko, sir; he ne\w did. 

8385. Q. Did you at any time during that month, at his request or at 
the request of anybody, receive applications for naturalization filled up 
in that Avay and sealed, or by the aid of auybody else have them put 
through or"acted upon by the court ? 

A. Ko, sir 5 I never received any applications whatever from any per¬ 
son ; they iieAW came to me at all. 

8386. Q. Do you know of the business of naturalization haAung been 
transacted on any night during that month in the court-room when 


746 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


there was an insufficient ainonnt of gas burning to enab e you and the 
officers of the court to judge distinctly and sufficient!}^ of wliat was 
going on or to see the people in the court-room ? 

A. NTo, sirj the light in the court-room is not very good; we had at 
one time to use candles at my desk, but I never saw any apparent dif¬ 
ference between one night and another; the court-room was so seldom 
used at night that I presume the gas-burners became stopped up, and I 
do not think there were enough burners to light the room sufficiently at 
any time; I know there was no light at my desk and that I had to use 
candles, but it was sufficiently light to see what was going on. 

8387. Q. Did you have a hand or participate in any effort to procure 
any number of persons or any number of applications to be put through 
the process of naturalization without the actual presence of the persons 
whose names were reported to be in the paper as applicants or as wit¬ 
nesses, or the presence of those purporting to be such persons? 

A. No, sir; I never issued a certificate of naturalization without the 
regular application coming to me from the judge and signed by him; 
the applications themselves never came to my desk originally at all. 

8388. Q. Did you ever know the judge of that court during that mouth 
to suffer any of that business to be done by the clerks of the court or 
by any other officer of the court or by anybody, when the judge himself 
was not personally present in the court-room ? 

A. No, sir; never. I may, however, qualify that statement by saying 
that there may have been some portion of the time while the names were 
being called out, or something of that sort, when the judge was not 
there. Persons were never sworn as citizens except when he was on the 
bench. 

8389. Q. What room is there that adjoins that court-room ? 

A. I think there are two large rooms—my own room. Part 1 of the 
supreme court and the general term, on one side; and the judge’s private 
room, the chambers of the supreme court, and the room used commonly 
by the officers, on the other side. There is a door opening from my room, 
where the naturalization business was conducted, to the lobby or hall, 
and there is a door connecting Part 1 with the general term, immedi¬ 
ately behind the judge’s bench. 

8390. Q. Do you know Edward Witter ? 

A. No, sir. 

8391. Q. Do you know a young man of the name of Theodore Taylor ? 

A. No, sir. 

8392. Q. How long have you known McCluskey ? 

A. I cannot well say; I have known but very little of him until cer¬ 
tainly within the year. 

8393. (^. Can you say, from your personal knowledge of liim, that you 
know what his reputation is for truth and veracity? 

A. I am not sufficiently acquainted with him personally to answer 
that question. 

By the Chairman: 

8394. Q. You signed the name of Loew as clerk to certificates of natu¬ 
ralization in that court; who delivered out these certificates of natu¬ 
ralization ? 

A. Usually Mr. Yalentine, one of the officers of the court, or Mr. 
Knight; I do not think any one of the clerks ever delivered them. 

8395. Q. Do you know whether McCluske.y is sufficiently acquainted 
with you to know you? 

A. I should say he was, though I.do not know that I have ever spoken 
to him more than three or four times in my life. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


747 


8390. Q. He may have mistaken some of the other clerks for you ? 

A. It is possible; I eouhl not say. 

8397. Q. Were blank applications never presented at your desk? 

A. Never at my desk; my invariable rule was never to receive them; 
I will not say that parties never came to my desk with them, but these 
applications were collected by the officers and did not reach me at all 
until they had received the signature of the judge. 

8398. Q. Was the naturalization business generally done in the supreme 
court, in Part No. 1 ? 

A. Always. 

8399. Q. Was not the room immediately adjoining open sometimes 
in the night ? 

A. In general term it was open every night; that was used for natu¬ 
ralization purposes. 

8400. Q. Do you not know that Judge Barnard would occasionally 
adjourn his court w^hile it was sitting in the room of Part 1 and go into 
some other room ? 

A. Judge Barnard has frequently left the bench in Part 1 and gone 
into the general term room, and sat there until a new batch of appli¬ 
cants were ready, when he would return and swear them; sometimes, 
too, he wmuld go to his private room. 

8401. Q. How long on these occasions would he be absent from his 
court ? 

A. Only a very few minutes; not more than three or four or five* 
minutes. 

8402. Q. Were you in these other rooms so as to know whether there 
were or not persons there who were receiving certificates of naturaliza¬ 
tion ? 

A. I was occasionally; probably I may state, by way of explanation, 
that that room was used very frequently by parties whose applications 
were wrongly made out; they would be sent into the other room to cor¬ 
rect their applications. 

8403. Q. Were these persons sent to correct their applications both 
into the judge’s private room and into the general term room ? 

A. No, sir; never into the judge’s private room. 

8404. Q. State if Judge McOunn came into the court-room one evening 
and sat for a few minutes beside Judge Barnard? 

A. I could not say; I have no recollection of seeing him. 

8405. Q. Could you undertake to remember all or any considerable 
number of the persons who were at the court-room with applications for 
naturalization ? 

A. No, sir. 

8400. Q. In the great number of persons there would it be possible 
for you to recall even your acquaintances who were there? 

A. No, sir; I do not know now that I could name a solitary individual 
who came there to get his papers with whom I was acquainted. 

8407. Q. Who did you see in the general term room vthen you were 
there; do you remember any ? 

A. I could not say; there were always more or less parties there. Mr. 
Coach was there, and one or two others of the county clerks. I do not 
remember any person connected with the court that I know of except 
the county clerks. 

8408. Q. Did you see Mr. Moran there in the general term room ? 

A. No, sir. 

8409. Q. Did you see Mr. McCaffres there ? 

A. No, sir; they have as free ingress, however, into that room as they 
have into Part 1. 


748 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8410. Q. Miglit not liniidreds of persons come into the court room 
Avith applications for naturalization or making iiKpiiries about naturali¬ 
zation no one of Avhom you could now remember, eA^en although they 
Avere your acquaintances? 

A. I know one or two who came in, but I do not know that I could 
mention a single indiAudual who came there to become a citizen. 

8411. Q. Do you remember that tludge McCunn Avas in the court-rooin 
sitting on the bench with Judge Barnard on the night ot the 23d of 
October, the last night for naturalization before the election ? 

A. He may ha\"e been there; I could not say. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8412. Q. State Avhether, by the answers you have made to the ques¬ 
tions put by the chairman, you mean to say it would have been possible 
for anybody to come into the court-room and ask you to do anything 
irreguiar or unlawful or out of your usual and proper line of duty with¬ 
out your remembering it. 

A. I should be A^ery likely to remember any request to do anything 
wrong in the shape of naturalization or otherwise. 

By the Chairman ^ 

8413. Q. If a man Avhom you had no reason to suspect wanted to do 
anything wrong should come into your office and lay down a number of 
applications for naturalization and tell you they were sworn to, Avould 
you necessarily remember a circumstance of that sort ? 

A. In the tirst place, he could not do that. I would not receive them 
at all unless they were signed by the judge. 

8414. Q. Might you not hand them to the proper clerk ? 

A. Ko, sir; I never receHed a paper at my desk without it came from 
the judge’s desk with his signature. 

8415. Q. Do you not knoAV as a matter of fact that you have issued 
applications for naturalization which have not had the initials of the 
judge on them? 

A. I he.ard there Avere two or three Avhich did not liaA^e the judge’s 
signature; if that was a fact it was done through an error and escaped 
my attention. 


"Washington, D. G., February 4,1869. 

Edward B. Heath recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8416. Question. Did you have any connection with the alleged count 
of the paiiers connected with naturalization in the superior court of 
Kew York to Avliich Mr. Westlake, one of the clerks of that court, testi¬ 
fied before this committee in KeAV York ? If so, state Avhat you knoAV of 
that count, and how it was made up. 

Answer. The chief clerk, Mr. Sweeney, had received notice from your 
committee on the day in question to make a count of the naturalization 
papers then on file in the office. It was made in the evening, I suppose, 
between 3 and 4 o’clock. He came to the office and told the clerks then 
present, four or five in number, to go with Mr. Gillespie, the assistant 
naturalization clerk, and make a count of the naturalization papers 
then on file. I went with the others into the office, and had counted 
100 papers when Mr. Gillespie and Mr. Westlake said there Avas no 
necessity of counting papers that way; that we were to take the first 
bundle of 100 and make a calculation of the rest by measuring them. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


749 


We tlieii proceeded according to liis direction until we were tlirougli. 
The papers were taken out in bundles of the size as nearly as possible of 
the bundle of 100 which had been counted, and a rough calculation 
made. It was, as you say, no count at all. 

8117. Q. What clerks particii)ated in that count ? 

A. Mr. Gillespie, Mr. Westlake, Mr. McNearly, Mr. Oakley, and 
myself. 

8118. Q. Are you able to tell this committee how it was that you 
made the previous count foot up 20,220 ! 

A. My own idea of the thing is that some of the bundles must have 
been counted over twice to make so large a discrepancy. It was, as you 
say, no count at all, but merely a rough calculation. One bundle was 
put up of 10^), and the others put alongside so as to make the pile as 
nearly as possible of the same size. In the minor papers, as you may 
know, there is but a single blank, and no other paper attaclied to it j in 
the others there is another paper attached, making it so much larger, and 
that might be counted for two in a pile of that kind; that would account 
for a considerable discrepancy. I have no idea of the number of papers 
to which this additional one was attached. 

8119. Q. Do you know of any of these papers placed there in October 
last having been in any way lost, mislaid, or abstracted ! 

A. ^lone whatever; they could not be. 

8120. Q. Are you directly connected with that office ? 

A. My position in the court is that of docket clerk. I have charge of 
the dockets and judgments; but during election time, when there is so 
much business in the naturalization office, the chief clerk delegates some 
of the other clerks to assist in that business. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8121. Q. In the first count, to which you refer, the papers were laid 
out in bundles for each day and then counted afterwards “? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8122. Q. And Mr. Westlake made up the statement of your count! 

A. Mr. Gillespie, I believe, made the statement; but, as I said, it was 

no count, merely a calculation. As I said, we made one count of 100 
and then sized the other bundles by that. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8123. Q. How many would you put up at a time to size f 

A. One hundred, as we supposed, and we afterwards counted them by 
hundreds. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8421. Q. Suppose you report, for instance, for one day counted 728, 
how did you ascertain the odd number of papers ? 

A. That was made by guess. 

8125. Q. Did Mr. Sweeney instruct you to make a count of that kind, 
to be sworn to before this committee ? 

A. No, sir; he did not, and the clerks were wrong in doing it. All 
Mr. Sweeney said was to make a count of the papers. He did not specify 
any manner in which it was to be done. 

812(1. Q. And now you swear you did not make the count ? 

A. Only in the way I have stated. 

8427. Q. And yet you made tlie statement of what purported to be a 
count, which was sworn to as accurate by one of the clerks of the supe¬ 
rior court, giving the number for each day separately ? 

A. I did not see the figures footed up. I only know that it was done 


750 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


very hastily. It was nearly 5 o’clock when I left there^ and Mr. Gilles* 
pie was then casting up the figures. 

By Mr. Daaat^s : 

8428. Q. Could you have any difficulty in determining the difference 
between a i)ackage that had a hundred in it and a package that had 30 
in it? 

A. I should sui)i:)ose not. 

8429. Q. Could anybody who was honest make any mistake of that 
kind between the two packages ? 

A. That is a very difficult matter to say; my opinion is that between 
30 and 100 it would not be difficult to tell the ditfierence, and, as 1 said 
before, some of the bundles must have been counted twice. 

8430. Q. I ask you again whether anybody who was* honest could 
make any mistake of that kind ? 

A. I do not really think they could. 

8431. Q. You report 1,800 on one day—that you made 18 piles of a 
hundred each—and nov/ you say there was but GOl on that day; then 
these 001 were divided into 18 piles of 33 in each, and now you testify 
in effect that you made a mistake and called these 18 piles of 33 each a 
hundred, and you do not think that could be done honestly. 

A. In one way it could: a bundle containing a number of these ap- 
])lications iu Avhich two of the papers are attached together would make 
much larger bundles than the others. 

8432. Q. Y^ou want to alter your statement you made just now, then, 
when you said a man could not honestly make a mistake between two 
piles, one of 33 and the other of a hundred ? 

A. Yes, I will alter that. 

8433. Q. And now you think they could ? 

A. I think they could in the way I have stated. 

8434. Q. Would there not just as likely be as many double papers in 
a bundle of a hundred as there would be in a bundle of 33—would there 
not likely be three times as many ? 

A. I suppose so; but of course it would be impossible to make any 
calculation upon a count made in that way. 

8435. Q. Then a pile with a hundred in it would still be correspond¬ 
ingly larger ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8436. Q. Then, could you honestly make any such mistake between a 
pile of 33 and a pile of a hundred ? 

[No answer.] 

8437. Q. Are you one of the men who swore to this first statement? 

A. No, sir; I helped to make the count or calculation. 

8438. Q. Bid not anybody ask you to measure them instead of count¬ 
ing them ? 

A. Mr. Gillespie said when I went in that we were to make the calcu¬ 
lation in this way. I am not, as I said before, a naturalization clerk. 

8439. Q. Bid you help Mr. Gillespie to measure these papers ? 

A. I assisted him as he desired me. He said the committee wanted 
the statement right aAvay. 

8440. Q. And Mr. Gillespie asked you to perform the duty of counting 
by measurement ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8441. Q. And he swore to that? 

A. I do not know what he swore to. 

8442. Q. Bo you mean to say now that you fell into the mistake of 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 751 

counting 33 papers as 100, because it was about the size of a bundle of 
100 of such papers 
A. 1 do not think I did. 

By the Chairman : 

8143. Q. Do you not know that nearly all the applications there pur¬ 
ported to be what are called minor applications, and that if you were to 
count every application in which the applicant had previously declared 
his intention to become a citizen—not only twice but 10 times—it would 
not account for this discrepancy ? 

A. I cannot say 5 I did not foot up the figures or look at the footings. 
As soon as we had gone through with the calculation I left, and Mr. 
Westlake made the statement to you the next day. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8444. Q. What Avere Mr. Sweeney’s instructions to you when he 
directed you to make that count ? 

A. Mr. Sweeney merely asked me as one of the clerks in the office to 
assist the naluralization clerks to make this count. 

8445. Q. Did you understand from him at the time he didnot want an 
accurate count of the papers f 

A. He stated distinctly that he wanted the papers to be counted. 

8440. Q. Are you in the habit of doing business as clumsily as this ^ 
A. No, sir; it is the first instance on record of business there being 
done in such a way. 

8447. Q. Did you or not act in this way in order to deceWe the com¬ 
mittee ? 

A. No, sir; nothing of the kind; and from the first Mr. Sweeney said 
he had nothing to conceal. Since I have been in this office everything 
has been done in a regular and business-like manner, as in the office of 
the clerk of any court in the country. 

8448. Q. Tiien why did you.do your business in this way on this occa¬ 
sion; Avas it in order to show your contempt for the committee? 

A. No, sir ; it Avas done in this careless manner, Avhich of course Avas 
wrong ; and it is a thing Avhich never would occur again in 100 years. 

Washington, D. 0., February 4,1809. 

James A. Thompson sworn and examined, (called at the request of 
Mr. Kerr.) 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8440. Question. State your business. 

AnsAver. I am a naturalization clerk in the superior court of the city of 
Ncav York, and ha\^e held that position since the 9th of December, 1807. 

8450. Q. State what are your relations in that service to the other 
clerks in the office ? 

A. I have full cliarge of the bureau of naturalization. 

8451. Q. Do you know Mr. Gillespie? 

A. Yes, sir; he is my assistant clerk in the same department. There 
are only tAvo of us there. 

8452. Q. State to the committee what you know of the manner in Avhich 
the whole number of applications for naturalization in your office were 
counted prior to the time that Mr. AVestlake, one of the clerks of that 
court, appeared before this committee in NeAv York and testified on the 
subject of that count ? 

A. The only count that took place was made by Mr. Meeks; in the 
hurry of the elections, both political parties, for their OAvn benefit and to 


752 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


facilitate business, used tickets, each representing fifty or seventy-five 
cents, and when an application was handed to the clerk upon which the 
certificate is issued a ticket would be passed. These tickets were counted, 
aaiounting to something over 18,000, and tliat I considered the actual 
count. That is all I know about it. It was made in the evening, when 
I was not present. They were about making the count when I came 
into the office—I should think about half-past 4 o’clock. The gas liad 
been lighted. I saw them preparing to make the count, and then I left 
the office. 

8453. Q. State in whose custody the applications for naturalization in 
that court have been in fact and under the law since October last. 

A. In mine and Mr. Gillespie’s. 

8454. Q. State whether any of these papers, made in the course of the 
business of naturalization during the month of October, were, during 
that month, or since, at any time, by an^ffiody, or in any way, abstracted 
or destroyed, or mislaid or lost. 

A. They were not, and, furthermore, they could not have been, with¬ 
out the knowledge of Mr. Gillespie or myself. If they had been taken 
we certainly must one of us have been a party to it. 

8455. Q. What was your habit in reference to the time of getting to 
your office ? 

A. Sometimes I came there prior to 9 o’clock iii the morning, some¬ 
times 10, and sometimes as late as 11. Mr. Gillespie generally got there 
first. 

8456. Q. Do you know anything about the count that has been made 
in the last ten days of these papers 

. A. Yes, sir; there was a count actually made of the papers, counting 
each paper separately and distinctly by itself, placing them in bundles 
of a hundred each, for each day of naturalization in the month of Octo¬ 
ber ; then the total month’s wmrk added up, amounting in the aggregate 
to 18,432. I superintended the work myself, and the persons engaged 
in it were Mr. Gillespie, Mr. Westlake, Mr. Early, and myself. 

8457. Q. To wliat extent did you count them ? 

A. The majority of the counting wns done by Mr. Gillespie, Mr. West- 
lake, and myself; the others came in later and aided us. 

8458. Q. Were you personally present during the examination of these 
papers by persons connected with this committee ? 

A. A part of the time I was; and wlien I wuis not present Mr. Gillespie 
was. 

By the Chairman : 

8459. Q. You say that wlien you were not personally present Mr. Gil¬ 
lespie wms; how do you know that he wms present all that time? 

A. Because he could not keep his situation in the office if he did not 
remain there. It was his duty to be present, and I have personal knowl¬ 
edge ot certificates issued and signed by him, being conversant with his 
handwriting. 

8460. Q. And you swear that he was in the room all the time that you 
were not present ? 

A. I swear to the best of my knowledge. 

8461. Q. Will you state now^ that you know he was there ? 

A. I am just as willing to swear that as I would be to swear there is 
such a place as Paris, though I never was there. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8462. Q. By that, do you mean that the fact of Mr. Gillespie being 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 753 

there all the time is as universally known and accepted by all men as 
the fact that there is such a place as Paris “? 

A. Yes, sir j that is what I mean. 

By the Chairman : 

8463. Q. You state from your own personal knowledge as to the cor¬ 
rectness of this count, so far as it was made by others ? 

A. No, sir. 

8464. Q. What other clerks in the office had access to the room in 
charge of yourself and Mr. Gillespie ? 

A. After naturalization had ceased no others had. 

8465. Q. Do you say that they were not permitted to go in ? 

A. They were permitted to go in, but not to go into the room in which 
the naturalization papers were. 

8466. Q. Was Mr. Sweeney not permitted to go in there 

A. Mr. James M. Sweeney was permitted to go in, but he never availed 
himself of it. 

8467. Q. Was Mr. Meeks iiermitted to go in'? 

A. Yes, sir; but he never went into that room. 

8468. Q. State if you were always in the room when it was open, or 
whether you w'ould occasionally be absent. 

A. I would occasionally be absent. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8469. Q. You say you know something of the manner of making up 
the statement which was sworn to by Mr. Westlake, were you present 
when he made the count ? 

A. No, sir; I know nothing of it, except by hearsay. 

8470. Q. How did he get at that count'? 

A. I only know If om hearsay; he did not make the statement in person. 
Mr. Gillespie was authorized to make the statement which was handed 
to the committee by Mr. Westlake. 

8471. Q. Was that statement signed officially by the deputy clerk of 
the superior court of New York? 

A. I could not say. 

Washington, D. 0., February 4,1869. 

Florence Scanner, having appeared before the committee in obe¬ 
dience to the orders of the House, in the custody of the Sergeant at-arms, 
was examined as follows by the chairman : 

8472. Question. You have statedin your previous examination that you 
gave a list of names to be voted on to some person; will you now state 
who the iierson was to whom you gave the list ? 

Answer. Yes, sir; that is what I came here to do. That person was Mr. 
Marshall, a republican iiolitician, at the corner of Fourteenth street and 
Fourth avenue—one of the proprietors of the Opera House there. 

8473. Q. What is his full name ? 

A. I do not know his full name. 

8474. Q. What business is he engaged in ? 

A. He keeps the Opera House, which is a hotel and drinking saloon. 

8475. Q. In your previous examination, you were asked if you knew 
of any person engaged in repeating in any other ward besides the 18th. 
Will you now answer that question ? 

A. 1 cannot state any name; I do not know of any. 

8476. Q. Do you mean to say that you do not know of any persons 
engaged in repeating outside of that ward ? 

A. I was told so, but I do not know their names. 

48 T 


754 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


847.7, Q. Do yon know the fact that it was done ? 

A. I would not swear to it. 

8478. Q. AVere you outside of the 18th ward on the day of election? 

A. No^ sir j I always make it a point to stay in my own district on 

election day. 

8479. Q. Did you know of any preparations for repeating before the 
day of election, in any other ward but the 18th ? 

A. I do not know that I did. 

8480. Q. Did you see or know of persons making preparations for it ? 

A. ]No, sir. 

8481. Q. State if you were at the Jackson club shortly before the 
election. 

A. I wais there pretty nearly every night, on account of being a mem¬ 
ber of that club. 

8482. Q. Were you there the night before election ? 

A. No, sir. 

8483. Q. AYere you in that ward on the day of election ? 

A. No, sir. 

8484. Q. Do you know of any preparation in that club-room, or of any 
persons members of the club, for repeating ? 

A. No, sir; they did not let me know their business; they had too 
much good sense, if they had any preparation of that kind going on, to 
let me know it. 

8485. Q. Why? 

A. They do not let people outside of their own wards know their busi¬ 
ness. 

8486. Q. Was this club confined to that ward ? 

A. No; everybody belongs to it. 

8487. Q. Then why do not the members of the club know what is going 
on there? 

A. If I had a place where I knew I could get a hundred dollars, I 
should not tell other people of it, because somebody might get ahead of 
me. 

8488. Q. What do you mean by getting a hundred dollars ? 

A. I mean, if I knew where I could go to-morrow and find a hundred 
dollars I should not tell other people of it, because they might get there 
before me. 

8489. Q. Is that a part of the business of your club to pick up a hun¬ 
dred dollars lying around ? 

A. No; I merely suggested that; I do not belong to the ward the 
club is in. 

8490. Q. Are there any private orders in that club the secrets of 
which are kept from the members ? 

A. Not that I am aware of. * 

8491. Q. How do you know, then, they would not tell you? 

A. Because I would not do it under the same circumstances. 

8492. Q. Did you and Air. Alarshall vote or procure anybody to vote 
on the list of names you gave him ? 

A. I did not. 

8493. Q. Do you know whether he procured the list from you for the 
purpose of ascertaining what you was doing or not ? 

A. I know that it was agreed that I should give it to him; he came and 
asked me if I was going to send anybody there to vote; I told him no; 
he then said he would take the list and do it himself, and that I was 
not to send anybody there; I told him I had no one to send; I do not 
know whether he voted a man or not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


755 

8494. Q. Yon stated, wlien you were before tlie committee on a former 
occasioii, that you knew of 30 men engaged in registering names falsely 
in the 18th ward. Can you state now whether you know of more in that 
ward than these 30"? 

A. I could not tell 5 that is all I know 5 I am trying here to tell what 
I know. 

8195. Q. Did you hear of others ? 

A. Ko; I heard men talking on both sides, democrats and republicans; 
everybody were talking about their operations. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

849G. Q. Were these 30 under your immediate control? 

A. Yo, sir y I did not register them at all 5 they were registering, and 
the list was given to me. 

8497. Q. Who had charge, of the registering? 

A. I do not know the man’s name; I knew where he was living. 

8498. Q. Where? 

A. He lived in JS^ew York. 

8499. Q. Wherein Yew York? 

A. On Third avenue. 

8500. Q. Where on Third avenue? 

A. Between Twenty-fourth and Twenty-fifth streets. 

8501. Q. By what name is he known or called? 

A. I do not know; he is a man who does not live at any place long. 

8502. Q. You must know him by some name if you are an associate of 
him ? 

A. I am no associate of his at all. 

8503. Q. xAnd yet you say he made this registration for you? 

A Not for me; he was there when this registration was made, and 
from the position he seemed to have I supposed he was sent there for 
that purpose. There was no particular name he was called byj I called 
him “ Yorkee,” and some called him ^‘Johnny.” 

8504. Q. Do you say that he was engineering this party of 30 repeaters? 

A. 1 do not know Avhether he was or not 5 he gave me the list and I 

gave it to Mr. Marshall. 

By Mr. Dickey: 

8505. Q. Where did he give it to you ? 

A. At the Compton House 5 I was down there one night and they told 
me they were registering. 

8500. Q. Who told you they were registering ? 

xA. Ten or twelve told me so. 

8507. Q. Who are they ? 

A. I do not know. 

8508. Q. Where do they live? 

A. I do not know. 

8509. Q. AYhat are their names? 

A. I do not know. 

8510. Q. AYho managed these repeaters 011 election day ? 

A. That I do not knowj I gave the list to Mr. .Marshall 5 I do not 
know whether he voted them or not. 

8511. Q. I understand that a portion of these names were registered 
for the benefit of republicans, and a portion retained for the democratic 
Xiarty 5 that you did vote the persons who were registered for the demo¬ 
cratic party, but you do not know whether the names you gave for the 
republican party were voted or not. Yow, I want to know who managed 
the voting of these democrats ? 


756 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I do liot know of anybody that voted tbe democratic ticket. When 
I was a candidate in the December election they came and told me they 
had their names registered and were coming to vote for mej whether 
they did or not I do not know. 

8512. Q. Yon say yon gave Mr. Marshall a portion and retained a por¬ 
tion ; how many did yon retain ? 

A. They registered, I believe, about 30; but I got, I should think, 
about 18 or 20 of the names. I do not know how many times they reg¬ 
istered them; they registered the names and gave them to me. 

8513. Q. How many did yon keep, and how many did yon give Mr. 
Marshall 

A. I gave Mr. Marshall all there was. 

8514. Q. What do yon mean by those yon retained ? 

A. They did not give them to me at all. 

8515. Q. Who retained them ? 

A. I do not know. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8516. Q. Hid yon ever distribute naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. I went with a few men down there, but I knew they had 
their own witnesses with them. They had been in the conntr}^ for the 
required time. 

8517. Q. Ho yon swear that yon never distributed any naturalization 
papers from the Compton House % 

A. Papers were sent there for parties. 

8518. Q. State distinctly whether yon swear that yon never distrib¬ 
uted any papers out of the Compton House to parties claiming to be 
naturalized. 

A. I have already stated that naturalization i)apers were sent there, 
and I would give them to parties when they called for them. 

8519. Q. Then you swear that yon did distribute them f 

A. I did to parties who were entitled to them—men who had already 
taken their witnesses down and satisfied the folks in court that they 
were entitled to become citizens of the United States. 

By Mr. Hickey: 

8520. Q. How do yon know that 

A. I know the witnesses started for the court with them. 

8521. Q. And the parties yon give the i>apers had their witnesses with 

them f ,, 

A. No, sir. 

8522. Q. How many papers did yon give out in a day ? 

A. I cannot tell j I have no recollection at all. 

8523. Q. Hid yon know the parties to whom yon gave the papers of 
naturalization ? 

A. No, sir. I may have knovm a few of them. 

8524. Q. How many did yon know ? 

* A. Not over one or two. 

8525. Q. How many of them did yon not know ? 

A. I don’t recollect. 

8526. Q. How did yon know the parties with whom yon were not 
acquainted had been down to the court? 

A. I thought so by seeing the names of the witnesses signed to the 
naturalization papers. I thought if they had not been there the names 
would not have been signed. 

8527. Q. Were the witnesses, whose names were signed, persons you 
knew ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


757 


A. Kot many of them. I did not look at them much. I took one or 
two ot them and looked at the names. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8528. Q. How did yon get these papers? 

A. They were left at the Compton House hy a man down below where 
the naturalization was going on. I suppose some of the attaches of the 
office down there brought them up, because this was a kind of headquar¬ 
ters^ where the parties would be likely to get them. 

8529. Q. Do I understand you that attaches of the naturalization 
office brought these papers up to the Compton House ? 

^ know; it’s most likely they did. 

8530. Q. Did they come directed to you in envelopes, or in what form 
did you receive them ? 

A. Ho; I found them lying out on the desk. 

8531. Q. Were they addressed to you? 

A. I do not know; I was not there when they were left. 

8532. Q. How did you know you were to distribute these papers? 

A. Parties told me they were left there for them. The barkeeper, 
when I came there one day, told me that some papers were left there 
and asked me if I knew anything about them. I told him I knew one 
or two of the parties. 

8533. Q. What did you do with them ? 

A. When a man came in and gave his name, I would look over; and if 
I found his name there, give him his paper. 

8534. Q. Is it not true that you were an agent for the distribution of 
these papers at that point? 

A. Ho, sir j I was not an agent for anybody. 

8535. Q. Is it not true that you were understood by the clerks at the 
court to be the man to send these papers to for distribution in your ward ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

8536. Q. You swear positively to that? 

A. Yes, I swear positively. 

8537. Q. But you did that business ? 

A. I do not know. That was a sort of headquarters, and I suppose 
they thought it was the best place to leave the papers. 

By the Chairman : 

8538. Q. You stated in your former testimony, in substance, that you 
knew who furnished the tickets and slips for repeaters at the election in, 
the 18th ward. Will you state who are the persons to whom you fur¬ 
nished the names of these repeaters ? 

A. Mr. Marshall was the only man. 

8539. Q. On the day of the election, in the 18th ward, who furnished 
the tickets and slips to repeaters ? 

A. I gave a man some tickets to go down and see Mr. Marshall to see 
whether he had it correct or not. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

8540. Q. Who Avas the man you gave it to? 

A. One of the boys around the corner j I do not recollect his name now. 

8541* Q. You did recollect then, but you do not now? 

A. I must have misunderstood the question you put to me. 

8542. Q. When you were asked, then, the name of this party, you said 
you could not answer j that it would not be honest to your friends. 

A. Mr. Marshall was the man whom I had reference to then. 


758 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


By tlie Chairman : 

8543. Q. Will yon state to tlie committee wlio furnislied tlie tickets or 
slips to the repeaters in the 18th ward for the names you had falsely 
registered there ? 

A. I do not know. I did send tickets down to Mr. Marshall j that is 
all I know ahout it. 

8544. Q. Don’t you know who furnished tickets to the repeaters in the 
18th ward ? 

A. I sent a man down to Mr. Marshall j that is all I know. I did not 
Tote any of them. 

8545. ' Q. Have you not stated that you voted a few ? 

A. NTo, 1 think not. 

8540. Q. You did say you registered falsely a large numherof names j 
that you gave a part of the names to another iierson and voted the 
balance. 

A. I think that cannot he my testimony. I gave Mr. Marshall eighteen 
or twenty of the thirty that were given to me. 

By Mr. Hopkins: 

8547. Q. You say Mr. Marshall was a republican; why did you give 
to Mr. Marshallj a republican, a list of names falsely registered ? 

A. Because I had agreed to have so many names registered and give 
them to him, and after that they were to give me two canvassers, and I 
gave this list of names to satisfy these people that I had kept my word, 
and Mr. Marshall was the man I gave them to. 

8548. Q. Was Mr. Marshall one of the canvassers you were to select ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

8549. Q. In what way wgs he interested in the contract you have tes¬ 
tified about % 

A. In no way except that I had registered a large number from his 
house. I had sent men there, and I agreed to register 50 or 60 names 
for him. 

8550. Q. How many did you register from Marshall’s house ? 

A. I do not know how many they registered. They gave me the list. 

8551. Q. Where does Mr. Marshall live? 

A. He lives at 101 Fourteenth street, corner of Fourth avenue. There 
must have been 50 or 60 names registered from that house. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8552. Q. In your former testimony you state that you registered 150 
or 200 names in your ward, that you voted some of them yourself, and 
that you registered 30 men about five times apiece. ? 

A. That is what I say still. 

8553. Q. And you say you voted some of them yourself. Who did 
you vote ? 

A. I did not give the men the tickets. Some of them voted at my 
election. I was not speakiilg of the presidential election at all. 

8554. Q. You stated that you probably voted 150. 

A. I guess I did at my election. That is, I did not vote them, but the 
]nen voted for me, if I can believe their word. 

8555. Q. How many did you vote at the first election ? 

A. 1 don’t know. I didn’t give the men the tickets. The men would 
go down to the polls and say, “lam going to vote for you.” 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8556. Q. You said in your former testimony that you made a contract 
with two republicans that you would register falsely a certain number 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


759 


of names for tliem to vote the republican ticket on, and that you reserved 
tor yourself 150, which you had registered falsely, to vote the democratic 
ticket. And you also stated at that time that you did vote these 150 
names for the democratic party. 

A. That is what I state now. These men, however, did not, vote at 
the presidential election. These names were registered so that they 
could be. used in my election. I took no interest in the presidential elec¬ 
tion at all. Men came to me and said that they wanted to see me elected. 
I said, “I want to be elected,” and from all accounts they must have reg¬ 
istered 200 names, and I gave to Mr. Marshall a list of 20 or 30 names. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

8557. Q. Did not every man registered at the Compton House vote in 
the November election ? 

A. Every man voted from the Comj)ton House who was entitled to 
vote, and a great many came there who did not live there at all and 
voted against me. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

8558. Q. Do you know how many voted from the Compton House in 
the November election ? 

A. hto, sir. 

8559. Q. Do you know how many were registered there ? 

A. Probably 150 or IGO, and they were men who lived there. Two or 
three,years ago there were 80 or 90 there. Men would go there, stay 
through the month, and vote. There were men there I never asked how 
they were going to vote, or know how they voted. I did not know half 
the men who lived there. I don’t suppose I knew 20 names out of all 
who lived there. 

85G0. Q. And did you not know whether they were entitled to vote'? 

A. I did not know. 

85G1. Q. You stated in your previous examination that the Compton 
House was one of the places for men to vote falsely from *? 

A. Ho, sir; you must have misunderstood me. 

85G2. Q. You say now you did not give any slips to parties who regis¬ 
tered from the Compton House 1 

A. Ho, I did not give any man a slip. 

85G3. Q. neither yourself nor through anybody else? 

A. Ho, nor through anybody. 

85G4. Q. Who did this work? 

A. I don’t know. A man would go there and say want to vote for 
you,” and if I can believe what they said a good many voted for me. I 
don’t know whether they did or not. It did not cost anything and I took 
their word for it. 

By Mr. Ejerr : 

85G5. Q. You stated in your answers to the House of Eepresentatives 
that you were not willing, in Hew York, to disclose the name of the 
Xierson referred to in your testimony, and that since then you had seen 
him and got his consent, and that you was ready now to give his name. 
Do you say novr that you gave the name of Mr. Marshall with his 
consent ? 

A. Mr. Marshall came to my house for a list of these names and I gave 
them to him. 

85GG. Q. Do you say now that you make the disclosure of Mr, Mar¬ 
shall’s name by his consent? 

A. Yes, sir • 1 have seen Mr. Marshall—at least I Avent there; he was 



760 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


not in, but I saw another man who was with him and he said he had con¬ 
sulted Mr. Marshall, and that Mr. Marshall had said it was all right. 

85G7. Q. Who was the other man? 

A. I do not know what his name isj he was always with Mr. Marshall. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

8508. Q. Do you know of any person engaged in repeating in any other 
ward besides the 18th? 

A. I don’t, personally. 

8509. Q. Did you say, when you were examined before, that you did ? 

A. I heard men say so; that is all. 

8570. Q. Did you say you declined to give the names of persons whom 
you knew? 

A. I did of the men wlio told me. I recollected then the names of one 
or two, but I don’t remember them now. 

8571. Q. What was the reason you declined to give the names then? 

A. I Avas merely talking with these men and they Avould say so and so, 

and I didn’t think it was right to tell the committee Avho they Avere. I 
would tell you noAV if I could recollect them. 

8572. Q. Is it more right noAV than it was then? 

A. I don’t know. 

8573. Q. HaA^e you forgotten now what you knew Avhen you were on 
the stand before ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8574. Q. What have you forgotten now that you kneAV Avhen you were 
on the stand before? 

A. I don’t knoAV what I haA^e forgotten. I don’t know whether I have 
forgotten anything or not, until I am asked the question. 

8575. Q. Do you tell this committee that you liaA^e forgotten the names 
you refused to giA'e Avheii you Avas on the stand before? 

A. I have not forgotten Mr. Marshall’s name; I have forgotten one or 
two names of persons avIio told me, that I remembered then. 

8570. Q. Don’t you knoAv their names just as AA^ell noAvas you did then? 

A. No; I don’t recollect. I might knoAv their names if I Avere to see 
them. 

8577. Q. Do you know William A. Jenner? 

A. No, sir. 

8578. Q. [Testimony of William A. Jenner read to witness.] What do 
you think of that? 

A. I don’t knoAV the man at all. 

8579. Q. Do you know anything about that? 

A. No, sir; I don’t recollect anything about that. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

8580. Q. Was that Jackson club organized for the purpose of engaging 
in cheating at elections? 

A. I did not join it for that reason. I had to pay $50 initiation fee. 
I can go into companies of that kind without liaAdng to pay anything. 

8581. Q. What sort of men belonged to that club? 

A. Some very fine men; the street commissioner, the sheriff, and a 
great many lawyers and merchants in the city belonged to it. 

8582. Q. Some naturalization papers, you say, Avere distributed at the 
hotel, which, as you Avas informed, Avere sent tliere from the naturaliza¬ 
tion office; what office do you refer to? 

A. I mean the court-house, someAvhere doAvn town. 

8583. Q. Do you mean they were sent there by the clerks and the 
judges of the court? 



ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


761 


A. I don’t know j tliere were so many people engaged in getting tke 
. names of tlie witnesses and' preparing papers, that 1 supposed these men 
did not want to wait, and that they said if they would send them to the 
Compton House they could get them. 

Washington, D. C., February 4,18G9. 

John I. Davenport, clerk of the committee, made the following 
statement: 

8584. John J. Mullins, one of the last witnesses examined in hTew 
York, testified that he had been engaged in the business of registering 
a number of times in a number of districts. He gave various names 
under which he had registered, and houses from which he had registered. 
I have examined several of the registry books of a number of the dis¬ 
tricts, and find the following names given by him, Avith those also of cer¬ 
tain other parties with whom he said he was engaged. 

8585. I find in registry book, 3d district, 8th ward, the name of James 
Gray, 93 Prince street. 

8586. I find in registry book, 8th district, 8th ward, the name of John 
J. Mullen, 54 Sullivan street. 

8587. I find in registry book, 4th district, 8th ward, the name of 
Edward F. Mullen, 403 Canal street. 

8588. I find in registry book, 1st district, 3d Avard, the name of John 
J. Mullen, 156 Greenwich street. 

8589. I find in registry book, 2d district, 1st ward, John Murphy, 79 
Washington street. 

8590. I find the name of Matthew Stripp, 7 Albany, on the registry 
book, 3d district, 1st wardj also eJames Murray, 113 Washington street. 

8591. I find John Mullen, 101 Greenwich street, in registry book, 4th 
district, 1st ward j also John Stripp in same place. 

8592. I find 1st district, 1st ward, the name of William Kiley, 18 Wash¬ 
ington street. 

8593. I find in district, 15th ward, the name of Oavcu Gannon, 233 
Thompson street. 


The folloAHng testimony was taken iu Orange county, Hcav York, by 
a sub-committee, composed of Mr. Blair and Mr. Boss : 


Middletown, Orange County, Yew York, 

February 1,1869. 


John Flynn SAvorn and examined. 


To Mr. Blair : 

8594. 1 reside in Dorseytown, WaAvayanda, in Orange county, Ycav York. 
I landed in Yew York from Ireland on the 24th of June, 1865. I Amted 
at tbe last election in YoA^ember, 1868. 

8595. Q. Did you haA^e a naturalization certificate ? 

A. Yo, sir 5 I had a paper which I have since destroyed. The paper 
purported to make me a citizen of the United States. 1 do not remember* 
from Avhat court it was issued j but to the best of my belief it was issued 
ill YeAV York. It was gHen to me by John Bradley, who lives in WaAva¬ 
yanda, and Avho is a neighbor of mine. 

8596. Q. What did John Bradley tell you when he delivered you the 
paper ? 

A. He told me I had a right to vote. 

8597. Q. Upon that paper ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8598. Q. Had you ever been in any court to obtain that paper ? 


7G2 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEAY YOKE. 


A. Ko, sir. 

8509. Q. Had yon ever been sworn ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8000. Q, Hid yon vote on that paper ? 

A. I oUered to A^ote, but did not vote. 

8001. Q. Hid Bradley tell yon to use it to A^ote upon? 

A. Yes, sir; lie told me to use it. 

8002. Q. YVliat are Bradley’s politics? 

A. Hemocratic, I guess. 

Middletoayn, Orange County^ Neay York, 

February 1,18G9. 

YYilliaai P. Clark sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair : 

8003. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. This side of Henton, in Orange county, lYew York. I haA^e 
resided there and in the immediate neighborhood for 15 years. I have 
been a A'oter for some 35 years. 

8004. Q. Ho you know anything about any naturalization papers haA^- 
ing been deliA^ered to aiij’persons in Orange county? 

A. I know of one. That Avas handed to me to give to John Handel. 
Jolin Handel liA^es with his brother, quite close to me. Havid EeeA^es 
guA^e me the paper to giA^e to Mr. Handel. Mr. PeeA^es liA^es on the ])lank 
road, about two miles from here. He did not tell me, nor do I know 
Arhere he got it. He came along by my house, just on the edge of the 
evening, and wanted to know if 1 Avould see John Handel. I told him 
I would go by there that evening. 

8G05. (X Hid you look at the paper? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8G0G. il. Ho you knovr where it is now? 

A. I do not. I gaAm it to John Handel. 

8G07. Q. What did the paper jiurport to be? 

A. A naturalization paper. 

8G08. Q. Ho you knoAV by what court it was issued? 

A. I do not. All I saw was Handel’s name on it. Beeves did not say 
anything about where he got it. I delivered it to Handel in the meadow. 
I told him I had a paper to serA^e on liim. That kind of startled him a 
little. He did not knoAV Avhether it AAms a process or something like it. 
Then his brother looked at it, and said: knoAV' A\diat it is. It is a nat¬ 

uralization iiaper.” 

8G09. Q. Hid either of them say where it came from? 

A. No, sir. 

8610. Q. Hid you knoAv of the existence of any fraudulent papers in 
the county last fall? 

A. I did not see any. I liaA^e lieard them talking about some papers, 
.but I neAmr kneAV any thing of any other paper than' that of which I haA^e 
spoken. 

8G11. Q. Hid you know from any of the candidates during the fall 
whether any arrangement had been made anywhere for fraudulent natu¬ 
ralization papers? 

A. I did not. 

8G12. Q. Hid you hear any of them say anything of that sort? 

A. All I ever heard about it was said down ni Mr. Herrell’s store, 
at Hampton. After the papers were taken out, I heard them saying 
that if a man in the Adllage, named Poland, or some such name, had 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


763 


papers, lie was not entitled to tliein, and had better not vote on them, as 
lie had not been there long enougli. Howell said that. Koland lives in 
Denton. He did not vote, nor did he olfer to. 'Whether lie had jiapers 
or not I cannot say. 

Middletown, Orange County, ISTew York, 

Fehrnary 1, 18G9. 

John J. Bradley^ sworn and examiDcd. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8612J. I reside in Wawayanda, and have for 13 years. 

8013. Q. Do yon know John Flynn'? 

A. I know that there is such a man, who works for a neighbor of mine, 
Mr. Wilson. I am not acquainted with him. 

8014. Q. Where did Flynn reside prior to the election last hill ? 

A. He has worked for Mr. Wilson since last spring, I think. I just 
met him working on the highways. 

8015. Q. Did yon deliver, some time last year, to John Flynn, a paper 
purporting to be a naturalization certiticate 1 

A. I gave him a paper; I did not know irhat it was. I did not know 
whether it was a duplicate or a naturalization paper. 

8010. Q. Wliere did you obtain that paper ? 

A. That paper was handed to me the iveek preceding the election, in 
the highway, by a gentleman, to hand to Mr. Wilson’s hired man. 
David W. Beeves was the gentleman who handed it to me in the high¬ 
way. When Mr. Beeves handed the paper to me he said he would be 
obliged to me if I would hand that to Mr. Wilson’s man. That is all he 
said. The paper was not in an envelope, and I do not know whether it 
had any name on the outside or not. I do not know either whether it 
had the seal of any court upon it, or the signature of any officer purport¬ 
ing to be a clerk of court. I read the paper, but I cannot recollect any¬ 
thing about that. The day after he handed me the paper there vns an 
Irishman over at my house looking for work, and being acquainted with 
Fl;^Tm, I told him to tell Flynn to come to my house; that a paper had 
been left there for him. Flynn came over that evening, and I lianded 
the paper to him. I did not "know the object of the paper, nor whether 
it had anything to do with the citizenship of any person or not. 

8017. Q. Was Flynn present when you read the paper over? 

A. Yo, sir; it was before he came. I merely glanced at it in the house 
that evening, seeing it was nothing private. 

8018. Q. Can you tell Avhether it was a promissory note or not? 

A. Of course I could tell that. 

8010. Q. It Avas not a deed, was it ? 

A. Ho, sir; I should not think it was. 

8020. Q. Was the name of Flynn in it anyvdiere ? 

A. I think it was. 

8021. C;^. Did Beeves tell you what the paper was for when he handed 
it to you ? 

A. Ho, sir, nor where he got it. 

8022. Q. Did it have the name of the city of Hew York in it? 

A. I cannot say. 

8023. Q. Did you tell Flynn that that would give him authority to 
vote ? 

A. Ho, sir. 

8024. Q. He says you did. 


764 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8025. Q. Did you know auytliing about the object of that paper at all ? 

A. I did not; I considered it was sometbing Avitli regard to the elec¬ 
tion when I read it over, but I did not know whether it was a naturali¬ 
zation paper or not. 

8626. Q. Did you know how long Flynn had been in the country 

A. I think he told me, last spring, that he had been in the country 
about four years. I am not positive whether it was four or live years. 

8627. Q. Did you see any other papers of this sort ? 

A. No, sir. 

8628. Q. Did you deliver any such papers to anybody else'? 

A. No, sir. 

8629. Q. Was you a pretty active politician during the last year? 

A. No, sir; I did not step out of my way ten steps for the last election. 

8630. Q. What is your politics ? 

A. I am a democrat. 

8631. Q. Do you know how Mr. Beeves came to select you to deliver 
this paper ? 

A. No, sir. I i)resume, though, that he thought I had more opportu¬ 
nities of seeing Mr. Wilsoifs man than he had, he living on a by-road, 
and I living on a main road and adjoining farm. 

Middletown, Orange County, N. Y., February 1,1869. 

Michael Biordan sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8631J. I reside at Oircleville j I landed in New York six years ago the 
13th of next May. 

8632. Q. How long did you stay in New York after you landed there 
before you came into the country ? 

A. One or two days. 

8633. Q. Where did you come to then ? 

A. Alexander Oroffut brought me here to his o^vn place and I worked 
for him. He lived in Grafton, Orange county. I remained there until 
the 1st of April, when I went to Christopher Moulds, where I staid one 
year. 

8634. Q. Did you vote at the last election in November ? 

A. Yes, sir; I voted at Scotchtown, in this county. 

8635. Q. When were you naturalized ? 

A. Three or four years ago; I got my first papers in New York in the 
City Hall. I went to New York a week or nine days before the election 
and got my last papers. I went alone. I was directed in New York by 
John Shears where to go. Shears was a stranger to me; he happened 
to be where I called to see a friend, and the friend being out he directed 
me where to go. 

8636. Q. To what place did he direct you ? 

A. To an office in the City Hall. 

8637. Q. Was it the clerk’s office ? 

A. I suppose so. 

8638. Q. Did you have along the paper that had been delivered to you 
before ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8639. Q. Was you sworn ? 

A. No, sir; I was merely asked some questions by the party who 
delivered me the paper. 

8640. Q. Did you go into any court there ? 

A. I do not know whether it was a court or what it was; there were 
a great many persohs in there. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


765 


8041. Q. Did you sign any x^apers there I 

A. I signed my name there. 

8042. Q. To what? 

A. That I was so long in the country; that was when I got out my 
first papers. I do not remember whetlier I signed anything at all this 
last time. 

8043. Q. Did you i)ay anything for this last i)aper that you got ? 

A. Yes, sir; $2,1 guess j I paid it to the man who gave me the paper. 

8044. Q. You did not bring in any person to have sworn with you to 
show that they had known you any i)articular length of time ? 

A. No, sir. 

8045. Q. Did you vote on that paper ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8040. Q. Have you got that paper now ? 

A. No, sir. 

8047. Q. Do you know whose name was signed to tliat paper? 

A. I sux)i)Ose my own name; I cannot read, and therefore cannot say 
positively. 

8048. Q. Did that pax)er have a seal upon it ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8049. Q. Did you see anybody there that you knew ? 

A. No, sir. 

Middletown, Oranoe County^, N. Y., February 1,1809. 

Christian Borcold sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8040J. I reside at Hill’s Depot, four miles from Middletown; 1 am a 
native of Germany. It will be 20 years this spring since 1 came into 
the country. 

8050. Q. Did you vote at the last election ? 

A. No, sir. 

8051. Q. Did you have naturalization papers ? 

A. I thought I had. 

8052. Q. Where are those papers now ? 

A. I suppose Mr. Sweet got them. 

8053. Q. Is that the paper you had ? [Exhibit A.] 

A. Yes, sir. 

8054. Q. Was you registered upon this paper ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8055. Q. Why didn’t you vote ? 

A. A couple of men up in Howell’s wanted to see my paper, and told 
me I could not vote and not to go near the polls. I did not know j 1 
thought the paj^er was all right. 

8050. Q. Y^io gave you this paper? 

A. In the first place I went to Goshen; I saw nobody there, and so I 
came up here on the first train for Middletown, and stopped over here 
at Mr. Dusenberry’s, and he brought me here to John H. Bell’s, the 

grocer. ^ ^ 

8057. Q. What did Mr. Bell do? , , 

A. He took my name in a book and told me he would see about it, 
and so it would be all right. After a little while he sent for me to come 
down and get the papers. 

8058. Q. Did you come dovni? 

A. Yes, sir; and got the papers. 

8059. Q. What did he say ? 

A. He said they were good and I could vote upon them. 


76G 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


SGGO. Q. Can 5^011 read ? . 

A. Not ill English. 

8GG1. Q. So yon could not read this paper yourself ? 

A. No, sir. 

8GG2. Q. You were never sworn ? 

A. No, sir. 

8GG3. Q. Had you ever made any previous declaration in court or been 
sworn ? 

A. No, sir. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

Fehruary 1, 1SG9. 

John Hanley sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

86G3i. I reside in Dorseytown, near Denton. I know William P. 
Clark. 

8GG4. Q. Did Mr. Clark, at any time last fall, give you a naturaliza¬ 
tion paper ? 

A. Yes, sir, about a week before the election. 

8GG5. Q. What did he say ? 

A. He didn’t tell me anything, but only to appear at the election. 
8GGG. Q. Wiiere is that paper ? 

A. This is it. [Produces Exhibit B.] 

8oG7. Q. Did he tell you whether or not it would authorize you to vote ? 
A. He did not tell me anything, except that I should be there at the 
election. 

8GG8. Q. Did you get registered upon it ? 

A. No, sir. 

SGGO. Q. Did you vote upon that paper 
'A. Yes, sir. 

8G70. Q. Did you appear in any court to get the paper ? 

A. No, sir. 

8G71. Q. Were you sworn at all in regard to the matter ? 

A. No, sir. 

Middletown, Orange County, New Y^ork, 

Fehruary 1, 18G9. 

Patrick Hanley sworn aiid examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8 G 714 . I reside at Dorseytown. I know nothing about this naturali¬ 
zation paper other than was told you by John Hanley. I was present 
when Clark delivered to him the paper and told him to be up there on 
election day, and not to fail. 

8G72. Q. Do you know of any other papers like those being out ? 

A. A man by the name of Patrick Pitch, next door to me, got one : 
but I do not know whether he voted. 

8G73. Q. AVas it like this I [Shows Exhibit B.] 

A. I think it was. There were some others who had them, but I can¬ 
not call to mind who they are. 

Middletown, Orange County, New Y^ork, 

- Fehruary 1, 18G9. 

Patrick Powers sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8673J. I reside at Somerville. I have been in the United States since 
1863 ; 1 came from Ireland; 1 landed in New York. 

8G74. Q. Did you vote at the last election ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


. 767 

6id—voted the democratic ticket. 

8675. Q. YViien were you naturalized. 

.. papers in 1863. I got my last papers in 1868—some 

time 111 IS'ovember. 

8676. Q. How many days before the election? 

A. Eight or ten days. 

8677. Q. Where did you get them ? 

A. They were sent to me through the post office. I cannot tell who 
scmt them, nor can I tell Avhere they came from. I knov' it was from 
either Newburgh or New York; I cannot tell which. I have not got 
them with me; they may be at home. 

8678. Q. Hid you apiiear in court at either of those places to get that 
paper ? 

A. No, sir. 

8679. Q. Did you take any oath before this paper was sent to you from 
either New York or Newburgh ? 

A. No, sir; I took one when I was registered. 

8680. Q. Had you requested anybody "to send that paper ? 

^ A. No, sir. For a long time^a great many had been at me to go to 
New Yorlc and get my papers. I declined, stating that I did not want 
to lose any time. I said that if any one would get them for me I would 
vote. ‘ 

8681. Q. So somebody got the jiaper and sent it to you ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8682. Q. Did any letter accomiiany it ? 

A. No, sir. 

8683. Q. Did you know of any other persons getting naturalization 
Xiapers in the same way you did ? 

A. No, sir; except a brother of mine. He got one in the same way. 

8681. Q. Did you suppose at the time that this was the right way to 
get such papers ? 

A. I did not know anything at all about that. I suxiposed they knew 
more about the laws of the country than I did. 

Middletown, Oranoe County, New York, 

February 1, 1860. 

Ed^iund Powers sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair:- 

8681J. I reside at Goshen, and have for three years. I came from Ire¬ 
land originally, and have been in the United States for something over 
three years. I landed at Castle Garden a little less than four years ago. 

8685. Q. Did you vote at the last election ? 

A. 1 did. 

8686. Q. YVdiat ticket did you vote? 

A. I do not well know. I just got the ticket and imt it in. I did not 
look at it. 

8687. Q. Was it a democratic or a republican ticket ? 

A. I could not say; it was my intention to vote the democratic ticket. 

8688. Q. Had you any naturalization papers ? 

A. I had; I received them through the post office in Chester. They 
came from New York, I think. I do not know who sent them to me. 

8689. Q. Have you that naturalization x>aper with you ? 

A. I have. [Produces it, and it is marked Exhibit C.] 

8690. Q. Had you applied to anybodj^ to send you this paper ? 

A. A number of men came to me and said I was capable of voting, 
and so I put in my name and got this paper. 


768 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8G91. Q. Who took your name ? 

A. It was another boy just the same as myself, and I told him to have 
my name put in with his and get papers for me. His name was Patrick 
Sheehan. 

8692. Q. You did not appear in any court to get your paper, did you? 

A. No, sir. 

8693. Q. And was not sworn ? 

A. I was sworn when I got registered, and I was sworn when I went 
to vote. 

8694. Q. But you was not sworn when this paper was issued ? 

A. No, sir; I "received it through the mail, but I had to pay for it, or 
at least I promised to pay Patrick Sheehan, the man I got it from. Three 
dollars and a half was the amount I was to pay. 

8695. Q. State whether your paper is like this one. (Exhibit B.) 

A. With the exception of the name of John Handel. 

8696. Q. Hid any other person except Sheehan direct you how to get 
these papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

8697. Q. Ho you know whether other persons in yoVir neighborhood 
had papers? 

A. I do not know anything about any other man. 

8698. Q. Hidn’t you know that it required a person to reside five years 
in the United States before he could vote ? 

A. I was told not. I should think if it did they had no right to let 
me vote. I swore I was not five years in the country, and why did they 
register my papers ? A man down there challenged my vote, and I swore 
I was not five years in the country, and still I voted. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

Fehruary 1, 1869. 

Charles Hoyt sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8698. J. I reside at Otisville, Orange county. New York, and have resi¬ 
ded there for some twenty years. 

8699. Q. You are acquainted generally with the voters of that region? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8700. Q. State whether you know of naturalization papers being pro¬ 
cured to any extent for unnaturalized foreign people last tall—to any 
extent. 

A. I do not know of a single instance. 

8701. Q. You were not yourself concerned in getting any? 

A. No, sir. 

8702. Q. Ho you know whether it was generally understood there that 
there was any way by which such papers could be procured ? 

A. No, sir. I will state here that I took no part in the election what¬ 
ever, attended no political meetings, went to the polls and voted, and 
came home. I did not suppose they could have summoned a man with 
so little knowledge about such matters as myself. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York 

February ^860. 

Pat. Cameron sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

87024. I reside in Middletown. I came from Ireland to the United 
States some nine or ten years ago; I landed in New York in February, 
I think; I have been living in this village some six or seven years. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


769 


8703. Q. Have you been naturalized! 

A. Yes,-sir. 

8704. Q. Where did you get your first papers! 

A. In New York. 

8705. Q. In what court, do you remember! 

A. At the City Hall, some few weeks before the election last fall, 

8706. Q. Did you go to New York for that purpose! 

A. Yes, sir. A man named Pat. Branagan, who lives on West street, 
New York, went with me. I* got my first and second papers all at once. 

8707. Q. Were you sworn there at the time these pai^ers were issued! 
A. No. 

8708. Q. Was Branagan sworn! 

A. Yes, sir ; I guess he was. 

8709. Q. Who administered the oath to Branagan! 

A. I do not know. 

8710. Q. Was there a judge on the bench! 

A. I do not know whether there was or not. 

8711. Were you required to sign any papers ! 

A. No. 

8712. Q. Have you got your papers that you obtained there! 

A. No, sir. 

8713. Q. Do you know whose signature was on theni! 

A. No, sir. 

8714. Q. Can you tell me whether it looks like the signature on this 
paper (Exhibit B) of Charles E. Loew, clerk! 

A. I cannot read myself; I do not know, 

8715. Q. Did Branagan sign any papers! 

A. I do not know whether he did or not, 

8716. Q. Did you pay for your papers ! 

A, No, sir. 

8717. Q. Do you know whether anybody paid for you! 

A. No, sir. 

8718. Q. How came you to go down to New York for this purpose! 

A. I knew I was entitled to my papers, and I went there to get them. 

8719. Q. Did you vote at the last election! 

A. No, sir; I got offended and wouldn’t, 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

George Smith sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8719J. I reside at Otisville, and am supervisor of the to^wn. 

8720. Q. For what time was the board of registration in session for the 
last election in November ! 

A. Two days, I think. 

8721. Q. On the first day of the registration did you bring a consid¬ 
erable company of Irishmen to register! 

A. No, sir; I did so at no time, 

8722. Q. Do you know anything about naturalization papers having 
been furnished in that town for any persons which were not regidarly 
issued by the court! 

A. No, sir. 

8723. Q. Was there to your knowledge any organization at all there 
for the purpose of furnishing naturalization papers to persons! 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

49 T 


770 


ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8724. Q. With what party did you act? 

A. The democratic. 

8725. Q. Did you during two or three months previous to the election 
see any naturalization papers from the city of New York like that? 
(Exhibit B.) 

A. I do not think I did. 

8720. Q. You do not know of any persons having any naturalization 
papers there that were obtained just previous to the election? 

A. No, sir. 


Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

D. P. Quackenbush sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8726J. I reside in Otisville. I was a clerk to the board of registration 
that sat in that town previous to the last election. 

8727. Q. Do you know George Smith, the supervisor ? 

A. I do. 

8728. Q. State whether at any time Mr. Smith brought there a con¬ 
siderable number of Irishmen to be registered. 

A. I do not know that he did. 

8729. Q. Did anj^ considerable number of Irishmen come there to be 
registered with him? 

A. Not that I remembeh*. 

8730. Q. Were there many registrations before the board of foreigners 
upon papers of naturalization ? 

A. Very few, I think. I do not know that there were any who pro¬ 
duced their papers there at all. Some were registered upon their state¬ 
ment that they had papers. 

8731. Q. Did you know of any organization of persons there for the 
purpose of procuring naturalization papers for citizens? 

A. Not any that I know of. 

8732. Q. How many persons in all do you think were registered there 
at that time who claimed to be registered u^ion the groimd of being 
naturalized citizens? 

A. I do not know as I could state exactly Iioav many. There was 
quite a number of IrivShmen through that section. A great many I 
knew had papers, for I had been with them when they got their papers 
in our courts. There was one man came there—an Englishman—who 
said that he didn’t have to get his papers on account of his father being 
a missionary; that he was entitled to have his name registered without 
the papers. 

8733. Q. How large a vote does that town cast? 

A. Foiu’ hundred and twenty odd. 

8734. Q. How large a proportion of that vote do you think was com¬ 
posed of naturalized citizens altogether? 

A. I should not think over fifty in all ? 

8735. Q. How did the vote in that town last fall compare with what 
it has usually been heretofore ? 

A. It is a little larger. It increases every year pretty much. 

8736. Q. Was the increase much last fall ? 

A. No, sir, very little. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


771 


. Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Daniel Driscoll sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8736J. I reside in Middletown, and have for some eight years. 

8737. Q. Did yon vote at the election last fall? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8738. Q. Had yon naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir; I got them at the City Hall, New York. I got them a 
week before the election. A friend of mine in New York, named Dailey, 
living in Greene street, helped me to get them. 

8739. Q. Had you ever filed any papers in New York before? 

A. No, sir. 

8740. Q. Why didn’t yon get yonr papers here then ? 

A. I didn’t care. I would as soon go down there as get them here. 

8741. Q. Did you attend a target excursion in New York ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8742. Q. Wlien was that ? 

A. I do not know what day of the month that was. 

8743. Q. Did you get your papers at that time ? 

A. I cannot tell whether 1 did dr not. To the best of my knowledge 
I got them a week before election. 

8744. Q. How long before the election was the target excursion? 

A. I do not know. 

8745. Q. Was you sworn at the time you got your papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8746. Q. Where was it ? 

A. I do not know. 

8747. Q. Was your friend sworn ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8748. Q. How long have you known him ? 

A. Ever since I came to the country. 

8749. Q. How old are you ? 

A. About 25. 

8750. Q. Where do your parents live ? 

A. In Ireland. 

8751. Q. Did they keep a record of the births and deaths in the family ? 
A. I do not know. I guess I am about that old. 

8752. Q. Had you ever filed any papers previous to this time when 
you were in New York ? 

A. No, sir. 

8753. Q. Were there any other persons getting naturalization papers 
at the time you got yours ? 

A. O, yes, sir j quite a lot. 

8754. Q. When you was sworn were other persons sworn with you? 
A. Yes, sir; I cannot tell how many. 

8755. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. The democratic. 

8756. Q. Was you born in Ireland ? 

A. I was. 

8757. Q. Were those naturalization certificates delivered directly to 
you in your hands in New York ? 

A. I got my papers in New York; that is all I have to say. I got them 
from a man who seemed to be giving them to everybody. 

8758. Q. Do you know whether he was the county clerk f 


772 ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

A. I do uot. 

8759. Q. Do you know wlietlier there was any court there at the time 
at all ? 

A. I do not know. 

Middletown, Orange Countit, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

John O’Donovan sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8759J. I reside in Middletown. Have resided there some 12 or 13 
years. 

8760. Q. Were you conversant with the political campaign last year ? 

A. Very little. 

8761. Q. Are you a naturalized citizen ? 

A. Yes, sir; i came from Ireland. 

8762'. Q. Did you know anything of naturalization papers being fur¬ 
nished to any persons from The city of New York last fall, prior to the 
election 1 

A. No, sir. 

8763. Q. Were you consulted by any of your countrjTuen during the 
campaign with regard to any naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

8764. Q. Do you know of any naturalization papers being furnished to 
any persons not entitled to vote ! 

A. No, sir. 

% 

Middletown, Orange County, N. Y., 

February 1, 1869. 

John H. Bell sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8764J. I reside in Middletown. I am not much of a politician, but 
occasionally go around among the boys. I have always acted with 
the democratic party. 

8765. Q. Was you upon any of the committees in town for carrying 
on the campaign 

A. On little committees around the street, about procuring speakers, 
and so on. 

8766. Q. Did the party have any arrangements here for procuring nat¬ 
uralization of their foreign voters ? • 

A. Not that I am aware of. 

8767. Q. Was there no committee attending to that? 

A. I do not think there was; I guess everybody was a committee, 

8768. Q. You had, I suppose, something of that to do? 

A. Some of the boys that I knew myself I helped some little. I took 
one man to Goshen—one who had lost his first papers—to the clerk’s 
office, and helped him to get a copy of the first papers, so that he could 
get his second papers at the court-house there. 

8769. Q. Did you deliver papers to any persons, foreigners? 

A. I helped to get no man his papers in any way except he had a legal 
right to them. 

8770. Q. I ask you whether you delivered any papers to anybody? 

A. I do not think 1 delivered any papers for anybody to anybody. 

8771. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Burkhart ? 

No sir. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 773 

8772. Q. Will you state wlietlier or not you delivered a naturalization 
certificate, or wliat purported to be one, to bini 

A. I did not. 

8773. Q. Will you look at the certificate, and say whether you ever 
saw it before ? (Exhibit A.) 

A. That I could not say. That name I never saw before to my Imowl- 
edge. Some of the boys around town might have gone to New York 
and got the papers. 

8774. Q. Did you assist any way, in the matter of his naturalization 
paper, a man by the name of Daniel Driscoll ? 

A. The only papers I know anything about are papers that I have a 
list of here. Those are men that got their papers in New York, through 
the honorable gentlemen. Colonel Young, Mr. Croffut, and some others. 
I think there are something like twenty. 

8775. Q. You have a list of persons who got their papers in New York? 

A. Yes, sir; I got them through Mr. Oroffut and Colonel Young. 

8776. Q. What agency had you in the matter of those papers? 

A. I was a little interested in the matter, as it was talked so much 
about. 

8777. Q. Did you get the papers, or deliver them yourself? 

A. No, sir; but I saw them. Terrol talked to me before he took his 
paper at all. He wanted to know whether he should go and get his 
l^aper or not; I asked him where it was j he said it was waiting for him 
at Mr. Sweet’s. 

8778. Q. State whether you gave a naturalization certificate, or any 
papers of naturalization to Mr. Driscoll. 

A. I do not know anything at all about Mr. Driscoll’s papers. 

8779. Q. Were you present at a target excursion where Driscoll was? 

A. No, sir. 

8780. Q. Did you deliver any naturalization papers, or assist in any 
way to get them for a man by the name of Hackett? 

A. I do not know that I know such a man. 

8781. Q. You state that you have not yourself given out papers to 
anybody? 

A. I have had nothing to do with papers at all. I have told you all 
I know anything about. 

8782. Q. I ask you if you have delivered any papers to anybody? 

A. I do not know as I am obliged to answer any such question as that 
at all. 

8783. Q. Will you answer? 

A. No. 


Middletown, Oranoe County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Patrick Poland, sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8783J. I reside in Denton, about a mile from Hampton. I have 
resided there about tour years. The 1st of next April I will have been 
in the United States about four years. 

8784. Q. Did you vote at the last election? 

A. No, sir. 

8785. Q. Did you have a naturalization certificate? 

A. No, sir, none other than my first papers. I got them at Goshen,, 
myself. 


774 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK 


Middletown, Oranoe County, ^^^ew York. 

Fehruary 1, 1869. 

Cornelius Gillespie sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8785J. I reside in Denton, and next April I will have resided in the 
United States five years. 

8786. Q. Did you vote at the election? 

A. Ko, sir. 

8787. Q. Did yon have a naturalisation certificate? 

A. No, sir, only my first papers. I got those from the county clerk’s 
office. 

8788. Q. Did’nt you have any naturalization paper sent to you by mail ? 
A. No, sir. 


Middletown, Orange County, New York. 

February 1, 1869. 

Luke Burns, sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8788J. I reside at Wawayanda. I am a native of the United States. 
Took some little interest in the campaign last tall. Know of no arrange¬ 
ment being made for the purpose of procuring naturalization papers. 
Did not about the time of a republican mass meeting in Middletown 
have an understanding with any person, that he was to meet him, and 
bring some papers. I am not aware of any fraudulent naturalization 
papers being i^rocured. 


Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

Febnmry 1 , 1869. 


Henry Behme sworn and examined. 


To Mr. Blair : 

8788f. I reside in Middletown. On the 22d of next March I will have 
been in the United States six years. I came in 1863. 

8789. Q. Did you vote at the last election in November? 

A. No, sir. 

8790. Q. Did you have naturalization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8791. Q. Wliere did you get them? 

A. In New York city. It was on the 23d day of October, 1868. I got 
them in the City Hall. 

8792. Q. Who gave them to you? 

A. I guess the name of the clerk is Charles E. Loew. 

8793. Q. Did any person go with you to get them ? 

A. Yes, sir, a man living in Brooklyn, whose name I forget. 

8794. Q. Was there a court in session when you got this paper? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8795. Q. Was the judge on the bench ? 

A. I do not know what he was called 5 I was told he was the clerk. 

8796. Q. Were you sworn? 

A. Yes, sir; my friend was also sworn by the clerk. 

8797. Q. You had taken out your first papers before ? 

A. Yes, sir, in 1866, in Goshen, 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


775 


Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1; 18G9. 

Peter Ennis sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8797I reside in Bloomingbiirg. Next June I will have resided in 
the XJnited States 12 years. I am a native of Ireland. 

8798. Q. Did you obtain your naturalization papers last fall, previous 
to the election % 

A. Yes, sir. They were sent to me, I guess, from New York. 

8799. Q. Were they sent by mail? 

A. A man fetched them to me. 

8800. Q. What was his name ? 

A. Nathan Mills. 

8801. Q. Did you vote upon those papers? 

A. No, sir. It run on my mind that I was not entitled to them, and 
then I did not think it was right for me to do so. 

8802. Q. Did Mr. Mills tell jmu how he got those papers? 

A. No, sir. I had to i^ay him for getting them $2. He told me it was 
all right when I got them, and so I supposed it was all right until I came 
to think about it. 

8803. Q. Do you know how he got them? 

A. No, sir. 


Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1809. 

D. B. Irwin sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8803^. I reside in Middletown. I was interested a little in the election 
campaign last fall. I had three or four Irishmen who worked for me 
about the time of the election last year. There were two who were 
voters. James Hendrickson was the name of one of them. I think he 
went to California. I do not know where he got his naturalization 
papers. I do not know either whether he had been in the country five 
years or not. It appears to me that some arrangement was made to raise 
money to enable those who were not able to pay for their papers to get 
them. I do not think there was any committee that had charge of that 
matter. I don^t know who had charge of the money. 

8804. Q. Did you know of any naturalization papers coming here from 
New York for any of these people? 

A. I do not. They undoubtedly got them from New York, and some 
of them from Goshen. 

8805. Q. Did you ever receive or deliver any such papers yourself to 
any one ? 

A. No, sir. 

8806. Q. Do you know from the statements of others, or from what 
you know yourself, that there were such pai^ers received or delivered 
here to any persons ? 

A. I came up from New York one night on the cars, and there was a 
young Irishman in front of me who now works for George Wickham, and 
a friend of mine and I sat in the seat together. He said he had been to 
New York. I asked him if he had been down to get his papers. He said 
he had. I asked him if he had got them. He said he had. He said he 
had got 17. I asked him where he had got them. He said he went into 
Chandlers street, to a house there, and there was some difficulty j he 


776 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


could not get them. He tlien went over to the City Hall, hut couldn^t 
get them there. Finally some fellow asked him to go out and take a 
drink. He took him over to some drinking place in the neighborhood 
and gave him 17. He paid him $2 for his. It seems he was in charge 
of some republicans in town. I said, “ Are you going to vote the repub¬ 
lican ticket No,” he says, but they wanted me to go and I went.” 

8807. .Q. Is that all the information you have upon the subject? 

A. That is all. 

8808. Q. You do not know of any other persons having received these 
papers in this way ? 

A. No, sir. 


Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Lewis Clark sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8808J. I reside in Middletown; I was in a small w'ay connected with the 
election campaign during the fall of 1868 ) I was attached to the demo¬ 
cratic party; to my knowledge there was no arrangement made by that 
party with regard to procuring naturalization papers for such foreign citi¬ 
zens as might want them. 

8809. Q. Hid you know of any naturalization papers being procured 
from the city of New York? 

A. I think I have heard some men say that they got their papers from 
the city of New York. 

8810. Q. Did you at any time see any such papers yourself? 

A. Yes, I think I saw some at the board of registry when they were 
presented. 

8811. Q. Did you at any time have in your possession such papers 
yourself? 

A. Not any. 

8812. Q. State if at any time in this county, in any place, you took 
from your pockets such a paper, and exhibited it to a citizen ? 

A. No, sir. 

8813. Q. Did you tell any i^erson at any time that such naturalization 
papers could be procured in the city of New York, and that $100 had 
been or would be sent for the purpose of paying for them? 

A. I never said anything of the kind. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Patrick Bradley sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 


8813J. I reside in Middletown j I am about 28 years of age; was born 
in Ireland, and came to this country in the fall of ’52, as near as I can 
recollect. 

8814. Q. Did you have naturalization papers at this last election? 

A. Yes, sir. I got my last papers out at the presidential election four 
years ago; I procured them at the City Hall in New' York. (Witness pro¬ 
duced the paper, and exhibited it to Mr. Blair.) I do not know who was 
on the bench at tliat time. Daniel O’Neale went with me. 

8815. Q. How long have you been residing in Middletown ? 

A. This spring will be two years. 


ELECTION FR4UDS IN NEW YORK. 


777 


Middletown, Oranoe County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Edward Hackett sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8815J. I reside in Middletown; was born in Ireland, and came to the 
United States seven years ago last November; I voted at the last elec¬ 
tion ; went to New York myself for my papers—John Diller accompa¬ 
nied me 5 he had known me for 11 years; my first papers I got at New¬ 
burgh ; I took them with me to New York j I went into what appeared to 
be an office in New York to get my papers. There seemed to be some five 
persons engaged in the handing out naturalization papers. I was sworn, 

but could not tell who swore me. 

0 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Michael Mahoney sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8815f. I reside in Middletown, and have been a citizen of the United 
States between two and three years: I have been in the country about 
eight years ; I came originally from Ireland ; I was engaged a little in 
the political campaign last fall. I am not aware of any arrangement 
having been made to procure naturalization papers for foreigners. Knew 
nothing of any such papers having been procured from the city of New 
York by any i)ersons. Michael Donovan once told me that it was very 
easy getting papers for anybody that wanted to get them. 

8816. Q. Did he say where 1 

A. He said New York. 

8817. How came he to say that'? 

A. We were organizing a club, and I was speaking to him about get¬ 
ting some papers out for those wffio were entitled to them, and he said 
it was very easy to get them in New York at any time we wanted them. 
That was all he said about it. I don’t know whether any such i)apers 
W'Cre ever procured. The club did not comxfiete its organization. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 1, 1869. 

Nathan J. Miller sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8817J. I reside in Middletown. I belong to the democratic party. I 
do not knoAV of any arrangements being made for procuring naturaliza¬ 
tion papers for foreigners, and never to my knowledge saw any such 
papers. 

8818. Q. Did you never deliver such to anybody*? 

A. No, sir. 

8819. Q. Do you know a man by the name of Peter Ennis ? 

A. Yes, sir. He lived at my house from the 1st of April to the 1st of 
October. I have known him for 15 years previous. He came to this 
country when he w^as 15 years of age. 

8820. Q. Did you deliver a naturalization certificate, or any papers on 
the subject of naturalization, to Mr. Ennis'? 

A. I believe I gave him papers. 

8821. Q. Whafi papers did you give him ? 

A. I could not tell. 

8822. Q. Where did you get the papers that you delivered to him ? 

A. They came from New York. 


778 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8823. Q. How came you to have them ! 

A. They came up in the post office. That is the way I got them. 

8824. Q. Addressed to you? 

A. To my care. 

8825. Q. How did that happen? 

A. I could not tell you. 

8826. Q. Had you made any arrangements to have them come? 

A. [No, sir. 

8827. Q. They were sent entirely without your knowledge ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8828. Q. Hid you know of any others being sent at the same time ? 

A. JS'o, sir. 

8829. Q. Hid you know that these papers 5 \^ould be likely to come 
before they did come ? 

A. No, sir. 

8830. Q. Hid you open the letter yourself that contained the papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

8831. Q. Heliver it to him sealed ? 

A. I could not tell you as to that. 

8832. Q. Hid you read the paper at all ? 

A. I could not say whether I did or did not. 

8833. Q. Ho you know what court it was from? 

A. No, sir. 

8834. Q. Ho you know whose signature it was? , 

A. I do not know as I can tell. 

8835. Q. Ho you know whether it looked like this paper ? (Exhibit A.) 

A. It might have. I could not tell whether it did or not. The head 

of it looks something like that. 

8836. Q. Hid you see any other such x)apers during the campaign that 
came there ? 

A. I do not know as I did. 

Middletown, Orange County, New YTork, 

February 2, 1869. 

John Hirst sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

8836J. I reside on Jenning street, Middletown. Have lived there six 
years. I am a foreigner; born in England. 

8837. Q. Please state if you know about there having been any frauds 
perpetrated at the election last fall in this place ? 

A. Well, yes, I believe there was. 

8838. Q. State as near as you can what they were. 

A. Well, last fall, I think it must have been about the 20th, or between 
that and the 26th of October, a party came to me and said they were 
from Judge Wilkin, that he sent them, and asked me if I knew any men 
that had not got their naturalization papers ? I said that I did j that I 
knew several; some of them had not been in the country a year, some 
two years, some three and four, and some longer. They said it didffit 
matter how long they had been in the country, that all the men I would 
fetch up would have their papers; so I was ordered to have the men 
at the train on Monday morning at 7 o’clock; that was on Saturday. I got 
them up here, with the exception of two that were working for me then. 
These two men came to me about half past 7 o’clock the same morning, 
and said that they had got left, supposing that the train left at half past 7. 
They asked me if I could not get them down ? I came up here to Mid- 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 779 

dletown, and went to the brewery, (that was the republican headquarters 
tor Middletown,) and saw Mr. Robinson. I said, ‘^Mr. Robinson, I have 
two men here that have been left this morning who should have gone 
down at 7 o^clock j I want to get them down at 9 o^clock if you cau.^^ He 
says, ^‘Aoii go and see Colonel Young; I caift say whether you can get 
them down or not.’^ I went to Colonel Young, and he said that he was 
going down at 9 o’clock, and that he would take them. I was here at 9 
o’clock with the two men; saw him give them money for their fare. I 
told him that I had got him some 15 or 17 men, and as 1 had nothing to 
do that day, I might as well go down with him. He gave me $2 40 for 
my hire, and I went down along with them. When we got to 'New York 
we went uj) to the to^i of Chambers street, or somewhere around there, 
and went to a house on the left-hand side. We went down in a base¬ 
ment where they sold spirits and ale, &c. All the men were in there 
wRo had gone down with Joe Crawford that morning at 7 o’clock. They 
hadn’t got their jiaxiers when I got there, and that was 12 o’clock almost. 
The two men who went down along with me and Colonel Young were intro¬ 
duced to a young man, and they got their papers from the court-house; 
but they had never taken out their first papers, nor made application to 
take them out. Out of this basement we Avere ordered to go out of this 
street into another street that runs in the opposite way. We were 
ordered there into another tavern, kept by a German. The men were 
kept there until 15 minutes of 3, when they were ordered back to the 
basement again. When they got there each man had his papers given 
him, with the exception of these two avIio went down Avith me. They got 
theirs as soon as they went down. One of them hadn’t been 12 months 
in the United States; a Scotchman. 

8839. Q. To which political i)arty did these men belong who sent them 
doAvn I 

A. To the reqiublican party. 

8840. Q. These men aaRo furnished the* money and sent them down— 
were they republicans ? 

A. Yes, sir. I call Colonel Young the second republican of this toAvn; 
Judge Wilkin is the first. Colonel Young, I belieA^e, is a revenue officer 
under Judge Wilkin, who is a United States officer. 

8841. Q. Know anything further ? 

A. I only know that some of the men didn’t vote, because they were chal¬ 
lenged Avhen they went to be registered. That was here. Some of them 
voted at a place called Milo, in the town of Wawanda. 

8842. Q. mat ticket did they vote? 

A. The republican ticket. There a man by the name of S. B. Brins- 
maid swore them in; but here some of them were challenged. 

8843. Q. Ho you know of any other fraudulent votes being gUen here ? 
TeU only what you know of your own knowledge. 

A. Well, they supposed that I was a republican. I didn’t let anybody 
know I was not. They kneAV that I knew all the strangers. In fact they 
sent for me and gave me instructions to find all that I could. I had 
been a manager for a long time. 

Middletoavn, Orange County, Keav York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Edward Southaatell sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross : 

8843J. I voted at the last presidential election; voted the republican 
ticket; am a foreigner; born in England; have been in this country for 
six years; procured my naturalization papers on the IGth of October, 
1868. 


780 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YOKK. 


8844. Q. Had you ever made your original declarations ? 

A. Yes, sir, at New York. 

8845. Q. When? 

A. I can’t just say when it was, but about two years ago. 

8846. Q. You have been in the country five years ? 

A. Yes, sir. Am 35 years old. 

8847. Q. Where did you get your first papers ? 

A. At New York. 

8848. Q. Are you sure that you ever had any first papers ? 

A. I won’t tell a lie. I didn’t. 

8849. Q. Never got your first papers ? 

A. No, I never did. 

8850. Q. Then you were an illegal voter, were you ? 

A. I suppose so. I don’t understand anything about it. 

8851. Q. You never made your application for papers until last fall ? 
A. No, sir. 

8852. Q. Do you know of any other illegal votes given here ? 

A. No, sir. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Patrick Tyrsel sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss. 

To Mr. Boss: 

8852J. I was furnished naturalization papers by the republican party. 
Have been in this country about four years next fall, as near as I can 
tell. Am 36 years old. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

William J. Southwell sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 
To Mr. Boss: 

8852|. I reside in Middletown, at the brewery; voted at the last presi¬ 
dential election; voted the republican ticket; am a foreigner j born in 
England ; have been in the country about six years. 

8853. Q. Have you ever got your naturalization papers ? 

A. I got my papers. I don’t know what they were. 

8854. Q. Did you ever make any application to become a citizen of the 
United States ? 

A. No, sir. 

[Witness produced papers dated the 20th of October, 1868.] 

8855. Q. Who procured that paper for you ? 

A. I don’t know, sir; it was left at the.brewery. 

8856. Q. Did you go into court and procure it ? 

A. No, sir; never went into court; didn’t understand anything about 
it. The brewery is owned by one republican and one democrat. Do not 
know of any other illegal votes being cast. I voted the straight repub¬ 
lican ticket. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

George Egleston sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss : 

8856J. Live in Middletown. I saw money used to control votes at the 
last presidential election here. I was offered money myself to vote the 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


781 


republican ticket. There were prominent politicians stopped me in the 
morning and offered me a set of republican tickets, and asked me if I 
would vote them ? I told one of them that he knew what my politics 
were as well as I did. He said he didn’t care anything about poUtics; 
nobody cared anything about politics now-a-days. I said that it would 
not pay me to vote that ticket. He said that he would make it pay me, 
and asked me what I wanted to vote that ticket? I replied tliat 1 didn’t 
want anything; I didn’t want to vote the ticket. He said, I will make 
it all right for you; I will do something for you.” I asked him what he 
would do ? He asked me if I wanted him to lend me some money"? I 
said he could lend me some if he wished. He wanted to know how much 
I wanted to vote that ticket? That was another thing; I was not going 
to set any price. He asked me how much money I wanted him to lend 
me? I told him he could lend me $25 if he wanted to. He said he 
would get me $5 if I wanted it. He said, “If you will take these tickets 
and go and vote I will get you $5.” I took the tickets and went off. A 
person told me that he had been sent to see if I voted the tickets; he 
went back, and what he told him I don’t know. Later in the day I 
stopped at this man’s house, and there was a man came in and says to 
him, “I must have some money; I am spending my own money and I 
want some money to use.” So Mr. Sweet gave him some money, and I 
was standing near and he gave me a dollar; of course I took the dollar. 
It was Halsted Sweet who gave the money; he worded it to “lend” me 
the money, and said that he would do something for me beside. He is a 
republican. 

8857. Q. Ho you know of any other money being paid or offered? 

A. I know men that got money on that day. I saw the money, and 
was told by them that it was given them to vote. I was told by the same 
man that he was to have $25 if he voted the ticket; I know that he was 
called upon in the shop by republicans; on the next day he showed me 
$15 that I know he did not have 15 minutes before; he said that Mr. 
Madden gave it to him; I know that he gave it to him. Mr. Madden 
was the republican candidate for assemblyman for this district. He asked 
me to vote for him in the morning, and I told him that I could not do it. 
He said if I would vote for him he would make it all right with me. He 
didn’t offer me any money, because I told him I would not vote for him. 
I do not know of any more cases. 

Middletown, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Keuben C. Miller sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

8857J. I know that fraudulent means were used to control the elective 
franchise here at the last presidential election. I know that money was 
used. I took money from the republican party and voted that ticket. 
I think Mr. Madden used money. He was running for assemblyman. 
I received money from him. Don’t know of any other parties using 
money. Yes, I got a little money at Mr. Sweet’s, but it was not exactly 
on this thing. He offered to get me some money to vote the republican 
ticket, but I didn’t take it. I was going for a bigger stake. I know 
Charles Gillett. He was the one who came to me first and wanted me 
to vote. I didn’t get any money from him, but it was through him 
that I got it from Madden. He asked me if I would vote that ticket. 
I told him no. He said Madden would make it right with me, so I went 
and saw Madden. Sweet, Gillett and Madden were republicans. That 
is all that I know of it. 


782 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN. NEW YOEK. 


Middletown, Oranoe County, Few York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Chauncey Garrison sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss : 

^ 8857|. I do not know of money having been used to procure votes at 

the last presidential election. I did not receive money for my vote. I 
received money on election day, which I always do. The money was 
given to me to use my influence at the election. I was acting Avith the 
party that had the uiost money. I electioneered with my own party— 
the republican party. 

8858. Q. Did yon Yote the republican ticket? 

A. That’s my business. 

8859. Q. Did you electioneer with the republican iiarty ? 

A. I did. You don’t suppose that I would electioneer for it and not 
vote for it. 

8860. Q. How much did you get ? 

A. Election day I got, well, including all, perhaps I got $3. There 
was no money given me for election purposes before election. The 
money was given me by James Post. He is a republican. I know 
Joseph Crawford. He did not give me any money. Do not know of 
any money being given besides this, more than hearsay. There are always 
exaggerations on that day. I did not i)romise to vote the republican 
ticket Avhen they gave me the money. They knew how I Avould Amte. 
They merely gaA^e it as a sort of brace for old times among the boys. 

Middletown, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Joseph Johnson, (colored,) sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

8860J. I voted at the last x>residential election. Voted the Union 
ticket—the republican ticket—for Grant and Colfax. I don’t know 
exactly hoAV much my property is, I think about one-half an acre they 
call it. Have no deed for it. Hold it under an article or contract. 
Bought the property of Walter McCord. The contract is held by Chas. 
G. Dill. I don’t knoAv how much I have jiaid on it. I agreed to giA^e 
for it $800. There is a house on it. Think I have paid on the contract 
about $300. Paid $20 when the contract Avas first made. The contract 
was made in the spring of 1866. My father-in-laAV and myself bought 
the property together, and were to pay for it in monthly payments of 
$12 iier month, $6 a month apiece. Have not paid eA^ery month. Think 
the payments Avere endorsed on the contract. My father-in-law has not 
kept his paid up. Do not knoAV that the contract has been forfeited for 
non-payment. Have not paid anything in the neighborhood of a year. 
The contract was made in 1866, the 11th of April. Do not knoAV how 
many payments I haA^e made. HaA^e paid about the interest from April 
1st, 1867. I liaA'e got the receipts that aa ere giA^en for payments I made 
and the old man has got his. The contract Avas made Ai)ril 11th, 1866. 
Paid $6 a month for the first year and didn’t pay regular after that. 
My father-in-laAv’s name is James Gale. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


783 


Middletown, Oranoe County, NTew York, 

Fehruary 2, 1809. 

George Briggs sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

8860j. T reside down in Water street, Middletown; have lived there 
eight years the last day of last year; am a foreigner, from Yorkshire, 
England; have got my naturalization papers, I sni)pose; got my first 
papers down at Goshen, two years ago the 27th of last October, at the 
office of Moses D. Stivers, comity clerk, at that time. Got my second 
liapers at Yew York, on the 20th of last October; got them in court; 
was sworn before the judges there, but would not swear to what they 
wanted me to; there was another man swore for me, I suppose; I would 
not swear false for any man. 

8861. Q. Were yon entitled to yonr papers? 

A. I suppose not, I would have been in seven days. I got my first 
liapers on the 27th of October, two years ago, and this was the 20th of 
October last; they were not due until the 27th; the man that swore for 
me as my witness did not know me; if I had been aware of that, he 
would not have done it; I got the papers, but I don’t know how; I 
refused to swear to ivhat they wanted me to. 

8862. Q. Who was it that swore for you? 

A. I didn’t, know the witness that swore for me, nor he didn’t 
know me. I did not know anything about it until they got me into it. 

8863. Q. Who got you to go down to Yew York for these papers? 

A. Well, Colonel Young and Joseph Crawford, those are the tivohead 
men who got me to go dovui and get the papers. I believe Mr. Crawford 
stood for the fare; he didn’t give me the money; Mr. Young gave me 
the money, but I believe he collected it from Crawford; Mr. Young gave 
it to me the night before I went. I do not know who paid for the papers; 
I did not pay anything. Mr. Young was down there; Mr. Crawford and 
Mr. Young are republicans, I suppose, or they would not have got me 
to go down there; they got me to go down and paid my expenses; I 
voted the republican ticket all through. 

Middletown, Orange County, Yew York, 

February 2, 1869. 

JAjVIES Fitz Gibbon sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Boss.) 

To Mr. Boss: 

8863J. I reside in Wickham avenue, Middletomi; was 22 years of age 
in Ilecember; have lived in this country five years next June. 

8864. Q. Have you been naturalized? 

A. I went to Yew York last Yovember to get my naturalization papers. 

8865. Q. Where did you get them? 

A. At the City Hall they Avere supposed to be got. 

8866. Q. Hid you go into court ? 

A. I Avas in the court, but I didn’t get my papers in there. I aa ent up 
town on business, and Avhen I came back there 1 got my papers; they 
had been taken out while I was down around toAvn; I did not make 
application in court myself. Could not tell who got me to go to Yoav 
Y ork; Jo. Crawford went with me. I Avas going to Goshen for them 
some time ago, but I Avas told that I could get them for nothing and 
save $1 50. Colonel Young came down that day on the noon train. I 
could not tell how I got my papers; I went on business up toAvn; the 
papers Avere handed me Avhen 1 came back by a strange man, and who 
he Avas I do not know. The rest might liaAX been in court. I did not 


784 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


take notice how many Crawford and Young took down at tluit time; | 

think it was about six or seven. They said that was the last day, but I 
found out different afterwards. I did not have any witness; there was | 
a man there who signed for me; I do not know whether he knew me or 
not. I did not swear at all; they said that any man could get his papers. 
Do not know of any money being used; I woidd not take aiiy; didn’t 
want it. I do not know whether the otlier men’s fare was paid or not; 

I was not acquainted with any of them until I went down there. I saw 
Crawford and he told me where to go, and I went there; I got the papers 
at the place Crawford told me; went up town on business and when I 
came back my jiapers were given to me. Do not know where it was I 
got the papers; it was right opposite an engine house; they said it was 
the democratic headquarters. I voted at the last presidential election; 
voted the democratic ticket. These men who took me down were repub¬ 
licans, and wanted me to vote that way. They said they got the papers 
at the democratic headquarters. 

Middletown,, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 18G9. 

TifOMAS Butcher sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: 

8860^. I reside in Middletown; have lived here, I think, nearly six 
years, or five and a half, and eight or nine years in Elmira. Voted at 
the last presidential election ) voted the republican ticket, straight. 
Was aided in getting fraudulent naturalization papers by the foreman 
of the rolling mill, Jo. Crawford; he is a republican. He took me down 
to New York into a naturalization office at the City Hall. Then we went 
to a lager-beer saloon, and a man came in and gave several of us our 
papers j I guess seven or eight of us. Did not go into any court at all. 

I paid my expenses and then he handed it back to me; this republican 
gave it back to me. These men were mostly republicans; several of 
them were; I cannot say they all were. I never took out any first papers. 

I went to Mr. Sweet once, but he said that he could do nothing in it, but 
so many Avere getting their papers I thought I might as well get mine. 
They said that I could get both of my papers at once. He said that was 
a genuine paper; there was the New York seal on it and that made it 
genuine. There must have been eight of us; they all voted that I was 
acquainted with. I think two or three of them went before the judge; 
they told me so. Mr. Robinson told me that the papers could be got all 
right—Mr. Robinson, of the brewery. He was the first one who spoke 
to me about it. I said that there were plenty in this town who kneAV I 
did not have my first papers; he said that did not make any difference. 

I was twenty-six years old when 1 came to this country. Mr. Robinson 
is a republican. I was acquainted with Hirst; he was one who went 
down Avith us; he got his papers out at MiddletoA\ui by the democrats; 
he could not get them by the republicans, but A^oted the republican 
ticket. He told me to keep cool. I think he was entitled to his papers, 
according to Avhat others told me. Do not know of any money i)aid for 
Amtes. 

Middletoavn, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Walter L. McCord sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Ross.) 

To Mr. Ross: % 

88663. I have a contract with a couple of colored men named James 
Gale and Joseph Johnson; it is an article of agreement. I sold them 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


785 


the property for $800; they were to pay $12 per month ; they failed to 
fulfil the agreement and thus forfeited the contract, I suppose; they 
have no deed for it. Do not know exactly what amount they have paid; 
about $150 altogether, the two together. The sale was made two years 
ago last April—18G0. They paid regular for a few months. I told Mr. 
Dill some time ago that they were hardly paying the interest, but as 
they were not letting the place run down to let them stay there. Do 
not think they have any claim upon any other property; they have told 
me they had not, when I asked them for payments which they could not 
fulfil. I told Dill at the time that they had no right to vote. 

Middletown, Orange County, IS^ew York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Jarvis E. Wood sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

8867. Q. I will ask you to state if you know of any frauds being per¬ 
petrated to improperly control the election last tall, by money or other¬ 
wise. 

A. I do not know anything about other folks^ business. 

8868. Do you know of any yourself? 

A. I had some given me, but whether it was on the old debt or not I 
could not ascertain. I never have been to him since. 

8869. Q. When was it given ? 

A. It was given on election day, but I asked for the money. 

8870. Q. How much was given you ? 

A. Four dollars. It was given to me by Mr. Aladden. He was owing 
me, and whether he calculated to make me a present of it or not I do 
not know; 1 have not seen him since; it was given after I voted. He 
was going home and I asked him for some money. He said: “Don’t 
bother me now.” I said I must have some money, and he gave me $4, 
and that was all he paid. That is all the money 1 got. Do not know of 
my boys being given any. Do not know of boots being given anybody. 
I know there was boots carried home that night. I heard they were 
given for votes—I do not know. A pair was taken from the new brick 
store opposite the hall where the polls Avere. The place Avas kept by a 
man from Noaa^ York or Connecticut; he did not live in this section a 
great Avhile. I Amted the re])ublican ticket. I liaA^e some boys that are 
voters—Jarvis Wood, jr., and Morton Wood. They Amted the republican 
ticket, I belieA’^e; they alAA ays liaA^e voted that way; I don’t knoAv of their 
getting anything for voting; the youngest had a pair of boots—do not 
know Avho gave them to him ; he had them election day; I guess he bar¬ 
gained for them that day, and I carried them home the next day ; don’t 
know of any money being paid to them. 

Middletown, Orange County, Neav York,, 

February 2, 1860. 

Joseph Eith sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.). 

To Mr. Eoss: 

88704. I know of some men who got money for votes at the last pres¬ 
idential election here. One man was Jacob Ware, and another Christian 
nibble. They told me that they got money, and I am told that some 
others got money from the same man. 1 do not say that for sure. Jacob 
Ware told me that he got money, and Christian Hibble told me that he 
got money too, from Mr. Sweet, 

50 T 


786 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8871. Q. Did you see Mr. Sweet pay anybody any money? 

A. I did not say that. 

8872. Q. Is that all yon know about it ? 

A. That is all I know about that matter. I know that Jacob Ware 
hi not have any right to vote at all. 

^873. Why? 

A. He never had his citizen’s paper. 

8874. Q. Do yon know what ticket he voted ? 

A. He voted the republican ticket. 

8875. Do yon know of any more such cases ? 

A. I know some more, but I cannot prove it. I would not swear to it. 
Two others. They voted the republican ticket too. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 18G9. 

Lewis E. Carr sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

887G. I reside near Port Jervis. I am by profession a lawyer. I was 
present on the 28th of September, at the opening of the fall term of the 
county court at Newburgh. The court opened about 11 o’clock in the 
morning. There were a great many people there to be naturalized. The 
court-room seemed to be nearly half full, and they created so much con¬ 
fusion aud disturbance that they could do very little business. The clerk 
appointed a deputy clerk to go into another room, and take off some por¬ 
tion of this crowd with him. He afterwards, I think, appointed two 
others to go off' in different rooms outside the court-room, to issue these 
papers and take the affidavits. Then about half-past 12, the business of 
the court being about over, the judge came down and whispered to the 
clerk. I was standing close to the desk, as I wanted he should file some 
papers for me. He whispered to the clerk and said: “If you do not see 
me in court, the court is open all the same.” He did not come back again 
until after two o’clock. They went on and took the affidavits. Instead 
of reading the affidavits ov^er to them, they simi:)ly called up a man, and 
wanted to know where his witness was. Told him to hold ip) his hand, 
and then said: “ Do you swear this affidavit is true?” The papers were 
then issued. After a time one of the deputy clerks came back and organized 
an office right in the bar, and he took the affidavits in this way: “Do you 
swear this affidavit is true?” and then issued the papers upon that. They 
continued that for nearly an hour after the judge went away. One of the 
deputy clerks then spoke to the clerk and told him that he thought it 
would perhaps be better to take no more affidavits until the judge came 
back. He asked if the court was adjourned; I told him I did not know 
whether it was or not—that the judge was gone. I think I was the only 
one there except those waiting to be naturalized. I was waiting to have 
some papers filed that afternoon. In some cases the deputies used their 
own names, signing them as deputy clerks. I think this was done in 
nearly every case I saw. 

8877. Q. Is there any authority of law for the appomtment of such 
deputies ? 

A. There is authority for the county clerk to appoint a deputy clerk 
to act in his absence or in case of sickness. There is no other authority 
that I know of. 

8878. Q. Was this clerk there all the time, himself ? 

A. He was there taking affidavits and issuing ])apers all the while. 

8879. Q. Did you see an examination made of any of these applicants 
or their witnesses by the judge in person ? 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


787 


A. I did not. 

8880. Q. How many should you think were naturalized while you were 
there? 

A. It would be very difficult for me to tell. I should say that there 
were at least 100 . 

8881. Q. Who was judge of the court? 

A. Thomas George. 

8882. Q. What was the name of the clerk of the county court! 

A. Lewis Cudderback. 

8883. Q. This I understood you to say was the county court ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 the September term of the county court. They had an ad¬ 
journed term of the county court at Goslien on the 19 th of October, at which 
they did not appoint any special deputy clerk, but the deputy clerk kept 
in a separate room from the court-room and issued papers. 

8884. Q. Were you present when that was being done? 

A. I was; the affidawts were signed, and they were told to hold 
up their hands and swear the affidavit was true; the pai>ers were then 
issued; the deputy clerk signed them as deputy clerk; I do not know 
that he did in all instances, but he did in some. 

8885. Q. The judge was not present at all? 

A. Yo, sir; the court was being held in another room up stairs. 

8886 . Q. Hid these persons go into the court at all ? 

A. Ko, sir; and that was the same as took i)lace at Yewburgh, where 
these special deputy clerks acted; they were notin the courtroom at all; 
some of them were down stairs, and some up stairs. 

8887. Q. Hid you see the certificates issued in any of these cases? 

A. I merely glanced at them ; they Avere issued under the seal of the 

court, just the same as ordinary certificates, the only difterence being 
their being signed by the deputy clerk as deputy clerk. Those that Avere 
issued at Newburgh AA^ere signed by the clerks, as special deputy clerks. 

8888 . Q. Tlie papers you speak of Avere the final papers authorizing 
the party to vote ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 2, 1860. 

Patrick Kelly SAVorn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8880. I reside at Port Jervis, and haA^e for the last 20 years; I voted 
at the last election on naturalization papers that I have had for 13 or 14 
years; I got them in Goshen. 

8800. Q. Hid you know of any naturalization papers being sent here 
for other persons last fall, preAnous to the election, coming from New 
York, or anywhere else? 

A. A friend of mine whom I had known in this country for some eight 
or ten years went west, and he Avrote me requesting me to certify that 
he had been in the country so many years; that certificate I made and 
sent him. I do not knoAV of any persons in this neighborhood fur¬ 
nishing naturalization papers; nor did I hear of any personhaA ing such. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 2, 1860 

Owen Bowhen sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8801. I reside at Port Jervis, and liaA^e for 12years; I did not Yote at 
the last election; I AA^as naturalized over four years ago; 1 do not kiio v 


788 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


anything of any arrangements being made last fall before the election 
to furnish naturalization pai)ers to persons here; I never had any such 
pa])ers in my possession for any person; I know a Mr. Tracey; I never 
received any such paper from him; I don’t know of any such i)apers 
being in the hands of anybody for distribution. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, Keav York, 

February 2, 18G9. 

John McGuyen sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

8892. I reside at Port Jervis, and have for over two years. 1 did not 
A ote at the election last fall; I had my naturalization papers at that time; 
I do not remember exactly the time when I got them, but a short time 
before the election I got tliem here in town, but cannot tell from whom. 
I have not the paper now; I burnt it; I burnt it because I did not think 
it was just. I have no idea who gave me the paper. After I had been 
to be registered, I had the paper perused by a friend of mine, as I 
cannot read, and finding it was not proper, I destroyed it. The man 
Avho read it to me is named Nicholas Corniclas, a carpenter by trade. 
He lives in Port Jervis. The paper was not right in that my name was 
Avrong;' and there were a great many things in it that I did not know 
anything about. I burnt the x)aper and did not offer to A^ote on it. I 
think my friend read it to me as coming from New York city, but I 
(cannot say positively. I presented the paper to the registration board 
before I destroyed it, and was registered on it. They allowed the paper 
Avas right enough; but they did not read it to me. I did not kuoAV of 
any person having such pajicrs that any one could get. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 2, 1869. 

James Gilmarton sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8892I reside in Port JerAus, and haA^e for 16 years. I did not vote 
at the last election. I obtained my papers last fall in New York city. 
I Avent down and got them at the City Hall. It was in the afternoon 
Avlien I went there. I could not tell what time exactly. I could not tell 
Avhat court it was. There were a great many people there getting their 
naturalization papers. I am not aware that naturalization papers from 
New York were supplied here to any persons who Avanted them. 

Port Jervis, Orange Cout^ty, Neav York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Bichard Tracy sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8892f. I reside at Port Jervis, and liaA^e for the last fiA^e or six years. 
I am a baker by trade. I was (piite active here in the political campaign 
last fall. 

8893. Q. Do you know whether there were any arrangements in regard 
to tlie procuring of naturalization papers during that campaign for such 
as miglit want them? 

A. I believe tliere was. 

8891. Q. Did any such i^apers come to you? 

A. They did. 

8895. Q. Will you state all the circumstances about it? 

A. Well, as near as I can remember, about a week or ten days before 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


789 

the election I received a letter^ whether there was a signature to it or 
not I cannot tell, notifying me that I would receive a box, with some 50 
or GO odd naturalization papers for parties in our toAvn; I was not to 
knoAv any of these men, but they were to call there. I was to leave the 
box in some conspicuous place where they could get the papers. Other 
parties were to instruct them where and how to get them. All the 
papers were called for and taken except 14 or 17. 

8896. Q. What did you do with the box when it came? 

A. I stuck it behind the counter in a case. 

8897. Q. Was it left open there? 

A. Yes, sir. There was a cover on it—on the back. It Avas a cream 
tartar box. IVheneAW I saw a person coming whom I had reason to 
suspect was coming to get one of these papers, I would get out of the 
way, so as not to get too closely implicated in the matter. 

8898. Q. Were the names already inserted in these papers? 

A. I believe they were. I did not examine the whole of them, but 
they were of such as I looked at. 

8899. Q. 1 understand you to say that they were all taken from the 
box that stood there except 14 or 17 ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8900. Q. What became of those? 

A. I burned them. 

8901. Q. Would it be possible for you to produce one of that batch of 
papers ? 

A. I do not know but that I liaA^e one around the house. 

8902. Q. Will you endeavor to find it, and let the committee have it 
before we go away? 

A. I have not the slightest objection to giAung you the paper if I can 
find it. 

8903. Q. Do you remember Avhether this letter which came to you was 
dated in a particular place? 

A. I could not say. I did not take particular notice. If I remember 
correctly it was in the same handAvriting as that of the signature to the 
paper. That is my impression. 

8904. Q. Do you remember where those papers purported to be issued 
.—whether in NeAV York city, or not? 

A. I could not say. 

8905. Q. Did you preseiwe the letter? 

A. I belieA^e I put itiuAvith the naturalization papers, and burnt them 
all together. 

8906. Q. Do you know of any jAarticular persons Avho receh^ed those 
papers ? 

A. I do not know as I doj I have seen some parties going in and out 
of the house, but I could not say Avhether they took the papers or not. 
I always walked out of the back door Avhen I saAV parties coming whom 
I suspected of coming to get any of these papers. 

8907. Q. Do you knoAV who it Avas that gave them information, or was 
to giA^e them information as to Avhere they aa ere to get the papers and hoAv ? 

A. No, sir. 

8908. Q. How did the box come? 

A. I think it was left at the house by some parties; I think somefoip 
or five young men came in one night and left it there. I did not find it 
until early in the morning. I get up between 5 and 6 o’clock in the 
morning, as a general thing. 

8909. Q. Do you know Avhat the politics of these persons AA^ere, or 
supposed to be who receWed these papers? 

A. I supposed them to be democrats. 


790 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Port Jervis, Orange Couniw, IS'ew York, 

February 2, 18(>9. 

Burton Brew sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8009rt. I reside at Port Jervis, and have for the last 12 years. I was 
not engaged in the political campaign last fall. I was naturalized, I 
tliink, last October. I got my naturalization papers in NTew York city. 
I got my first papers in New YTork city when I first landed, under age. 
It Avas in the court of common pleas AAdiere I got them. A brothepin- 
hiAv Avho resides there Avent ANuth me, as my Avitness. I was examined 
l>y the court. I Aveiit to New York to get my last papers because I did 
not have anybody here to apply to to go AAdth me as eAudence. His 
name is John Nicholson. He then resided on Monroe street. He is a 
ship carpenter. I do not know of papers from Noav York being furnished 
parties here. I A^oted at the last election. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, New -York, 

Fehruary 2, 18G9. 

T. E. Broadhead sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8909?>. I reside at Port Jeiwis. I hold the position of supeiwisor. I 
did not take any particular part in the last campaign. I do not knoAv of 
any arrangements being made in the toAvn for the purpose of procuring 
naturalization papers for foreign citizens. 1 know of no naturalization 
papers being furnished to persons here Avho did not attend to prociuing 
them for themseHes. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

John Green sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8909c. I reside in Port Jervis. I acted with the democratic party 
during the last campaign. I went with some 12 or 15 persons to Goshen 
to assist them in procuring their naturalization papers. I cannot recall 
their names. 

To Mr. Boss: 

8909J. I supposed all these papers to be legal. They were all signed 
by the county clerk. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, New York, 

February 2, 1869. 

George Broadhead sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Boss: 

8909c. I reside in Port JerAus, and have for the last 13 years. I was 
inspector of the 3d election district of our town last fall. I cannot just 
now call to mind any illegal votes that Avere polled. The creation of a 
iieAv district in the village created some confusion by merfs names being 
registered in the Avroiig district. In registering we inadvertently left olf 
some aaBo should have been registered, and then, again, others were 
registered in the wrong district. I think there were some five or six 
altogether who were alloAved to vote in a different district than that in 
which they were registered, a mistake haA ing been made in the register¬ 
ing. I know I took one or tAvo votes of that kind. One was a democrat, 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


791 


and one a repnhlican. I liave no personal knowledge of any election 
frauds in tlie way of naturalization papers or illegal votes. Tliere were 
t^yo democrats on our boaTxl, and one republican. This was the case also 
with the other district. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, Kew York, 

February 2, 18G9. 

Solomon Van Elon sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Koss: 

8009/. I reside at Port Jervis. I have always lived wdthin a few miles o f 
there. I did not take so active a part in the last political cam])aign as I 
have done in former years. I am a republican. I did not last fall have any¬ 
thing to do with the disbursement of any funds for the republican party. 
Mr. Douglass was the chairman of our county committee. Of the club 
here, I cannot tell who constituted the finance committee. The president 
of the club was Mi;, Wandall, the corresponding secretary. 

Port Jervis, Orange County, New^ York, 

February 2, 1869. 

Mr. St. John SAvorn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8909(7. 1 know Mr. Richard Tracey. The night before election I saw 
in his hands some naturalization papers. They were Avliat Ave call the 

Jarvis papers,’^ all being signed by Justice JarAus. He resides, I think, 
in NeAv York city. He sIioaa ed me tAA o. Another person Avas present 
when he shoAved them to me. He did not state fully hoAV he got them. 
He said they had come into his hands from certain parties. 

George W. Settle SAAmrn and examined. 

To Mr. Ross: 

8909/;. I reside in Port JerAis. I think I know of a couple of illegal 
votes having been polled here at the last presidential election. One was 
that of a man named John Saunders, and the other William Taylor. They 
voted the republican ticket. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8909^. I voted the democratic ticket. Saunders liA^es in Port Jervis, 
^ind has for some seA^en or eight months. I knoAV that Saunders was 
not a legal Amter, because he came out of the State of Noav Jersey some 
three or four months before he Amted. I knew him before he AA^ent to 
NeAv Jersey. Did not knoAv him in the State of Noav Jersey. I did 
not see him after he Avent to NteAV Jersey, in the State, but I saAv him go 
there. He SAvore on election day, AAdien he was challenged, that he came 
from the State of IS^ew Jersey. He was alloAv^ed to a ote. I saw his ticket 
just before he deposited it, and it Avas a republican ticket. I knoAV the 
other man of Avhom I have spoken was an illegal Amter, because he AA^as 
in this county four days short of four months. He Avas challenged, but 
his An)te AAms sworn in; I kncAV he lacked four days of the proper time, 
because I made a memorandum at the time of the day of his arrivjd. I 
don’t know^ AAdiat caused me to make this memorandum; I had no par¬ 
ticular reason for it. I have that memorandum someAA^here at home. I 
made the memorandum in this toA\ n on a piece of blank paper. I have 
it someAAdiere at home I know, for I haA^e looked at it seA^eral times since. 
I don’t knoAA' AAdiy I made this memorandum. I sometimes keep a memo¬ 
randum of affairs in our toAvn. I did not see him the day he came, but 
I saw him the next day—at least he said he had come the day before. 


792 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


WiLMOT M. Vail sworn and examined. 

ToMr. Eoss: 

8900j. I took quite an active part in tlie last campaign in tlie way of 
securing votes, and attending to tlie ordinary business of tlie campaign 
in the district. I did not have the expenditure of any money. 1 gave 
a man some money once to go home to vote, as he was unable to pay 
out of his OAvn pocket. That is all. I never used any for the purpose 
of trying to get votes. I might have expended some in the way of pay¬ 
ing speakers and such like, but nothing fiu’ther. I did not pay anybody 
for their services on election day. 

Georue Frederick Yin all SAvorn and examined. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

89097t'. I took an active part in politics last fall on the republican side. 
I had the disbursement of no funds, nor did I pay out any money for 
election puriAoses. 


Montgoiviery, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 1809. 

John McKee sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

89097. I reside in Montgomery, and have liA^ed in the United States 
about 18 years. I did not vote at the election last fall. I had natural¬ 
ization papers for the piupose of a oting. I got them in Goshen before 
the election—about ten days or so. I made the application in Goshen, 
and they Avere sent to me from there. I got mine through Billy Carroll, 
who liA es at this place. I Avent to Goshen for the puipose of getting the 
papers, but had not time to av ait for them, and so they said they aa ould 
send them to me. When I av ent before the clerk and made my applica¬ 
tion, I did nothing but state how long I had been in the country. I 
signed no paper, nor was I sworn. My OAvn son Avas my Avitness that I 
had been in the country so long; but I cannot tell whether he Avas SAvorn 
or not. I don’t knoAV Avhere the paper is. I think it is lost. I produced 
it when I aa ent to get registered, but they would not register me upon it. 
I do not knoAv whether I saAv the county clerk or not, but I suppose I did. 

Montgomery, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 1809. * 

William Carroll sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8909wl I reside in Montgomery. I liaA^e been in the United States 
oyer 18 years. I know Johu McGne. I aa as with John AIcGue at Goshen 
some ten days or so before the last election aa hen he made application 
for his naturalization i)apers. Neither he nor I got any i)apers that day, 
but there Avere some sent to William McNeal’s for us. I met him one 
day, and he told me there w as a letter at this place for me. I do not 
knoAv whether these papers came by mail, or hoAv they came. I gaA^e 
John McGne his. When I Avent to Goshen I Avent up to the coui*t- 
house and applied for my papers. I do not know aa ho the person was to 
whom I applied, but he said the papers could be sent doAvn. I aa as 
SAvorn, but 1 did not sign any paper. They aa ere too busy. I had no 
witness. I do not know hoAVlong it Avas before I received my papers after 
I went to Goshen. I had had my first papers, but had lost them. I had 
lost them before I w^ent to Goshen. I do not know aa ho the persons Avere 
who told us to go home, and w^e would there receive our i)apers. I did 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


793 


not vote at tlie last election. I attempted to get registered, but they 
would not register me on those papers. I did not tell the board where I 
got this paper. I have not that paper at present. I got on a bust that 
night, and lost it. 

8010. Q. It was in open court that you applied for your papers in 
Goshen, was it not ? 

A. The court was in session. I think it was the first day or so. 

By Mr. Blair : 

Q. If the court was in session, who was it who told you that your 
papers would be sent you ? 

A. I do not know the man. 

8911. Q. Was it the judge? 

A. I do not know. 

8912. Q. How do you know there was a court in session if you did not 
know the judge? 

A. I saw a great many in there, and they said it was the first day. 

Montgoiviery, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 18G9. 

William McNeal sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8912u. I am accpiainted witli John McGue and William Carroll. A 
few days prior to the election last fall, I delivered naturalization papers 
to Billy Carroll. One had his name on the back, and the other had that 
of John McGue. I suppose they were naturalization pai)ers; I never 
read them over. I cannot tell you who it was from whom I received these 
papers. 1 was absent from my place of business when the package was 
left there. Tli.ose in the store did not know who left it there. I opened 
the package and I saw there were two papers in it. From the backs of 
them I knew they were naturalization papers. About two days after I 
received them, Carroll came along and I gave him his, and told him to 
give McGue’s to him. I took some little part in the last political cam¬ 
paign j I acted with the democratic party. I did not notice from Avhat 
court the papers were issued. There was no letter accompanying them, 
nor had I any directions as to what to do with them. Carroll called and 
asked me if any jiapers had been left for him, and I told him yes, and 
also one for McGue who worked for him. I gave them both to him. 

Montgo^iery, Orange County, New York, 

February 3,18G9. 

Anthony Donnegan sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8912/>. I reside in Montgomery. I came from Ireland to this country 
about three years ago. I came from New Y'ork city directly up here. I 
had naturalization papers for the purpose of voting last fall, but did not 
vote. I got them at Newburgh. I could not say who gave them to me. I 
guess it was the court-house at which I got them in Newburgh. I was 
not sworn. I had a friend Avith me Avho knew me. I do not know 
whether he Avas SAA^orn or not. I signed no papers there as I remember. 
I got the paper there and brought it aAvay AAfith me. I aams detained 
there, I could not say how long. I am 22 3 ears old. I did not go to the 
polls at all. I do not know the names of an^^ of the men who gaAX me 
lu}^ papers. 


794 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Montgomery, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 1869. 

'William Titus sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8912c. I was one of the inspectors of election in this district. I was 
l)resent at the board of re^^istration—also on the day of election. I know 
of two persons Avho voted that day wliose names were not on the regis¬ 
try list. Their names were Adrian J. Comfort and Hugh Milligan. They 
Avere both republicans. Milligan voted one ticket—the State ticket— 
and afterwards, discovering that his name was not on the registry list, 
we took the vote out. 

8913. Q. Was that a mere error % 

A. Yes, sir. 

Haaiptonburg, Orange County, New York, 

February 3,1869. 

Thoaias Ellis sworn and exammed. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8913J. I reside in Hami)tonburg. I liave charge of Mr. Backman’s 
farm. Mr. Backman is a merchant in New York in the whiskey trade, 
but has a farm out here AAdiere he breeds horses. During the past season 
there were a considerable number of i)ersons in our employ. I was en¬ 
gaged some little in the political campaign last fall. 1 acted with the 
democratic party. IVIost of those employed Avere foreigners. 

8914. Q. AYas there any arrangement made, to your knowledge, for 
procuring naturalization i)apers for any of them! 

A. They talked a great deal about it. There Avas no arrangement that 
I knoAv of. 

8915. Q. Did you assist any of them yourself in procuring any such 
papers! 

A. Not that I know of 5 anymore than talk about going to Noav York 
for that purpose. Some of them Avent to New York for the purpose, and 
some of them to Goshen. 

8916. Q. Did they talk with you about it before they AA’^ent, any of them! 

A. I presume they did, for it was the general talk about their going. 

I know three or four spoke to me about going such a day to Goshen, and 
Avanted me to make arrangements for their going. 

8917. AVhat reason AA'as giA^en by any of them for going to New York! 

A. I do not kno w that there was any particular reason giA^en, only that 

they wanted to go to Noaa" York tAvice or three times a year, and this 
alforded them an excuse. 

8918. Q. Did you procure any naturalization papers for any of these 
persons yourself! 

A. No, sir. 

8919. Q. Did you see any of the papers that ^yeve procured ! 

A. O, yes, sir. I Avas here at the time of the registry, and I presume 
I saw some of them before the registry. There may have been as many 
as 12 or 13 in my employ AAdio obtained naturalization papers. I can 
remember the names of some of these persons who got their papers, but 
not all of them. They are Kichard Hart, Eichard Levi, Jerry Ford, and 
Matthew Gill. 

8920. Is there a person by the name of James Egan! 

A. Yes, sir. 



795 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 

8921. Matthew Carrigau? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8922. Q. Michael Mulchey? 

A. I do not know. He was a man who came there and staid only a 

short time. I do not know whether he got his papers or not. He 
came there, I think, ahont the 1st day of October, and worked during 
the fall. Since I have come to think ot it, I believe he did go to Goshen. 

8923. Q. Hid you know such a man there as Patrick Corcoran ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8924. Q. Can you state whether any of these persons received papers 
by mail? 

A. I do not know as to that. I bring their mail up when I go to 
Goshen, and lay it by their plates generally. That is, if I knew their 
names; and if I did not, I laid them on the mantel-piece. 

8925. Q. Ho you know where James Egan is now? 

A. No, sir. I think he was there this morning, but still I did not see 
him. I presume he was there to breakfast. When the officer came I 
went out into the yard and into the barns, to look for the men, but I 
could not find them. 

8926. Q. Ho you know where Carrigan is? 

A. No, sir. 

8927. Q. Is he living there now? 

A. Yes, sir. He was there this morning. I think he was. 

8928. Q. How about Corcoran? 

A. Corcoran, I suppose, was there this morning, but still he was not 
there at breakfast when the farm hands came in. 

8929. Q. How was it about Gill? 

A. He left in the fall, when the work closed up. 

8930. Q. Was there an attemj)t to find these men to subpoena them 
this morning? 

A. Yes, sir ; but most of them had gone. 

8931. Q. Hid you learn, either from these persons or otherwise, whether 
they received papers that were delivered to them without their going to 
get them themselves? 

A. No, sir. I have heard them talk about such things. 

8932. Q. Will you state whether or not it was understood that natur¬ 
alization papers could be procured by sending for them at any place? 

A. I had heard so. 

8933. Q. Where did you hear they could be obtained? 

A. I supposed from what I heard that they could be obtained almost 
anywhere where they were authorized to furnish them. 

8934. Q. Hid a gentleman come to see you from Goshen last night? 

A. Yes, sir; a Mr. Heming, I think it was. He came to tell me that 

oim town committee was going to meet at this place last night, and I 
came here to meet thejii. 1 Avas on that committee. It is a democratic 
town committee. He did not tell me for what purxiose they were going 
to meet. I asked him, but he said he didn’t know. I came here, but met 
nobody but Mr. Crist. Nothing was said to me about the presence of 
the committee from CongTess. I spoke to him about it. He said that 
was not the committee. 

8935. Q. Hid you go with any of those persons to Goshen to obtain 
their papers ? 

A. Now, I could not tell, they ride with me so often when I go. They 
might have rode down Avith me, but I did not go doAm with them to the 
place. 

8936. Q. Ho you know whether any persons in this toAAm had fraudu¬ 
lent naturalization papers at the last election? 


796 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. No, sir. 

8937. Q. Was there any business done at the meeting of the com¬ 
mittee last night? # 

A. No, sir, not that I know of. It was not called to order. 

8038. Q. Were yon not informed at all that the committee would 
examine witnesses in this town to-day ? 

A. No, sir, not until this morning. 

8939. Q. Did you know how long James Egan had been in this country ? 

A. No, sir, but I think he has been with us for four years this spring. 

8940. Q. How long have you knoAvn Carrigan? 

A. He has been with us two years, I think. Corcoran has been vdth 
us two years. Gill, I think, has worked there every summer for four 
summers. He comes in the spring and works until fall, and goes to New 
York and stays the viuter. 

Cross-examined by Mr. Ross: 

8941. Q. You may state what you know about any frauds being per¬ 
petrated upon the elective franchise at the presidential election last tall, 
or any attempts to do so. 

A. Let me understand you. An attempt is a fraud. I do not know 
as I am aware of but one instance of the kind. Mr. Dennison, our late 
sherift', and Mr. Crist, came to my house one night and offered me great 
inducements. He says, in the presence of Mr. Crist and myself, that if 
you would do so and so we could make $1,000 apiece. They would give 
us $15 apiece for the first 30, and $25 apiece for all over that number. 
Mr. Dennison said he woidd send the tickets down to us—Mr. Crist and 
myself. 

8942. Q. Who is Mr. Crist ? 

A. Yirgil Crist, keeper of a hotel. 

8943. Q. What is his politics ? 

A. Democrat. 

8944. Q. Is Mr. Dennison a republican ? 

A. He wanted to get our votes for Mr. Madden, who was running as a 
republican candidate .for the assembly. 

8945. Q. He tried to buy who ? 

A. He came to see Mr. Crist first, and Mr. Crist came to my house 
with him. He came into our sitting-room, and said to me, “ Mr. Crist 
will do so and so if you will.” Said I, “I have always been a democrat, 
but I like money.” I do not know what may tempt me. The devil sends 
the tempter to almost everybody. He went on to say you can make 
$1,000 a year. 

8946. Q. Is there anything further that you know of about money being 
paid, or offered, to control election ? 

A. Dennison called on me twice afterwards on the same subject. 

By Mr. Blair : 

8947. Q. What did Mr. Dennison wish you to do in return for the 
amount of money you say he was going to pay you ? 

A. To control these votes that we could control. 

8948. Q. To control them in whose favor ? 

A. For Mr. Madden. 

8949. Q. What was Mr. Madden rimning for ? 

A. For member of the assembly. 

8950. Q. The consideration of this was votes to be controlled for Mr. 
Madden, and not for the ticket ? 

A. Yes, sir. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 797 

8951. Q. Were you able to control these votes of which you have 
spoken f 

A. I do not know. I think I could control a great many of them. 
The impression had got abroad among the Catholics that his oi)ponent 
had been a Know-nothing; and if I had just said the word that he had 
been a Know-nothing I could have taken these votes from him. We had 
at that time from 28 to 30 men. 

Hamptonburg, Orange County, Kew York, 

Fehriiary 3, 1869. 

Eichard Levi sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair ; 

8951«. I reside at Stony Ford^ and have for three years. I came to 
the United States in April, 1852. 1 had naturalization papers, and voted 
at the last election. I got them in the city of Kew York about the 15th 
of October. I obtained them in the superior court. I di<l not go to Kew 
York for the purpose of getting my papers, but went to see the doctor 
there. I liave my paper here. (Paper produced, and found to be dated 
October 15, 1868.) I have also my army discharge here. I was dis¬ 
charged in 1856. The court was in session at the time I got my papers. 
I did not have any witness; nor did I sign any papers. I am employed 
as hostler at Mr. Backmaifs. Mr. Ellis is the foreman. I do not know 
of any person except Hugh Hart who obtained his papers in the same 
way I did. 


Hamptonburg, Orange County, Kew York, 

February 3, 1869. 

Thomas Moore sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8951&. I reside at Washingtonville. I came to the United States in 
1861. I voted the democratic ticket at the last election. I got my nat¬ 
uralization papers on the 19th or 20th of October. I got them in Goshen. 
(Witness produces his certificate, signed “ C. G. Elliott, special clerk.”) 
I voted upon this paper. George Price was my witness. 

Hamptonburg, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 1869. 

Kobert Unswarth sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8951c. I reside in Hamptonburg. I came here from England, in 1855. 
I was naturalized at the last court in Goshen, just before election, about 
two weeks. My discharge paper was my witness. I had no other wit¬ 
ness, though if necessary I could have got any quantity. I was sworn 
at the time I got my papers; and also signed a declaration. I know 
Jeremiah Foley. He is in Ireland. 1 first knew of his being here last 
spring. I think he voted in this town, but I am not sure. I voted the 
democratic ticket. I do not know what ticket he voted. Foley is a 
brother-in-law of mine. I do not know of my own knowledge whether 
he had any naturalization papers, or not. I think he returned to Ireland 
about three weeks before Christmas. 

(Witness produces his naturalization paper, dated 19th day of Octo¬ 
ber, 1868, and signed L. Cuddenbach, clerk.) 


798 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Hamptonburg, Orange County, jSTew York, 

February 3, 1869. 

James H. Jackson sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8951J. I am not an officer. I this morning made an attempt to siib- 
pcena some persons at the house wliere Mr. Ellis resides. The names of 
those persons are: MichaelMulchey, AVilliam Jiidson, Patrick Corcoran, 
Matthew Carrigan, Matthew Gill, James Egan, Fred. Ellis, Bichard 
Levi. I subpoenaed three of them, William Judson, Bichard Levi and 
Fred. Ellis. I did not subpoena others, because I could not find them. 
They said they were not there. They worked there, but they did not 
happen to be there just at the time. 1 looked about the place for them, 
but could not find tliem. 

Yirgil Crist sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Boss: 

8951e. I reside at Hamptonburg, and have for some 11 or 12 years. 

8952. Question. I will get you to state if you know of any attempt to 
control the presidential election last fall by the purchase of or offer to 
])urchase votes ? 

Answer. Mr. Dennison, of Goshen, came dovni here three times; he want¬ 
ed to know if Mr. Ellis and I could not secure some votes for Mr. Madden; 
I think in the first place he wanted to know of me if he could not buy 
them for five dollars aifiece; we would have nothing to do with it. Then, 
I believe, lie ofiered $10 apiece. I went down with Mr. Crist to Mr. 
Ellis’s, and had a talk there one night. He said that if we would get 
30 votes he would give us $15 apiece, and for all over 30, $25 apiece. 
He saj s, “You can make $1,000 apiece if you have a mind to take hold 
of it.” We did not agree to it that night, and we came down again ; he 
asked me what I could do; I told him I could not do it; he went down 
to Mr. Ellis’s to see him alone; he stopped and came back again to see 
me; he asked me if I could do it; I told him no, 1 would not do it for 
the best farm in Hamiitonburg; that is about all that was said. 

8953. Q. Do you know of any other effort to control the elective fran¬ 
chise by means of barter and trade-money, and anything else ? 

A. I do not in this town. 

8951. Q. Do you know of any illegal votes being polled? 

8955. Q. Did he want you to vote for the whole republican ticket, or 
only for Mr. Madden ? 

A. He sent down some tickets to us the next day; I have not yet 
opened the package; this is one of them; there were four altogether. 

ASSEMBLY. ASSEMBLY. ASSEMBLY. 

For Member of Assembly, For Member of Assembly, For Member of Assembly, 

Edward M. Madden. Edward M. Madden. Edward M. Madden. 

By Mr. Blair : 

8955. Q. Do you keep a hotel, Mr. Crist ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8956. Q. You were acting during the last campaign with the demo¬ 
cratic party ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8957. Q. Were there any arrangements made here, to your knowledge, 
by that party for procuring naturalization papers for foreigners? 

A. I did not hear of any. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


799 


Hajviptonburg, Orange County, New York, 

February 3, 1869. 

James H. Lynn sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Boss: 

8958. I reside in Hamptonbiirg. I had, before the last election, voted 
the democratic ticket, but 1 then voted for General Grant and the whole 
republican party. I know of no one receiving money last fall in connec¬ 
tion with that election; I did not receive any. I know AVilliam Church, 
but he did not give me any money. I was at the house immediately 
before election; I lived with him. I saw neither General Van Wyck 
nor Henry Segar a few days betV)re the election. I was elected consta¬ 
ble last spring as a democrat; I was not promised any money. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Joseph S. Ashurst sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8958J. I reside in Newburgh, and had connection last fall previous to the 
election with the naturalization of foreign citizens here, as clerk in tilling 
out the papers. I acted at the re(piest of the county clerk, Mr. Cudder- 
back. I was not regular deputy clerk, but was merely clerk for tilling 
out the applications. I signed no certiticates. 1 acted as clerk in this 
way, I guess, for all the balance of the term, with the exception of the 
tirst day. Not regularly, of course, but oft and on. The court was sit¬ 
ting for this purpose until, I think, the Friday before the election. It 
commenced on Monday, and I think ended on Friday. There was a large 
number of persons naturalized. The mo/^le of proceeding was this: 
First, as a man came up to the railing, we would ask him his name; he 
would tell ns his name. We would then ask him how long he had been 
in the country: or, if he came under the age of 18, whether he had his tirst 
papers, and all such questions. We had a blank for the ditterent heads. 
If he had his tirst papers for two years—I think it was two years—we 
had another form, and as soon as we got them under the right head we 
would till out the right form, and I would then hand it to a deputy. The 
deputy would swear the man, and after that I did not do anything fur¬ 
ther. The clerk signed the certiticate. I merely acted in the capacity 
of clerk for tilling up the papers. 

8959. Question. Do you recollect anything about a particular case of a 
person who came with Mr. Milspaugh as a witness, and afterwards Avent 
away, bringing another witness 

Answer. No, sir. 

8960. Q. Do you know whether Judge George was a witness upon any 
such paper ? 

A. No, sir. 

8961. Q. You say that after these papers were tilled up by you, they 
were handed to a deputy to swear them. Do you recollect how the oath 
Avas administered 

A. I do not. It was given from a book. Afterwards they got it by 
heart, and did not use the book. 

8962. Q. Were those all made in the form of an affidavit? 

A. There Avas a printed blank. The man was SAvorn that he was a 
citizen of the United States. 

8963. Q. Who Avere the deputies who did the SAvearingof these persons? 

A. There was W. J. Dixon, W. T. ShaAv, Henry Milspaugh, and S. 0. 

Dimick. 


800 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


89G4. Q. Do you know whether or not they were special deputies for 
this purpose ! 

A. Yes, sir. I do not know as to all of them. I saw, I think, two of 
them who got their written authority from the clerk. I saw them write 
it out, and the clerk sign it. 

80G5. Q. Do you recollect which two those were? 

A. I do not. I think one was Milspaugh. The other one I do not 
remember. 

89GG. Q. Was this business done in the court-room ? 

A. In the evenings it was done in the court-room, and in the day-time, 
as it could not, of course, be done in the court-room wliile the court was 
in session, it was done in the petit-jury room—the first room right of the 
court. 

89G7. Q. Do you know whether they did business of this sort in more 
than one room f 

A. Yes, sir. Sometimes the clerk went out and got some papers in 
the other room, but there were no deputies except in one room. The 
deputies were in the jury-room while the court was in session. In the 
e venings, when the court was not in session, they occupied the court room 
sometimes. In the evening, when the court was not in session, the county 
clerk was always with them, and always signed the papers, except Mr. 
Dickson. I believe he used to sign them when the clerk was not there. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Charles Janicky sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

89G7J. I reside in New York. I voted at the election in November 
last in this city. I have been in the country about 18 or 19 years. I 
obtained my naturalization papers previous to the election at the court¬ 
house. I could not tell before what court. Mr. Dimick was there. 
(Witness here produced his paper, which was dated September 29,1868, 
and signed S. E. Dimick, special deputy clerk,^^ with the seal of the 
court.) 

8968. Q. In what room of the court-house did you receive your nat¬ 
uralization papers? 

A. It was up-stairs, turning either to the right or to the left, I don’t 
remember which. 

8969. Q. Do yon know the court room ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 it was a large room. It was not in that. It was in a 
smaller room, turning to the right or left, as you go up-stairs. 

8970. Q. Did you sign any jiaper there? 

A. I signed my name, I think, on paper. 

8971. Q. Were you sworn ? 

A. They did not have time to allow me to sign. They made me put 
my finger on the pen. 

8972. Q. AVhat do you mean by that ? You write your name yourself, 
do you ? 

A. Of course I can. 

8973. Q. But you say you did not sign your name? 

A. No, sir. 

8974. Q. What then was done? Did somebody else sign it for you? 

A. Young Ashhurst made a cross-mark in order to save time, and had 

me put my finger on the pen while he signed that mark. 

8975. Q. Did you have a witness ? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


801 


A. Yes, sir *, a man named Carter. 

8076. Q. Was lie sworn also*? 

A. Yes, sir. 

8977. Q. Was the judge of the court present when these proceedings 
were hadf 

A. I do not know him. I could not tell. 

8978. Q. I understand you to say you do not know who swore you ? 

A. I do not recollect. 

8979. Q. Was there any other business being done in the room except 
this sort of witnesses ? 

A. I could not tell you that. A lot of other men took out their papers 
at the same time. 

8980. Q. Did you see any other business being done there except this 
of making out naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

8981. Q. At what time of day did you come there? 

A. It was in the forenoon. 

8982. Q. Had you ever had any first papers, as it is called, before this ? 

A. My father took his papers out before I came of age. They told me, 

in order to save time, I ought to prove that fact; that I should take my 
papers out, and pay him $1 for doing it. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Patrick O’Brien sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

8982J. I reside at Newburgh. I came originally from Ireland, and 
have been in the country about 18 years. H voted at the election last 
fall. I procured my naturalization x)apers in 1864, in the City Hall, New 
. York. 

8983. Q. Were you present at any time during the naturalizations in 
this city last fall? 

A. Just a little. 

8984. Q. What ticket did you vote ? 

A. The democratic ticket. 

8985. Q. Did you act as a witness for any persons during that time ? 

A. About one or twoj those that I knew. They came from New York 

up here. 

8986. Q. Do you know Pat. Neary ? 

A. Yes, sir; I have known him for about six years. He resides in 
Newburgh now. 

8987. Q. Do you know Edward O’Donohue ? 

A. Not as I know of. 

8988. Q. Do you know Charles Peck ? 

A. No, sir. You know there are a great many Patrick O’Briens in 
town. 

8989. Q. I will read a list of names I have here, and you may state 
then if you know any of them: Charles Peck, Dan Byan, Cornelius 
McLeod, William McMullen, James Canon, Jolin Hick, Robert Fitzger¬ 
ald, John Fogerty, Bernard Dimleary, Pat. Duncan, 

A. I know him. 

8990. Q. Joseph Coleman, James Kavanaugh, James Burke, Thomas 
Rainey, Frank Lowrie, James O’Rourke, James Maher, James McCaffrey. 

A. I know the last two. I do not know whether they are citizens or not. 

8991. Q, James McCaffrey, John Coleman, John Clark, Bernard Carroll, 
John Walsh, Michael Sullivan, Martin Ryan, Richard Peale. 

.51 T 


802 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I know liiin. 

8092. Q. Jolin Monelian, Peter Monelian^ Matthew Moore. 

A. I know the last two. 

8093. Q. Michael Hines, Michael Carey, James Cosgrove, John Hayes. 
A. Yes, sir. 

8904. Q. Michael Eichards, Thomas Priest. 

A. Yes, sir. 

8995. Q. Thomas Stapleton, Hugh Montague, Abraham Garvell, John 
Dougherty. 

A. Yes, sir. 

899G. Q. John Sweeney, Thomas Eyan. 

A. Yes, sir. 

8997. Q. Thomas Purney, Henry O’Yeal, Patrick Flynn, John Condon. 
A. I know only those that I have named. 

8998. Q. Were you a witness in the naturalization of any of those per¬ 
sons that I have named ? 

A. Not to my knowledge. 

8999. Q. You do recollect being at that coimt and having been a wit¬ 
ness for two persons ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9900. Q. Can you name the two you were witness for ? 
x\. James Eyan and Patrick Neary. 

9001. Q. How many Pat. O’Briens do you know f 
A. Five. 

9002. Q. Eelatives of yours, are they ? 

A. No, sir. Three live in one street where I live. Then there are two 
or three more up in the north end of the tovui. 

9003. Q. Where was the lousiness done in the two cases in which you 
were a witness 

A. In the court-room. 

9004. Q. At what time of day 

A. One was about 9 o’clock in the morning, and the other in the after¬ 
noon. 

9005. Q. Was the court in session at the time? 

A. Yes, sir. 


Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 


Charles Eepp sworn and examined. 


To Mr. Blair : 

9005J. I reside in Newburgh. I came from Germany. I did not vote 
at the last election. I received my naturalization papers prior to the 
last election. Iliaven’t them with me; I could not find them. I obtained 
them in the county court this last September. I have been in the United 
States six years. No one went with me as a witness. Mr. Dixon gave 
me my papers. He was one of the clerks. I guess I signed some papers, 
but I do not know. I was not sworn in court. The room in which I 
received my papers was a very small one. I was not in the large room. 

9006. Q. Had you ever had any papers that were called the first 
papers ? 

A. Yes, sir; I got them about three years ago. 

9007. Q. Where did you get them ? 

A. At the court-house, in a large room. 

9008. Q. Do you know the judge of the court ? 

A. I do not knoAv who was the judge there. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


803 


9000. Q. Did you see tlie judge there at all that day 1 
A. I did not know the judge. 

9010. Q. You say no one was with you as a witness ? 

A. 'No, sir. 

9011. Q. What did you do with your first i)aper 3 ? 

A. I did not have them with me. 

By Judge George ; 

9012. Q. Did not Mr. Dixon have you put your hands on the book, or 
raise your hand to tell the truth 

A. No, sir. 

9013. Q. Didn’t somebody go with you to see that they knew you I 
A. No, sir. 

9014. Q. Who took you ui3 there ? 

A. I went ui) alone. 


Newburgh, Orange County, New York. 

February 4, 18G9. 

Samuel Kirk sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9014J. I reside at Newburgh. I voted at the election last fall. I have 
been in this country some 18 or 19 years. I procured my papers at the 
court in this place some time in last September or October. I think I 
got them from Mr. Dixon. (Witness produces his naturalization paper, 
dated October 1, 18G8, and signed Wm. J. Dixon, special deputy clerk, 
with the seal of the court upon it.) 

9015. Q. In what room was you when that paper was granted? 

.A. I went up on a long upper hall. Mr. Dixon sat just oil the left side. 

901G. Q. Do you know whether you was in the court at the time? 

A. O, yes, sir, I was in court, because I know there were folks waiting 
to get their papers. They told me that was the time to get them. There 
were folks waiting to be tried. 

9(U7. Q. Were you sworn? 

A. Yes, sir, by Dixon. My brother was my witness. He lives in the 
city. I voted the democratic ticket. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York. 

February 4, 18G9. 

Edmund Cartler sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9017J. I was born in England, but have been in the country about 
fifteen years. I voted at the last election a split ticket. I was naturalized 
in September. (Witness produced his paper, dated September 28, 18G8, 
and signed Wm. J. Dixon, special deputy clerk.) This certificate was 
granted me in the court-room. I think it was about two or three o’clock. 
The court was in session at the time. There were so many in the court¬ 
room that I could not tell whether or not any part of the business was 
done in another room. The papers were made out, but not signed there. 
They Were signed in the court-room. I camiot think of the name of my 
witness. He was a young felloAV whom I have known for some 12 or 13 
years. I think it was O’Brien. I do not remember O’Brien’s first name. 
He used to be turnkey up at the jail. 


804 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 18G9. 

Nicholas Wilson sworn and examined. 

To Judge CxEORGE; 

9017f. I was one of the inspectors of election for the first ward, at the 
November election. I sat as one of the board of registry during the 
last two days. 

9018. Q. When you was there as register did Matthew Pritchard 
come to get registered? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9019. Q. Had he naturalization papers? 

A. Yes, sir, from the court at Poughkeepsie, 19th October, 1868. 

9020. Q. Did you or the board question him as to his right to vote ? 

A. Yes, sir, Mr. Speer questioned him very closely. 

9021. Q. What did he say as to the date of his being entitled to vote? 

A. He said that his papers were due on the 21st of October from the 

time he got his first papers up to the time when he got his second ones. 

9022. Q. You mean that the two years would not be up after his get¬ 
ting his first papers until the 21st of September? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9023. Q. Did you ask him whether he was present in court when he 
got his papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. Jle equivocated, and would not give me any answer. 

9024. Q. Was he registered? 

A. No, sir. I asked him if he insisted on being registered. As soon 
as I asked him that question he said he Avoidd have no more to do with 
it, and took the papers and put them in his pocket. I asked him if he 
was willing to take an oath that he was present when his papers were 
made out, and he said he had sworn to all he was going to. 

9025. Q. Do you know how long Pritchard has been here? 

A. About three years. 

9020. Q. Then he was not registered, and did not vote? 

A. No, sir. 

9027. Q. Wliat are his politics ? , 

A. He was a republican. I am well acquainted w ith Mr. James Mun- 
ford. He is a democrat. 

9028. Q. Did he take some interest in getting the board to pass some 
men on the morning of election, to vote, who w^ere not entitled to vote ? 

A. That w^as the intimation. 

9029. Q. Of w^hat politics w^re those men ? 

A. Kepublicans. 

9030. Q. Did any other men come to vote, or to be registered, w^ho 
had received their papers in Poughkeepsie ? 

A. Oh, yes, sir; quite a number. 

9031. Q. Can you remember the names of any ? 

A. I cannot remember all of them, although I know most of them. 

9032. Q. Do you know George Ferguson ? 

A. Yes, sir. I think he voted, but 1 cannot say positively. 

9033. Q. Do you know^ Arthur Collins, Janies McClary, John Duffy, 

John Smith? ’ 

A. I remember John Smith very well. His papers were Poughkeepsie 
papers. 

9034. Q. Do you know how long he has been in this country ? 

A. I think betw^een three and four years. He was once at a saw^-mill. 
I could not say w hether he voted or not. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 805 

9035. Q. Do you know whether he went to Poughkeepsie to get his 

papers » x & 

A. He had Poughkeepsie papers and we registered him. 

9036. Q. Do you know Avhether he Aveut there 
A. 1 could not tell. 

9037. Q. Do you knoAv John HalP? 

A. I remember about his Amte. His i)apers were from Poughkeepsie. 
1 liaA^e known him for 10 or 12 years. 

9038. Q. Do you know John Lone f 
A. 17o, sir. 

9039. Q. John Guthrie? 

A. No, sir. 

9040. Q. Samuel Cummings ? 

A. He had been in the country about three years. 

9041. Q. Did he vote? 

A. No, sir ; he was registered. 

9042. Q. On what papers ? 

A. Poughkeepsie papers, dated, I think, 19th of October, 1868. He 
is a republican. 

9043. Q. Do you know Edward McConrow? 

A. No, sir. 

9044. Q. George Wilson? 

A. No, sir. 

9045. Q. Thomas Bay? 

A. Yes, sir. I have knoAvn him for about six years. He ncA^er had 
his first papers to my knoAvledge. He came to be registered, but backed 
out. 

9046. Q. Why? 

A. I do not know any reason, other than that he thought he was not 
entitled to Amte, I suppose. 

9047. Q. Do you know George Dueon ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9048. Q. How long has he been here ? 

A. I think about three or four years. 

9049. Q. Did he Amte, or offer to Amte ? 

A. No, sir. 

9040. Q. Was he registered ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9051. Q. On what papers? 

A. Poughkeepsie, dated last fall. He is a republican. 

9052. Q. Do you know Isaac Brown ? 

A. I do not know him. 

9053. Q. Do you know William Jackson ? 

A. I do not. 

9054. Q. Eobert E. Bowker ? 

A. I know him, and have for the last three years. 

9055. Q. Did you know him as soon as he came into the country? 

A. I could not say as to that. I do not know whether he had a right 
to vote or not. 

9056. Q. Do you know Samuel McCall ? 

A. No, sir. 

9057. Q. Do you know William Jackson, and Eichard Parrott, senior? 
A. Yes, sir. The last one I haA^e known in this place for over two or 

three years. He was registered on Poughkeepsie papers, and I presume 
A^oted on the same. I do not know whether he was at Poughkeepsie or 
ot. 


806 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


0058. Q. Do you know Jolin CumbeiTarge ? 

A. Ffo, sir. 

0050. Q. Horace J. Keenan ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

OOGO. Q. Henry Boreman ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

OOGl. Q. Charles Bedwick? 

A. Yes, sir. I could ]iot say how long he has been in this country. 
He came from Canada. He Avas registered on Poughkeepsie papers. 

By Mr. Blair : 

0062. Q. You were a member of the election board ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

00G3. Q. What are your politics ? 

A. Democratic. 

0064. Q. Were the board all of the same politics ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

0065. Q. How did it stand in that respect ? 

A. Two democrats, and one republican. 

(The papers presented by Mr. Eedwick were dated October 19, 1868.) 

Keavburgh, Orange County, Keav York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Michael Farrar sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

9065J. I have lived in this country over 20 years. I was i)resent during 
the naturalizations in the county courts in this city last fall, one day; I 
was a witness for, I suppose, about six or seven of those who Avere getting 
naturalized. Their names were Thomas Hogan, Ked Monahan, Thomas 
Alonahan and James Gray; I forget if there AA^ere any others. 

9066. Q. Do you kuoAV Pat. O’Keal ? 

A. Yes, sir; I haA^e knoA\m him for about fiA^e years and a half. 

9067. Q. Do you knoAv Edward Partello? 

A. Yes, sir; I was a witness for him. 

9068. Q. Joseph Eyan? 

A. I have knoAvn him OA^er five years ; I was also a witness for him. 

9069. Q. Do you know Michael Quillan? 

A. I do; I was also a witness for him. 

9070. Q. Do you know Patrick Queen? 

A. I do not remember him. 

9071. Q. Do you know John Sharkee? 

A. I do; I was a Avitness for him; I haA^e known him for more than 
18 years. 

9072. Q. Do you know Lake Laight? 

A. I do; I was a Avitness for him. 

9073. Q. Do you knoAv Benjamin Hayden? 

A. Yes, sir; I was a Avitness for him. 

9074. Q. Jeremiah Grady? 

A. Yes, sir; I was witness for him; have known him^ for over six 
years. 

9075. Q. Do you knoAv Patrick Flanagan? 

A. I Avas a witness for him; I have knoAvn him OA^er fiA^e years. 

9076. Q. Do you knovr MattheAV Dillon? 

A. Yes, sir; AAms a witness for him. 

9077. Q. John Dooday? 

A. I do ; I was his Avitness ; I have known him for over seven years* 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


807 


9078. Q. Do you kuow Patrick Butler? 

A. I know one Patrick Butler; I was not a witness for liim. 

9079. Q. Do you know Michael Barry? 

A. Yes, sir; was'a witness for him. 

9080. Q. Did all this occur on the same day ? 

A. No, sir; one day and a night; we were a few evenings here; came 
down about seven or eight o’clock, I suppose. 

9081. Q. Did you go there to the court for the purpose of being a wit¬ 
ness for these persons? 

A. I came down that way and happening to meet them went with 
them. 

9082. Q. That is considerably more than six or seven? 

A. I suppose it is. 

9083. Q. You had been naturalized before ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 18G9. 

Wendelin Kneer sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9083J. I reside in Newburgh. I obtained my naturalization papers 
last fall. (Witness produces paper, dated 29th Se])tember, 1808, and 
signed Henry 0. Milspaugh, special deputy clerk.) I got them in the 
room next to the court-room; I do not kuow whether I was in the court¬ 
room while this business was being done on this day or not, but I was 
there the day before, but it was so full I coidd not get them; Alexander 
Hactus was my Avitness. 

Newburgh, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Eichard Peele sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9083|. I reside in Newburgh; I have been in this country for over 12 
years; I voted at the last election; I got my last papers out about a month 
before election ; I got them from the clerk at the court-house in this 
place. I think Cudderback was the name of the clerk; I was in the 
court-room; I was sworn; Pat. O’Brien Avas my witness; he was not the 
one Avho was turnkey. (Witness produces certificate dated October 1, 
and signed W. T. SliaAV, special deputy clerk.) I \"oted the democratic 
ticket. 

Newburgh, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Joseph Martin SAvorn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9084. Question. Did you A^ote at the last election? 

AnSAver. No, sir. 

9085. Q. Did you procure naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. f 

Neavburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Martin Smith sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair: 

9086. Question. Where do you reside? 

AnsAver. At Newburgh. 


808 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9087. Q. Did you vote at tlie last election? 

A. No, sir. 

9088. Q. Did you liave naturalization papers ? 

A. No, sir. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 18G9. 

Patrick O’Brien sworn and examined. 

9088J. I reside at NewburgL. I was naturalized in 1860. I was pres¬ 
ent in coiu’t here a good many tim^s during the latter part of September, 
or fore part of October, last fall. I was called up to be a witness for a 
man by the name of McCarty, but I wasn’t needed. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

John Ashhurst sworn and examined. 

To Judge Thomas George : 

9088|. I am an attorney-at-law in this place. I have resided in this 
county since 1854. Have usually been in attendance upon the courts of 
this county. Was all through the term of Judge Gedney and his prede¬ 
cessor. He was a republican in politics. It was always customary then, 
when there were persons to be naturalized in numbers, to use one of the 
petit jury rooms outside for the puriiose, where Mr. Stivers himself, if 
he could get away, or one of his deputies acted. Mr. Stivers is a repub¬ 
lican. 

9089. Q. Had the courts usually before elections found it possible to 
transact the ordinary business of the courts while naturalization was 
going on ? 

A. Not without interrupting the regular business of the court. 

9090. Q. At the term of the court in September and October last, was 
the business of the court interrupted by the gveat numbers applying for 
naturalization ? 

A. It was interrupted until the same remedy was resorted to as had 
been resorted to under Judge Gedney and Mr. Stivers. 

9091. Q. Do you recollect I rose a good many times and endeavored 
to keep silence when the sheriff reported to me he could not keep the 
room sufficiently still to transact legal business ? 

A. I do, sir. 

9092. Q. And the men were directed to go to the jury-room for the 
reason that the business of the court could not be transacted ? 

A. Yes, sir; for that reason, and for convenience. 

9093. Q. Was you by so that you could observe the mode of proceed¬ 
ing! 

A. So far as I could attend to it outside of my business before the 
court, I was present. 

9094. Q. Did you help swearing these ! 

A. I swore, I believe, to two papers, as a witness. 

9095. Q. Did you advise some people as to the manner of going before 
the clerk ! 

A. Yes, sir. 

9096. Q. Did you observe that there were any greater facilities afforded 
men who were supposed to be democrats, over those supposed to be 
republicans ! 

A. No, sir; if anything, greater facilities were afforded the republi¬ 
cans, so that there would not be the least ground for the charge of par- 
tiality. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


809 


9097. Q. Was or was not all my time in court taken up with the regu¬ 
lar business of the court 

A. Yes, sir ; so for as I could observe. 

9098. Q. Did I at any time take any part in the naturalization ? 

A. No, sir. 

9099. Q. Has it ever to your knowledge been customary for the judge 
of this county to take any part in the naturalization of foreigners 

A. No, sir; he has left it to the clerk and his deputies. 

9100. Q. And the examination has never been had before the courts ? 
A. No, sir. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Frank B. Dixon sworn and examined. 


To Judge Thomas George : 

9100u. I was during the registration days an inspector of elections in 
the first ward. A man by the name of William Jackson came and asked 
to be registered. I asked him to show me his papers. He handed in 
his first papers. I told him they would not do; that I could not register 
him on those, and gave them back to him. He stood there three or four 
minutes, when Mr. McCord touched him on the shoulder and took him 
out. In the course of four or five minutes he came back again Avith the 
second papers; they were Poughkeepsie papers. I think it Avas the 19th 
or 23d of October. Jackson was a republican. 


Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 


Thomas Casey SAvorn and examined. 


To Mr. Blair : 

9100/>. I reside in NeAvburgh. I think it is going on five years since I 
came to this country. I Amted at the last election. I got my last papers 
at the court-house here. I do not knoAv whether it Avas in the court-room 
or not where I got the papers. I lost them the A^ery night that I was 
SAAwn. I had a witness; his name Avas Edward Hogan. I landed in 
New York city when I came to this country. 


Neavburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 


Thomas Crook sworn and examined. 


To Judge Thomas George : 

9100c. I reside in Newburgh. I have been in this country 26 years. 
I think it Avas on the 19th of October that I got my second ])apers at 
Poughkeepsie. My first papers I got in Detroit, Michigan; I did not 
have them at Poughkeepsie; I had lost them. Eobert Glassy was my 
witness. Four or five Avent up with me on that day. I could not say 
whether Glassy was a witness for them or not. 

Neavburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

John Meagher sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9100J. I reside in Newburgh. I have beeira resident of the United 
States about nine years. I got my naturalization papers last fiill before 
the election. I got my iiapers in the court-house, in the small room 


810 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Mr. Dimick swore me. I did not sign any paper myself 5 Mr. Aslilmrst 
signed for me; I cannot write. James Meaglier was my witness. I had 
no previous papers. I was about 26 years old when I came to this coun¬ 
try. I voted the democratic ticket. 

Newburgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Patrick O’Brien sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9100e. I reside in Newburgh, and have for the last 18 or 20 years. I 
cannot say whether I was present at the county court during the time 
when naturalizations were going on last fall or not, for I had not my 
right senses, and have not now. I am subject to fits. I had no Avitness. 

To Judge George : 

9100/’. I could not say how I got hurt 5 don’t know that I was hurt by 
the falling of my horse in a republican procession just preAuous to the 
election. Don’t remember being in court and being a witness for some 
persons; my memory is not at all good. 

Neaa^burgh, Orange County, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

John Coyle sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9100,((/. I reside in NeAvburgh. I obtained my naturalization papers 
last fall at the Newburgh court-house ; I got them, I think, in the court¬ 
room. I guess I was sworn. I think, as far as I remember, I had a Avit- 
ness. I had been in the country about seA^en years. My first papers I 
got at Newburgh. (Witness produces his certificate dated 20th of Sep¬ 
tember, and signed by Cudderbach, clerk.) I do not remember who it 
was Avho SAVore me. 

Neaa^burgii, Orange County, Neav York, 

February 4, 1869. 

John Cuaiberlage SAVorn^and examined. 

By Judge Thoaias George : 

dlOOh. I got my last iiapers from Poughkeepsie last October. A man 
went up there from here as my witness; 1 cannot now recall his name. 
I Amted the reimblican ticket last fall. I got my first papers about 20 
years ago 5 I did not have them at Poughkeepsie, as all my papers got 
lost when I broke up house-keeping. 

Neaa^burgh, Orange County^, New York, 

February 4, 1869. 

Edavard S. Briady sworn and examined. 

To Judge Thoaias George : 

9100i. I am pastor of Saint Patrick’s church at Newburgh. I Avrote 
a letter to Thomas Coughlin, esq., on the 31st of October, 1868, and this, 
(after reading paper handed him,) I have every reason to belieA^e^ is an 
accurate copy. 

The folloAving is the letter: 

Saint Patrick’s Church, 

Netcburgh, N. F., October 1868. 

Dear Sir : I intended to wait on you on last Friday relative to doing all you can for the 
Hon. Charles Van Wyck, esq., member of Congress, but unforeseen circumstances pre¬ 
vented me doing myself the pleasure of seeing once more your family, that I hold in such 
great esteem. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


811 


Now I want yon to do all yon can for Van Wyck. He has been a great friend of mine; 
he lias got Governor Fenton to pardon a poor man ot iny congregation who is now in State 
prison. He will be released immediately after election. I have the letter in my possession. 
He would be released right off, bnt it would be used politically against him now. He has 
very much interested himself when I was in Washington last winter in behalf of the Irish 
at home and abroad. He is a great friend to our people here; political dupes belie him. 
He is really a good man and a true friend. George W. Green is quite the reverse. He has 
been a Knownothing, and is as bad to-day, in my opinion, if he had the chance. He is very 
anti-Catholic, anti-Irish. Nine years ago lie prevented the getting the school appropriation 
for Port Jones’ school. He was then school commissioner. He has endeavored to injure 
my reputation a few weeks ago by circulating that I had attended a republican convention. 
He might as well accuse the child unborn. He knew I was opposed to him. Daniel B. St. 
John and he went to the archbishop to complain of me; that I w’as interfering in politics. 
He dreaded me and justly. His mission was fruitless. If you will do all in your power for 
\an Wyck I will be ever grateful. Tell the boys. Destroy this letter as soon as you read 
it, but use its contents. I Avill come up in a few days with Father Aclan to see you all. Please 
remember me to Mrs. Coughlin and the children. 

Very respectfully, yours, 

EDWARD S. BRIADY. 


Thomas Coughlin, Esq., ' 

Narroicsburgh, Sullivan county, N. Y. 


P. S.—Be sure and destroy this letter for Catholicity’s sake. 


E. S. B. 


Goshen, Orange County, N'ew York, 

February 5,18G0. 

C. G. Elliott sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9100/. I reside in Goslien. I was, last fall, deputy clerk of the court. 

9101. Q. Will yon state Avlietlier or not a term of court was held for 
naturalization purposes previous to the election last fall! 

A. On the 19th of October, I think, a special term was called for 
the particnlar pnrpiose of naturalization. Judge George held the court. 
I think the court sat two days. There were (Riite a number of persons 
naturalized. I have an idea there were about 80; bnt there may have 
been many more than that. 

9102. Q. Will yon state what was the mode of proceeding ? 

A. Of course, all that I can say is, so far as I know. I went up into 
the court-room and Mr. Bacon, a lawyer here in the village, who was of 
opposite politics with myself, went doAvn into the sherilEs office on 
account of the crowd.- Mr. Bacon took the papers and passed them over 
to me, and I filled up the affidavits and swore the witnesses. In some 
instances Mr. Bacon read the affidavits to me, and I then administered 
the oath. I signed the certificates. That was done in the sherift'^s room 
below. The judge was not present at that time. 

9103. Q. Were the final certificates delivered there in that way ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9101. Q. There Avas then, so far as yon knoAv, no examination of the 
parties and aa itnesses by the court! 

A. Yo, sir; not in the presence of the judge. 

9105. Q. Everything Avas done by the clerks ? 

A. Yes, sir. This Mr. Bacon was put there for the purpose of watch¬ 
ing me. It Avas a kind of agreement. Mr. Bacon Avas a republican. 
At the time I Avas issuing these papers the clerk, 1 presume, Avas engaged 
lip stairs in the same business. 

By Mr. Vail : 

9100. Q. At Avhose suggestion did you go out of the court-room to the 
sherift'^s office ? 

A. I think it Avas Mr. Ciidderback told me. I am not sure Avhether 
Judge George spoke to me Avhen I Avent in or not. 

9107. Q. it Avas suggested by somebody ? 


812 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. Yes, sir. The judge or Mr. Cndderback spoke to me, and said, 
Mr. Elliott, you go dowu iiito one of the rooms below. 

9108. Q. So far as your own knowledge extends with regard to these 
papers tln^- were correet according to the general usages of issuing nat¬ 
uralization papers ? 

A. Yes, sir. It was to guard against this that Mr. Bacon came down. 
They charged that we would hll up the papers before two years, between 
the tirst and second papers. Mr. Bacon examined the date of the papers. 

9109. Q. You had been in the habit of issuing these papers before as 
deputy clerk? 

A. Yes, sir. The blanks were brought to us ready sealed. 

Goshen, Orange County^, New York, 
February 5, 1809. 

H. Y. D. Hoyt sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9109J. I reside in Goshen. I was at one time deputy clerk in the 
county clerk’s office. I wrote for them occasionally. 

9110. Q. Were you employed there at all during the term of court at 
which naturalizations were had prior to the election last faU ? 

A. Yes, sir. I think it was two days. 

9111. Q. In what capacity was you employed? 

A. In making out naturalization papers. 

9112. Q. In what part of the building was you so employed ? 

A. I was right at the clerk’s desk in the court room. 

9113. Q. Were there a considerable number of those papers made at 
that time ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9114. Q. How much of a crowd was there about there ? 

A. There was quite a crowd there. 

9115. Q. Do you know whether those persons who were naturalized 
there had any examination by the judge before the court? 

A. No, sir; I do not. 

9116. Q. Are you the town clerk ? 

A. I am. 

9117. Q. Were you requested not long since to allow the poll-list of 
the town to be copied? 

A. Charles Dunning came there to see it. He came there to see if 
there were some names on a poll-list. I have not been asked to have it 
copied. 

9118. Q. Did you allow it to be seen? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9119. Q. Were there certain republicans who came and asked you to 
copy the poll-list at any time ? 

A. No, sir. 

By Mr. Vail: 

9120. Q. You was in the court-room, before the court, when you were 
filling up those papers ? 

-A- Y^es sir 

9121. Q. Acting as deputy clerk ? 

A. Not as deputy x)articularly. J\Ir. Cndderback engaged me. My 
business is copying. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


813 


Goshen, Orange County, Xew York, 

February 5, 18G9. 

M. D..Stivers sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

0121J. I reside in Middletown. I was from January, 1855, to January, 
18G8, clerk of this county. It was not customary when I was in office 
to have naturalizations made upon certificates, delivered when the court 
was not present during any part of the proceedings. 

0122 . Q. Did you ever allow it.to be done in a separate room in which 
the court never was seen 

A. When at the court in Yewburgh, by order of the judge, because of 
the crowd and confusion, I went into the petit jury room adjoining the 
court-room, and made an examination of the witnesses and swore them 
there. It was by order of the judge. I do not remember of any other 
instance in which it was done in that way. I usually, subjected the 
applicant as well as the witnesses to an examination. I almost invaria¬ 
bly questioned them, and I always myself administered the oath. 

9123. Q. You may state whether you have made an examination of 
the county records for the purpose of seeing whether any persons who 
got their first papers, while you were clerk, received their final papers 
before the two years expired. 

A. I have made a slight examination of the records, aifd find such 
had been the case. I am not i)repared to state in how many instances. 
I know of one particularly that I have now in my mind 5 Itobert McFar¬ 
land is the name. He had taken out his first papers before me October 
23, 18GG, and had received his full papers before the two years had 
elapsed. A certified copy of his first papers was in the clerk’s office 
on file. 

9124. Q. Are there any other such cases that you know of? 

A. I cannot recall any names now. There were a number who took 
out their first papers before me who had received full papers at the court 
in Yewburgh, without having been there quite two years; but the fact 
of their having taken out the first papers was disregarded. They were 
not on file as in this case I have mentioned. They took the papers out 
on the ground that they had come here under 18. 

Goshen, Orange County^ Kew York, 

February 5, 18G9. 

Charles S. Deming sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9124J. I reside in Goshen. I was indirectly engaged in the political 
campaign last fall. I acted with the democratic party. I knew of no 
arrangement made by the democratic party during that campaign to 
assist foreigners in getting naturalization papers. I did not myself 
assist any of them. I did not myself deliver to any foreigners naturali¬ 
zation papers, nor do I know of any being delivered by others. 

I went over to Hamptonburgh a few evenings since—the day before 
the committee sat there, and saw there Mr. Crist, and the bar-tenders 
at his hotel. I remained there a few minutes when I went over to see 
Mr. Ellis. I saw some of the stable men around. 1 had been down 
there looking at a colt of mine. My object in going to Hamptonburgh 
that evening was to see about witnesses. I supposed that witnesses 
would be required, and that they ought to be subpoenaed. I went down 
there on that account partly. 


814 


ELECTIOJT FEAUDS IN NEW YOEK. 


0125. Q. Did you say anything to Mr. Ellis about the men Avho 
were in his employ? 

A. IS'o, sir. 

0126. Q. Do you know any reason why several of the recently natu¬ 
ralized citizens in the employ’' of Mr. Ellis were not able to be found to 
be subpoenaed the next morning? 

A. No, sir. 

0127. Q. Did you make any arrangement to get them away? 

A. I only told Mr. Ellis that the committee was expected there, and 
that if there were any witnesses to be subpoenaed they ought to have 
them ready. I had some subpoenas in my pocket to subiioena men 
dovni there. 

0128. Q. Did you subpoena anybody that night? 

A. Not that night. 

0120. Q. Did you give Mr. Ellis notice that the democratic town com¬ 
mittee AYould meet that night? 

A. I told Virgil Crist there would be a committee there, and talked 
with him about witnesses. 

Goshen, Oeange County, New Yoke, 

February 5, 1860. 

Seth Eobinson sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Vail: 

0120o(. I live in Middletown. I voted at the election last fall. I was 
offered money by Mr. Sweet to vote for Mr. Van Wyck; I wuis a cripi)le 
at the time. He offered me a ton of coal and $10 in money. I received 
$7. I did not get the coal. I voted for Mr. Green. 

Goshen, Oeange County, New Yoek, 

February 4, 1860. 

Theodoee W. Ludlow sworn and examineil. 

To Mr. Vail: 

0120&. I reside in Goshen. I voted at the last election for Mr. Van 
Wyck. I had no wager on the election. 

Goshen, Oeange County, New Yoek, 

February 4, 1860. 

Thomas Kane sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Vail: 

0120c. I reside in Goshen. I voted at the last election. I voted the 
democratic ticket. One of Mr. Murray’s sons offered me money to vote 
the republican ticket. I did not take it. 

Goshen, Oeange County, New Yoek, 

February 5, 1860. 

Pateick Dunn sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Vail: 

0120d. I reside in Goshen. I voted for George Green at the last 
election. Nelson Owens said he would see me well paid if I would vote 
for Van Wyck. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


815 


Goshen, Orange County, NTew York, 

February 5, 18G9. 

E. H. House sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Tail: 

9129(?. I reside in Goslien. I voted tlie democratic ticket at tlie last 
election. George A. Dennison and Charles J. Abertf ottered me $10 to 
vote for Green, at the last election. I was also to use my influence for 
this money. I did not consent to accept. 

Goshen, Orange County, Yew York, 

February 5,1809. 

James Connell sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Yail : 

9129/. I reside in Goshen. I voted the democratic ticket at the last 
election. I was offered money for my vote and influence for the repub¬ 
licans. A man came down from Middletown, and asked me if a little 
money would not do some good in this place for Mr. Van Wyck and Mr. 
Madden. I told him it would do some good to the poor of Goshen in case 
I got it. I did not get this money. I voted for Judge Green. I will 
state, however, that just before the election four barrels of flour were 
sent to the house. I do not know where it came from, but I took it, and 
had my uncle distribute it among the poor. 

Goshen, Orange County, Yew York, 

February 5, 1809. 

Michael Burke sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9129^. I reside in Goshen. I voted the democratic ticket at the last 
election. I have been in the United States 12 years. I got my first 
impers three years the 1st of March last, and my last papers here when 
court sat before election. I cannot tell who gave me my last x)apers. I 
did not bring them wdth me. 

Goshen, Orange County", Yew York, 

Feh'uary 5,1809. 

Patrick Ford sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9129/l I reside in Goshen. 1 voted at the last election. I got my first 
papers in the State of Pennsylvania. I got the last three years ago last 
October, at Yorristown, Pennsylvania. (Witness produced his last paper, 
dated October 5, 1800, Montgomery, Pa., and signed John E. Grigg, 
l)rothonotary.) I appeared in court wflieii I signed the paper. John 
Eord is a brother of mine. I do not know whether he procmed natu¬ 
ralization papers at the last election or not, or w^hether iie voted or not. 

Goshen, Orange County", Yew York, 

February 5,1809. 

Dennis O’Brien sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9129i I reside in Goshen. I received my naturalization papers, and 
voted at the last election. I received them in Goshen. They were sent 
to the house to me. 


816 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


Go>shen, Orange County, Kew York, 

February 1860. 

N’elson Owen sworn and examined. 

To Air. Yail: 

0120j. I live in Goslien. I did not offer to pay Patrick Dnnn any 
money to vote for the republican ticket at the last election. I told Cap¬ 
tain Post that I wonld si)end $500 to defeat Jndge Green. I told my 
brother tirst, and then Green asked me when I was going to spend it, 
and I said I Avould spend it when I thought I could make good use of it. 
I did not spend any of it, however. 

Witness Elliott was requested to furnish the committee with a list 
of all declarations of intention to become citizens made after October 
1 , 1866, and November 1, 1868; also, list of persons naturalized after 
the 1st of September, 1868, stating the names of witnesses and the 
persons signing the certilicates. Also, how many and who were natu¬ 
ralized on the ground that they came to the country under 18 years of 
age, and who were witnesses for such. 

The following testimony was taken by the same sub-committee in New 
York: 

New York, February 6, 1869. 

Samuel B. Garvin sworn and examined. 

To Air. Blair : 

0130. I have here two books (placed in possession of the committee) 
which I found in the safe, and which I presume are the two books referred 
to by District Attorney Hall and one Hoffman, a hack-driver. One is 
marked 6th district, 16th ward, and the other Oth district, 14th ward. I 
came into office as district attorney of the city and county of New York 
on the 4th of January, 1869. The books, papers, records, and everything 
else, were turned over to me. AYhen I was requested to produce these 
two books, when you were here before, I wrote a line to the committee 
saying that I was not sure that I had any such books, but I would ascer¬ 
tain, and if any such Avere found, produce them. I had an examination 
commenced immediately, and the next day I found Avliat you referred to; 
you had then, howeA^er, adjourned and gone. I have kept the books 
since that time in my possession, and noAv produce them ; these I pre¬ 
sume are the books; I should like to have you return them when you 
get through, as they are books belonging to the office of the district 
attorney. I know nothing as to how the books came there, or anything 
about itj I suppose Air. HalFs testimony explains that. 

Neav York, February 6,1869. 

Ja:vies Kelley sworn and examined. 

To Air. Klair : 

9131. I reside in NeAv York city, at St. Nicholas Hotel; I am a detect¬ 
ive ; I knoAv Patrick and elames Goff; their general character is bad, and 
they haA^e been arrested on Amrious occasions. I arrested a man named 
AIcMullen on the 28th of NoA^ember; I arrested three men on the same 
day on the same charge on which he aa^s arrested; and in the pocket of 
a man named Stewart AAms AIcAIullen’s Avarrant as a deputy sheriff. 
(Witness here produces the warrant and a ]hcture of AIcAIullen, taken 
from the Pogue’s Gallery.) The warrant appointed Da\dd Alullen special 
deputy sheriff to assist in preser\dng the public peace; it AAms dated 2d 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


817 


(lay (>f November, 1808, and sig'ned JameKS O’l^rien, sheriff, and connter- 
signed Joel D. Stevens, nnder-sheriff. McMullen is also known to the 
police by the name of Myers. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9132. I have resided in the city of New York some 12 years; I have 
been engaged for the last six years as a policeman; I am now attached 
to the metropolitan i)olice, and was appointed by Thomas C. Acton. 
McMullen w^as arrested on suspicion of grand larceny—taking a man’s 
watch and chain. He was taken before the magistrate and committed 
tor examination, and on the examination he was discharged. I have no 
tainily, but I have always had to take care of my father and mother; 
they reside at 893 Second avenue. I board and' room at St. Nicholas 
Hotel; I am detailed there from the police headquarters; I have never 
had any name other than Kelley to my knowledge; I have never been 
arrested for any offence. 


New York, February 6, 18G9. 

Charles Buddington sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9133. I reside at 15 Desbrosses street. New York. 1 know^ Peter 

Hussey; I had occasion to arrest him on the day of registry for attempt¬ 
ing to register illegally. He was taken before Judge Barnard, when his 
papers were retained, but he was dismissed. ^ 

9134. Q. Did he make any statement before Judge Barnard ! 

A. Y"es, sir ; before the clerk. 

9135. Q. What statement did he make ? 

A. He said there that he never had procured his first papers Avhen he 
declared his intentions; that he procured this application for naturali¬ 
zation at the Vanderbilt House. 

(Objected to by Mr. Ross as hearsay. Objection overruled.) 

913G. Q. Did you take him before Judge Barnard in the first place ? 

A. 1 first conveyed him to the station-house, 5th precinct; from there 
before Judge Dowling, Tombs police court; I was directed from there 
to take him to the supreme court before Judge Barnard, by w hich court 
the papers were issued. I stated to Judge Barnard that I had arrested 
him on account of his papers not giving satisfaction to the board of reg¬ 
istry as legal papers of naturalization. He was then examined before 
the clerk upon that subject. He turned to the clerk and said something 
to him. The clerk then turned to Hussey and asked him w ho his 
w itness was. Hussey did not answer. I then answ^ered and said: ‘^Mr. 
Hussey says he has no w itness.” He then asked him again : ‘‘ Who is 
your witness?” Hussey then repeated : had none.” The clerk said: 

^AVhy, yes, you had.” I then stated that Mr. Hussey had told me that 
one Barney Fagan, No. 4 Desbrosses street, gave him his papers, wdiich 
he now presented, at the Vanderbilt House. The clerk then said to Mr. 
Hussey: Where did you get this paper ?” The paper I had handed to 
the clerk. He said: “At the Vanderbilt House.” “ Did you not come 
(lown here witli it ?” “ Oh, yes, sir.” “To whom did you give it ?” “ To 

you, sir.” “Didn’t you have a witness?” “No, sir.” I said to the 
clerk: “ I w ould like to see the record.” He immediately got up and 
passed through behind the judge into another room. He was gone, I 
should think, from 20 to 30 minutes. He came back and said-: “It was 
all right; his name is on file w ith the name of the witness.” He did not, 
however, produce the record. He retained the certificate of naturaliza- 
52 T 


818 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


tioii, and wrote a note, and enclosed it in an envelope with the cer¬ 
tificate, to Judge Bowling. He told me to take the prisoner back to 
Justice Dowding with this note, and say to him that I had returned to 
him to have him discharge the prisoner, as he believed there was no 
intention of Avrong. I then proceeded to the Tombs police court before 
Justice Dowling wdth the prisoner, gave him this note, w’hich he read, 
and discharged the prisoner. According to the request of the clerk, he 
also gave me back this certificate to the sui)reme court, w^hich I did 
return to the same clerk. 

9137. Q. You state that when the clerk went out to examine the second 
papers he passed in the rear of the judge, through another door. Is 
tliere a room back there 

A. There api)eared to be. These papers, (purporting to be certificates 
of naturalization of Peter Dammann, William Kelley, and James O. 
Donnell, dated respectively the 9th, 12th, and 13th of October, 1868, 
signed by Charles E. Loew, clerk supreme court of the State of Koav 
Y ork,) are papers that Avere taken from persons who came to register 
their names, but ayIio did not give satisfaction to the board that they 
Avere legal. They purported to be naturalization ])apers, but the holder 
of them, according to his own confession, had never declared his inten¬ 
tions, and they did not deem it necessary to arrest him, as the judge 
A^'Ould not sustain them in so doing. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9138. I do not knoA\^ the name of the clerk A\dth Avhom I had this con¬ 
ference. He occupied a position at the right hand of Judge Barnard, 
some 10 feet distant, I think. I arrested this man Hussey the first day 
of the registry, but it was too late to appear then before the court, and 
he Avas therefore detained until the next day at the station-house. It 
was 11 o’clock, I should judge, wdien I took him into court. 

9139. Q. You say you took these naturalization papers from these 
men because they had not taken out their first papers ? Was there any 
inquiry made as to Avhether they had been in the army*? 

A.^Yes, sir. Those avIio had been in the army they did not object to. 
These men said they had not been in the army. This arrest was made 
in the 8th district, 5th ward. 

9140. Q. Who are the election officers who presided there? 

A. John Berrigen, John McLean, and Peter Dugan. I forget the 
name of the fourth one. 

9141. Q. You belong to the police ? 

A. Yes, sir. I have been so acting for OA-er four years. I Avas ap- 
jAointed by Mr. Acton. I was detailed by Captain Petty to look after 
election matters. 

9142. Q. Did you take much interest in the caiiA^ass last year? 

A. No more than my official duty required. 

9143. Q. Your official position requires you to take a pretty active 
X)art in politics, does it ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

9144. What do you mean, then, by saying no more than your 
official duty required you ?” 

A. Oh, I AA^as detailed to take notice of these things, and obey the 
orders of the board of registry; and 1 did so, I believe. I did not elec¬ 
tioneer in any. I voted the republican ticket. I belong to no ciAul or 
political club. The police Avere not, to my knowledge, called together at 
any time to receive instructions in relation to election matters. Differ¬ 
ent persons did the challenging at the polls. Yery few were cliallenged. 
All who were entitled Avere allowed to vote. 


ELECTION EKAUDS IN NEAV YORK. 


819 


Kew York, February G, 1869. 

George Bliss, jr., sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9145. Question. Look at these two books, (exhibiting' the books pre¬ 
sented by Samuel B. Garvin,) and state Avhether you have ever seen 
them before. 

Answer. Yes, sir. I suppose I may say those books are my property. 
Tliey are copies of wliat is known as "the police census—the census 
taken by Mr. Kennedy. These copies were made by clerks, whom I em¬ 
ployed to do it, at police head(]itarters. The 9th district book is in the 
handwriting of IVtr. Salmon. The otlier one I cannot tell in whose hand¬ 
writing it is. The last time I saw these books was before a court and 
jury in December. 

9146. Q. They were made, then, at your request, by clerks of yours? 

A. Yes, sir; gentlemen whom I employed and paid. 

9147. Q. Are they in any respect public books? 

A. No, sir. The blank books were paid for by the organization with 
which I was connected. The original blanks, and the making of them, 
were paid for by them through me. 

9148. Q. Do you know when these books were taken away from the 
police headquarters? 

A. They were probably taken away more than once. • The last time 
they were taken away was the evening of the last day of the registra 
tion, I think. It was either the Friday or the Saturday evening pre¬ 
ceding the election. I say they were taken away. I will tell you 
what I know about it. That night, as all the nights from that time to 
election, we Avere engaged in comparing registration Avitli these copies 
of the census. About, I should think, 8 or 9 o’clock in the evening, I 
discovered that in the hurry of business I had forgotten to have quite a 
large number of them brought up from the police headquarters, where 
I had left them, or the office of the metropolitan board of health, which 
is in the same building, and I sent doAvn three of my clerks (Mr. Dun¬ 
bar, Mr. Ray, and, I think, Mr. Coffert) to get the whole lot of books, 
and there Avere brought up a A^ery large number, Avhich I then supposecl 
were all that there Avere. On looking oA^er the list, hoAA-CA'er, in the 
course of a day or tAvo, these tAvo books were missed. I ncAmr knew 
anything about them until I saw them before the grand juiy in Decem¬ 
ber. 

9149. Q. Do you know anything about a meeting at the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel on or about the eA^ening of the 30th of October ? 

A. There Avas no meeting'there, as I remember it. Room 15 of that 
hotel was occupied by myself and the clerks, and Ave were there on the 
evening of the 30th with, probably, some 35 or 40 clerks. Mr. Kennedy 
and Mr. Acton Avere not present at that time. They were both in the 
hotel that evening, I tliink, but at an earlier hour. Mr. Acton Avas. I 
will not say that Mr. Kennedy Avas. He came there for the purpose of 
finding Judge James, as he stated. I can tell you the circumstances if 
you desire. I went doAvn to police headquarters myself at an earlier 
period of that evening. I think it was that eA^ening. It was Friday or 
Saturday. 

9150. Q. Upon that evening did Mr. Acton and Mr. Kennedy go to 
police headquarters Avith some gentlemen from the Fifth AAmnue Hotel ? 

A. On one or the other of these eAwings Captain Willey had arrested 
a gang of alleged repeaters, eight in number, and had seized some re¬ 
peaters’ books. (Objected to by Mr. Ross; objection overruled.) A 

• 


820 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


writ of habeas corpus liad been issued for tlie men. Mr. Acton came to 
the Fifth Avenue Hotel and asked if Judge James was there, saying 
that thehad been issued. I went down in one carriage 
to police headquarters. Mr. Acton arrived there in another carriage 
just before or just after I did. This was as early as 7 o’clock in the 
evening. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

0151. I saw the books referred to by me filled up some time prior to the 
12th of October. Mr. Salmon was at work upon the one in his hand-writ¬ 
ing, in one of the rooms, either of the board of health or board of police. 
I think it was on Sunday when I saw him at work there, because he had 
his ordinary duties to attend to during the days of the week, and it was 
in the day-time when I saw him there. I should think it waxs the Sun- 
day nearest the 13th of October. I have no doubt I saw other men there 
at wmrk at the same time, but I cannot now name them. I was working 
in the interest of the republican party. I w^as not employed by the 
Union League or any other body. 1 have not been employed as attor¬ 
ney in the matter of these frauds. I declined to be employed. I stated 
that I would not receive any retainer for any work I did in this business. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9152. Q. You saw these books before th.e grand jury ? 

A. Yes, sir; the district attorney produced them there. The way I 
came to have anything to do with these books Avas as follows: Tliere 
AA^as a committee known as the central committee. The committee con¬ 
sisted of some 15 or 20 members. I AA^as a member of that committee, 
and there Avas a committee on registration aixpointed, of Avhich I was a 
member. The object of that committee Avas to preA^ent illegal voting. 

Neav York, February 6, 18G9. 

James Golden sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9153. I reside in Greenwich, Connecticut. I shall have resided there 

five years next spring. I regard that as my place of residence. I offered 
to vote in Connecticut at the last election. I got my naturalization 
papers in this way: I was over in Brooklyn, when I heard that any man 
AAdio Avould go over to the City Hall could get his papers. I came over 
and met a man Avhom I took to be a Dutchman. He says : ‘‘ Do you 

Avmntto get your papers!” I said; ‘‘Do you knoAv howl could get 
them !” “ Yes,” said he “ give me $2 and I will get you your papers.” 
I gave the man $2 and I got my papers. This man brought me up to 
the court. I had no Avitnesses there. AYhen I was there I was told to 
hold up my hand, in company with others. He said to us, Avhat I took to 
be, “ You shall be truly loyal to the United States.” I was not ques¬ 
tioned as to Avhether I had resided a year in YeAV York. I Avas not asked 
w here my residence was. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9154. I voted in Connecticut at the last election. I did not use my 
papers here; but I Amted on them in Connecticut. lam acquainted 
with a good many men in NeAv York. Eo man got his papers at the 
time I did that I knew. I do not know AAdiether any of them kneAv me 
or not; but I suppose not. The clerk asked my name, and I then put 
my hand on the pen while he made a cross-mark. E^o paper w^as read 
over to me. I was 20 years of age, about, when I came to the United 
States. 1 shall liaA^e been in the United States nine years this spring. 

I got my first papers at White Plains. 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


821 


To Mr. Blair : 

9155. When I was sworn before the selectmen in Greenwich, they 
asked me to swear to be true and loyal to the United States. They 
asked me to swear how long I had been a citizen of Greenwich, and I 
swore to four or fiv^e years next summer. 

Mr. Boss moves to strike out that portion of the testimony relating 
to what transpired in Brooklyn, on the ground that it was outside of the 
case. Motion overruled. 

New York, February G, 18G9. 

Peter Hussey^ sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9156. I reside at No. 452 Greenwich street. I have been in this coun¬ 
try seven years. Just before the election I applied for my first papers, 
and through mistake got my last papers. I got this at the Yanderbilt 
House. I do not know who gave it to me. I went there for it. I was 
arrested when I attempted to register on this paper. I was sworn before 
I was arrested when I went to get my last paper, but I was asked no 
questions. I had no witness iiresent when I got this paper, though I 
took a mail with me. I do not know who he was. I was sworn at the 
City Hall, after I got my paper at the Yanderbilt House. 

To Mr. Boss: 

9157. The man who went with me to the City Hall I met at the Yan¬ 
derbilt House. There were plenty of men present who knew me when 
I got my paper, but they might not have seen me at that time. They 
knew, however, that I had been in the country for five years. I do not 
know whether the court was in session at that time or not. The judge 
was on the bench. There were a good many persons sworn at the same 
time that 1 was. I made a mark on the paper at the Yanderbilt House. 
I had never before made any application for my first iiapers. The rea¬ 
son was I didn’t care to. I was not in the army. 

New Y^ork, February 6, 1869. 

Charles Nettleton sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9158. I reside at 338 YYst Thirty-fifth street. At the presidential 
election I was canvasser in the 15th district, 20th ward. Henry A. 
Childs was my democratic colleague. As soon as the books closed we 
had a small number of votes, and I expressed a desire to get through as 
soon as possible. He took quite a while to light a cigar, and talked to 
this one and that one. Finally the ballots were turned out upon the 
table and separated. I counted out 10, and handed them to him for 
him to count 10. Then he made objection, that counting in that way he 
could not certify the ballot as being correct. I expressed surprise a,t 
that, and we had quite a discussion over it. I finally told him this, 
that it was always the way I had been canvassing before, and it was the 
way it was done by everybody and everywhere. He replied : “ It won’t 
be done so to-night.” We then talked quite a while. Finally we sent 
one of the police officers to the alderman of the ward, who was his 
friend, to say what he should do ; he claiming, that unless he counted 
name by name, he could not conscientiously certify it. I pressed him 
so strongly that, finally, he had the poll-clerk call off the 35 names, all 
of which took considerable time j and then he took a ballot and called 
oft^ the names, then another and another, so that the 35 names were 


822 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


called four times tlirougii. The delay was made until just about (>J 
o’clock, when he took hold and counted as rapidly as could be done. No 
work had really been done'before that. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

0150. We closed our polls about sunset—4.52 o’clock—I should think. 
We had to count some 27(> ballots in the box. I saw no disposition on 
the i>art of my colleague to cheat. He acted i)erfectly fair and honest, 
except in the matter of the delay. There were no illegal votes imlled 
there to my knowledge. 


New York, February G, 18G0. 

Frederick Tichen sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

0160. I reside at 4G2 Washington street. I did not vote at the last 
election. I attempted to register in the 5th ward, Hesbrosses street. 
On the 28 th of January last I was 21. Iliad naturalization papers to 
vote upon, which I got down at the City Hall. I had a Avitness, and Avas 
SAAmrn. I have not been in the United States quite four years. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9161. I SAVore, when I got my papers, that I Avas 21 years of age. I 
thought all that Avas required Avas for a man to have been in the country 
three years. The man Avho Avas Avith me swore that I AAms 21. 

New York, February 6, 1869. 

Terrence Moaa^ey sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9162. I reside in GreenAAuch, Connecticut. I have resided there going 
on four years. I obtained my naturalization papers in the city of New 
York about a week before the election. [Witness produces his certifi¬ 
cate, dated 23d October, 1868, signed, James Sweeny, clerk superior court. | 
I obtained that paper at the City Hall. I Avas not sworn, but I had to hold 
iqi my hand, and state my age, and how long I had been in the countr 3 ^ 
James Tracy A\ms my witness. I Amted last fall in Greenwich. I was 
registered before the selectmen of Greenwich. I aa^s SAvorn, and stated 
there pretty nearly Avhat I did AAdien I got my last paper. I swore how 
long I had been a resident of Greenwich, and they all kneAv it. That 
Avas three years. I came to this country 16 years ago, but I had ne\^er 
taken out any papers prcAious to this. This paper Avas giA^en to me in 
open court. Seven of us from GreeiiAvich got i)apers in this Avay, all at 
the same time. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

. These men all had witnesses, aaFo had been liAung in this counly 26 
years. I have lived in Ncav York tAAm years. I generally came doAvn 
every winter to New York. I liA^e as much if not more here than I do 
in Connecticut. . These other men to aa Iioiii I have referred also liA^e here 
a portion of their time. For the last tvio or three years, I have not lived 
more than a couple of months in Noaa^ York. Last AAinter was the only 
Avinter I ever lived in Connecticut. I am a married man. 

[Mr. Eoss moA^ed to strike out this testimony as not pertaining to the 
subject of election frauds, which Avas the subject-matter to be iuA^esti- 
gated by the committee.] 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


823 


New York, Fehnianj G, 1SG9. 

H. M. Clapp sworn and examined. 

By ]\[r. Blair : 

I am a police officer attached to the 5th precinct of the 5th ward. 
I knew James Murphy. I had occasion to arrest him on the 14th of 
October, at (>J o’clock p. in., for attempting to register illegally at the 
8 th electi()n district, 5th ward; I took him to the station-house before 
the captain, who detained him until the morning, and then took him 
before Judge Dowling, who ordered me to take the prisoner to the 
superior court before Jiulge McOunn, where the prisoner had received 
his papers. 1 stated the circumstances to the judge. He ordered me to 
take the prisoner into an adjoining room. He shortly followed, and 
swore the prisoner. The judge said to him, “What is your uamef’ 
Said he, “ James Murphy.” “ Where do you live “ G3 Watt street.” 
“ Where did you get this paper !” It was a full naturalization paper 
He had never declared his intention. He said “ I got it at the Vander¬ 
bilt House.” “ Who gave it to you f ’ “ One Marshal Murphy.” “ What 
did you do with the paper then f” said the judge. “ I took it down to the 
court the next day.” “ Who went with youf’ “Nobody.” “How did 
you get the paper, then?” “ I got it in this room, I believe.” The judge 
then turned to me, and said, “ Officer, this man is under the influence 
of liquor.” I told the judge it was not so; that the man had been locked 
up all night, and had had nothing to drink since I arrested him. “ Well,. 
then,” says he, “ he must be insane. You will take the prisoner back to 
Judge Dowling, and the paper with my complimente, and tell the judge 
to discharge him, and keep the paper.” I returned to the Tombs police 
court before Justice Dowling, and delivered the message of Judge Mc- 
Cunn. I will state that after I got out of the superior court room, I was 
called back by a messenger, who stated that Judge McOunn wanted to 
see me. He said, “ I understand you are in the habit of questioning 
parties who come to register.” I said, “ Yes, sir.” He then remarked, 
“Don’t you do it any more.” I said “ I will under orders.” He replied, 
“ If you do I will punish you.” Said I, “ Very well, I will suffer the con¬ 
sequences.” He then said, “ I will give you consequences.” I then left 
the superior court room and went to the Tombs. 

To Mr. Boss: 

91G5. Judge Dowling kept the paper. I have been a policeman for a 
year and a half; I was a shipwright before that; I have lived in the 
city all my life; I was appointed policeman by Benjamin Mannierre; I was 
not acting as one of the election board, nor did I examine those who 
came before the board; I merely asked them a question now and then; 
I was in the habit of asking questions as to the right to vote; I did so 
in a good many instances; I did that under the directions of Captain Jere¬ 
miah Petty; I suppose I examined about a dozen; I arrested three parties ; 
I received the instructions of which I have spoken, verbally; I have 
never been convicted of any criminal offence, and have always gone by 
the name I now bear; I have always voted the republican ticket. 

, To Mr. Blair : 

91GG. John W. Blake was arrested for attempting to register illegally 
at the 8th election district; he had been in the State only four months, 
and had never got out his first paiiers; never declared liis intentions. 


824 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


NTew York, February 6, 1869. 

JteRRY Murphy^ sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9167. I reside at 61 Watt street; I obtained naturalization jiapers 
previous to the election at the Vanderbilt House; I attempted to register 
upon those papers and was arrested by Officer Clapp; I had never ob¬ 
tained my first papers. After I left the Vanderbilt House, Murphy sent 
me, in company with another man, to the City Hall; I had never seen 
the man before; he did not go as a witness for me; I think I went before 

a judge; he asked me some questions, but I do not remember what ones. : 
To Mr. Boss: I 

9168. I have been having fits for 15 or 16 years, and I cannot recollect j! 
anything very long; my brain has become distracted; I was sworn; I 

do not remember whether the man who went with me was iiresent or 
not; I was taken to the Tombs and my papers taken from me. 

Xew York, February 6, 1869. 

John Blake sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

9169. I reside at 34 and 36 Desbrosses street; I have lived there 
since lltli of July last; I had been in the country 12 months 19th of 
last August; I did not vote at the last election; I offered to register, and 
at that time I had with me my naturalization papers; I got them at my 
boarding house; I do i^pt know whether it was the man or the woman 
of the house who gave them to me; I was arrested and taken to the 
station-house and from there to one of the courts; the judge made no 
remarks to me; he only asked me about the policeman in charge; he 
ordered me discharged. 

To Mr. Boss: 

9170. I do not know who was my witness. A man went with me to the 
City Hall and then took the paper out of my hand and said: “You must 
give me a dollar for this.” I told him I had no dollar. I was sworn, but I 
do not know whether he was sworn or not. I do not know whether it 
was the judge or the clerk who swore me. Some man swore five or six 
at the same time. There was no man there whom I knew. 

Kew York, February 6, 1869. 

Theodore Allen sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9171. I reside at 93 Prince street, B'ew York. I do not know any such 
man as John Pox at 81 Mercer street. I do not know anything about 
Peter Loftus, Thompson street; James Allen, 169 Hudson; Charles 
Hougherty, Bo. 31 Mercer, or Wm. Frost. I know John Glennon; he 
resides in Grand street; he is an inspector of weights and measures and 
has been for some time. I know James Collins; I should say he was a 
“loafer.” I know Matthew Green,* one of the proprietors of the opera- 
house on 14th street. Mr. Green for some months iiast has been con¬ 
fined to his bed; I think, for the past eight months. He lives in the 
opera-house up-stairs. I keep a public house, and a man by the name 
of James Goff and his brother, who were engaged in procuring natural¬ 
ization certificates, used to come to my house a great deal. I saw a num¬ 
ber of papers that were sent to Connecticut. I saw the two Goffs have 
500 naturalization papers that they had sold for 50 cents apiece to send 






ELECTION ERAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


825 


to Connecticut. I suppose 1,000 were sent to Brooklyn that I saw 
them have. They contracted for these papers, they said, at 50 cents a 
head. They were to send tlieni to Brooklyn and Hartford, I believe. 
John Glenuon was an inspector on the day of election. He has always 
been a democrat. He lives, I think, at 50 or 58 Grand street. 

To Mr. Boss: 

9172. I have lived in New York for 32 years. I have had my imblic 
house about a year; I rented it for six months; I was then in the sheriff’s 
office. Previous to that I had had it for two years; ‘‘St. Bernard” is 
the name of the hotel. The Goffs have always resided, I think, in 
Thomxison street; they are kept by girls. I was married, but my wife is 
dead. No girls keep me, but my bank is always open when the girls 
come after me. I Avill say this, however, that while I have lived in New 
York for 32 years, and while I know more women than any other man, yet 
I never was in a whorehouse but once in my life; I have been there on 
business, but just to go in and come right out. Whenever any of them get 
arrested 1 am very apt to be called on to get some of them out, and I also 
have to help the fellows out sometimes. I associate with any one who 
comes ill my house and takes a drink and goes out and behaves himself. I 
do not allow any women in my house. I am not given to gambling; I have 
not i>layed a game of cards for money in four years until to-day. I voted 
the republican ticket last fall, but I was not in the einjiloy of the party. I 
have a brother in New York named J ohn Allen, but he is not the one known 
as the “ wickedest man” in New York. I did not count the papers that 
the Goffs had, but I counted some that the police came and took out 
of my house when they left there; that was between 50 and GO. Goff* 
was not stopping at my house then, but his girl lived in Tbomiisoi^ 
street. I think I saw Goff* have over 4,000 naturalization xiapers last 
fall, and over 10,000 during the last three years. These papers were all 
signed and sealed, ready for side. They were gotten in all the courts 
that issued naturalization x)apers. I believe Judge McCunn’s court was 
the only one they were a little afraid of. The way they managed to get 
them \\ms this: "they would take 8 or 10 men and give them fictitious 
names, and then take them up before the judge and they would be sworn 
in under those names. They also got papers directly from the clerk. I 
think at one time they got as many as 500, and at other times as many 
as 100, 200, and 300, without ])roducing any men at all. That was done 
during the last week. They did not have then to produce any men at 
all. They generally got them at night, after the court closed. They 
told me they got them from a clerk named McKean. A contract was 
made for 500 or 1,000 fol Brooklyn, a certain number for Jersey, and 
some for Orange county. They had almost all the business that was 
done over here at court. I think they got 200 or 300 for Orange county. 
1 cannot tell how many for New Jersey. I saw these papers in the Park 
just after they had received them. They said they got them from 
"McKean. I do not know what court he is clerk in. I have myself seen 
them getting pa])ers in all the courts. They would often have 10 or 15 
men, whom they would pass through and have sworn some 20 or 30 
times under diff'erent names. They could thus grind out a great deal of 
corn in a very little while. There are a great many other parties whom 
1 know to have been engaged in this business, but I would rather not 
mention names. As it is insisted on I will name them : Patrick McCaf¬ 
frey, Moran, McCay, John Norton, Dougherty, Heff*ron, Mitchell, and 
O’Brien. I knoAV a great many others, but I cannot now recall their 
names. I was at the court-house about eA^ery day, and Avould generally 


826 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


remain there from half an hour to an hour, and I would see tliese par¬ 
ties generally engaged in this business. I have sometimes known them 
to have as many as 400 sworn at a time, and at other times from 10 to 20. 

1)173. Q. Have you ever been convicted of any criminal offence 

A. I pleaded guilty to an assault and battery and received sen¬ 
tence of four months, and got pardoned by the governor. I was sen¬ 
tenced to the city prison. I remained in three months and two weeks. 
That was in 1859. Governor Morgan pardoned me. I was arrested at 
one time on the charge of defrauding recridts, but there was a nolle 
prosequi entered without a trial. 


Kew York, February G, 18G9. 

Joseph E. Eussell sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9174. I reside in Yew Haven, Connecticut. I was the assistant reg¬ 
ister of voters in the town of Greenwich. 1 have a list of names that 
were registered at Greenwicli during the last election. James Golden 
was registered, and voted there. Terrance Alahony was also registered, 
and voted. The oath which these persons were required to take upon 
being registered by the laws of Connecticut as freemen, is, in substance, 
as follows: ‘‘You solemnly swear to support tlie Constitution of the 
United States and the constitution of the State of Connecticut, and 
when called upon to cast your vote, you shall do it without fear or favor 
of any man: so help you God.’^ They have a regular form of oath 
which is printed in the statute. 

In the lirst i)lace a candidate’s name is to be registered as an ap¬ 
plicant. This list is to be posted in the town-clerk’s office three weeks 
before the day of election. On the Alonday and Saturday of the week 
preceding the election, all candidates who make application have to 
present this to be made “freemen,” as they are termed. They are then 
sworn with regard to the statement they shall make before the court; then 
the questions are asked with regard to whether they are citizens of the 
United States, how long they have resided in the State or town, Avhether 
they are 21 years of age, and whether they can read. That is when they 
are made freemen. They are first sworn to answer these questions. If 
the answers are satisfactory, then they have administered to them what 
is termed the freemen’s oath—that they will support the Constitution of 
the United States, the constitution of the State of Connecticut, and 
when called upon to cast their vote, do it without favor or fear of any* 
man. 

These persons took this preliminary oath; they stated that they had 
resided in Connecticut the last year; they presented their x)apers which 
were issued there by the superior court of the city of Yew York or the 
suiweme court. There were two sets of papers during the day, I think, 
that hailed from the supreme court. I think the date of both of those 
papers was the 9th of October. I have an impression that the date on 
Golden’s paper was the Gth or IGth of the month. Golden first pre¬ 
sented himself to be made an elector either the 18th or the 19th—that is 
the Monday of the week preceding the election. He presented himself 
to be made a freeman; and 1 objected to his naturalization papers being 
received, as tliey were issued out of the State of Connecticut. The 
question was raised, and his papers were withdrawn, and he came in 
and was admitted, I tliink, upon the 19th. I made a minute, as near as 
1 could, of those persons who registered on new naturalization papers 
from the city of Yew York. There were some 14 in our town. I believe 





ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


827 


tliere was one set of papers that were issued on the 14th, b^t tliey were 
mostly dated on the 23d. I cannot tell whether the whole number of 
these persons previously lived in Connecticut; some of them had. Ter¬ 
rance Mahony, I think, was a recent comer. Golden I was not acquainted 
with at all until he presented himself before the board. 

To Mr. Ross: 

9175. We do not swear every one who is registered, but we do the new 
voters. This list is in the hand-writing of the assistant register; I w^as 
present when it was made out; we made two copies and they were com¬ 
pared. 

[Mr. Ross moved to strike out this testimony on the ground that it is 
not pertinent to the subject-matter to be investigated before this com¬ 
mittee. Motion overruled.] 


Xew York, February 6 , 18G9. 

Joseph Casey sworn and examined. < 

To Mr. Ross: 

917G. I reside at Ro. 50 James street, Rew York. I held no public 
position at the last election but that of poll-clerk; that I held in the 3d 
district, 4th ward. As far as I know there were no frauds upon the 
elective franchise in that district and ward; I was there all the time; it 
there had been any more votes counted on tickets put in the box than 
what we voted I would have known it. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9177. I remained until the close of the counting. My duty was to 
make a record of the names, to make tally and complete the returns; 
I was occupied very nearly all the time in that duty. 

New York, February G, 18G9. 

John McClitsky recalled. 

By Mr. Blair: 

9178. Question. You gave some testimony before the committee in 
Washington? 

Answer. Yes, sir. . 

9179. Q. You stated there that you had procured certain naturalization 
papers and that certain gentlemen had assisted you in it. Have you now 
any means of verifying your statement? 

A. What I stated then was true. 

9180. Are any of these papers that you stated you obtained still in 
existence? 

A. I think they are; I could not tell how many. 

9181. Q. Will you go and bring them ? 

A. Am I obliged to go? 

9182. Mr. Blair. Yes, sir. 

Witness. I decline going without force; if you will send a IJnited 
States marshal with me I will go and procure them, if I can hnd them. 

Mr. Blair. We will send the Sergeant-at-aTms with you who is an 
officer of the House. 

Witness. Very well, sir, I will go with him. 

[Witness then left in company of the Sergeant-at-arms for the pur- 
jiose of procuring the papers.] 




828 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


New York, February 6, 18G9. 

Lawrence Bommer sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

01S4. I reside at No. 31 Clark street, New York. I know John Glennon. 
He was register in the 4th election district of the 8th ward. I know of 
frauds in that district. I saw Glennon take tickets out of his pocket 
and slip them out of his hands into the box instead of the ticket 
given to him to deposit. I detected him in it and after tliat he desisted. 
I know he did that some two or three times before I caught him. When 
I saw him doit I grabbed at his hands, and as soon as I did so he turned 
round, took the ticket that he had in his hands, put that into his pocket 
again and run out of the room, without saying a word; when he came 
back I had him arrested, but let him go in a. few hours time on account 
of his begging and apologizing. 

Again, when I was register in our district there came up a crowd of 
eight men together. When they were arrested in our ward, I made a 
list of them and Avent round to the other places wdiere they registered, 
and saw those very same men enter five places and I presume get regis¬ 
tered, aud on the day of election I went to the 15th Avard and saAV the 
A^ery selfsame men AU)ting there. 

To Mr. Boss: 

9185. I was chairman of the registry board, 4th district, 8th ward. John 
Glennon Avas one of my colleagues; John Liuskey Avas also one; the 
name of the third one I do not remember. We polled G12 Amtes at that 
place. There Avas G50 registered. John Liuskey did not see these 
tickets exchanged, as he AAais sitting at the table AAuiting, and the table 
stood just behind the desk. Linske}^ was a republican and Glennon is a 
democrat. There was also another democrat on the board whose name 
I do not noAV remember. 


Neav York, February G, 18G9. 

A. VoRHEES recalled. 

By Mr. Blair : 

918G. Question. Did you examine the naturalization index and papers 
in one of the courts and make a comparison in regard to the num¬ 
bers contained in it ? 

Answer. Yes, sir; I examined the superior court in regard to these 
bundles that are marked. It is the last four or fiA^e days that I examined. 
The papers Avere put up into bundles aud about 100 in each bundle. The 
last four or fiA^e days these bundles were marked on the outside. On 
examining those bundles, in every instance I found them correspond 
AAith the number ou the outside. 

9187. Q. Did you look into the index book and see Avhether you could 
find as many i)apers on file as there w^ere names contained in that book ? 

A. On October 3d, 1 did. I was examining the papers. We had 
got doAAm to about 13 or 14, I remember, and I was ordered to go back 
and commence at the beginning and take out all the papers Avhich were 
AAutnessed by a certain individual named McCaffrey. Of course I com- 
]uenced on the 3d of October; the 1st and 2d I believe had already 
been selected. I commenced on the 3d of October and found on the 
index 4G naturalizations, in which he Avas a witness. That Avas the in¬ 
dex as made out by the clerk of the court. I Avent, to the bundle to get 
those 4G i)apers and could find but 13 on which his name appeared as a 
Avitness, and I counted the bundle three times. The index called for 4G. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


829 


That may he accounted for from the fact that the man was indexing 
during the tiine I was examining, and he might have had two or three 
papers himself. When 1 a\ ent over those bundles before, in looking at 
that man's name I found 43 papers which were witnessed by him. I did 
not look further than October 3d; when I found the i)apers were so 
widely apart in numbers, I gave it up. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9188. The first time I examined these impers with McOafirey’s name 
on, I found 43 of them, and when I came to look for the papers I found 
only 13. 

ISTew York, February C, 1869. 

Dennis McLaughlin sworn and examined, (called by Mr. Eoss.) 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9189. I was one of the election officers, last December, in the 3d 
district, 4th ward. I was there all day, Avith the exception of the 
time I made an arrest, when I had to go AAuth the party. I know of no 
frauds being perpetrated there. If there had been any I think it is very 
likely I should have known it. I am republican in i)olitics. 

To Mr. Blair: 

9190. There were some threats made, by some parties outside, against 
one of my colleagues. A number of persons made these threats all day, 
off and on. Costello, the inspector, is the one to whom I refer. It was 
alleged by many outside, that voters Avere kept back by unnecessary 
questions on his part, and iiarties came in and Avanted to know why this 
Avas. Mr. Costello remarked that he was not doing anything more than 
X)erforming his duty. That he was satisfied there Avere men registered 
there who Avere not entitled to be registered, but he had to receive 
them on account of their having naturalization x>apers, behind Avhich 
he could not go. They called him all sorts of names, and said they 
would kick his big head oft' of him aa hen he came outside. He had to 
be accompanied to the station-house at night by the policemen, in order 
to insure his safety, his life being regarded in danger. The police said it 
was best for me to go round with him also, and I went one block Avith 
them, then left and Avent on my Avay home unaccompanied by the police. 
Alderman Coman Avas there that day, and he made some threatening 
remarks against Mr. Costello—something about kicking his head off. 
Alderman Coman and he had some Avords. 

To Mr. Eoss: 

9191. Coman insisted that Costello was keeping back the voters. Mr. 
Costello, Avhen a man came up, Avould put questions to him, and Avheii he 
Avas challenged would administer both oaths—the preliminary and the 
general oath. At this Alderman Coman took offence. I did not regard 
the vote as being unnecessarily retarded by his action. 1 presume there 
were some questions asked that were unnecessary. Itis true that a good 
many men had to go aAvay, when the polls Avere closed, Avithout having had 
an opjmrtunity to deposit their votes. I li ave no doubt that if Mr. Costello 
had not put so very many questions some more would have had an oppor¬ 
tunity to vote. Eight hundred and fifty were registered, and about 750 
only voted. The deniocratic inspector there was Peter Thurston. There 
Avere two democratic poll-clerks, Avliich is not usual, there generally being 
one republican and one democrat. Mr. Johnson was one of them. If 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


8:0 

there had been 80 more votes put in the box than what had been voted 
I think I would have known it. I remained until the ])olls were closed. 

By Mr. Blair : 

0192. Question. If 80 names had been put upon the poll-book that were 
not voted, would you have had any means of detecting that? 

Answer. No, sir. 

9193. Q. You speak of Mr. Johnson being one of the poll-clerks ; what 
was his condition that day? was there anything unusual about him? 

A. There was liquor there; whether he had drank of it or not I could 
not tell. I did not observe anything that indicated that he was under; 
the influence of liquor. 


New York, February 6, 18G9. 

John Dillon sworn and examined: 

To Mr. Blair : 

9194. I reside in New York city. I voted at the election of last fall. 
I was inspector of election in the lltli district, Gth Avard. 

9195. Q. State if you knoAv anything that occurred there tending to 
affect the fairness of the election. 

A. I know that all the police that belonged to the ward were remoA^ed; 
by Avhose orders I could not positively swear; but I thought that it was 
a A^ery strange thing. 

919G. Q. State anything else that you observed. 

A. There are no more than GOO A^oters in that district, and there were 
400 registered the first day. I was not there at that time. On that 
being discovered, Mr. Marshall asked me if I would go up and accept 
the office of inspector, as there appeared to be a great deal of fraud going 
on. I AA^ent up, and aa as appointed by Mr. Marshall. I was occuifled 
there a day and a half, Avheii I was remoA^ed. About 330 Avere registered 
AAdiilst I remained. They Avorked A^ery hard at first, but as soon as they 
discoAwed that I, an old resident of the Avard, Avas there, they came Avith 
naturalization jAapers in their arms and in their pockets. Previous to 
that they had not had any. I aa’US remoA^ed because it was reported 
that I had sold out to the democratic party. It Avas so reported in room 
15, Fifth AAxnue Hotel, by Air. Marshall. It Avas done because it did 
not suit Air. Alarshalfis purpose to leaA^e me there. He wanted to play 
into Air. GrisAvold’s hands, and he could not do it. I do not remember 
hoAA^ many were registered altogether. In one district there Avere no 
republican inspectors up to 8 o’clock on the morning of the election. 
We sent two gentlemen up there avIio offered to be challengers in the 
AAmrd without any pay, but no one was-appointed. There Avas no chal¬ 
lenger at all in the 11th district on the republican side. The whole 
police force of the Gth Avard were changed. Captain Jordan could 
make the change, but not AAuthout authority, I suppose. I knoAv of no 
reason AAdiy this Avas done. The necessary effect of this change of police 
Avould be to facilitate frauds in the election. 

To Air. Boss: 

9197. At the time I acted as register I Avas living as much in Brooklyn 
as I AAms in Ncav York; as much in Ncav York as I Avas in Brooklyn." I 
call Ncav York my home. Aly fiimily sometimes reside in Brooklyn and 
sometimes in NeAv York. They were in Brooklyn, at the time of the last 
election. In the fall they AA’ere living in the Lame house in Avhich we 
haA^e been living for the last 10 or 12 years. I sleep part of the time in 
Brooklyn and iiart of the time in NeAv York. I voted' in Brooklyn. I 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


831 


suppose tliat might more proi^eiTy be called my home. The commissiouer 
has charge of the police, I presume, in this place, but I think Mr. Mar¬ 
shall has had the most charge. I could not say whether he was instru¬ 
mental in having these policemen of the 0th ward removed, or not. I 
was present during the second day of registry, and paft of the third. 
There were 320 registered the first day, and 18 the second. I think 407 
had been registered before I got there. I could not tell as regards any 
fraudulent votes having been polled there. Personally I know of none. 
I did not act during election day. I could not say positively that I, of 
my own knowledge, know of any one being illegally registered at that 
place. I was born in the city and county of N^ew York. I am now a 
clerk for Samuel Chapter. He is not doing any particular business just 
I now; he has some real estate for sale ; he was formerly a brewer. He 
lives at Pleasantville, Westchester county. I have been clerking for him 
for ov^er a year. He commenced doing business at Nos. 8 and 10 Centre 
street, in this city, a year last January.' I get paid my salary whenever 
I see i)roper to call for it. I sometimes call once a week, and sometimes 
I two or three times a week, just as I happen to need it. Previous to 
1 8 'oing with Mr. Chapter I was in the lumber business, and had contracts 
with the government during the war. I have never been convicted of 
any criminal ofience. I never Avas in the penitentiary. 

New York, February 6, 1869. 

August Browning sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

9198. I reside at No. 2 Watt street, city of New York. I know James 
and Patrick Gofi*. James Goff’s character is that of a professional thief; 
he does nothing but steal; he has been arrested seAwal times on that 
charge. I know John Glennon; he goes also by the name of Jack Squint; 
I know him better by that name than the other. I arrested James Goff 
myself on the 25th of October. I arrested Patrick Goff about seven or 
eight years ago. 

To Mr. Boss: 

9199. James Goff was arrested for stealing a gold watch and chain 
and tAVO diamond rings; he was put under $1,500 bail. 

Neav York, February 6, 1869. 

Theodore Taylor sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9200. I live at No. 207 East Eighty-fourth street. I am studying law 
with my uncle. Judge Bussell. John McCluskyl knoAV, and haA^e for 
a longtime; I haA^e knoAAOi him so as. to knoAV aaJio he Avas; for the 
last tAvo or three years 1 haA^e knoAvn him as a clerk for the city judge. 
I assisted last fall in filling up naturalization papers just the same as I 
would Avrite any paper for the office; I had no knowledge of Avhat the 
papers Avere. McClusky gave me a list of names of persons to fill in, 
and told me to take any I liked. I ahvays Avinte in my na,tm*al hand; I 
believe I signed papers with a mark in one or two cases; he told me I had 
better do that. I know Mr. EdAvard Bitter; he Avas a clerk there, and 
AA'as also engaged with McClusky in filling up these papers; 1 suppose 
I assisted in filling up about 50 or 75. 

To Mr. Boss : 

9201. I noAV belieA^e these papers which I assisted in getting up were 
fraudulent, but I did not knoAv anything about that then. I iieA-er 
thought it Avas Avrong to Avrite a man’s name and put a cross to it with- 




832 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


out liis being there directing me to do so; I, of course, know it is wrong 
to forge a maifs name. I believe I signed the man’s name to these 
papers as a general thing—that is, I wrote the names, and I believe Mr. 
Kitter and Mr. McClusky signed them; I am not positive wliether 1 
signed any names to the papers or not. I am not aware of the tact 
whether Judge Eussell knew I was engaged in this business or not; of 
course he saw me writing, but I do not know whether he knew what I 
was Avriting; I did it in my office. Hitter wrote some in my office and 
some in his own room; he had a private room. I am in 1113 ^ 19th year. 
I did not assist in taking the pai)ers into court; I do not know wliether 
they ever went into court or not. I haA^e no political j)references myself. 
I commenced filling up these papers about three or four Aveeks before 
the election took xdace. I do not knoAV where Hitter is. 

1^'eav York, February G, 18G0. 

John McClusky recalled. 

9202. Witness appears andiiroduces eight of the papers about which 
he testified. All, Avitli the exception of two, which Avere dated the 23d of 
October, Avere found to be of the date of the 21st of October, and 
all were issued from the supreme court and signed bj^ Charles E. 
LoeAv, Avith the seal of the court thereon. Those of the 21st, are of the 
names of Patrick Fogarty, llennis Quinn, Patrick Gilroj^, William O. 
Donnell, James Egbert, and Michael Doolejr. Those dated the 23d are 
in the names of Aaron Levj' and Moses Lex^^^ 

9203. Q. State Avhether or not jkui procured these papers in the man¬ 
ner you have previousl^^ stated in ^mur testimony before the committee? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9201. Q, These are part of the papers that 3 'ou obtained in the manner 
you have previously stated in your testimony" before the committee at 
Washington ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9205. Q. How did it happen that 3^011 did not use these eight? 

A. 1 did not find an 3 d)od 3 ^ to give them to, I suppose. 

Neav York, February G, 18G9. 

George II. Dunbar SAvorn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair: 

920G. I reside at No. 17 West Houston street, Yew York cit 3 '. On the 
night of the 30th of Yovember, between 10 and 11 o’clock, I was sent 
1)3" Colonel Bliss to police headquarters Avith Mr. Ha 3 " and another 3 mung 
man to get the police census records; they AA"ere taken there to compare 
Avith the registers AAdiich Ave had at room 15 Fifth Avenue Hotel, to see 
Avhether these parties that had been registered actually liA-ed at the 
numbers assigned to them in the ditterent streets. We AA-ent to police 
headquarters and got the books; Ave took all the books there Avere 
in that room and took them to the Fifth Avenue Hotel; I stood at the 
carriage door until I saw every one taken into the Fifth Avenue Hotel, 
as I sui)posed, and if the hackman took tAvo of them—put tAvo under his 
coat—it was Avithout my knoAvledge; I thought I Avas very careful to see 
every book go into the hack and see that every book Avas taken out. I 
was Avorking there night and day for almost two Aveeks. 

9207. Q. You intended to have all the books there? 

A. Yes, sir. We had no way of knoAving AAffiether all the books 
Avere taken from the police office, because Ave did not take anv account 
of them. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 833 

9208. Q. State wlietlier tlie books were similar to those you see here. 
[Copies of Police Census shown witness.] 

A. Yes, sir; I examined a great many of them; I had partial charge 
of the office most of the time for about two weeks, and they were simi¬ 
lar to these. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9200. Q. Did you take the books from police headquarters that had 
been returned there by the registers! 

A. No, sir ; all we took were books similar to those that are here; 
they are copies of books that are required to be kept b^^ the police author¬ 
ities as census books, as 1 understand it. 

9210. Q. Did not you have the other books there—the books that 
were returned by the registers! Are these the books made by the 
registers! 

A. No, sir; these are the books made by the police authorities; the 
l)ooks that the registers used were issued and were to be returned to room 
15, Fifth Avenue Hotel, or supj)osed to be returned there—that is, the 
books taken by the registers of the city. 

9211. Q. That night, when you had these books there, those register 
books were there also, were they ! 

A. No, sir; they were all at room 15, or supposed to have been there. 

9212. Q. There was another class of books that you took there that night. 
A. Yes, sir; what we call “police books,” that we examined. We 

examined these books with the registers. The register of a certain dis¬ 
trict of a certain ward would bring in his book as registering so many 
names, and such and such a day we would examine this police book as 
being a census of that ward and district, and we would check where we 
found them to be correct. 

9213. Q. Who took these original registry books to the Fifth Avenue 
Hotel! 

A. The registers themselves brought them there, and reported them 
there themselves. 

9214. Q. Were they instructed to bring them there! 

A. I cannot say; 1 presume they were. 

9215. Q. How long were you at the Fifth Avenue Hotel that night! 
A. I Avas there, sir, until about 3 o’clock the next morning. 

9210. Q. Hoav many were engaged in comi)aring these police books 
with the original register books that were there! 

A. I suppose there were upwards of 20. 

9217. Q. Do you know about how many of the original register books 
were there! 

A. I could not tell you that. 

9218. Q. How did they compare when you came to make the com¬ 
parison ! 

A. I found a great many which Avere at fault; Ave found a great many 
liad been registered whose names did not appear on the police books. 
We supposed the police books to be the correct ones, and that the books 
of the registry of the city were erroneous—that they had too many 
names on them. 

9219. Q. What was this room. No. 15 Fifth Avenue Hotel, used for at 

that time! . , ^ 

A. It Avas the headquarters for the city central committee ot the 

republican party. .., 11 .,- 

9220. Q. How long Avere those original registry books kept there at 

those republican headquarters ! 

53 T 


834 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. The first register books were brought in; they Avere examined and 
were returned to each and every register before the time of registry, so 
that they should have them ready the moment they should commence 
registering, on Saturday, at 3 o’clock in the morning; and I was from then 
until 10 o’clock in the morning returning the books that had not been 
called for. 

9221. Q. You say other parties had those registry books besides those 
at these headquarters of the republican committee 

A. I did. not say that any other parties had them. There were three 
or four places where they were to be called for by parties from our head¬ 
quarters at a certain time to take them off, and to take all that were left 
to those places. Those places I could not designate. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9222. Q. You have been stating that the original registry books were 
brought to the Fifth Avenue Hotel; is that so 1 

A. Yes, sir. 

9223. Q. Were they not copies? 

A. ]No, sir. 

9224. Q. Were not they brought there under a circular that had been 
issued expressly requiring them to bring copies, and were not these all 
copies, and are they not now in the possession of the committee that 
brought them there ? 

A. If they were copies, why should they be returned to the registers ? 

9225. I ask you simply if it was not the fact that these were copies of 
the registry that were brought to the Fifth Avenue Hotel under the 
directions of the republican central committee, under a circular sent to 
the registers ? 

A. I think you are right; I think they were—excuse me—as Charles A. 
Gray, who was a register for the 1st district and 1st ward, and the 3d dis¬ 
trict and 1st Avard, had the register Avliich he kept, and I made a copy of it 
and sent it up there myself, before I had anything to do Avith the place 
at all. They therefore must ha\^e been all copies, but they were returned. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9226. Q. You did send them back to the registers ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9227. Q. So as to have them the time the election caine off? 

A. Bo, sir; so that they might add to them the names of those reg¬ 
istering the last days of registration. I AA^as mistaken, as I now remem¬ 
ber, in thinking them originals; they were only copies. 

9228. They are the same ones that they used at the election that you 
had there ? 

A. They used their registers, I suppose; there Avere three or four 
copies taken. These we had were copies. 

9229. Q. Did you help to make those books ? 

A. Bo, sir; I helped to examine them. 

Bew York, February G, 1869. 

David H. Crowley sworn and examined. 

To Mr. Blair : 

9230. I have recently been to the county clerk’s office for the purpose of 
ascertaining A\diether the papers called for by the committee were to be 
produced this evening. I went over there at 10 minutes past six, and 
I found the doors and shutters closed, and could not see any lights or any 
inside. 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


835 


New York, February G, 18G9. 
Charles S. Strong sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9231. Question. Where do you reside ? 

Answer. I reside at 223 Henry street, in the city of New York. 

9232. Q. Have you prepared tables showing the vote of the sixth ward 
for a series of years 1 

A. I have in my possession tables showing the vote of the sixth ward 
from 185G to 18G8 inclusive. 

9233. Q. From what sources did you compile those tables ? 

. A. From the Tribune Almanac; 18G8 was, I think, taken from the 
Transcript, the official paper. (Witness produces the tables referred to.) 
They are as follows: 

Vote of Gth tcard from 185G to 18G8, inclusive^ (from Tribune Almanac.J 
9233u. President —185G. 


Buchanan, (democrat). 2,357 

Fremont, (republican). 291 

Fillmore, (neutral).:. 229 


Total. 2,880 


92336. Mayor—1857. 


Tiemann, (democrat, endorsed by republicans). 495 

Wood, (democrat, regular). 2,401 

Total. 2, 89G 


Note. —Tiemann was a democrat. The actual strength of parties is 
better shown by the vote for governor of almshouse, viz: 

JDeugro, (regular democrat).2,443 

Smith, (republican). 340 

Wagner, (American). 91 

Total. 2,874 


9233c. Governor— 1858. 


Morgan, (republican). 282 

Parker, (democrat, regular). 2,2G5 

Burrows, (American). 27 

Gerrit Smith, (abolition). 1 


Total.. 2,575 


9234. Mayor —1859. 


Opdyke, (republican). 

Wood, (Mozart democrat). 

Havermeyer, (Tammany democrat) 


153 

1, no 

1,340 


2, 603 


Total 




































836 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9235. President —18G0. 

Lincoln, (republican). 397 

Fusion ticket. 2,827 

Total. 3,224 

Note. —The fusion ticket was the invention of James Brooks. A set 

of presidential electors were nominated with the understanding they 

were to vote for Bell, Breckinridge, or Douglas, as might be deterjnined 
by a majority of them, but against Lincoln, any way. 

9236. Mayor— 1861. 

Opdyke, (republican). 255 

Gunther, (Tammany democrat). 1, 717 

Wood, (Mozart democrat). 860 

Total. 2,832 


Comi)are these: 

9237. 1862, Governor (not given by wards.) 

Comptroller.—December, 1862. 

Hawes, (republican). 138 

M. T. Brennan, (democrat). 3,014 

Total. 3,152 


Congress—November, 1862. 

Walbridge, (republican and war democrat). 448 

Ben. Wood, (Tammany and Mozart). 1,891 

Total. 2,339 


Note.— Increase at charter election over congressional, 813. Brennan 
lives in this ward; he is now police commissioner. 

9238. Mayor— 1863. 

Blunt, (republican*). 200 

Gunther, (opposition democrat). 726 

Borle, (Tammany democrat). 1,509 

Total. 2,435 

9239. 1864, President—vote by wards not given. 

* Blunt was exceptionally popular with the democrats, being a supervisor. The contest 
was between the two democrats, both of whom were men of experience, and watched each 
other’s canvass. Probably the vote was more nearly honest than ever before or since. 



































ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


837 


Congress—1864. 

Bryant, (republican). 71 

Morgan Jones, (Tammany democrat). 2,846 

Walsh, (Mozart democrat). 687 

Total. 3,604 

Governor—1864. 

Fenton, (republican). 347 

Seymour, (democrat). 3,434 

Total. 3,781 

9250. Mayor—1865. 

Eoberts, (republican). 312 

Hoffman, (Tammany democrat). 1,669 

Gunther, (opposition democrat). 147 

Hecker, (opposition democrat). 361 

Total. 2,489 

9242. Governor—1866. 

Fenton, (republican). 207 

Hoffman, (democrat).3,254 

Total. 3,461 

9242. State officers, 1867; 

Secretary of state. 

McKean, (republican). 186 

Kelson, (democrat). 3,300 

Total.-.3,486 

9243. State senator. 

Leggett, (republican). H 

William M. Ward, (Tammany democrat). 1,983 

Kerrigan, (opposition democrat). 1,209 

Total.3,239 

9244. In 1867 the democrats expected to and did caiTy the State. The 
vote was largely fraudulent; desperate efforts were made to win, in order 
to get the State officers, who were to constitute the State board of can¬ 
vassers in 1868. 







































838 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9245. 1868—from official canvass: 

President. 


Grant, liigliest number. 403 

Seymour, higliest number. 4,998 

Total.-.-.-. 5,401 


Governor. 


Griswold, (republican). 369 

Hoffman, (democrat). 5,032 

Scattering. 2 


Total. 5,4^3 


N'ew York, February 6,1869. 

James Dunphy sworn and examined, (called at the instance of Mr. 
Eoss.) 

By Mr. Eoss: 

9246. Question. Where do you reside? 

Answer. N'o. 19 Yandewater street. 

9247. Q. What position did you hold at the i^residential election last 
fall? 

A. I was canvasser in the 3d election district of the 4th ward. 

9248. Q. Who was your colleague ? 

A. William Peck, 1 think. 

9249. Q. State if you gave your attention to the canvassing of the 
votes at that poll. 

A. Yes, sir, both of us did. 

9250. Q. State whether your associate canvasser was drunk or sober. 

A. Sober, I think, sir. 

9251. Q. State whether there was concurrence and unity of action in 
reference to the canvass of the votes. 

A. There was some difficulty in regard to the manner of counting 
the vote. 

9252. Q. In what way ? 

A. Well, we of course agreed to count the electoral vote first. We 
then took the votes out of the box, and then proceeded to count the 
tickets to see if they tallied with the number on the books of the poll 
clerks. We then divided the tickets, putting the democratic on one side 
and the republican on another. My associate then said ^‘you commence 
first as you have got the biggest pile.” I then opened a ticket and began 
reading off* the names on it, thirty-three in number I think. My col¬ 
league protested against that method of doing the business, and said 
^4f you are going to do that way we won’t get through in two days.” I 
replied “1 don’t care, I am going to count the votes that way if we never 
get through.” He then said that “he had only got leave of absence 
till midnight, and that the way I was counting the votes was not the 
right, or usual way.” He was a Metropolitan fireman and that is why 
he would have to leave at midnight. I insisted uj)on counting my way, 
and told him that was the way I was going to count them. I then went 
on and read off some ten tickets, which took some three quarters of an 















ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


839 


hour or so when lie said won’t count no more in that way.” I said 
very well, and sat down. We sat there then until nearly eleven o’clock 
because Ave could not agree. He would not listen to my tally nor I to 
his. The captain of police in that ward came in and heard his account 
of the difficulty, and told him not to do anything. He also sent for Mr. 
Leask, who is a kind of a head man in the republican party in that 
neighborhood, and Leask told him to stand on his oars, and not to do 
anything if I insisted in counting in my way, but stick it out. At 
eleven o’clock we commenced to count the tickets in the usual way. 

9253. Q. What do you mean by the usual way! 

A. Why, I counted out my tickets, and eA^ery time I counted ten I 
would pass them to him, and he Avonld see that there Avas ten in the 
package, and that there Avas no gouging. 

9254. Q. State if you cheated at all in the canvassing. 

A. I could not cheat him at all—not a \mte. He was A^ery precise. 
I suppose he was sent there because he was a good cauA^asser. I haA^e 
been a canvasser a good many years. I am pretty near certain I did 
not take a vote from him, and I knoAV he did not take one from me. 

9255. Q. If you knoAv of any unfairness in the cauA^ass of the Azotes in 
that district that night state it. 

A. I don’t knoAV of any. 

9256. Q. I will get you to state if you put in eighty-five or any other 
number of votes into that canAmss that were not voted ? 

A. 'NOj sir; hoAA^ could I put them in? our count tallied with the poll- 
books. 

9257. Q. Could any one else haA'e done it ? 

A. I don’t know how they could. 

9258. Q. You A\ais the democratic canvasser, so-called ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9259. Q. You say you put no tickets into the boxes that were not 
A'oted ? 

A. Ho, sir; I don’t know hoAv it could haA^e been done. There was no 
one, I think, behind the table except the police. 

9260. Q. Do you know Henry Johnson ? 

A. Only from acting Avith him on two election days. I know he is a 
pretty good drinker. 

9261. Q. Was he drunk that day ? 

A. I should say he was. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9262. Q. You say you and your associate canvasser sat there and did 
nothing until 11 o’clock at night and then you commenced counting the 
votes in the usual way ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9263. Q. What was the usual way ? 

A. To take the tickets and look at the endorsement, see that the 
names Avere correct and no scratches on the tickets, then to put them 
up by tens and pass them to my associate; then he would look at them 
and see that they were all right and put them one side. 

9264. Q. Why did you not count that Avay at first! 

A. To delay the count. 

9265. Q. Why did you Avish to delay the count ? 

A. So that the A^ote of the city might not be got at to be sent through 
the State before 12 o’clock. 

9266. Q. Had you any such instructions ? 

A. Yes, sir. 


840 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9267. Q. Who from ? 

A. No one in particular. 

9268. Q. Who from, I ask you, did you receive such instructions ? 

A. From our ward canvassers 1 

9269. Q. From who ? 

A. Well, we all got together ourselves and made up our minds to do 
that way. 

9270. "Q. Who got together and arrived at that decision ? 

A. The canvassers in our ward. 

9271. Q. Kepublican or democratic canvassers ? 

A. The democratic canvassers in our ward. I brought them together 
myself. 

9272. Q. You called the meeting? 

A. Well, it was no meeting; we happened to meet, that was all. 

9273. Q. All the democratic canvassers were present from your ward— 
the 4th ward ? 

A. All except one. 

9274. Q. And you all agreed not to permit the counting of the votes 
to go on until a late hour ? 

A. We agreed that we woidd count the tickets, but in such a way 
that it would take some hours to do it j that we would read over every 
name on every ticket. 

9275. Q. Who do you say called that meeting of officers? 

A. There was no call for a meeting. 

9276. Q. Where did you meet ? 

A. Where we were folding tickets. 

9277. Q. Who first made the proposition to so count the votes as to 
delay the result being known ? 

A. I did, sir. 

9278. Q. Had you received instructions from any one so to do ? 

A. Directions to that effect, of course. 

9279. Q. Who from ? 

A. Well, not directions, but it was supi)osed to be that. It was under¬ 
stood that was to be the arrangement in the different wards. 

9280. Q. Who gave you those instructions in the first place ? 

A. My alderman gave them to me. 

9281. Q. Who is he—his name ? 

A. Alderman Thomas Coman. 

9282. Q. Acting mayor of the city subsequently ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

9283. Q. Did he tell you where he derived his authority to so instruct 
you? 

A. No, sir. 

9284. Q. Do you know whether those instructions came from any dem¬ 
ocratic committee ? 

A. Not positively. 

9285. Q. Was you so informed? 

A. I don’t know where they came from positively. 

9286. Q. What did Alderman Coman tell you ? 

A. He told me to count the vote, but to read every name on the elec¬ 
toral ticket every time. 

9287. Q. Why did he say you was to do this ? 

A. I have already explained. 

9288. Q. He gave you the reason which you have stated to this com¬ 
mittee ? 

A. Yes, sir 5 to delay the canvass so that our vote in the city could not 




ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 841 

be known in the State until after theirs was received here. Previously, 
I believe, they heard from us before we did from them. 

9289. Q. You was then to delay your canvass in the city so that the 
vote in the State should be counted before yours? 

A. Yes, sir; or, perhaps, at the same time, but so that we should hear 
from them first. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9290. Q. What was the reason, you say, for this action? 

A. It was our impression that if we sent our returns into the State 
they would overcome our majority. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9291. Q. Were you present at Tammany Hall on the Sunday before 
election ? 

A, No, sir. 


New York, February G, 18G9. 

JOHN H. McCunn recalled at the instance of Mr. Boss. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9292. Question. State if you are acquainted with Hiram M. Clapp ? 

Answer. I don’t know him at all, sir. 

9293. Q. State if you recollect a police officer bringing a man before 
you named James Murphy ? 

A. There was but one occasion when a police officer brought a man 
before me ; it must have been that man. Yes, it seems to me that the 
officer’s name was Clapp. He was a sandy-haired man. I recoUect that 
he brought a man before me in a beastly state of intoxication. He was 
sent by Judge Dowling to me, as a man who said he had false papers. 

9294. Q. State if you made any threats of punishing this police officer ? 

A. Some one, I think, followed them to my court and complained to 

me that this police officer was preventing legal voters from getting in 
their votes. I told them that if Mr. Clai)p or any other man attempted 
to prevent legal voters casting their ballots I woidd punish him. I am 
inclined to think the officer was a fair man, but extreme in his way. 

9295. Q. I would ask you if you ever attended Judge Barnard’s court 
when it was in session for naturalization purposes ? 

A. I was there once. 

929G. Q. State as to your observation of the manner in which he con¬ 
ducted business. 

A. As far as I sa w, the business of naturalization was conducted fairly 
and lionorably by Judge Barnard. 

9297. Q. Do you know John McClusky? 

A. I know a man by the name of McClusky who was an officer in the 
court of general sessions, over which I had the honor at the time to pre¬ 
side, but I don’t know much about him. 

9298. Q. Are you acquainted with his reputation ? 

A. I don’t know much about him; I declare 1 don’t. 

9299. Q. Are you acquainted with his reputation for truth and veracity ? 

A. I don’t think I am sufficiently acquainted with him to say any¬ 
thing about him. I don’t think you ought to call on me to say anything 

about-; really, Mr. Boss, I don’t know much about him; upon my 

word, I don’t know anything- 

By Mr. Blair ; 

9300. Q. In what capacity was Mr. McClusky about the court of gen¬ 
eral sessions? 

A. He was first clerk to City Judge Bussell. 




842 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9301. Q. Was he not your clerk at any time! 

A. O, yes, sir—I think for three years, but I did not know anything 
about liiin. I appointed him at the request of the late John Clancy and 
Judge Brennan of this city. Eeally you are asking me, now, very deli¬ 
cate questions. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9302. Q. How did he come to get out of your employ ! 

A. I was elevated to the superior court bench, and Judge Eussell was 
chosen city judge. 

The sub committee adjourned sine die, Mr. Eoss protesting against such 
adjournment. 

The following testimony was taken by the full committee, in Washing¬ 
ton, D. C.: 

Washington, Saturday^ February 13, 1869. 

John I. Davenport recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

9303. Question. Will you present to the committee a copy of the letter 
sent by the chairman to Charles E. Loew, county clerk of Hew York, 
with the telegrams subsequently received from and sent to him during 
this week ? 

Mr. Davenport read the following: 

House of Eepresentatives, 

Washmgton^ D. 0., February 9, 1869. 

9304. Dear Sir : At a meeting of the select committee on alleged 
election frauds in Hew York, held this day, the subject of your refusal 
to produce before the sub-committee in Hew York on Saturday last the 
applications for naturalization on file in your oftice for the days of Octo¬ 
ber 21 and 23, 1868, was considered, and before taking any final meas¬ 
ures I was directed to request your immediate appearance before this 
committee in this city with said applications. 

Eespectfully, &c., 

WM. LAWEEHCE, 
Chairman Committee, 

Chas. E. Loew, Esq., 

County Cleric of Fetv Yorlc. 


[Telegram.] 

Hew York, February 10, 1869. 

To Judge Lawrence, 

Chairman Committee^ tfic.. House Representatives: 

9305. Called at the Astor House on Monday morning; found commit¬ 
tee adjourned. When do they return to Hew York ! 

CHAS. E. LOEW, 
County Clerk's Office, 


[Telegram.] 

Washington, February 10, 1869—2.30 p. m. 
To Chas. E. Loew, County Clerk, Few York: 

9306. Will you come here as requested ! Answer. 

WM. LAWEEHCE, 
Chairman Committee, 






ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


843 


[Telegram. ] 

New York, February 11,1869. 

To Judge Wm. Lawrence, 

Chairman Committee^ House Representatives: 

9307. Your letter dated 9tb, bearing postmark of 10th, has only just 
been received. That and telegram came to me same time. I did not 
and will not refuse to produce papers, but I am not permitted to bring 
county records away from the State. Is it me you want, or the i)apers? 
I will come on at once, if you wish. Please answer. 

CHAELES E. LOEW, 

Couyity ClerFs Office. 


[Telegram.] 

Washington, February 11,1869—4.20 p. m. 
To Charles E. Loew, County Cleric, Hew York: 

9308. Please answer: do you intend to come and bring the papers here 
as requested, or do you refuse ? 

WM. LAWEENOE, 
Chairman Committee. 


[Telegram. ] 

New York, February 12,-. 

Hon. Wm. Lawrence, House Representatives, Washmgton : 

9309. 1 consider our telegrams probably crossed each other on the way. 
Have YOU not received mine? If you have, is it not an answer to yours? 

CHAELES E. LOEW. 


[Telegram.] 

Washington, February 12,1869. 
To Charles E. Loew, County Clerk, New York: 

9310. I consider your answer a refusal to come here and bring the 

WM. LAWEENCE, 
Chairman Committee. 


[Telegram.] 

New York, February 13,1869. 

To Hon. Wm. Lawrence, 

Chairman, House of Representatives: 

9311. The telegram directed by you to county clerk was received and 
opened by me, Mr. Loew having left town last night on a prior engage- 

HENKY A. GUMBLETOK 






844 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9312. Q. State if you saw the applications for naturalization in the 
office of the county clerk—being the office of the clerk of the supreme 
court of Kew York city—purporting to be ai^plications for October last j 
and if so, in what condition they were. 

A. A day or two before the committee left ISTew York, which was the 
14th of January, 1869, the chairman of the committee, Mr. Boss, and 
myself, went from the room in the United States court building where 
the committee were sitting to the superior court clerk’s office, and 
from there to the supreme court clerk’s office, or rather to the office of 
the county clerk, who is ex officio clerk of the supreme court. We saw 
there Mr. Gumbleton, the deputy in charge of the office, and requested 
to see the naturalization applications for the month of October, 1868. 
Mr. Gumbleton threw open the doors of a book-case and said that they 
were all there. Judge Lawrence asked him i)articularly, ^^Mr. Gum¬ 
bleton, when we were here before, it was stated that some of the papers 
were in a safe in another room; are they now all here, and are these all 
the papers which were issued in October, 1868?” Mr. Gumbleton re¬ 
plied that they were, and that the papers of each day were by them¬ 
selves. 


Washington, February 13,1869. 

Howard T. Marston recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

9313. Question. State if you examined the applications for naturaliza¬ 
tion for the month of October last, on file in the office of the clerk of the 
suiireme court of Bew York city; and if so, when and in what condition 
the applications for each day were found. 

Answer. I examined the applications made between the 8th and 23d of 
October, 1868. They were brought to me by one of the clerks, with 
one or two exceptions, which I noted in my original minutes, and have 
written off this morning; each day’s applications were by themselves— 
that is to say, they would come, perhaps, in one or two bundles, but 
we had them assorted and the applications of each day arranged by 
themselves. That examination commenced about the 6th of January 
last, and continued about two weeks. I do not recollect the precise 
length of time; I could tell by looking over these paiiers. On the 5th 
of January, 1869, I examined what puri)orted to be all the applications 
for naturalization which were put on file on the 9th of October, 1868; 
on the 6th of January I examined what purported to be all the applica¬ 
tions for naturalization filed on the 10th of October, 1868; on the 7th of 
January, 1869, I examined what puriiorted to be all the iiapers for the 
13th of October, 1868; on the 8th of January, 1869, I examined addi¬ 
tional applications of the 8th, 9th, 10th and 13th of October, 1868, which 
were given me after I had begun the examination of the applications 
for the 15th of October. With these exceptions the papers were all 
given to me assorted for each day, except upon one occasion, when the 
papers of two days—I don’t remember which—were mixed, and when 
1 and Mr. Murphy, the clerk who had charge of the papers, assorted the 
papers. The clerk generally handed the applications to me for each 
day, so that I could make the examination for each day separately, but 
the papers were put up by Mr. Murphy. I know nothing about their 
condition. I only know how they were given to me. 

9314. Q. State if Mr. Murphy took the papers from you in the same order 
in which he had given them to you—that is, each day’s by themselves. 

A. Yes; I examined the paiiers, and handed them to him. He put 
them up for each day in one bundle, and I took them away. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


845 


By Mr. Kerr : 

9315. Q. Have you been in tlie city of Wasbingtou ever since you were 
examined by the committee before ? 

A. Yes. 

9310. Q. Have you been in tlie service of tlie committee ? 

A. I do not know wlietlier I have been or not. I have been at work 
upon the evidence whicli has been taken before this committee. 

9317. Q. What have you been doing with the evidence? 

A. I have been indexing it. 

9318. Q. Have you been doing anything else with it ? 

A. I do not think I have done anything else. The correction I believe 
has been done by somebody else. In my indexing I may have made a 
correction of a name or two. 

9319. Q. Have you been making a brief or synopsis ? 

A. I have been making an index so as to be able to refer to any par¬ 
ticular part. 

9320. Q. Have you been aiding the committee in preparing their 
reports? 

A. Ko ; unless that is aiding them. 

9321. Q. State whether any one not connected with this committee has 
ever examined the index and made use of it. 

A. Ko; it has not been out of my hands. 

9322. Q. Who employed you to do this? 

A. I am employed in Kew York by the committee of the Union League 
club, of which I am not a member. 

9323. Q. Who furnished you the evidence which has been taken before 
the committee, and which you have been at work upon ? 

A. Mr. Davenport and I may have received some from Judge Law¬ 
rence, though I do not think I have. 

9324. Q. When did you get the printed testimony ? 

A. I have had it some time. I have been at work upon it a few days. 

9325. Q. A week or two, have you had the evidence ? 

A. I think 1 have had a part of it that time. 

9326. Q. Have you done this under your employment by the League ? 

A. I do not know how that is. 

9327. Q. State if you have communicated the evidence or any part of 
it to anybody. 

A. To no person that I am aware of; I should know it if I had. 

9328. Q. Have you not sent a copy of it to the League in New York ? 

A. No, I have not. 

9329. Q. Don’t you know that copies of it have been sent there ? 

A. No, I do not. 

Washington, February 13,1869. 

John I. Davenport recalled. 

9330. I employed Mr. Marston to assist me in making an analytical 
index of the testimony. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

9331. Q. Did you employ Marston to do wdiat he is doing upon this 
evidence for the committee ? 

A. I employed him to aid me as the clerk of the committee; i. e., doing 
work which I was authorized and instructed to do by the chairman of 
the committee. 

9332. Q. Did you employ him for the committee ? 


846 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I employed him to do work which I was instructed to do by the 
chairman. 

9333. Q. Did you employ him to aid the committee in that work 

A. No; to aid me as clerk of the committee. 

9334. Q. Did you tell him you employed him by direction of the com¬ 
mittee or of any member of it ? 

A. No. 

9335. Q. Did you so employ him ? 

A. No. 

933G. Q. Did you tell him he would be paid by the committee for his 
services! 

A. No; he understands that he can draw on me for his services. 

9337. Q. By whom is he paid ? 

A. By me. 

9338. Q. By whom are you paid ? 

A. I suppose by the committee for my services as clerk. 

9339. Q. Do you expect to be paid by the committee also for what you 
do by his aid ? 

A. I suppose his pay will come out of me primarily, and very probable 
ultimately. If I can get it out of any one else I shall certainly so do. 

9340. Q. Is it your expectation that the money you pay him will come 
out of your own funds and never be repaid by anybody else ? 

A. My exj^ectation is if I can get it from any one else I shall do so. 
If I can get it from the funds of the sub-committee of the Union League 
club I shall get it from them. I do not expect that this committee will 
pay it, for I have never been able to get it to pay anything as yet for 
clerks or expenses. 

9341. Q. Then Marston is in no sense acting for the committee ? 

A. He is acting for me. When I arrived here I came alone, or rather 
Mr. Glassey came w ith me. Judge Law rence gave me his views of what 
he desired done. He wished everything x^ertaining to naturalization cut 
from the evidence, and all assorted as to the different courts and the dif¬ 
ferent counties 5 everything as to the frauds practiced, and as to the 
mode and manner of naturalization in the different courts pasted to¬ 
gether, and an analytical index prepared in addition to the index giving 
the names of the witnesses and other matters, w hich I could not do be¬ 
tween now and the first of May. 

9342. Q. Do all these classes of evidence go into the final report of 
the committee w ith the evidence, or is it for the private use of the chair¬ 
man ? 

A. I understand it is for the use of the chairman in the preparation of 
the report of the committee, and to be imblished wfith the testimony, so 
far as the index is concerned, and a large table of errata of both typo¬ 
graphical and other errors. 

9343. Q. This classification of evidence is not to be printed with the 
report ? 

A. No, I do not understand that it is to be printed with the report. 
Of course, some clippings are to be inserted. Finding, after I arrived 
here, that Mr. Marston w as obliged to come on, I told him after his 
arrival to remain and assist me; I did this because, for the time that I 
have known him, I have found him very reliable. I have, until within 
a few days, kept the evidence all in my room and he has worked upon it 
there; but for the last few days I have allowed him to take such por¬ 
tions of the evidence as he w as working upon and needed to his owm 
room, and he has been engaged upon it there under my direction, and 
more or less under my eye. 




ELECTION FKAUDS IN NEW YORK. 847 

9344. Q. Has this been done with the approval of the chairman ^ Did 
you communicate to the chairman the fact? 

A. I communicated to the chairman the fact that Marston Avas at work 
ux^on this analytical index, in order that I might devote my time more 
especially to aiding him and the committee in other matters connected 
w ith the x>reiAaration of the rei)ort. 

9345. Q. Have you any reason to believe that he has communicated 
this evidence to anybody else? 

A. I have no reason to believe that he has communicated it. I haA^e 
reason to belieA^e that he has not. Certainly, he has not taken coines 
aAA’ay. 

By the Chairman: 

9346. Q. Will you state what was said to Mr. LoeA7 about the adjourn¬ 
ment of the committee on the last Saturday, when he Avas summoned to 
axipear before the committee with the naturalization xAax)ers ? 

A. My understanding and belief is that he aa as informed by GoA^ernor 
Blair that the committee would leaA^e that night, and after he left the 
committee-room, and about 4 ohlock, Mr. Plumb—w ho testified in Ncav 
Y ork that he had charge of the records in the county clerk’s office—came 
and called me out and asked me wdiat X)ai)ers the committee Avanted. I 
told him it Avas stated in the subixena, and that they were the xiax)ers 
for the 21st and 23d of October. He said that Mr. LoeAv had directed 
him to get them and bring them before the committee, and he desired 
to know^ hoAV long the committee Avould remain in session. I told him 
until about 5, and then from half iiast 6 to about 8 o’clock j he said he 
wmuld bring the xiaxiers over. 

Washington, D. C., February 17, 1869. 
Charles E. Loew recalled and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

9347. Question. State if you are readj^ to produce to the committee the 
axiplications for naturalization made to the sux)reme court of the State 
of NeAV York, in the city of Ncav York, on the 21st and 23d of October 
last. 

Answer. I will state that I haA^e been and am ready to answer any 
question that the committee may see fit to x)ut to me j that I always 
haA^e been and am now. 

9348. The Chairman. Please answer the question put to you. 

A. I AA ill state in ansAver to that question that I ahvays liave been, am 
noAV, and Aviil be ready to obey any order, request, or subpoena of this 
committee, aa here it is in my x)OAA'er to obey; that in obedience to the 
request made by the chairman of the committee to me by letter, I asked 
the justices of the supreme court of the first judicial district for a x)ermit 
to produce the ai)X)lications for naturalization, under date of 21st and 23d 
October, before this committee at Washington. That ai)X)lication I made 
in Avriting to the suxireme court, and is as folloAvs: 

To the supreme couH of the first judicial district: 

9349. The undersigned, clerk of the court, has been requested bj a committee of the 

House of Representaiives to bring to Washington certain original records of tbe court. He 
is advised by counsel that he has no such custody of them as would justify him in taking 
them out of the State of Ne\v York. ' 

The undersigned is informed and believes that a majority of the committee intend to an est 
him for contempt if he does not take the records out of the State to AVashington. He is this 
morning in receipt of the following telegram from Washington: 

Washington, February 11. 

Charles E. Loew, County Cleric New York: 

Pltiase answer: Do you intend to come and bring the papers here, as requested, or do you refuse ? 

WILLIAM LAWRENCE, 

Chairman Committee. 


848 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW A'ORK. 


The nndersip^ned lias nothing to suggest to tlie court upon the policy or impolicy, legality, 
or illegality, of taking court records out of the State, and submits the matter to the judgment 
of the court, whose records they ai*e, and who alone, as he is advised, have the power in the 
premises—if power resides anywhere—to take the records off of file. 

The undersigned informs the court that the said committee had a session in this city of 
a protracted nature; that he was repeatedly before it, and that it, by its agents, made a 
thorough search of all the papers in his office, which he allowed out of county, and which 
lasted for two weeks, during which time the agents of the committee had opportunity to make 
memoranda or copies of all the papers that they desired to. 

The undersigned further says as matters of fact, that the records which he is asked to take 
out of the State and remove to Washington are at least 1,360 in number, and concern the 
muniments of title to political, civil, and property rights of 1,360 citizens of this State, 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Cltrk, Sfc. 

New York, February 12, 1869. 

In answer to this application, I received from tlie court a unanimous 
opinion, disallowing the application, which reads as follows: 

New York, February 15, 1869. 

9350. An application having been made to us by the clerk of this court for direction as to 
his authority to take the records of the court out of the State, in obedience to a writ of sub¬ 
poena duces tecum, served upon him from a committee of the House of Representatives, we 
are of opinion that the act of the legislature of this State passed March 29, 1638, prohibits 
the clerk from removing from his office any record whereof a transcript can be read in evi¬ 
dence, and that he cannot even temporarily remove such record to the court without a special 
order of the court therefor; we further state, as our opinion, that the clerk has no authority 
to remove such records to Washington. 

T. Wc CLERKE. 

D. P. INGRAHAM. 

JOHN SUTHERLAND. 

GEORGE G. BARNARD. 

ALBERT CARDOZO. 

A copy: 

CHAS. E. LOEW, Secretary. 

Upon tliat decision of the supreme court, I of course have no authority 
to remove the records of that court, they not being in my custody. 

0351. Q. You decline then to produce the papers asked for I 

A. I do not decline^ I have not the authority; they are not in my 
custody, and I cannot produce them. 

9352. Q. Do you not as clerk of that court have custody of its files 
and records'? 

A. As clerk of the court those records are in my office, but I have no 
custody of them authorizing me to take them out. 

9353. Q. You have charge of them ? 

A. Simply the supervision of them, to allow people to examine them. 

9354. Q. Does anybody else have tlie custody of them but yourself? 

A. The justices have the custody of them. 

9355. Q. Do the justices have charge of the rooms in which they are 
kept? 

A. They have direction as to how the rooms shall be kept; I do not 
know what you mean by having charge of the rooms; they have entire 
charge so far as directing how they shall be kept and everything else 
about them. 

By Mr. Dawes: 

9356. Q. Were the pajiers mentioned in your subpoena in your office 
when the subpoena Avas seiwed on you ? 

A. They were in the clerk’s office of the supreme court. 

9357. Q. And you are the clerk ? 

A. I am the clerk. 

9358. Q. Do you decline to bring them here in obedience to tliat sub¬ 
poena ? 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 849 

A. I say again that in obedience to the order of this committee I am 
willing to do anything in my j)ower. 

9359. Q. Do yon say yes or no to my question, no matter what your 
reason may be f 

A. I say I have no custody of those papers and cannot bring them. 

9360. Q. That is not the question put to yon; please answer directly. 

A. I cannot bring them because I have not custody of them. 

9361. Q. Do yon decline to bring them; will yon answer that question? 

A. I am answering the question as best I can; I caimot bring i^apers 

that I have not the custody of. 

9362. Q. Will yon answer the question? 

A. Under the decision of the supreme court I cannot bring them. 

9363. Q. My question is whether you decline to bring them? 

A. I have no custody of them; I do not see how I can answer the 
question otherwise then I have done. 

Mr. Kerr objected to any further answer to the question being required 
of the witness. 

The committee decided to require a direct answer. 

Witness. I sui)pose, then, I may say what is really the fact, that I 
decline to bring the i)apers because I have not the custody of them. 

9364. Q. Have you any other ground for saying that you have not the 
custody of them than that which you have already stated to the com¬ 
mittee ? 

A. Yes; I have also the ground that if I had the custody of them and 
were to bring them it would be in violation of the ofScial oath that I 
have taken, such an act being forbidden by the law. 

By the Chairman : 

9365. Q. Do you, or not, know that the records referred to are so made 
under the authority of an act of Congress, and that State laws have 
nothing to do with them? 

A. I have never examined the laws in that regard. 

9366. Q. Are you, as one of the officers of the court, the custodian of 
its records ? 

A. I am an officer of the supreme court, and the custodian of the 
records, subject to their control. 

9367. Q. On the 20th of December last I presented to you a commu¬ 
nication in New York, of that date, that you stated you would present 
to the supreme court and ask their order on it authorizing you to pro¬ 
duce before the committee the naturalization records referred to. Did 
you present that communication to the court? 

A. The application I made to the court was prior to the time you 
asked me to present it; I sent the application you gave me to the judges 
of the court, as requested by you, but never received any order upon 
that. 

9368. Q. By direction of the resolution that passed the House of Kep- 
resentatives after the committee left Kew York, and by authority of the 
committee, 1 directed Mr. Glassey to make a list of the names of persons 
naturalized in October in the supreme court, with a list of the names of 
the witnesses and the residences of the applicants and the witnesses. 
Will you permit him to make those lists? 

A. I certainly gave that permission to the committee before, and am 
willing to give the order again and to do anything that will facilitate 
them in their investigation. 

9369. Q. Do you know that the necessity for the production of those 
naturalization papers before the committee grows out of testimony re¬ 
ceived after the committee left Kew York? 

54 T 


850 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. I certainly do not know anything about that. 

9370. Q. State if yon have been served with a snbpcBna here requir¬ 
ing yon to produce those naturalization papers before this committee ? 

A. I will state that I was served, at half-past G last evening, with a 
subpoena to be at the chamber of the committee Thursday, February 
18, 18G9, at the hour of 10 o’clock a. m., with certain papers and records 
called for. 

9371. Q. If further time be allowed you will you produce the papers ? 

A. I can only state again that I have no custody of the papers. I 

could not say that I could bring them, even if further time were allowed, 
unless the supreme court were to make an order to allow me to bring 
them, or put them in my custody so that I could bring them. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

9372. Q. Were you served with a subpoena in Hew York to produce 
those same papers before the committee, at their room, Ho. 32 Astor 
House, Hew York, on the Gth of February, 18G9 ? 

A. In answer to that question I would say that on last Saturday a 
week ago, at a quarter past 3, I was served with a subpoena to produce 
certain records before a sub-committee of this committee, at room Ho. 32 
Astor House. I called at the committee-room to see the committee, not 
having the papers in the first place because it was not in accordance 
with the law for me to take them out of the office, and I called to ask the 
committee to come to the office or send an examiner. Governor Blair 
told me he wanted the papers, and I finally said I would send my clerk 
with them, which was satisfactory as far as I understood •, and I went 
over to my office and directed my clerk, Edward M. Plumb, to take them 
over to the committee-room, and I thereupon left my office. The clerk 
subsequently reported that he could not select them out in time, but 
went with them on the Monday morning following and found the com¬ 
mittee had adjourned. I beg to say that I have always tried to do any¬ 
thing the committee have ever asked from me in any way or form, and 
I am ready to continue to do so. 

By the Chairman : 

9373. Q. Do you know whether the papers were produced before the 
committee? 

A. Of my own knowledge I cannot say. 

9374. Q. Do you know whether any steps were taken by your clerk to 
obey your order? 

A. I gave him the direction, and he never has disobeyed my order. 
When I came down on Monday morning I asked him if he had taken 
them to the committee. He told me that he had seen the clerk of the 
committee, Mr. Davenport, and informed him that he did not think he 
could get ready to take them over on Saturday evening. Before I came 
down on Monday morning he had been to the Astor House with the 
papers and found the committee had adjourned. I sent him back again 
a second time to see about it. 

9375. Q. Were you not informed on Saturday that the committee 
would leave on Saturday night? 

A. I was not; I had no knowledge of that kind. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

937G. Q. Did you send any telegram on the 12th of February to me on 
the subject about which you have testified ? 

A. I believe I did. 

9377. Q. Look at the telegram now shown you and say if it is the one 
you caused to be sent to me. 

A. That is the telegram I caused to be sent to you. 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


851 


It is as follows: 

9378. [Telegram, dated New York, February 12, 1869—received at House of Representatives 

February 12, 1869.] 

Hon. Mr. Kerr, M. C., 

House of Representatives, Washington : 

Was subpoenaed Saturday afternoon at a quarter after 3 o’clock to bring about 1,500 
papers forthwith before the committee. I attended and offered to let the committee come 
or send to look at them immediately. They were so distributed on file that it was impos¬ 
sible to collect them before Monday morning. On Monday morning my clerk attended at 
the place of committee meeting with the papers, but found, to his surprise, that the committee 
had gone. I am now ordered by telegram of Judge Lawrence to bring them to Washing¬ 
ton. I cannot take them out of the State without leave of the court whose records they 
are. I have just submitted the matter to the judges. If they allow me to bring them I will 
bring them. I am ready to answer any possible question, and have offered to produce any 
record in my office before the committee in the city of New York. 

CHARLES E. LOEW, County Clerk. 

9379. Q. State whether the application made to the justices of that 
court about which you have testified is the one to which you referred in 
the telegram. 

A. Yes, sir; the same one. 

9380. Q. And whether the order of the court that you have read was 
made on that application. 

A. It was. 

9381. Q. State if you know why it was not possible for Mr. Plum to 
comply with the directions you gave him to furnish the papers on that 
Saturday evening. 

A. The reason of it was that when the committee desired the applica¬ 
tions for naturalization they were arranged in alphabetical order and 
had to be taken out according to dates. After they had been counted 
and the information that the committee desired given, they were again 
arranged in alphabetical order without regard to date, so that the apph- 
cations for the two days specified had again to be collected from the 
whole list. 

9382. Q. Do yon know hoAV long it would take the clerk to do that ? 

A. I do not personally; I know it would be a pretty hard job. 

9383. Q. Do yon know for what purpose they were put back into 
alphabetical order 

A. So that any paper wanted could be more easily selected accord¬ 
ing to the name. 

9384. Q. When were they put into alphabetical order ? 

A. After the gentlemen of the committee were through with the 
papers, as we supposed. 

By the Chairman : 

9385. Q. Is the record or list of names of those who were naturalized 
in October complete in the record-book ? 

A. It has not and could not be done j we had so many things to do 
for this committee. 

9386. Q. Has a portion of that index or list of names been made up ? 

A. I do not know j I have not paid much attention to that; I do not 

know how far they have gone, or what they have done with it. 

Washington, D. 0., February 17,1869. 

Edward M. Plum recalled and examined. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

9387. Q. State to the committee whether on Saturday, the 6th of Feb¬ 
ruary, at any time during that day, you were directed by Mr. Loew, the 


852 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


clerk of the supreme court of New York^ for tke city and county, to get 
up and take to a sub committee of tbis committee, then in session in 
New York, any papers; and if so, which. 

A. On that Saturday afternoon, between the hours of three and four, 
I was directed by Mr. Loew to produce before this committee certain 
naturalization papers of the 21st and 23d of October last. 

9388. Q. Did you comply with that direction f 

A. I did not comply with that direction myself. At the time the 
order was given me, I thought it woidd be impossible to produce them 
that afternoon, knowing they had been arranged in alphabetical order 
since the committee left New York. Mr. Loew stated to me that I must 
produce them, and left me. I said to him, ^^Yery well.” It was then 
about 20 minutes of four. I went to work at the papers, and see¬ 
ing that it was impossible to get them done before 4 o’clock, not know¬ 
ing how long the committee was going to stay, on my own resi)onsibility 
I went over to the committee and saw Mr. Davenport, the clerk of the 
committee, at the door. I said to him that it would be impossible for 
me to produce the papers at that time, and asked him how long they 
would hold their session. He replied until 6 o’clock that evening. I 
then went back with the intention of x^roducing the papers that evening, 
and commenced to take from the various letters, as they had been 
arranged, the applications made on the 21st and 23d of October. I 
worked at them until after 5 o’clock, and considering it imi)ossible to 
complete the job, I deferred further work until next day. On Sunday 
morning I came down to the office and worked until I had comijletecl 
them, after 4 o’clock Sunday afternoon. On Monday morning, when 
Mr. Loew arrived at the office, I told him I had been unable to get the 
pax)ers ready Saturday evening, and had prepared them on Sunday, and 
that they were then ready. He told me to take them to the committee. 
I did take them over to the Astor House, and was informed by a gen¬ 
tleman at the office that the committee had left Saturday evening. I 
asked him to give me their whereabouts. He said they did not state 
whether they were going to Washington, and did not know whether 
they were still in the city of New York or not. I brought the pajiers 
back to the office, and they are there still. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

9389. Q. When Mr. Loew gave you the order on Saturday afternoon, 
did he tell you what papers he wanted you to produce f 

, A. I think he stated the naturalization axixilications of the 21st and 
the 23d of October. I am not positive as to that. These dates have 
been used so often since that I cannot say jiositively whether he stated 
them ; I think he did. 

9390. Q. When you appeared at the committee-room did you not ask 
what pajiers were wanted 

A. I did ask Mr. Davenport what papers he wanted. He said those 
papers from the 21st and the 23d. He was very busy at the time ar¬ 
ranging for the other witnesses to enter the room, and I could not have 
the conversation or make the explanation at length as I desired to. 

By the Chairman ; 

9391. Q. Did you have a portion of the papers selected out so that you 
could have presented that portion of them to the committee before six 
o’clock of the afternoon of that day? 

A. I did select a portion of the papers. 

9392. Q. Were you not informed by Mr. Davenport and by Governor 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 853 

Blair that the committee would leave New York for Washington at 8.40 
that evening ? 

A. By no one 5 I had no idea in the world that the committee was not 
going to remain there for a considerable time, otherwise I should not 
have deferred until Monday morning before calling on them again. I 
will state that after Mr. Loew gave me those directions I had no oppor¬ 
tunity of consulting with him until Monday morning, and when I returned 
to the office Saturday evening all the clerks had left. 

Washington, D. G., February 18,1869. 
John I. Davenport, (recalled.) 

To the Chairman : 

9393. I would present to the committee the copy of a telegram which 
I wrote on February 12th last, and to which I procured the signature of 
the chairman and caused to be sent to Samuel J. Glassey, New York, 
respecting a count of blank certificates of naturalization now on hand 
for the supreme court. It is as follows: 

9394. Washington, D. C., February \% 1869. 

To Samuel J. Glassey, 8 Pine street, New York: 

Deliver the following message to Loew, and you are appointed to see count correctly made. 
Show him this as your authority, and make same request of Sweeney, for which this is like 
authority. 

To Charles E. Loew, County Clerk New York, or his deputy : 

The committee request you to have counted at once, and certify to them, the number of 
blank applications and certificates of naturalization now on hand for the supreme court. 

WM. LAWRENCE, 
Chairman Committee. 

9395. I was informed in reply that Mr. Gumbleton, the assistant deputy 
county clerk, to whom the telegram was shown—Mr. Loew, the clerk, 
being absent—reported that it would take some time to make such count. 
Thereupon on the 16th I sent a despatch, a copy of which I present to the 
committee, and which reads: 

9396. Washington, D. C., February 16, 1869. 

C. S. Strong, (care John I. Davenport,) 

Rooms 27 and 28 No. 7 Murray Street, New York: 

We want count to go on in supreme court, but only of certificates. Show to Loew and 
Gumbleton. Preparation of lists must be begun at once. 

JOHN I. DAVENPORT, 

Clerk Select Committee of Congress on New York Election Frauds. 

9397. In compliance with the above I this morning received by mail 
from New York the following certificate : 

9398. ‘County Clerk’s Office, New County Court House, 

New York, February 17, 1869. 

I, Henry A. Gumbleton, assistant deputy county clerk, do certify that I find, after count¬ 
ing the same, one thousand eight hundred and sixty-two blank certificates of naturalization in 
this office. 

HENRY A. GUMBLETON, 

Assistant Deputy. 

Washington, D. C., February 18,1869. 

Charles E. Loew recalled. 

By the Chairman : 

9399. Q. Is this certificate which I present you, and just given the 
committee by Mr. Davenport, in the handwriting of Mr. Henry A. Gum- 


854 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW. YORK. 


bleton, an assistant deputy of yonrs as county clerk of li^'ew York, and 
ex officio clerk of the supreme court ? 

A. It is, sir. 

9400. Q. Please so certify in writing, at the foot thereof. 

The witness then wrote at the bottom of said certificate, and under the 
signature of Mr. Gumbleton, the following: 

9401 I certify that Henry A. Gumbleton is assistant deputy county clerk, and that the 
foregoing is in his handwriting. 

CHAS. E. LOEW, 
County Clerk. 

Washington, February 18, 1869. 


Washington, D. 0., February 22,1869. 

9402. John I. Davenport was recalled, and testified that he had in his 
possession and now produced the original paper i)resented to the committee 
by Adam Gillespie, stating the number of naturalizations in the superior 
court in New York each year, from 1856 to 1868, inclusive; that said 
paper was printed in the evidence as No. 7207, and was throughout in 
the handwriting of Joseph Meeks, the deputy clerk of the superior court, 
and was signed of&cially Joseph Meeks, deputy clerk superior court, 
and certified that the number of naturalizations in that court in 1868 
was 27,897, the precise number previously testified to by Owen E. West- 
lake, the clerk who was directed to make a count thereof. 


John H. Bell recalled. 


Washington, February 24, 1869. 


By Mr. Blair : 

9403. Question. When you were examined at Middletown you were 

asked this question: ask you if you have delivered any papers 

[meaning naturalization papers] to anybodyYou answered then: 

1 do not know as I am obliged to answer any such question at all.” 
•1 then put the question ^^Will you answer?” You said “No.” I now 

repeat the question: “I ask you if you have delivered any papers to 
anybody?” a i. i. 

Answer. Yes, sir. 

9404. Q. State, if you please, to whom. 

A. I think his name was Patrick Kron. 

9405. Q. Did you deliver any papers to any other person? 

A. No, sir. 

9406. Q Where did you obtain the paper delivered to Patrick Kron ? 

A. 1 got it in the City Hall. He came in the store and said he was a 

poor man j that he had been down after his paper and got it, and bv 
some m^ns or other the clerk had made a mistake and misspelled his 
name. He asked me if I would take it down and get one spelled right 
1 went to the City Hall, where I supposed the court was; a gentleman 
stood at the door j I told him of the mistake, and I asked him if I could 
get It corrected from Krone, as they had misspelled his name, to Kron 
He said it could not be done in less than an hour and a half; I told him 

^ I that I could come back 

about three o clock. He said they would have it ready then. About 
three o’clock I went back there; he stood by the door; I asked him for 
that paper, if it was ready. He said it was. He took it out of his 
pocket and banded it to me. I read it over to see if the same clerk had 
Issued It that did the previous one. The first one was signed by Sweeny, 
to Kron^ name on it. 1 took the paper home and gave it 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


855 


9407. Q. Wlio was this person whom you saw at the door % 

A. I did not know him. 

9408. Q. Do you know his name ? 

A. Koj 1 have never seen him since, and never saw him before. He 
seemed to be an active man at the door j I took it for granted that he 
was the doorkeeper. 

9409. Q. Could yon get in at the door 'I 

A. I could not get in at the door myself. 

9410. Q. How came yon to take the paper back ? 

A. My impression was that it would be the quickest way. 

9411. Q. Had you been directed by anybody as to how yon should 
proceed % 

A. I had received directions from nobody as to how to proceed. 1 
supposed, of course, if I took it back to the clerk and stated what the 
difficulty was, there could be another given in place of it. 

9412. Q. Did you pay anything for this? 

A. I was thinking whether I did or not. I hardly think 1 paid him 
anything. I do not recollect for certain. 

9413. Q. In what court was this done? 

A. In the City Hall. 

9414 Q. You say the paper was signed by Sweeny? 

A. I think it was by ‘‘Sweeny, clerk.” 

9415. Q. Did you receive back the paper you delivered there ? 

A. I received back another paper, I think. The name had not been 
changed. I looked at it to see and am positive that the name had not 
been changed, but I received a new paper with the name correctly spelled. 

9416. Q. What was that paper? 

A. It was a naturalization paper; a certificate having the seal of the 
court and the signature of the clerk. 

9417. Q. When was that? 

A. I think it was two or three days after the first registry day, because 
he had gone to have his name registered to vote, and then he had been 
told of the mistake. I think it was in October, 1868. 

9418. Q. Do you know of any other naturalization papers being procured 
for people in your neighborhood, from New York, in the month of October ? 

A. 1 will state exactly how it was. When he handed me this paper 
he handed me a little package to take to Middletown; I opened it when 
I got home. I saw it was a few naturalization papers—not less than five 
or more than ten. I went up to our desk, a public desk. I saw a little 
package containing about two or three papers directed “ Scotchtown.” 
That night we had a club meeting up-stairs. I said to some of our boys, 
some man has sent up a little package for Scotch town; if they want it 
they can get it dining the night. Somebody took it away; that is all 1 
know about naturalization papers. 

9419. Q. Who was the person who took away the package ? 

A. I do not recollect. There were two or three hundred persons at 
the club meeting. I paid no particular attention to it. 

9420. Who gave you this package of naturalization papers? 

A. This doorkeeper at the City Hall in New York city; the same man 
who had changed the paper for me. 

9421. Q. Do you remember any of the names contained in the naturali¬ 
zation papers brought from New York? 

A. I do not; because I only looked at one or two, merely to see what 
they were. 

9422. Q. Did he tell you where to take them? 

A. He only told me to take them up to Middletown. 


856 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9423. Q. Did lie give you directions what to do with them ? 

A. He gave me no directions what to do with them. I took it for 
granted that they were papers going to somebody there who had been 
down to the city. 

9424. Q. Do you know the way in which those papers came to be 
granted to persons in MidtUetown ? 

A. I do not. I do not know that they were for people in Middletown. 

9425. Q. Do you know what became of the balance of the papers be¬ 
sides what you sent to Scotchtown ? 

A. I do not; they were all taken away. 

9426. Q. Was this package addressed to anybody on the outside ? 

A. Ho 5 there were two or three in the package which were marked 
“ Scotchtown.’^ 

9427. Q. You remembered all these things when you refused to 
answer at Middletown? 

A. Yes. 

9428. Q. Do you know of any other naturalization frauds being 
attemiited to be practiced during that fall ? 

A. Ho. 

By the Chairman : 

9429. Q. You say you had a meeting of the club j what club ? 

A. The democratic club. 

9430. Q. Where was it held ? 

A. It was held over our store in Middletown. I should have answered 
your question at Middletown, but somehow we got a bad start. We did 
not happen to agree, and the consequence was, all this trouble came up. 
I am very sorry myself j I could just as well have answered you then as 
now. 


By Mr. Blair: 

9431. Q. Was there any meeting of your political friends to consult 
about this matter before you came with the sergeant-at-arms ? 

A. There was no meeting and not a word was said to me. I thought 
our boys did not show me a great deal of respect. Ho man called on me. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

9432. Q. Whom did you tell you had some naturalization papers that 
you had brought up from Hew York ? 

A. I told you I did not recollect. I stepped up to the meeting, and I 
said to the boys that some papers were at my desk. 

9433. Q. You don’t know what boys went down to get them? 

A. There were something like three hundred out that night. I do not 
know who took them. 

9434. Q. When you went down from the meeting they were gone ? 

A. Yes, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9435. Q. You lived in Middletown ? 

A. Yes. 

9436. Q. Do you know what time Governor Blair commenced taking 
testimony that morning ? 

A. Yes; it was one or two o’clock p. m., on Monday. 

9437. Q. Do you know of witnesses being ordered by the democrats 
to attend there to prove frauds ? 

A. Yes; there were some subpoenaed. 

9438. Q. Do you know whether they were heard? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 857 

A. I tliink Governor Blair adjourned about the time tbey were to 
appear. 

9439. Q. About how many, so far as you know, were subpoenaed to 
appear before the committee ? 

A. Some five or six. 

9440. Q. Wliat time did he adjourn? 

A. I think it was somewhere about seven o’clock, as near as I can 
recollect. 

9441. Q. About what time of the day were you before the committee? 

A. It must have been somewhere about four or five o’clock, as near as 

I can remember. 

9442. Q. State who were accompanying Goveraor Blair—whether any 
other member of the committee was with him? 

A. There was no other member with him. I guess nobody was with 
him. 

9443. Q. Was General Yan Wyck with him? 

A. He was there; but not in the room at aU. I met him at the door 
as I was going up, and he ordered the doorkeeper to open the door for 
me. 

9444. Q. Was he in the room himself with Governor Blair? 

A. I do not think he was while I was there. 

9445. Q. Did he have an ante-room at the head of the stairs ? 

A. He did. 

9446. Q. YHiat direction did he give to the doorkeeper ? 

A. To pass me in where Governor Blair was. 

9447. Q. Was General Yan Wyck in consultation with the witnesses 
there at that time ? 

A. He seemed to be in general consultation there with all that came in. 

9448. Q. If you know anything further pertinent to the matter of 
examination there you can state it. 

A. I was going to state to Governor Blair what I knew of some men get¬ 
ting papers there, which he did not want me to state. That was what made 
a little difference of opinion, and made me say that I would not answer 
any more questions. I wanted to state that there was a man there by the 
name of Patrick Terrill who received his papers at the Brewery. He 
came to me before he received any x)apers at all, to consult with me 
whether or no he had better get the papers. 

9449. Q. What further do you know about it ? 

A. I told him to get the papers. 

Mr. Blair objected to the further statement of conversation. 

9450. Q. Did Governor Blair refuse to take testimony imi)licating the 
republican party in frauds ? 

A. He objected to taking it—so I understood. 

Mr. Blair objected to the witness making statements on hearsay, and 
remarked that it was for the same reason that he had objected to taking 
the testimony spoken of at the time ; that it was hearsay. 

Witness. No ; I think I positively knew it. I do not positively want 
to swear to it j but I know it, as a great many men know things to be 
true. 

Mr. Laavrence. Do you propose to tate things under oath that you 
are not willing to swear to ? 

Witness. I was telling what I knew, as we know a great many things 
from the statements of others. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9451. Q. Did you suggest or propose to Governor Blair the names 


858 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


of witnesses by whom it could be proved that the republican party 
had been guilty of a violation of the election law ? 

A. Yes; I took a paper out of my pocket, and told him I would give 
him the names of the persons, if he would subpoena them, by whom he 
could find out directly where they got their papers. 

9452. Q. Implicating the republican party directly in fraud 1 

A. Yes. 

9453. Q. Did he evince any disposition to follow the men *? 

A. hTo; he did not. He told me he did not want to see anything of 
them. 

9454. Q. State now whether you are satisfied that you could then or 
could now furnish evidence showing the republican party guilty of frauds 
in the election in the State of New York last November ? 

Mr. Lawrence objected to the witness answering the question, as it 
was as to what he believed about it. 

The question was taken, “ Shall the question be put to the witness,” 
and decided in the negative. 

So the question was overruled. The question was decided by a vote 
of the committee, to be put in the following form: 

By Mr. Dawes : 

9455. Q. Have you any fact, within your knowledge, that goes to show 
that the republican party, in the State of New York at the last election, 
committed any fraud ? 

A. If I saw a person pay a man for his vote at the polls, change his 
ticket openly and hand it up, would you consider that a fraud ? 

9456. Q. State what fact you know. 

A. I saw a man by the name of Joseph Crawford change a man^s ticket, 
and pay him a $5 bill to take and put in a republican ticket. 

9457. Q. In what place ? 

A. In Middletown. 

9458. Q. Do you know the name of the man whose ticket was changed? 

A. His name was John Kane. 

9459. Q. Do you know any other fact ? 

A. I did not see any others with my own eyes. 

9460. Q. Is this all you know about Crawford which you have testified 
to now ? 

A. I know that he changed Kane’s ticket, as I stood close to the ballot- 
box. The voters came round in a circle, and as he was raising his hand 
to put up his ticket, Crawford took his ticket out of his hand and put 
in a republican ticket, and he put it in the ballot-box. 

9461. Q. Do you know what ticket he had in his hand ? 

A. A democratic ticket. 

9462. Q. How do you know ? 

A. I saw it. 

9463. Q. What time did you see it ? 

A. I do not think it could have been three minutes before he voted. 

9464. Q. Did you see the man all the time before he voted ? 

A. He stood so far ahead of me. (Three or four feet.) 

9465. Q. How do you know that Crawford gave him a republican 
ticket ? 

A. He would not be very apt to give him a democratic ticket. 

9466. Q. Do you know that he gave him a republican ticket? 

A. I could not swear to it. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9467. Q. Tell, as near as yon can, how many witnesses there were 
summoned for the purpose of proving fraud upon the election at Mid- 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


859 


(Uetown, perpetrated by the republican party at the last ^Tovember elec- 
tiorij who were in attendance and were not heard by Governor Blair. 

A. Somewhere about four or five. 

9468. Q. Do you know of these witnesses and others being subpoenaed 
and going on the cars to another town, Goshen, to give testimony before 
the committee, and Governor Blair going to another place and not com¬ 
ing there 1 

A. I do not know anything about the committee. I know the men 
did not go, because they were told not to go. 

9469. Q. By whom ? 

A. By Mr. Sweet and by John G. Wilton. 

9470. Q. Who were they ? 

A. Sweet acts with the republican party; Wilton is collector of our 
district. 

9471. Q. What are the politics of the man you mentioned as taking a 
democratic ticket out of the hands of an elector and putting in another 
ticket with a $5 bill. 

A. He was a republican. 

9472. Q. State anything further which you know about election frauds, 
either by voters or by illegal naturalization papers, in New York last 
fall. 

A. I know about this Terrel. He brought me a paper and showed it 
to me, and said- 

Mr. Blair objected to the witness stating what another man had said. 

Witness. He went and brought me the paper and showed it to me. 
He came to consult with me whether he had better get it, (a naturaliza¬ 
tion paper.) 

9473. Q. Do you know where and how he got his paper? 

A. He said Sweet had sent it to The Brewery. 

Mr. Blair. All you know is what a man told you—that Sweet had 
sent word to him ? 

A. Yes. 

9474. Q. I desire you to state, if you can, how many men were in 
waiting to testify in relation to frauds perpetrated at the November elec¬ 
tion in New York at the time Governor Blair adjourned the committee 
at Middletown. 

A. I saw about two at John G. Wilton’s office, who came in about the 
time the committee went out. I am satisfied if Governor Blair had staid 
there 10 minutes one of them would have sworn positively that he got 
his papers at The Brewery—a republican establishment. 

By Mr. Kerr : 

9475. Q. Do you know of any other person procuring fraudulent natu¬ 
ralization papers from the republican headquarters termed The Brewery, 
in that town? 

A. Edward Southwell got one there. 

9476. Q. Do you know of any other? 

A. No. 

9477. Q. Do you know of any other frauds practiced by the repub¬ 
licans or anybody else upon the election ? 

A. It is a pretty hard matter to talk about these election frauds. You 
go to the polls and see every man interested, with his pockets full of 
money, handing it out. It is a pretty hard matter to keep track of. 

9478. Q. Do you know of money being used other than what you said 
was used by the republican party to control the elective franchise last 
fall in your place? 


860 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


A. As I said before, I did not see any republican hand out money 
under my eye, except what I have stated. The evidence was what I 
have heard and what I believed by the condition of men. 

9479. Q. How do you know that Southwell got his paper at The Brew¬ 
ery? 

A. I think he has sworn to it. 

9480. Q. I ask you how you know it? 

A. By what he says. I do not pretend to say I saw him get it. 

9481. Q. Were you present at the committee-room when the commit¬ 
tee adjourned on Monday? 

A. &o; you did not allow anybody in. 

9482. Q." Where were you? 

A. About* 150 feet from you. 

9483. Q. Where? 

A. On the street. 

9484. Q. You were not in the building at aU at the time? 

A. No; I was not. 

9485. Q. Do you know whether any conversation took place between 
me and the certificate member of Congress, Green, as to the adjourn¬ 
ment ? 

A. No. 

9486. Q. Do you know whether Green stated that he would be willing 
that the committee should adjourn, and he would bring such witnesses 
as he wanted from Middletown to Goshen ? 

A. No. 

9487. Q. Did you know that Green was in attendance during the day 
while the committee sat at Middletown ? 

A. No; only from what he said. I saw him there in town. 

9488. Do you know whether he had subpoenas for his witnesses ? 

A. He said he had a few. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

9489. Q. Did you go to Goshen ? 

A. No. 

9490. Q. What knowledge have you, then, of anybody's going to 
Goshen and not finding a committee there ? 

A. I did not say so. 

9491. Q. Have you any knowledge of the committee meeting at Goshen? 

A. No. 

9492. Q. Did you hear Sweet teU anybody not to go to Goshen ? 

A. No. 

9493. Q. Why did you state, then, that Sweet told anybody not to go 
to Goshen ? 

A. I said that a man told me that Sweet said so to him. 

9494. Q. All you know about men being notified not to go to Goshen 
is what you heard from other people ? 

A. What men told me themselves, as I said. I asked them why they 
did not go. They said they were told not to go j who told them I do 
not know. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9495. Q. Did General Yan Wyck make any threats or statement to 
you or to others in relation to your having to be brought down here ? 

A. He did not tell me anything about it. 

By Mr. Hopkins : 

9496. Q. You say you advised Terrel to go to The Brewery and get his 
naturalization papers ? 



ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


861 


A. I did. 

9407. Q. Did lie go 

A. He brought back his papers. 

9498. Q. Did you see the papers ? 

A. Yes. 

9499. Q. From what court were they issued ? 

A. From the supreme court of N^ew York city. 

9500. Q. What clerk signed it ? 

A. I do not think I could tell. 

9501. Q. Do you know whether this man Terrel had ever been to New 
York to procure the papers ? 

A. He said he had not. 

9502. Q. What are the politics of this man Terrel? 

A. Well, it^s a pretty hard matter to tell. He did not vote at all. He 
said he was going to vote the democratic ticket. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9503. Q. Did you see the locality of the ante-room occupied by General 
Yan Wyck in connection with Governor Blair when he was taking the 
testimony ? 

(Question objected to and waived.) 

9504. Q. State how these rooms were situated that were occupied by 
General Yan Wyck and Governor Blair. 

A. General Yan Wyck had a room on one side of the hall and Gov¬ 
ernor Blair had a room on the other side. 

9505. Q. Did the witnesses go in there and consult with General Yan 
Wyck before they went in to give their testimony to Governor Blair ? 

A. All the witnesses were sent in there first, I think, while 1 was there. 

9506. Q. Did General Yan Wyck profess to exercise any jurisdiction 
over the door as to who should go in ? 

A. I cannot say, because I did not stay any longer than to just go in. 

9507. Q. He directed the doorkeeper to let you in? 

A. "Yes 

9508. Q. Does General Yan Wyck live at Middletown ? 

A. Yes. 

9509. Q. Does he live in that building where the testimony was being 
taken ? 

A. Nobody lives in that building. It is occupied by la^vyers’ offices 
and stores. 

9510. Q. Did General Yan Wyck have an office of his own there ? 

A. I do not think he had. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9511. Q. Did you say that all the witnesses saw General Yan Wyck 
when they came in ? 

A. I said, 1 think they did. When I came there General Yan Wyck 
was at the door. 

By the Chairman : 

9512. Q. Do you know Christian Bercult? 

A. No, I do not. 

9513. Q. Did you ever have a certificate of naturalization ? 

A. No. 

9514. Q. Did you keep a list of names at your store of persons to be 
naturalized? 

A. No. Near the fall election, the boys generally kept in there a list 
of who had got their papers. 


862 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


9515. Q. Mr. Boss has asked you about money being raised at the 
election; do you know of any being raised? 

A. Nothing more than to pay our little expenses for the use of our 
hall, lights, and such things as that. 

9516. Q. Do you know of a man by the name of Joseph Johnson, a 
colored man? 

A. Yes. 

9517. Q. What is the name of his father-in-law, another colored man? 

A. I do not recoUect. 

9518. Q. James Gale, is it? 

A. There is a colored man there by the name of James Gale. 

9519. Q. Do you know what property, if any, James Gale owns in 
Middletown? 

A. I do not, of my own knowledge? 

9520. Q. Do you know what his politics are ? 

A. I could not^ay that. 


Washington, February 24,1869. 

Dayid W. Eeeve sworn and examined. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9521. Question. Where do you reside? 

Answer. At Wayawanda, Orange county. New York. 

9522. Q. Were you subpoenaed to attend before the committee when 
it was sitting at Middletown? 

A. It appears that the committee understood so. I did not under¬ 
stand so. 

9523. Q. Who subpoenaed you? 

A. There was a young man by the name of Weed came to me, and 
said he haol a subpoena for me. 

9524. Q. Did he show it to you? 

A. I do not recollect whether he opened it or not. 

9525. Q. Did you read it? 

A. I did not. 

9526. Q. Did you inquire of him as to what it contained? 

A. I did. 

9527. Q. State what you asked him, and what he said to you. 

A. He said to me that he had a subpoena for me. I said, What ?” He 
said for an investigation. He olid not say where. He said it was an 
investigation that was going on. I saiol to him, Who pays my witness’ 
fees?” He said, “ I have not any money.” “ Well,” said I, “I believe a 
witness is entitled to his fees before he is obliged to go.” He said, ‘‘ You 
make out your bill against the government.” I said to him, Make out 
a bill against the government for $1 or $1 25! That would be a very 
small thing; they would not notice it at all.” It wanted then about 10 
minutes of 3 o’clock. I said to him, “I do not know anything about any 
committee of the kind; I had heard nothing about it.” I stated, further, 
that I had not time to stay, if I could possibly help it; that I went away 
pretty early in the morning on some business, and my farm business (I 
was selling milk) required me here pretty early in the afternoon to take 
my milk away. I stepped into a store to get some feed. He said, “What 
do you think about coming down?” I said, “ I do not know; I will think 
about it; if I have time I will come down.” He went away. I went into 
a saloon and got an oyster stew. He came in there and laid down a 
paper on the end of the counter. He said,“Will you take this paper?” 
I said to him, “What is this for?” He said, “It is a subpoena.” “Odell 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


863 


Weed,” said I, I consider myself entitled to a fee before I am subpoenaed 
as a witness.” He turned around and walked outj I was about through 
eating my oyster stew; I got up and walked out. 

9528. Q. Hid he leave a copy of the subpoena with you? 

A. I cannot tell you. I never read it. I do not recollect that he said 
what it was. He said, Will you take this paper 

9529. Q. Will you state whether it was such a paper as that, (showing 
a printed form of subpoena.) 

A. I could not. 

9530. Q. You did not look at it on the ground that he did not pay 
your fees? 

A. He called me out, and showed me a paper, and just opened it and 
closed it up. I do not know whose name was signed to it, or anything 
of that kind. 

9531. Q. Where did this occur? 

A. In the village of Middletown. 

9532. Q. Hid he tell you whether or not the committee were sitting at 
that time in Middletown ? 

A. 1 do not recollect that he did. 

9533. Q. Hid you ask him where the committee were? 

A. I do not know that I did. 

9534. Q. Hid he not tell you in what building the committee were 
sitting. 

A. I did not ask him that. 

9535. Q. Hid you look into the paper to see? 

A. I did not. He just opened the paper, and closed it up. 

9530. Q. Hid you have anything to do with the distribution or delivery 
of any naturalization paper to any person during the October previous 
to the last election ? 

A. I do not know tliat I did. 

9537. Q. Hid you have any in your possession at any time? 

A. I do not know that I did, except from hearsay. 

9538. Q. Hid you deliver any paper that you now suppose was such 
a paper ? 

A. I now suppose it Avas, from what I have heard. 

9539. Q. To whom did you delwer it ? 

A. To John T. Bradley and William P. Clark. 

9540. Q. What papers were they which you delivered to these two 
men? 

A. I delivered them a paper. I do not know whether it was sealed 
up. I do not know what was inside of it. It was a paper that was 
wrapped up. 

9541. Q. Hid it have any mark upon it, of any sort. 

A. Yes; it had directions; one direction to Bradley and one to Clark. 

9542. Q. Where did you get the papers ? 

A. A man handed them to me in Goshen. 

9543. Q. Who was that man ? 

A. I do not know. 

9544. Q. I understood you to say that the papers were directed to 
these men. 

A. Yes. 

9545. Q. Were they in em^elopes addressed on the outside to these 
men? 

A. I think they were. I cannot tell you exactly. 

9546. Q. What was said to you when they were delivered to you ? 

Mr. Kerr objected to the question of what was said, as mere hearsay. 


864 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 


The objection was overruled, by a vote of the committee, on the ground 
that what was said was a part of the act of delivery. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

9547. Q. What did these men say to you when they delivered these 
papers ? 

A. I was in Goshen on some business at the clerk’s office, and had my 
horse tied in the street. The man came out of the hotel, or some build¬ 
ing, I do not know what, and said: “ Are you going up by John Brad¬ 
ley’s ? ” I said “ I was.” “ Will you take these papers along ?” said he. I 
said to him that I would; that it was right on my road home. 

9548. Q. Was that all that was said? 

Q. It was. 

9549. Q. Did you not ask him what papers they were? 

A. I did not ask him a word about it, nor did he teU me a word 
about it. Mr. Bradley was at work in his corn-field right before his 
house. I stopped and halloed to him. He came to the road. I handed 
him the paper and said to him that a man requested me to leave that 
with him. 

9550. Q. Did he open it at the time, or did you ? 

A. He did not open it at the time, nor did I. . 

9551. Q. Did you learn there what sort of a paper it was ? 

A. I did not. 

9552. Q. Do you know anything about the delivery of any other nat¬ 
uralization papers that fall except these? 

A. I do not. Black lives about a mile from Bradley’s, right on the 
road between Bradley’s and Goshen. Clark was coming home, and just 
drove in the gate as I was passing along, and I handed the paper to him. 

9553. Q. You do not know the name of this man who gave you these 
papers. 

A. I do not. I never saw him before, or since, and do not know who 
he was. 

By Mr. Dickey : 

9554. Q. When did you first learn that they were naturalization 
papers ? 

Mr. Kerr objected to the question on the ground that it was mere hear¬ 
say, and that it assumed a fact which had not been proven. 

The objection was overruled and the question was again put to the 
witness. 

A. I do not know yet that they were naturalization papers, only by 
• mere hearsay. 

By Mr. Lawrence : 

9555. Q. State if there was any arrangement where you reside that 
you were to procure certificates of naturalization for persons ? 

A. Ko, sir. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9556. Q. Please state whether you were active as a politician at the 
election canvass last fall. 

A. I want you all to understand that I am not a very strong politician. 
I worked a little for both parties last fall. I was interested in two men. 
The balance of the ticket I cared nothing about. 

By Mr. Blair : 

9557. Q. Did you give to Clark another paper to hand to a man by 
the name of John Hansel? 


ELECTION FRAUDS IN NEW YORK. 8G5 

A. Ko. I gave liiiii but one paper. I gave Clark this paper. It v as 
rolled up. I do not know who it was for, or what was in it. 

By Mr. Eoss: 

9558. Q. State if yon know anything about frauds perpetrated on the 
elective franchise by the republican ])arty in your comity at the last 
election. 

A. I do not know exactly what yon consider frauds—whether yon 
mean by naturalization papers, or by money, or anything else. 

9559. Q. Both, or all; anytliing that involves a violation of the law 
in connection with the last election. 

A. I do not know whether there Avas very much fraud about it. I 
know Avhen it was said money Avas used, some i)arties furnished me Avith 
money to use for them. 

95(10. Q. Did they furnish it for yon to use unlaAvfnlly, or laAvfnlly? 

A. Perhaxis I do not understand all these things as well as a great 
many men. 

95(11. Q. What were the facts ! 

A. A republican handed me some money and wished me to use it. 

9562. Q. IIoAV much did he hand you f 

A.'I think $20, or a little more. I cannot say exactly how much. 

9563. Q. Did he tell you to do anything unlaAAdul Avith it—that you 
kneAV to be unhiAAdul ■ 

A. I do not knoAV that he did. So far as I know anything about the 
matter, I Avill tell you. I think, to the best of my knoAvledge, this man 
handed me $20 and says, “You are going to do something for us. I 
knoAv it costs some money. I Avish you Avoiild- do all jmu can, and use it 
the best AAaiy you can.” 

9564. Q. Did you buy any votes with it ? 

A. No; I iieA^er bought any man’s Amte in my life, and I never Avill. 

9565. Q. Do you know anything further in relation to frauds upon 
the election by either party 1 

A. I do not knoAV that I do positively myself. I know it from hear¬ 
say and oi)inion. I liaA^e my own opinion about this matter. I was an 
inspector of election in the town. 

9566. Q. Did you receiA^e any fraudulent votes, knoAAung them to be 
fraudulent ? You Avere the democratic inspector of election ? 

A. I AAms the democratic inspector. With reference to some of the 
votes, 1 had my own opinion about them. I saAV some papers presented 
there by men Avho A'oted the republican ticket, that I liad some doubts 
about. They Avere men who came there and offered to have their names 
recorded and showed me their i)ai)ers. I Avas not acquainted Avith them 
personally. A man Avith Avhom I aa as acquainted came Avith them ; a 
very respectable man by the name of S. S. Brinsmade, Avho Avas running 
a factory there. 

9567. Q. Where did they say they got their papers ? 

A. They told me they got them in NeAV York. 

9568. Q. Who AA^ere the papers signed by ^ 

A. 1 could not tell who they AA^ere signed by. Brinsmade said he 
AAmuld qualify that they Avere all correct. They Avere registered; the 
day of election came, and they were all challenged. A challenge Avas 
left as soon as AA^e opened the polls, for some 40 or 50 different persons 
on both sides of the house. Both sides challenged all they thought sus¬ 
picious. 

9569. Q. Hoav many of these men were there ? 

A. There AA ere four of them. 


866 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK, 


9570. Q. Did tliey swear tlieir votes in ! 

A. They did. 

9571. Q. Do yon know what ticket they voted ? 

A. They voted the republican ticket. 

9572. Q. Did they live there ? 

A. They lived in the town at the time } at least they said they did j 
they swore to that fact. They were there and voted. 

9573. Q. Do yon know where they got their certificates ? 

A. I do not. They said they got them in New York. 

9574. Q. Do yon know whether they came through the Brewery^ 

A. I do not. 

By Mr. Dawes : 

95744. Q. Do yon know any fact touching these men that shows they 
were illegal voters ? 

A. I do not know any facts in the matter. 

9575. Q. How do yon know they voted the republican ticket ? 

A. I know it in two or three ditterent ways: the republican and dem¬ 
ocratic tickets were not i)rinted in The same kind of letters in the first 
place, and in the next place, when the tickets were folded they left the 
heading out so that it could be seen. These men did not deny that they 
voted the rei)nblican ticket. 


Washington, D. C., March 3, 1869. 

George Wilkes sworn and examined. 

By the Chairman : 

9576. Question. Please state your residence and occupation. 

Answer. I reside in New York city, and am the editor of “ Wilkes’ 

Spirit of the Times.” 

9577. Q. State whether in November last you Avere absent from NeAV 
York; and if so, when you returned'? 

A. I left New Y^ork November 28 for Europe, and arrived in New York 
again last Thursday evening. 

9578. Q. State whether you had any con V'ersation with Florence Scaunel 
in New Y^ork city a Aveek or so before the election in NoA^ember last in 
relation to falsely registering voters; and if so, what it AA as ? 

A. I iieAW had any such couA-ersation a\ ith anybody a\ ith a Anew to 
falsely registering Amters for the republican party; 1 may haA^e had such 
coiiA'ersations with persons indifferently years ago, or since I came home, 
but I ncA^w had any such coiiAWsation at anytime Avith any person with 
the Anew of using any Amters falsely registered for the republican tiarty. 
I do not knoAV that I knoAV Florence Scannel; I met a great many xieople 
in Ncaa" York Avith Avhom I coua ersed on the subject of the election, and 
whose names I do not know. 

9579. Q. State if there was any coiwersation between you and Florence 
Scannel, Marcus Cicero Stanley, James Gorey, John E. McGoaa^ou, and 
Marshal Murray, or any of them, in relation to falsely registering names 
to Amte in the interest of the republican party ? 

A. I ncA-er had such coiiA^ersation Avith anybody. 

9580. Q. Are you personally acquainted Avith James Gorey*? 

A. I neA^er heard his name until I saAv it in the testimony here. 

9581. Q. Do you know John B. McGoAven? 

A. I do not. 

9582. Q. Do you know of any false registering or repeating by any 
reiinblican at the last November election in New York city? 

A. I do not. 


ELECTION FEAUDS IN NEW YORK. 867 

9583. Q. Do yon know of any arrangement having been made with a 
view of so falsely registering or repeating ? 

A. I do not. 

9584. Q. Did yon make any snch arrangement"? 

A. I did not. 

9585. Q. Do yon know of any election fraud being perpetrated by 
any republicans in New York city at the last presidential election 

A. None whatever. 

By Mr. Boss: 

9586. Q. Do yon know of money being contributed for the purpose of 
controlling the election ? 

A. No, sir; I did not nse a dollar myself, and I only know second¬ 
hand from persons who have been examined that there was money 
nsed. I can state that the committee of which I was chairman had bnt 
$5,000 for the whole canvass, and I was told that $3,000 of that was spent 
for the purpose of manning the polls with disabled soldiers, and that the 
rest was nsed for the ordinary routine matters, such as room rent, &c. 





Lfc 



4 " 




GENERAL INDEX. 


A. 

Page. 

Arnoux, Gabriel A., examination of.... 40 47 

Adams, Robert G., examination of. 105 *]00 

Application for naturalization of Patrick O’Brien.’ 154 

George Hoffman. 155 

Adolph Slechelseine. 156 

Alexander M. McCann. 157,158 

John J. Mercer. 159 

Antonio Gomez. 160,161 

blank forms in use in court of common pleas - 77,78,80 

blank forms in use in superior court. 78,80 

blank forms in use in supreme court. 81-84,161-165 

Austin, Martin B., examination of. 286-288 

Acker, Samuel S., examination of. 518,519 

Allen, James, examination of. 632 

Adams, James B., examination of. 691 

Ashurst, Joseph S., examination of. 799,800 

Ashhurst, John, examination of. 808,809 

Allen, Theodore, examination of. 824-826 


B. 

Block, Theodore, examination of. 

Bogert, Albert, examination of. 

Barrett, George P., examination of. 

Beeney, Henry, examination of. 

Butts, Henry, examination of. 

Burton, Charles W., examination of. 

Barnegat, Charles, examination of. 

Boeck, Maximilian, examination of. 

Bliss, George, jr., examination of. 

Bross, Andrew J., examination of. 

Brophy, James J., examination of. 

Bridgman, William H., examination of. 

Bixby, Butler H.. examination of. 

Barrett, William C., examination of. 

Burke, Patrick, examination of.. 

Baker, Abraham, examination of. 

Belmont, Simeon E., examination of. 

Brewster, Thomas, examination of. 

Bennett, T. Easton, examination of. 

Benson, Joseph, examination of. 

Brennan, Mathew T., examination of. 

Bogart, William H., examination of. 

Bell, Clark, examination of.. 

Bergen, Edward H., examination of. 

Brady, Michael, examination of. 

Baker, Samuel, examination of. 

Banks, Wright, examination of. 

Brady, John R., examination of. 

Bishop, Victor, examination of. 

Bernard, Reuben, examination of. 

Bostwick, James L., examination of. 

Burke, Oliver, examination of. 

Butler, James P., examination of. 

Biser, Anthony, examination of. 

Bradley, John J., examination of. 

Borcold, Christian, examination of. 

Bell, John H., examination of. 

Burns, Luke, examination of. 

Bell me, Henry, examination of. 

Bradley, Patrick, examination of. 

Briggs, George, examination of.-. 

Butcher, Thomas, examination of. 

Bo when, Owen, examination of. 


. 35-37 

. 39-41 

. 41-44 

. 44-46,409-411 

. 16-20 ' 

. 25 

. 89-91 

. 137-139 

.185-190,819, 820 

. 209 

. 230-233 

. 261 

. 261,262 

. 262 

. 96 

. 303-305 

. 307,308 

. 308,309 

.. 404-407 

. 427,428 

. 442,443 

454,455,561-564,657,658 

. 484,485 

. 515 

. 544,545 

.. 554-557 

.. 614-619 

. 652-654 

. 656 

. . 673 

. 673-675 

.. 677 

. 681,682 

. 690,691 

. 763,764 

. 765.766 

. 772,773 

. 774 

. 774 

. 776 

. 783 

. 784 

. 787-788 































































870 


GENERAL INDEX. 


Page. 

Brew, Burton, examination of.-. 790 

Broaclhead, T. R., examination of. 790 

Broadliead, Georjje, examination of... 790 

Briady, Edward S., examination of. 810-811 

Burke, Michael, examination of. 815 

Buddington, Charles, examination of. 817,818 

Blake, John, examination of. 824 

Bommer, Lawrence, examination of. > 828 

Browning, August, examination of. 831 

a 

Courtney, Samuel G., examiriation of. 9-12 . 

Cottrell, Joseph, examination of. 58-59 

Crowley, David, examination of. 179, 209,210,235, 314,315,834 

Crandell, Stephen M., examination of. 193 

Chapman, Henry J., examination of. 203-204 

Clifford, James E., examination of. 208 

Carey, Lorenzo, examination of... 274,275 

Coyle, John, examination of. 376 

Carberry, John, examination of. 402 

Costello, Michael, examination of. 407-409 

Colvin, James A., examination of. 433-435 

Cummings, John, examination of. 437 

Certificates of naturalization. 8,9,25,77,78,79,80, 81,82,83, 84, 139,154,155,156,157, 

158,159,160,161,162,163,164 

Cronin, Bartholomew, examination of. 456, 457 

Cook, Peter, examination of. 477-480 

Clark, James, examination of. 505-507 

Campbell, Louis, examination of. 560-561 

Cook, William H., examination of. 604 

Costello, Robert, examination of. 624 

Clark, John, examination of. 624-625 

Clark, Edward, examination of. 626 

Cobb,Edward, examination of.■. 626-627 

Cooper, Jacob W., examination of. 630 

Collins, James, examination of.s. 660-664 

Coul, William, examination of. 667-668 

Callan, Christopher, examination of. 699-706 

Clark, William P., examination of. 762-763 

Cameron, Pat, examination of. 768-769 

Clark, Lewis, examination of. 776 

Carr, Lewis E., examination of. 786,787 

Carroll, William, examination of. 792, 793 

Crist, Virgil, examination of. 798 

Cartier, Edmund, examination of... 803 

Casey, Thomas, examination of. 809 

Crook, Thomas, examination of. 809 

Coyle, John, examination of. 8i0 

Cumberlage, John, examination of. 810 

Connell, James, examination of. 815 

Clapp, H. M., examination of. 823 

Casey, Joseph, examination of. 827 


Daly, R. H., examination of. 

Donnelly, John, examination of. 

Day, Richard, examination of.. 

Dolan, Hugh F., examination of. 

De Voursney, Abraham, examination of 

Duffy, Patrick, examination of. 

Dunne, John, examination of. 

Donnelly, Francis, examination of. 

Donovan, Henry,,examination of. 

Dorans, William, examination of. 

Dumble, Joseph, examination of. 

Darling, Henry, examination of. 

Donovan, John, examination of. 

Davenport, John I., examination of_ 

Dennis, James, examination of. 

Doherty, Cornelius, examination of .... 


D. 


. 33-35 

. 225-227 

.. 233,234 

. 234,288,289,291,292 

. 272-274 

. 207 

. 292-295 

. • 299-303 

. 366 

. 448-450,452,453 

■. 491,492 

. 497-500 

. 529 530 

602-604,096-6*98,76i,'842-844, 845-847’ 853 

---• . 612,613 

. 632,633 


































































GENERAL INDEX. 


871 


Davison, William, examination of.. 

Dwyer, Timotliy, examination of. 

Driscoll, Daniel, examination of. 

Donuegan, Anthony, examination of. 

Dixon, Frank B., examination of. 

Doming, Charles S., examination of.. 

Dunn, Patrick, examination of. 

Dillon, John, examination of. 

Dunbar, George H., examination of. 

Dunphy, James, examination of. 

E. 

Ey, John, examination of. 

Emott, James, examination of. 

Edwards, Michael, examination of.. 

Ennis, Peter, examination of. 

Egleston, George, examination of. 

Eith, Joseph, examination of. 

Ellis, Thomas, examination of. 

Elliott, C. G., examination of.. 

F. 

Fox, Charles, examination of. 

Feeny, Patrick T., examination of. 

Foster, John A., examination of. 

Flynn, Thomas, examination of. 

Fitzgerald, Mathew, examination of. 

Ferguson, Hiram B., examination of. 

Farrell, Lawrence, examination of . 

Ferguson, Charles, examination of.. 

Fox, John, examination of.. 

Foley, Terrence, examination of. 

Fuller, Jerome, examination of. 

Foster William S., examination of. 

Flynn, John, examination of. 

Fitzgibbon, James, examination of. 

Farrar, Michael, examination of. 

Ford, Patrick, examination of. 

G. 

Gould, Thomas, examination of. 

Goldstein, Emanuel S., examination of. 

Glassey, Samuel J., examination of.. 

Gilmore, T. J., examination of.. 

Gale, Moses D., examination of. 

Greene, William H., examination of. 

Grant, Charles, examination of. 

Garvin, Samuel B., examination of. 

Greig, T. W., examination of. 

Gilmore John, examination of. 

Gifford, George B., examination of. 

Green, James, examination of.. 

Grant, Charles, examination of. 

Gorman, Janies, examination of. 

Gorry, James, examination of.. 

Gregory, John, examination of.. 

Gunn, John, examination of. 

Gaillard, Joseph, examination of. 

Glennon, John, examination of._. 

Gumbleton, Henry A,, examination of. 

Gillespie, Adam, examination of.. 

Gillespie, Cornelius, examination of. 

Ga rrison, Chauncy, examination of. 

Gi'marton, James, examination of. 

Green, John, examination of... 

Garvin, Samuel V., examination of.. 

Golden, James, examination of. 

H. 


Page. 

656, 657 
667 
771,77*2 
793 
809 
813,814 
814 
830,831 
832-834 
838-841 


57, 58 
489-491 
572-574 
775 
780,781 
785,786 
794-797 
811,812 


. 59-60 

. 87,89 

118,119,235,236,523-526,598-602 

. 254-256 

. 400-402 

. 564-568 

. 590-595 

. 621,622 

. 630,631 

. 657 

. 686-688 

. 692 

. 761,762 

. 783,784 

. 806,807 

. 815 


. 63-66 

. 69,77 

112,118,215,218,595,598, 698,699 

. 208,209 

. 309-314 

. 315-317 

. 428-430 

. 446-448 

. 455,456 

. 458-460 

.496, 497,534,535,536 

. 507-509 

. 520-521 

. 521 

. 569 

. 586-590 

. 611 

. 612 

. 625 

. 633,634 

.636,637,652-654,732-735 

. 774 

. 782 

. 788 

. 790 

. 816 

. 820,821 


Heimburgh, Melchior, examiiration of 
Hurrelle, Timothy, examination of.... 


66, 67 
68 

































































872 


GENERAL INDEX. 


Page, 

limit, Ricliard G.. examination of. 

Hendrick, Win. H., examination of.-•. 237-2.V2 

llotfman, John T., examination of. 99^J]2 

Hoffman, John T., proclamation of. 99 

Hall, James F., examination of. 

Hall, Oakey A., examination of.275-279, J’24-3.37 

Hawley, S. C., examination of. 

Heyman, I.saac, examination of.-. 376-379 

Heath, Edward 13., examination of.390-392,748-751 

Harris, George, examination of.. 419-422 

Hopscroft, Gfcoro^e, examination of. 440,441 

Hoffman, George H., examination of. 443-446 

Hill, George, examination of. 482-484 

Hale, Peter, examination of. 504 

Hogan, David, examination of. 531-533,569 

Hughes, John, examination of. 622,623 

Heath John, examination of. 637-642 

Hal lam, George F., examination of. 657 

Hogan, Edward, examination of. 664-666 

Horsfelt, Adam, examination of. 670 

Haggerty, Patrick, M., examination of. 675,676 

Hayner, Irving, examination of.— 677-681 

Hanley, John, examination of. 766 

Hanley, Patrick, examination of..—. 766 

Hoyt, Charles, examination of. 768 

Hackett, Edward, examination of. 777 

Hirst, .lohn, examination of. 778,779 

Hoyt, H. V. D., examination of. 812 

House, E. H., examination of. 815 

Hussey, Peter, examination of. - 821 


I. 


Irving, James, examination of. 374-376 

Irwin, D. B., examination of. 775,776 


J. 


Jenner, William A., examination of. 48-51 

Jay, John, examination of. 182-185 

Joralemon, Wm., examination of.... 212-214 

Jarvis, Nathaniel, jr , examination ot. 195-201,578 

Jonassohn, Louis, examination of...415-418,514,515 

Jones, Morgan, examination of. 437-438 

Johnson, George, examination of. 480-482 

Jones, John, examination of.... 548-551 

Jansen, Andrew E , examination of. 673 

Johnson, Henry, examination of. . 735-745 

Johnson, Joseph, (colored,) examination of. 782 

Jackson, James H., examination of. 798 

Janicky, Charles, examination of. 800,801 


K. 


Kruger, Henry, examination of... 56,57 

Kerw'in, Michael, examination of. 93-95 

Keenan, Patrick H., examination of.1. 288 

Kent, Edwin R., examination of. 383-388 

Kennedy, John A., examination of... 557-559 

Keating, John, examination of.1. 578-581 

Kagle, John, examination of. 623,624 

Kennel, John, examination of. 634,635 

Knowles, Calvin, examination of. 690 

Kelly, Patrick, examination of. 787 

Kirk, Samuel, examination of. 803 

Kneer, Wendelin, examination of. 807 

Kane, Tomas, examination of. 814 

Kelhy, James, examination of. 816,817 





























































GENERAL INDEX. 


873 


Loi^ner, Andrew B., examination of... 
Leverson, M. Ricliavd, examination of 

Loew, Charles E., examination of_ 

Lynch, Timothy, examination of. 

Livingston, Morris, examination of.... 
Lawrence, John M., examination of... 

Lee, John, examination of. 

Loutrell, William J,, examination of.. 

Lyle, Henry, examination of. 

Lucas, James A., examination of.. 

LeBarnes, John W., examination of... 

Lottos, Peter, examination of.. 

Laird, Mitchell, examination of.. 

Luckey, Joseph L., examination of_ 

Levi, Richard, examination of.. 

Lynn, James H., examination of. 

Ludlow, Theodore W., examination of 


L. 


Page. 

.■.. 91-93 

.. 119-137, 655 

... 140,154, 179,182, 256, 257, 847-851, 853, 854 
. 177-179 


253, 254 
392-395 
398,399 
441, 442 
460-470, 477 
501 

547, 551-553 
632 
668-670 
685, 686, 689 
797 
799 
814 


M. 


Murray,(Marshal) Robert, examination of.. .1-8,51-56, 305, 306,517,518,528, 529,530,533, 


McLaughlin, Patrick, examination of.. 
McMurray, William J., examination of, 

Miller, Joseph A., examination of. 

Mulligan, John J., examination of_ 

McMahon, John, examination of. 

Mitchell, Edward, examination of. 

McDonald, Logan, examination of.... 

McAlpine, R. W., examination of. 

Moran, .James, examination of.. 

Mottel, Louis J., examination of. 

Meeks, Joseph, examination of. 

McCunn, John H., examination of .... 
Marston, Howard T., examination of.. 

Mills, Nathaniel R., examination of_ 

McKean, John B., examination of.... 

Mack, Patrick, examination of. 

Melville, James, examination of. 

McKinna, Arthur, examination of. 

Mabee, George, examination of. 

Maloy, Joseph, examination of. 

Mellville, George, examination of. 

Merritt, George, examination of. 

McGowan, examination of. 

McGlade, Thomas A., examination of . 

Murray, Francis, examination of. 

McCabe, John, examination of. 

Mullaly, John, examination of. 

McCarthy, Charles, examination of- 

Mullen, John J., examination of. 

McKee, Hugh, examination of. 

McClusky, John, examination of. 

Mahoney, Michael, examination of .... 

Miller, Nathan J., examination of. 

Miller, Reuben C., examination of- 

McCord, Walter L., examination of ... 

McGuyen, John, examination of. 

McKee, John, examination of. 

McNeal, William, examination of. 

Moore, Thomas, examination of. 

Martin, Joseph, examination of. 

Meagher, John, examination of. 

Mowney, Terrence, examination of- 

Murphy, Jerry, examination of-- -- 

McLaughlin, Dennis, examination of .. 


534,545-547,551,568,569 

. 68,69 

.. 95 

97,98- 

. 252,253 

. 264,265 

. 37-39 

.. 22-25 

. 210-212 

. 279-281 

. 295-299 

..317-324,728-732 

337-347,500, .501,627, 628,811,842 
....351,366,581,692-696,844-845 

. 366,367 

.367-374,745-748 

. 413-415 

. 425-427 

.395-398 

....450-452,455,522,523,553,554 

.. 457,458 

. 501-504 

.. 521,.522 

. 526,527 

. 547,.548 

. 605-609 

. 609-611 

. 628-630 

. 631 

. 642-648 

. 666 

.707-728,827,832 

. 777 

. 777,778 

. 781 

. 784,785 

... 788 

. 792 

. 793 

797 

.. 807 

. 809,810 

. 822 

. 824 

. 829,830 































































874 


GENERAL INDEX 


N. 

Page. 

Naturalization certificates, issue of, to fictitious persons: 

James R. Smith. 8 

Samuel Reynolds. J 

Patrick Rafferty. ' 9 

Walter Shirley. 25, 26 

Andrew B. Leigner. 93 

Maximilian Boeck. 139 

Neelis, James J., examination of. 263, 264 

Nolan, Sylvester E., examination of. 435, 436 

Nichols, James, examination of. 485, 486 

Norton, John, examination of. 570-576 

Newmark, M. J., examination of. 656 

Neay, 'Thomas, examination of. 682-685 

Nettleton, Charles, examination of... 821, 822 

O. 

Osborne, John, examination of.*. 85-87 

Ostrander, Alexander, examination of. 223-225 

O’Brien, James, examination of. 379-383,432,433,509-511,515-517 

Olney, George R., examination of. 676, 677 

O’Donovan, John, examination of. 772 

O’Brien, Patrick, examination of. 801,802 

O’Brien, Patrick, examination of. 808 

O’Brien, Patrick, examination of. 810 

O’Brien. Dennis, examination of.-s. 815 

Owen, Nelson, examination of. 816 

P. 

Pohl, Peter, examination of. 98 

Perrine, John D., examination of. 262 

Paine, Joseph E., examination of. 281-285 

Phillips, Lewis C., examination of.. 289-291 

Phyfe, John, examination of. 306,307 

Potter, Thomas, examination of. 418,419 

Plumb, Edmund M., examination of. 493,851-853 

Pettit, Austin D., examination of. 493-496 

Pullman, Christopher, examination of. 536 

Powers, Patrick, examination of. 766,767 

Powers, Edmund, examination of. 767, 768 

Peele, Richard, examination of. 807 

Q- 

Quinlan, Michael, examination of. 194 

Quackenbush, D. P., examination of. 770 

R. 

Raynolds, Samuel, examination of. 20-22 

Roberts, Samuel A., examination of. 190,191 

Robertson, John, examination of. 208 

Reinhart, Joseph, examination of. 222,223 

Rodgers, John, examination of.. . 399,400 

Ryan, Thomas, examination of.438-440,519,520 

Reilly, Charles, examination of. 473-475 

Rowell, John M., examination of. 619,620 

Rome, Jacob, examination of. 625,626 

Rogers, Charles H., examination of. 635,636 

Riordan, Michael, examination of. 764,765 

Roland, Patrick, examination of. 773 

Repp, Charles, examination of. 802,803 

Robinson, Seth K., examination of. 814 

Russell, Joseph E., examination of. 826, 827 






















































GENEEAL INDEX. 


875 


\ 


s. 

Springer, John Henry, examination of. 

Simms, William Thomas, examination of. 

Shirley, Walter, examination of. 

Surridge, Thomas, examination of. 

Siep, Charles Henry, examination of. 

Sherman, Porter J., examination of. 

Sullivan, Daniel, examination of. 

Stewart, Dougal, examination of. 

Secret circular, Samuel J.Tildens. 

Sweeney, James M., examination of. 

Sloan, William D., examination of. 

Springstein, N. H., examination of. 

Seixas, Solomon, examination of. 

Shea, Dennis, examination of. 

Shandley, Edward, jr., examination of. 

Sweetzer, Henry E., examination of. 

Sanford, Edward, jr., examination of. 

Sullivan, Thomas, examination of. 

Smith, M. Malcolm, examination of. 

Scannel, Florence, examination of. 

Strong James, examination of. 

Smith, James, examination of. 

Snyder, Charles, examination of.. 

Skelly, Bernard, examination of. 

Smith, John D. B , examination of. 

Smith, George, examination of. 

Southwell, Edward, examination of. 

St.John, examination of. 

Suttle, George W., examination of. 

Smith, Martin, examination of. 

Stivers, M. D., examination of. 

Stanley, Marcus C., examination of. 

Strong, Charles S., examination of. 


Page. 

.. 46,47 

.. 12-16 

. 26-31 

. ' 31,32 

. 60-63,87 

. 84,85 

. 95,96 

. 96,97 

. 109 

.. 166,167 

. 192,193 

. 218-220 

. 227-230 

.. 388-390 

.. 402-404 

.. 422-425, 642 

511,512,515,559,560 

. .528,529 

. 536-539 

539-544,557,753-761 

.. 574,575 

. 620,621 

. 670 

.. 671-673 

. 682 

. 769,770 

.. 779,780 

. 791 

. 791 

. 807,808 

. 813 

. 639-642 

. 835-838 


T. 


Tilden, Samuel J., examination of. 

Teller, Clarance N., examination of. 

Tweed, William, examination of. 

Thurston, John P., examination of. 

Tupper, P. F.. examination of. 

Thompson, James A., examination of. 

Tyrsel, Patrick, examination of. 

Tracy, Richard, examination of. 

Titus, William, examination of. 

Tichen, Frederick, examination of.. 

Taylor, Theodore, examination of.. 

U. 


257-259 
259-261 
265-272 
430-432 
658-660 
751-7.53 
780 
788,789 
794 
822 
831,832 


Utley, Robert, examination of. 

Urmy, Samuel S., examination of. 
Unswarth, Robert, examination of. 


475, 476 
173-177 
797 


V. 


Van Buren, Benj., examination of... 
Vandei voort, Henry, examination of 
Vorhees, Abraham, examination of.. 

Volmer, Paul, examination of. 

Van Elon, Solomon, examination of. 

Vail, Wilmot M,, examination of- 

Vinall, George F., examination of... 


. 206,207 

.. 388 

582, 613, 614,706,707,828,829 

. 631 

.. 791 

.. 792 

. 792 


W. 

✓ 


Wolf, Mathias, examination of. 
Willis, Ansen, examination of. 


67, 68 
171-173 


























































876 


GENERAL INDEX. 


Wing-, Samuel S., examination of. 

Westlake, Owen E., examination of. 

Wilbour, Charles E., examination of. 

Woltman, Henry, examination of. 

Ward, Hugh, examination of. 

Walling, George W., examination of_ 

Woodward, William W., examination of. 

White, John H., examination of. 

Wood, William, examination of.. 

Willsen, William, examination of. 

Ward, James, examination of. 

Wood, John, examination of.. 

Ward, William, examination of. 

Wood, James R., examination of ... 

Wilson, Nicholas, examination of.. 


Page. 

. 173-J77 

. 201-203,235 

....214,215,411-413,448 

. 220-222 

. 225 

. 347-351 

. 436-437 

470-473,501,535,648-651 

. 487-489 

. 512-514 

. 575-577 

. 582-586 

. 637,655 

. 785 

. 804-806 


Y. 


Young, William W., examination of. 47, 48 

York, Thomas H., examination of. 492,493 



















/ 


ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


Arnoux, Gabriel A., examination of, 491-308. 

Referred to, 823. 

Arrests, by order of Judge McCunn. 

Referred to, 3639, 364*2. 

Arrests, by police on bench warrant. 

Referred to, 3743. 

Arrests, by inspectors for frauds at election. 

Referred to, 1252, 1253, 1807, 1900, 1946, 1984, 
1931, (page 193,) 2783, *2788, 3068, 3844, 3993, 
5099, 8370. 

Arrests, by deputy sberitFs. 

Referred to, 1813, 1836, 1900, 1984, 1931, (page 
193) 3902, 5509. 

Arrests, by police for fratids at election. 

Referred to, 305, 306, 319, 331, 352, 1080, 3400, 
3676, 7521, 9131, 9165, 9166, 9184. 

Arrests, by United Stab'S marshal. 

Arrests, made on forged warrants. 

Referred to, 3550, 6848, 7021. 

Applications for naturalization, list of, to German 
democratic general committee. 

_ Referred to, 95, 96, 874, 882, 877, 878. 
Applications for naturalization, blanks, how obtained. 

Referred to, 912, 10*28. 

Applicants for naturalization, class of. 

Referred to, 9*22, 9*23. 

Applications for naturalization, rejection of. 

Referred to, 1938, 4377, 4398. 

Avenue A and 116th street. 

Referred to, 1701. 

Avenue C, Nos. 66 or 68, &c. 

Referred to, 2061, 2105, 2231,2339, 2728. 

Avenue D. 

Referred to, 2067 

Allen, Theodore, examination of, 9171, 9172-3. 

Referred to,,! 185, 1188. 

Adams, Robert G., examination of, 1701,1716. 
Armstrong. 

Referred to, 1819. 

Austin, Martin B., examination of, 3024, 3042. 

Referred to, 2113, 2679. 

Atkinson. 

Referred to, 2799. 

Allen, Wesley. 

Referred to, 2941, 3542, 3743, 3744. 

Acton, Thomas C. 

Referred to, 3515, 4438, 6025, 6026, 91.32, 9141, 
9149,9150,9151. 

Apppointments of deputy sheriffs. 

Referred to, 3863, 3881. 

Anderson, John C. 

Referred to, 5044, 6033. 

Atlantic, Garden, Bowery. 

Referred to, 5*227, 5*228, 5427. 

Aaron, Barney. 

Referred to, 5504, 5854, 7005, 7012, 7017. 

Acker, Samuel, examination of, 5.52*2, 5523. 

Allen, James, examination of, 6980, 

Referred to, page 657. 

Adams, Charles Francis. 

Referred to, 7054. 

Adams, James B., examination of, 7584. 

Allen, John. 

, Referred to, 9172. 

Ashurst, Joseph, examination of, 8958^^, 8967. 

Ashurst, John, examination of, 9088f, 9100. 

Referred to, 91 OOti. 

Broadway, Nos. 6, 4,595. 

Referred to, 2453. 
jjarnard. Judge G. G. 

Referred to, 726, 728.1132,1317,1332,1335,1338, 
1344, 1.354, 1367, 1400, 1404, 1407, 1409, 144.5, 

1447, 1451, 1519, 1527, 1.536, 1538, 1541, 1.548, 

1560, 1606, 1649, 1663, 1674, 1683, 1691, 1696, 

2121, 2178, 2250, 2259, 2773, 2777, 3137, 3138, 

3165, 3689, 3771, 3784, 3788, 3844, 3845, 3847, 

3849, 3852. 3856, 3926, 3948, 4625, 4644, 4649, 

4894, 60*26, 7783. 7831, 7941, 8400, 8404, 8411, 
9133, 9136, 9295, 9296. 


Bleecker and Greene streets, corner of. 

Referred to, 2453, 2557. 

Bennett, George or William. 

Referred to, 2453. 

Boston harbor. 

Referred to, 2504. 

Bleecker, Paymaster. 

Referred to, 2504. 

Bleecker, Anthony J. 

Referred to, 2514, 5143. 

Brunson, Major. 

Referred to, 658. 

Barnegat, Charles, examination of 988-10*24. 

Blume, Robert. 

Referred to, 2117. 

Baker, Maurice. 

Referred to, 2118. 

Bayard stn et. Nos. 62, 64, 68,162. 

Referred to, 2273,2276, 2456, 2457, 3053. 

Baxter street. No. 67. 

Referred to, 2276, .3064. 

Broome street. No. 531, &c. 

Referred to, 2543, 4024. 

Burns, Pete, 

Referred to, 2458. 2464, 2581, 2600. 

Bridgman, William, examination of, 2769, 2770. 
Birmer, Adam, 

Referred to, 2805. 

Bauman, Lawrence. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Blank forms, minor applications in common pleas. 
Referred to, pages 77, 78. 

Blank forms, application, when previous intention 
declared. 

Referred to, page 80. 

Blank forms, minor applications in superior court. 
Referred to, pages 79, 80. 

Blank forms, applications, when previous intention 
declared. 

Referred to, pages 78, 79. 

Blank forms, minor applications in supreme court. 

Referred to, pages 83, 84, 93, 154, 156, 157,159, 
160, 163. 

Blank forms, application, when previous intention 
declared. 

Referred to, pages 82,163. 

Blank forms, application to supreme court when 
honorably discharged from the army or the 
navy. 

Referred to, pages 81, 82,161. 

Barrett, Judge. 

Referred to, 1937,1948, page 194. 

Brady, Judge. 

Referred to, 1948, page 194. 

Bush, Joseph. 

Referred to, 2028. 

Brinker, -. 

Referred to, 2061. 

Brown, Thomas J. 

Referred to, 2067, 2070, 2207,2204. 

Broas, Andrew J, examination of, 2113, 2115. 

Referred to, 2679, 2714^ 3033. 

Brown, James. 

Referred to, 2116, 2695,3855. 

Blair, J. 

Referred to, 2116. 

Brown,-. 

Referred to, 2936, 2937. 

Burke, Patrick, examination of, 1099,1104. 

Referred to, 1093, 109.5, 1096. 

Brennan, Commissioner Matthew T., examination of, 
4430, 4437. 

Referred to, 12.36, .3515, 4163. 

Butts, Henry, examination of, 149,196, 

Referred to, 287. 

Burton, Charles W., examination of, 259, 262. 

Block, Theodore, examination of, 379, 411. 

Referred to, 825. 


» 







878 


ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


Bogert, Albert, examination of, 422, 429. 

Keferr d to, 9:39, 941,1726. 

Barrett, George 1’., examination of, 441, 465. 

Referred to, 822. 

Beeny, Henry, examination of, 466, 486. 

Referred to, 2825. 

Recalled, 4135, 4137. 

Bliss, Colonel George, jr., examination of, 1928,1969. 
Referred to, .57,1270, 1394, 2453, 2534, 2636, 2665, 
2667, 3605, 4618, 4675, 6909. 

Recalled, 9145,9152. 

Bentham, Jeremy. 

Referred to, 1327. 

Bibles. 

Referred to, 1335, 1336, 1360, 1937, 2121. 3813, 
3814, 3816, 3931, 4135, 4655, 66.57, 4678, 4680. 
Bleecker street. 

Referred to, 1378. 

Betzel, August. 

Referred to, 817,1688, page 179; 2116, 2695, 3855. 
Beaune, Henry. 

Referred to, 817, 821,1688, 2116, 2625, 38.55. 

Bill. 

Referred to, 1702. 

Black, Jack. 

Referred to, 1819. 

Bennett, John. 

Referred to, 1819.1820, 4110. 

Boeck, Maximillian, examination of, 1466,1494. 

Referred to. 2033, page 235; 3406, 3414, 3419, 
3596, 3615, 3225, 4012. 

Bennett, Thomas. 

Referred to, 1725. 

Barbour, Judge. 

Referred to, 1745, 3419, 3420, 3571, 3600, 4375. 
Brophy, James J., examination of, 2362, 2411. 

Referred to, 1876, 2141, 2.304. 

Bixby, Butler H., examination of, 2771, 2772. 

Barrett, William C., examination of, 2773, 2778, 

Blush, Charles F. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Bauscher, Herman. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Betts,-. 

Referred to, 2966, 2968,2987. 

Brady,-. 

Referred to, 2975. 

Baker, Abraham, examination of, 3258, 3289. 

Brown,-. 

Referred to, 3270. 

Belmont, Simeon E., examination of, 3312, 3328. 
Brewster, Thomas, examination of, page 308, 3329. 
Bosworth, Judge. 

Referred to, 3515,4128. 

Bogart, A. C. H. 

Referred to, 3352. 

Burns, Francis. 

Referred to, 3999. 

Brady, Michael. 

Referred to, page 393, 4034,4035. 

Boyle, Thomas. 

Referred to, 4049. 

Barclay, James. 

Referred to, 4057. 

Beeny, Colonel. 

Referred to, 4078. 

Bennett, T. Easton, examination of, 4117, 4131. 

Bennett, James G., jr. 

Referred to, 4132, 8992. 

Bedford, Gunning S. 

Referred to, 4132. 

Bowdell, George. 

Referred to, 4132. 

Benson, Joseph, exmnination of, 4269, 4284. 

Referred to, 4249, 4251, 6033. 

Barnurn,-. 

Referred to, 4383. 

Burdell,-. 

Referred to, 4383. 

Bell,-. 

Referred to, 4418, 

Bogart, William H., examination of, 4.564, 4568. 

List of names, presented by, pages 454, 455. 
Referred to, 4568. 

Recalled, 6063, 6094. 

List of mimes, presented by, 6964, 

Bell, Clark, examination of, 4986, 4987. 

Beanies, Joseph. 

Referred to, 4986, 4987. 


Beglan, James. 

Referred to, 5126, 5127, 

Barrett, Thomas. 

Referred to, 5155, 5882. 

Banker, Thomas A. 

Referred to, 5157, 5161, 5171, 5174, 5175, 5177, 
5391,5706. 

Burke, Leander. ^ 

Referred to, 5396. 

Bergin, Edward H., examination of, 5480. 

Referred to, 5479. 

Bartlet, George. 

Referred to, 5495. 

Brady, Michael, examination of, 5819, 5831. 

Referred to, 5550. 

List of illegal registries, presented by, 5819. 
Banks, Wright, examination of, 6853, 6895. 

Referred to, .5722. 

Record of naturalization, presented by, 6854. 
Applications for naturalization, forms of, pre¬ 
sented by, pages 617, 618. 

Baker, .Samuel, e.xamination of, 5954, 6003. 

Referred to, 6176, 6177, 6231, 6234. 

Blunt, Orison. 

Referred to, 6952. 

Brady, John R., examination of, 7207^, 7232. 

Bishop, Victor. 

Referred to, page 656. 

Bell, Isaac. 

Referred to, 7413. 

Bostwick. James L., e.xamination of, 7442, 7470. 

Referred to, 7439, 7440. 

Bernard, Reuben, examination of, 7440, 7441. 

Burke, Oliver, examination of, 7496. 

Buller, James P., examination of, 7521, 752.3. 
Brannegan, Patrick. 

Referred to, 7521. 

Baker, Elijah. 

Referred to, 7027, 7030. 

Biser, Anthony, examination of, 7567,7583. 

Bradley, John J. examination of, 8612^, 8631. 

Referred to, 8595, 8596, 8601. 

Borcold, Christian, examination of, 86494, 8663. 

Blake, John W. 

Referred to, 9166. 

Bell, John, examination of, 8764§^, 8783. 

Burns, Luke, examination of, 87884. 

Behme, Henry, examination of, 87884, 8797. 

Bradley, Patrick, examination of, 88134, 8815. 

Briggs, George, examination of, 8860|, 8863. 

Butcher, Thomas, examination of, 88664 . 

Bowhen, Owen, examination of, 8891. 

Brew, Burton, examination of, 8909a. 

Broadhead, T. R., examination of, 89096. 

Broadhead, George, examination of, 89U9e. 

Braidy, Edward S., examination of, 9100i. 

Letter of, presented by, 9100i. 

Bacon, -. 

Referred to, 9102, 9105, 9108. 

Burke, Michael, examination of, 9129^. 

Buddington, Charles, examination of, 9133, 9144. 
Blake, John, examination of, 9169, 9170. 

Boinmer, Laurence, 9184, 9185. 

Browning, .4ugust, examination of, 9198, 9199. 
Courtneyf Samuel G., examination of, 67, 90. 

Referred to, 2, 64, 92, 150,1158,1189,1585. 

Centre street. No. 13. 

Referred to, 2, 676. 

Centre street. No. 1. 

Referred to, 3334, 3336. 417.3, 4626, 4639, 4664, 
4698, 7350, 7352, 7356, 7384. 

Centre street. No. 6. 

2, 4, 31, 33, 93, 98, 106, 112, 127,151,170,178, 
199, 203, 218, 231, 254, 257, 650, 676,681,734, 
796, 828, 844, 850, 886, 8«7, 894, 900, 901, 927,- 
955, 1080, 1364, 1760, 2255, 2263, 2695, 2747, 
2813, 2814, 2954, 2956, 2159, 3776, 3861, 4168, 
4175,4698. 

Chambers street. No. 25. 

Referred to, 127,181, 183, 217, 844, 4880, 4883. 
Cragie, Francis. 

Referred to, 413, 414, 416. 

Certificates, natura ization, sale of, 2, 87, 93,151,156, 
201, 603, 6.8, 61.5, 619, 629, 630,769,777, 1032, 
1066, 108 ), 1119, 1136, 1471, 1479, 1702, 2099, 
2299, 2695, 4106, 4650, 4658, 5543. 

Committee on alleged election frauds in New York— 
Resolution of, 1694. 

Resolution of, page 180. 




ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


879 


Committee on alleged election frauds in New York— 
Letter of, page 181. 

Charley, -. 

Referred to, 1702. 

Columbia street. 

Referred to, 1783, 

Crochan, Micliael. 

Referred to, 1807. 

Colvin, Colonel 

Referred to, 1840. 

Crowley, David, examination of, 1892,1894, 

Recalled, 2116, 2118, 2430,3384, 3385, 9230, 

Cannon, Colonel. 

Referred to, 1908,1909,1916. 

Cook, W, W. 

Referred to, 2724. 

Comins,-. 

Referred to, 2934. 

Canvassing, mode of, 572, 575, 8284, 5158. 

Certificates of naturalization, issue of to fictitious per¬ 
sons, 604, 6U8, 615, 619, 622, 12.50,1317,1702, 
1806, 1637, 2061, 2099, 2103, 2264, 2413, 2449, 
2695, 2753, 2805, 3986. 

Cottrell, Joseph, examination of, 625, 636. 

Referred to, 638, 692, 740, 767, 775, 804,1125. 

Certificates of naturalization, issue of, without ap¬ 
pearance in court, 752, 780, 788, 926, 927, 929, 
1058, 1085, 1252, 1253, 1362, 1469, 1783, 1806, 
1937, 2'J61, 2099, 2103, 2264, 2413, 2449, 2695, 
2753, 2805, 3986, 4080. 

Cook, John. 

Referred to, 784. 

Clifford, Robert. 

Referred to, 2892. 

Coff,-. 

Referred to, 2975. 

^ ’Referred to, 3002. 

Coe,-. 

Referred to, 3002. 

Clerks, in employ of Rosenberg. 

Referred to, 858, 861, 863,871,873,895,900,905, 
919, 920. 

Common pleas, court of, when engaged in naturaliza¬ 
tion. 

Referred to, 915,1994. 

Cook,-. 

Referred to, 926. 

Challenges. 

Referred to, 932, 933, 939,1295,1308,1794,1795, 
1796, 1817, 1823, 1900, 1930, 1968, 1984, 1931, 
(page 19.3.) 2221, 2.333, 2341, 2342, 2.349, 2350, 
2354, 2.355, 2378, 2693, 2895, 2902, 3261, 3314, 
399.3, 4132, 4133, 4135, 4331, 4332, 4366, 4387, 
4418, 4421, 4601, 4606, 5542, 5556, 6848, 7027. 

City Hall, No. 12. 

Referred to. 956, 974, 1107,1.330,1333,1.350,1364, 
1386, 1414, 1472, 1474, 1478, 1504, 150.5, 15L7, 
1764, 1776, 1779, 1967, 1938, (page 194,) 2061, 
2750,2805,4000,4626,4639,5118, 5130, 5132, 5136. 

Culpin, Pop. 

Referred to, 1075. 

Clinton street, No. 24. 

Referred to, 2117, 

Caps, changing of. 

Referred to, 2276, 2278. 

City Hall Place. 

Referred to, 2408. 

Conroth, Michael. 

Referred to, 2416. 

Cuba. 

Referred to, 2499. 

Cherry street. No. 450. 

Referred to, 1094, 

Courts, forcible ejection by order of judge, and denial 
of admittance, &c. 

Referred to, 1336, 1409, 1410, 1560, 1562, 2121, 
3771, 3798, 3799. 

Cardoza, Judge, 

Referred to, 1579, 4163, 

Crandall, Stephen M., examination of, 1930,1946, pages 
193 194, 

Referred to, 1812. 

Chapman, Henry J., examination of, 2050,2095. 

Referred to, 2329, 2344, 2345. 

Clifford, James E., examination of, 2100, 2102. 

Cullou, Timothy. 

Referred to, 2113. 


Cooper Institute. 

Referred to, 2937. 

Connery, Jeremiah. 

Referred to, 3177. 

Caffrey, John. 

Referred to, 3461. 

Campbell, Captain. 

Referred to, 3675. 

Connolly, Michael. 

Referred to, 3742. 

Conover, William D. 

Referred to, 3742. 

Coyle, (detective,) John, examination of, 3850, 3851. 

Referred to, .3844, 3845, 3847. ' 

Conner, William C. 

Referred to, 3925. 

Colters,-. 

Referred to, 4060. 

Cuddy, Alderman, card of, page 239. 

Referred to, 2456, 2457, 2ti35, 2649. 

Cuddy’s Hotel. 

Referred to, 2638. 

Cunningham, Paymaster. 

Referred to, 2514. 

Cassidy, Morris. 

Referred to, 2756. 

Canvassers, examined. 

Referred to, 2769, 2771. 

Carey, Lorenzo, examination of, 2913,2932. 

Referred to, 27794-, 3065. 

Croner, Abriham. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Connolly, Richard B. 

Referred to, 2829, 6649. 

Churchill. 

Referred to, page 389. 

Conroy, William. 

Referred to, 4058. 

Costello, Michael, examination of, 4132, 4134. 

Referred to, 4180, 4181, 4184, 4185, 4186, 4341, 
4349-50, 4387, 4388, 4392, 4331, 4334, 4.335, 4430, 
4436. 

Reputation of, 4392, 4393, 4431. 

Referred to. 8285, 8287, 8293, 8334, 8341, 8348, 
8376,9190,9191. 

Crochan, Robert, (Judge.) 

Referred to, 4103, 4105, 5722, 6857. 

Canvassing, delay in. 

Referred to, 4113, 4363, 8284, 5158, 9262. ' 

Campbell, Judge. 

Referred to, 4128. 

Coman, Alderman. . 

Referred to, 4132, 4163, 4183, 4387, 9190, 9191, 
9281, 9286. 

Chadwick. 

Referred to, 4135. 

Corson, Cornelius, 

Referred to, 415.3, 4160. 

Certificates of naturalization fraudulently granted, 
Rid'erred to, 4628, 4632, 4704, 5543, 6848. 

Clark, Andrew. 

Referred to, 4800. 

Clark, James, examniation of, 5287, 5333. 

Referred to, 5390. 

Costello, - 

Referred to, 5398. 

Compton House. 

Refei-red to, 4201, 4239, 5558, 5663, 5861, 5862, 
586.5, 0004, 6007, 6009, 6012. 

Fictitious names registered from, .5796. 

Referred to, 850-5, 8517, 8558, 8528, 8529, 8557, 
8558, 8561, 8562. 

Conkling ticket. 

Referred to, 4290, 4297, 4299, 4300, 4301, 4316, 
4317,4318, 4319, 4320, 4324. 

Carboy, Michael. 

Referred to, 4295, 

Cuddy. William. 

Referred to, 4327, 4328, 4329, 6947. 

Colvin, James A., examination of, 4363,4374. 

Crounce, -. 

Referred to, 4383. 

Cummings, John. exHinination of, 4386. 

Cronin, Bartholomew, examination of, 4572, 4599. 
Referred to, 3999. 

Cook, Peter, examination of, 4880,4925. 

Referred to, 3359, 341 H. 

Campbell, Louis, examination of, 6034, 6062. 





880 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Cassidy,-. 

Referred to, 6040, 6042, 6045, 6054. 

Cook, William H„ examination of, 6697, 6704. 
Referred to, 6947. 

Cooper, Jacob W., examination of, 6965, 6968. 
Referred to, 6849. 

Costello, Robert, examination of, 6937, 6938. 

Clark, John, examination of, 6939, 6940. 

Clark, Edward, examination of, 6945, 6946. 

Referred to, 7040. 

Cobb, Edward, examination of, 6947, 6950. 

Cbambers, Win R. W., examination of, 7044,7054. 
Referred to, 7240. 

Collins, James, examination of, 7313, 7.393. 

Callan, Christopher, examination of, 7670, 7740. 

List of witnesses presented by, 7670. 

Coffin, Elias. 

Referred to, 7335, pafje 667. 

Coul, William, examination of, 7346, page 667; 7355, 
page 668. 

Curran, Alderman. 

Referred to, 8294. 

Clark, William P., examination of, 8663, 8612. 
Cameron, Pat., examination of, 87021,8719. 

Clark, Lewis, examination of, 8808|, 8813. 

Carr, Lewis E., examination of, 887'6, 8888. 

Carroll, William, examination of, 8909m., 8912. 

Crist, Virgil, examination of, 8951«, 8957. 

Cartier, Edmunds, examination of, 90l7i. 

Casey, Thomas, examination of, 91006. 

Crook, Thomas, examination of, 9100c. 

Coyle, John, examination of, 9100^. 

Cumberlage, John, examination of, 9100A. 

Connell, James, examination of, 9129/. 

Clapp, H. M., examination of, 9165, 9166. 

Dwyer, Deputy Marshal. 

Referred to, 2, page 393, 4045. 

Dally, R. H., examination of, 356-378. 

Referred to, 380, 392, 400. 

Dolan, John. 

Referred to, 442, 443-446, 447, 450, 451, 452, 460, 
822. 

Delaney street, No. 154. 

Referred to, 863. 

Democratic General Committee, (German.) 

Referred to, 654. 683, 797, 798, 828, 829, 859. 

List of applications to, for naturalization, 874- 
882. 

Denham, Michael. 

Referred to, 958, 974. 

DeWitt, Clinton. 

Referred to, 1184. 

Dargan, Richard. 

Referred to, 1252. 

Duffy, Patrick, examination of, 2099. 

Referred to, 1253, 1688, page 179, 3788, 385.5. 
Dayton, Isa.ac. 

Referred to, 1270,1287, 1300, 1301, 1315. 
Democratic officials and politicians—Testimony rela¬ 
tive to. 

Referred to, 1335, 1336, 1337, 1339, 1340, 1341- 
1.3f3, 1347, 1348, 1354, 1358-1364, 1.366,1367, 
1372, 1373, 1374, 14o7, 1409, 1412, 1786, 1797, 
2895, 2904. 

Dunphy,-. 

Referred to, 1345, 1354, 1369, 1370, 8289, 8291, 
8332, 8352, 8358. 

Darcy,-. 

Referred to, 1367. 

Dougal,-. 

Referred to, 1367, 1369. 

Doe, John. 

Referred to, 1546, 1625. 

Dunn, Michael. 

Referred to, 1688, 2117, 3783. 

Doolin, John. 

Referred to, 1688, page 179, 3855. 

Dalton, John. 

Referred to, 1812, 1984. 

Daly, Patrick. 

Referred to 1834. 

Doogan, VV'illiam. 

Referred to, 1847. 

Donnelly, John, examination of, 2303-2326. 

Referred to, 1876, 2141, 2406, 2409, 3855. 

Day,-. 

Referred to, 1984, page 192. 


Daly, Judge. 

Referred to, 1948, page 194. 

Dehlman or Dellinger, Paul. 

Referred to, 2105, 2106, 2724. 

Davenport, John I., examination of, 6686-6696. 

Referred to, 2107, 4039, 4687, 5393, 5410, 6532, 
6533, 6535, 6652, 8210. 

Recalled, 7643-7647, 8584-8593. 

Recalled, 9303-9312. 

Communications by telegram, (fee. between Con¬ 
gressional committee and Chas. E. Loew, 
presented by, 9.304-9310. 

Recalled, 9.330-9.34G, 9393-9398. 

Communications to S. J. Glasey et al., presented 
by, 9394-9398. 

Dallingor,-. 

Referred to, 2203. 

Day, Richard, e.xamination of, 2412-2426. 

Dolan, Hugh F., examination of, 2427-2429. 

Recalled, 3051-3053, page 291, 3099. 

Darling, James. 

Referred to, 24.53, 2454, 2639, 3053, 3385. 

De Vousney, Abraham, examination of, 2895-2912. 
Referred to, 41.35, 4136. 

Donnelly, Francis, examination of, 3195-3258. 

Referred to, 3260, 3269. 

Davies. .Judge. 

Referred to, 1147, 3492. 

Opinions of, 3492, 35.57. 

Donovou, Henry, examination of, 3742. 

Duer, Judge. 

Referred to, 4128. 

Dorans, William, examination of, 4496-4527. 

Referred to, 4192, 4199, 4238, 4211, 4221, 4226, 
4231, 4237, 4251, 4269, 4272, 4277, 4279, 4310, 
4935, 4928, 49.38, 5959, 5963, 5967, 5998, 6847. 
Recalled, 4.539-4563. 

Davis, William. 

Referred to, 4211. 

Dorrs, 'Fhomas. 

Referred to, 4611. 

Durgan, C. A. 

Referred to, 5079. 

Dumble, Joseph, examination of, 5099-5101. 

Dodson. William. 

Referred to, 5100. 

Darling, Henry, examination of, .5162-.5209. 

Referred to, 5142, 5144, 5152, 5225, 5696, 5703. 
Dunn, Bill. 

Referred to, 5355,53-56,5359, 5360, 5362, 5364,5370. 
Doubleday, Major General. 

Referred to, 5565. 

Depew,-. 

Referred to, 5567. 

Donovan, .John, examination of, 5625-5644. 

Referred to, 5604, 5612, 5613, 5645. 

Dennis, James, examination of, 6848-6850. 

Referred to, 6954, 6955, 6959, 6960, 6963, 7020. 
Doherty, Cornelius, examination of, 6981-6987. 
Referred to, page 657. 

Davison, William, examination of, 724.5-7273. 

Dwyer, Timothy, examination of, 73.32-7345, page 667. 
Referred to, 7322, page 666, 7328, page 666, 73- 
31. page 666. 

^Dunne, John, examination of, 3099-3134. 

List of names presented by, in 11th district, 6th 
ward. 

, Referred to, page 294. 

Daily,-. 

Referred to, 8738. 

Driscoll, Daniel, examination of, 8736^-8759. 

Referred to, 8774. 8778, 8779. 

Donnegan, Anthony, examination of. 8912J, 

Dixon, Frank B., examination of, 9lOUa. 

Demiug, examination of, 9124^-9129. 

Dunn, Patrick, examination of, 9129iJ. 

Dillon, John, examination of, 9194-9197. 

Dunbar, George H., examination of, 9206-9229. 
Dunphy, James, examination of, 9246-9291. 

Elections.—Names of inspectors of registry and elec¬ 
tion, sworn and examined; 

Charles C. Reed, 329, 27th district, 9th ward. 
Theodore Block, 379, 21st district, 17th ward. 
Edward Mitchell, 412, 4th district, I5th ward. 
Albert Bogert, 422, 4th district, 19th ward. 
George G. Hewett, 430, 19th district, 2Uth ward. 
George P. Barrett, 441, 7th district, 12th ward. 





ANALYTICAL INDEX, 


881 


Elections.—Names of inspectors—Continued. 

Henry Beeny, 466, 9th district, 6th ward. 

John H. Springer, 487, 6th district, 19th ward. 
William W. Young, 508, 4th district, 17th ward. 
William A. Jenner, 575,5th district, 18th ward. 
Porter G. Sherman, 925, 8th district, 17th ward. 
John Orsbou, 938, 4th district, 19th ward. 

Dugald Stewart, 1105, 17th district, 20th ward. 
Sam’l J. Glassey, 1251, 16th district, 20th ward. 
Anson Willis, 1782, I6th district, 16th ward. 
Samuel S. Urmy, 1805, 15th district, 21st ward. 
Timothy Lynch, 1859, 5th district, 6th ward. 
Samuel A. Roberts, 1965, 2d district, 17th ward. 
Stephen M. Crandall, insp’r of elect’n, but not of 
registry, 1930, page 193, 15th dist., 2l8t ward, 
Henry J. Chapman, 2050,16th district, 16th ward. 
Richard G. Hunt, 2060, 19th district, 1 Ith ward. 
Benj. Van Buren, 2076, 16th district, 16th ward. 
Andrew J. Broas, 2113, 12th district, 13th ward. 
William Joralemon, 2141, 5th district, 6th ward. 
K. H. Springstein, 2201, 19th district, 11th ward. 
John Donnelly, 2303, 5th district, 6th ward. 
Solomon Seixas, 2327, 16th district, 6th ward. 
James J. Brophy, 2362, 5th district, 6th ward. 
John J. Mulligan, 2679, 12tli district, 13th ward. 
Thomas Flynn, 2704, 19th district, ISth ward. 
James J. Neelis, 2779^^, 6th district, 6th ward. 
John McMahon, 2805, Ist district, 11th ward. 
Abrah'm De Vousuey.2895,9thdi8trict, 6th ward. 
Lorenzo Carey, 2913, 6th district, 6th ward. 
>Iartin B. Austin, 3024, 12th district, 13th ward. 
Ijewis C. Philips, 3064, 6th district, 6th ward. 
Francis Donnelly, 3195, 3d district, 11th ward. 
Solomon E. Belmont, 3312,12th district,8th ward. 
Henry Donovan, 3742, 13th district, 21st ward. 
Dennis Shea, 3986, 4th district, 4th ward. 

Arthur McKenna, 4050, 5th district, 1st ward. 
Michael Costello, 4132, 3d district, 4th ward. 
Patrick Mack, 4163, 5th district, 4th ward. 
Thomas Potter, 4179, 3d district, 4th ward. 

John P. Thurston, 4330, 3d district, 4th ward, 
Bartholomew Croniu,4.572, 4th district, 4th ward. 
.Toseph Maloy, 4591, ith district, 4th ward. 

John Gilmore, 4598, 7th district, 4th ward. 
Joseph Dumble, 5099, 2d district, 4th ward. 
George Merritt, 5550, 5th district, 16th ward. 
Jurat B Dennis, 6848, 7th district, 21st ward. 
John Mullaly, 6954, 7th district, 2l8t ward. 
Jacob W. Cooper, 6965, 7th district, 2l8t ward. 
John Kennell, 7004, 2d district, 3d ward. 

Charles H. Rodgers, 7018,8th district, 2l8tward. 
>IcLaughlin Dennis, 9189, 3d district, 4th ward. 
John Dillon. 9194, Uth district, 6th wanl. 

Ey, John, examination of, 617, 624. 

Referred to, 608, 610, 612. 

Expense of naturalization, how paid. 

Referreil to, 859. 

Essex Market court. 

Referred to, 927. 

Ellis, William. 

Referred to, 1327. 

Eaton,-, 1394. 

Essex street. No. 103. 

Referred to, 1476. 

Pllizabeth street. 

Referred to, 2273. 

Erie Railroad Company. 

Referred to, 2876,2872. 

East Broadway. 

Referred to, 3675, 3676, 3690. 

Edwards, Charles. 

Referred to, 4110. 

Elliott, Joseph. 

Referred to, 4166, 

Eastburu, John. 

Referred to 5018. 

Einott, James, examination of, 5086, 5099. 

Opinion of, 5086, 5099. 

Edwards, Michael, examination of, 6228, 6217. 

Refe'rrcd to, page 657. 

Evers, Frederick. 

Referred to, 7027. 

Ennis, Peter, examination of, 8797i, 880;i. 

Egleston, George, examination of, 8c56^-, 8857. 

Eith, Joseph, examination of, 8870i, 8875. 

Ellis, Thomas, exaininatiou of, 8913i, 8951. 

Elliott, G, C., examination of, 9100 j, 9109. 

Referred to, 9124^-, 9125, 9126, 9127, 9129. 

T 


Fitzpatrick. John. 

Referred to, 372, 392, 394, 39.5, 399, 400. 
Fitzpatrick, Dennis. 

Referred to, 305, 312, 319, 330, 331, 815. 
j Fox, Charles, examination of, 637-649. 

! Referred to, 630, 638, 805, 1114, 1136. 

I Fielding, Charles. 

Referred to, 825, page 178, 3855. 

Feeny, Patrick T., examination of, 954-987. 

Fox, John, congressman. 

Referred to, 2391. 

Farly, John. 

Referred to, 2439. 

Flynn, Thomas, examimuion of, 2701-2717. 

Referred to, 2679, 3033. 

Fyfe, Douglas. 

Referred to, 2779. 

Firth, Isaac. 

Referred to, 280,5. 

Fulke,-. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Ferguson, Hiram, examination of, 6096-6162. 

Referred to, 3196, 3200, .3201, 3213, 3214, 322^, 
3223, 3226, .3231, 3237, 3240, 3247, 3248, 3278, 
5492, 5654, 5679, 5867, 5882, 6163. 

Fullerton, William, opinion of, 3537. 

Fitzgerald, Samuel. 

Referred to, 3844. 

Fox, John. 

Referred to, 3866, 3882, 4037. 

Fenton, Governor. 

Referred to, 1188, 1205, 1900, 3743. 
Forty-second street. 

Referred to, 1253, 2266. 

Franklin street. 

Referred|to, 1362,2314. 

Flanagan, -. 

Referred to, 1367. 

Fehling, Charles. 

Referred to, 1688, 3780. 

First avenue. Nos. 61 and 221. 

Referred to, 1689, 1894, 2037. 

I Fourth Avenue, Nos. 444 and 449. 

Referred to, 1807, 1847, 1856, 1858. 

Forty-tirst street west. No. 318. 

Referred to. 2116. 

Fitzgerald, JIathew, examination of, 4096-1098. • 

Fitzgerald, Thomas. 

Referred to, 4110. 

Field, -. 

Referred to, 413.5, 4527. 

Fifth Avenue hotel. 

Referred to, 2, 212, 1268, 1.381, 1900, 1959, 2387, 
2520, 3097, 3675, 4166, 4438, 4446, 4793, 4802, 
5575, 5380, 5.588, 5653, 5654, 5666, 5662, 5690, 
i 5693, 57.53, 5771, 5716, 6026, 6097, 6117, 6118, 

6134, 6164, 70.56, 7057, 70.58, 7086, 7C87, 7089, 
7091, 7244, 9119, 9166, 9206, 9210, 9213, 9215, 

1 9222 9225. 

' Frye, Robert. 

; Referred to, 5.54.3, 5544. 

Foster, John A., examination of, 1316-1323. 

Referred to, 702, 7.37, 739,1250, 6533, 65.35, 6536, 
6()14, 6626, 6627, 6637, 6641, 6686, 7196. 
Recalled, 2431-2438K 
Recalled, 6648-6685. 

Tables, &c.. presented by, .5562, page 526,. 

, Referred to, 8064, 8364. 

Fagin, -. 

Referred to, 6006. 

Farrell, Laurence, examination of. 6528-6628, 

Referred to, 6629, 6634, 6646, 6648, 6i03 7170, 
7183. 

Ferguson. Charles, examination of, 6913-6916. 
Referred to, 7040. 

Fox, John, examination of, 6969-6970. 

Fort Lafayette. 

Referred to, 7056, 7068. 

Foley, Terrence, examination of, page 657^ 

Fuller, Jerome, Judge, examination of, 7554-7559. 
Referred to, 7546, 7548. 

Foster, William S., examination of, 7586-7593. 
Flaunagan, Peter. 

Referred to, 8300. 

Flynn, John, examination of, 8.594-8602. 

Referred to, 8613, 8614, 861.5, 8616, 8617, 8620, 
8623, 8626. 

Farrar, Michael, examination of, 90651-9083, 

Ford, Patrick, examination of, 9129 h. 








882 


ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


Grand jury, indictinontu of. 

Relerred to. 88, 629,11.51, 1153, 11.54, 1155, 1157, 
. 11,58, 1161, 1162, 1163, 1164, 1165, 1167, 1168, 

1253, 2817. 

Members of, 4785, 4791. 4793. 

Grau, Michael. 

Referred to, 630. 

Goldstein, Emanuel S., examination of, 796-925. 

Referred to, 653, 948, 949, 953, 1661, 2100, 3861. 
Gould, Thomas, examination of, 694-739. 

Referred to, 1249, 1250, 1316, 1317. 

Glassey, Samuel ,J., examination of, 1248-1315. 
Referred to, 702, 737, 739, 1317. 

Recalled, 2178-2200. 

Referred to, 5563, 5823, 6366, 6533, 6535, 6626, 
6628, 7196.. 

Recalled, 6629-6647, 7648-7669. 

Referred to, 6649, 6686, 6668, 8066, 8164, 8269, 
8270, 8363. 

Gillespie, Adam, examination of, 7032-7039, 7207. 

Referred to, 827, 3406, 3414, 8164, 8165, 8186, 
8169, 8176. 

Recalled, 8223-825.5. 

Count testified by, 8255. 

Referred to, 8416, 8417, 8422, 8439, 8440, 8451 
8453, 8454, 8455, 8456, 8457, 8458, 8459, 8462, 
8464. 

Gomez, Antonio. 

Referred to, 856, 865, 1686, 1689, 1894, 3789, 
Green street. 

Referred to, 1378, 2453. 

Garvin, Judge, examination of, 4480,4494. 

Referred to, 1738, 1745, 1937, 2024, 2043, 3419, 
3420, 3571, 3573, 3.581, 3598, 3600, 4004, 4117, 
4118, 4124, 4172, 4375, 7324, 7330. 

Gillem, James. 

Referred to, 1807, 1834, 1844-1845, 1984, 198.5, 
1927, page 193, 1934, page 193. 

Gillmore, T. J., examination of, 2105-2112. 

Referred to, 2783, 2729. 

Goodwin, James. 

Referred, to 2458. 

Grant & Train. 

Referred to, 2673, 3285. 

Gorkey,-. 

Referred to, 2975. 

Griswold, John A. 

Referred to, 983,2674, 4029, 4035, 4037, 

Goflf, Patrick. 

Referred to, 1330, 1331, 1334, 1345, 1349, 13.50, 
1351, 3460, 3655, 3808, 3859, 5541, 9131, 9171, 
9172, 9198. 

Gale, Moses D., examination of, 3329-3383. 

Referred to, 1337, 2812,2815,2829, 2953, 4639. 
Gallagher, G. 

Referred to, 1345,1354,1367. 

Gould, William. 

Referred to, 2031. 

Governor’s Island. 

Referred to, 2474, 2516, 2517, 2678. 

Glynn, Jame.s. 

Referred to, 2500. 

Goerck street, Nos. 26 and 29. 

Referred to, 2113,2685, 2693, 27)5i. 

Greene, William H., examination of, 3386-3403. 
General Committee of Tammany Hall, circular of, 3553. 
Gram, James. 

Referred to, 3783. 

Grant and Colfax. 

Referred to, 4037. 

Grant, Charles, examination of, 4285-4329, 5542-5547. 
Gutterman. 

Referred to, 4383. 

Gilmore, John, examination of, 4598-4621. 

Greig, T. W., examination of 4569-4572. 

Population of 6th ward, N. Y. City, presented 
by, page 456. 

Gallagher, Owen. 

Referred to, 4650, 4753, 4775, 

Gallagher, John. 

Referred to, 4768. 

Graham, John. 

Relerred to, 5018. 

Gilden. 

Referred to, 5053. 

Glenn, James. 

Referred to, 5126. 


Gifford, George B., examination of, 5139-5161. 

Referred to, 5164, 5167, 5170, 5174, 5177, 5190, 
5197, 5199, 5201, 5203, 5206, 5207, 5225, 5712, 
6719. 

Recalled, 5694-5711, .5717-5718. 

Greene, James, examination of, 5334-5381. 

Referred to, 6033. 

Glover, John R. 

Referred to, 5543. 

Gorman, James, examination of, 5548-5549. 

Goney, James, examination of, 6168-6169. 

Groves, Charles. 

Referred to, 6386, 6387, 6388, 6390, 6403. 

Gregory, John, examination of, 6455-6527. 

Gunn, John, examination of, 6846. 

Grinnell. 

Referred to, 6532. 

Gaillard, .Joseph, examination of, 6847. 

Gleunon, John, examination of, 6911-6942. 
Gumbleton, Henry A., examination of, 6988-7003. 

Referred to, 9312. 

Gilmore, Councilman. 

Referred to, 7313, 7355, 7362, 7365, 7367, 737G 
7389. 

Gillespee, Cornelius, examination of. 87851-8788. 
Garrison, Chauncey, examination of, 8857J-8860. 
Gibborn, James Fitz, examination of, 8863^-8886. 
Gilmartin, James, examination of, 8892.J. 

Green, John, examination of, 8909c. 

Gray, James, 

Referred to, 90651. 

Grady, Jeremiah. 

Referred to, 9074. 

Gedney, Judge, 

Referred to, 9088J, 9090. 

George, Judge. 

Referred to, 9101, 

Garvin, Samuel V., examination of, 9130. 

Books presented by, 9130. 

Golden, James, examination of, 9153-9155. 

Hewett, George G., examination of, 430-440. 

Hats, changing of, 2273-2276.* 

Heinburch, Melchoir, examination of, 740-766. 

Referred to, 630, 767, 808. 

Hurrell, Timothy, examination of, 775-780. 

Referred to, 630, 806. 

Herman, (supervisor.) G. W. 

Referred to, 654, 655, 656, 657, 674, 799, 830, 862, 
3364, 3861. 

Hennet, Augustus. 

Referred to, 6.58. 

Herman, Isaac, examination of, .3852-3861. 

Referred to, 804,809,813,815.817,822,823,824. 
825.1510,1689, 3755, 3928, 3932. 

Honig, William. 

Referredio, 817, 820,1688, (page 179,) 2116, 2695. 
Herbert, Joseph. 

Referred to, 1683, (page 179,) 2117, 3783, 3855. 
Henney, Frederick. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 2117, 3783, 3855. 
Hoffman, George. 

Referred to, 1689,1894. 

Hickey, George E. 

Referred to, 1819,1821. 

Hunt, Richard G., examination of, 2060-207.5. 

Referred to, 2203, 2205, 2227, 2241. 

Hudson street. Nos. 288 and 68. 

Referred to, 2427, 2430, 2431, 2960, 3328. 

Hall, James F., examination of, 2439-2451. 

Hendrick, William 11., examination of, 2452-2678. 
Referred to, 4564. 

Hodge,-. 

Referred to, 2541, 2543. 

Houston street, east. Nos. 69 and 263. 

Referred to, 927, 2453, 2600, 2605. 

Hooley’s Minstrels. 

Referred to, 980. 

Hoffman, John T., examination of, 1137, 1247. 
Proclamation of, 1140. 

Referred to, 1314, 2176, 2734, 2738, 2880, 29.35, 
2937, 8281, 8288, 8304. 

Harvey,-. 

Referred to, 1345. 

Hogan, Patrick, 

Referred to, 1367. 

Henri, Lassey. 

Referred to, 1378,1412. 





ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


883 ' 


Harris, John. 

Ileferred to, 2496, 
nUlocher, Cyrng. 

Referred to, 2753 J. 

Ilarburger, Herman. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Hutchingg, Assistant District Attorne}". 

Referred to, 2817, 3743. 

Haggerty, Edward M. 

Referred to, 2895i-, 2898, 2899. 

Hunter, John W. 

Referred to, 3002. 

Hawley, S. C., examination of, 3009-3023. 

Henry street. Nos. 167,169, and 197. 

Referred to, 3043, 3016, 3051, 3098, 3367, 3370, 
4103, 4110. 

Hallenback, Mathew O., examination of, 3054-3056. 
Hughes, George. 

Referred to, 3260. 

Heath, Edward B., examination of, 4003-4023. 
Referred to, 3421. 

Recalled, 8416-8448. 

Hall, A. Oakey, examination of, 2933-29.58. 

Referred to. 1307, 1309, 1962, 2385, 2402, 2738, 
4320, 4779, 4793. 

Recalled, 3490-3569. 

Resolution and circular of T. 11. G. C., presented 
by, 3490. 

Letter of, to Judge Davies, 3492. 

Opinion of Judge Davies et ai, presented by, 
3557. 

Circular of T. H. G. C., presented by, 3553. 
Opinion of Attorney General, presented by, 3568. 
Hilton, Henry, (Judge,) opinion of, 3537, 

Referred to, 360.5, 3608. 

Howo, Counsellor. 

Referred to, 3686, 3844, 3847, 6026. 

Harma, Daniel. • 

Referred to, 3844. 

Habeas corpus. 

Referred to, 1814, 1900, 2198, 3511, 3512, 3610, 
3611, 3666, 3685,11686, 3687,5095, 5096, 6026. 
Copy of, 3849. 

Allowance of, ,3849. 

jGrder of discharge, endorsed on, 3849. 

Referred to, 9150. 

Hiidden, John. 

Referred to, 4095. 

Hastings-on-the-Hudson. 

Referred to, 4080, 4082, 4087, 4089, 4092, 4096, 
4097, 4099,4101,4106. 

Haggerty, Patrick M., examination of, 7471-7481. 

Referred to, 4135, 4136, 7449, 7461. 

Harrington, Patrick. 

Referred to, 4166. 

Hennett, Julius. 

Referred to, 4168. 

Hermon, Gershom M. 

Referred to, 4168, 4170. 

Harris, George, e.xamination of, 4187-4231. 

Referred to, 4249, 4251, 4521. 

Howard, Michael. 

Referred to, 4295. 

Hoperoft George, examination of, 4406-4414. 
Hasbrouch, D. B. 

Referred to, 4435, 6024, 6168, 8 i04, 8321, 8325. 
Hoffman, George H., examination <>f, 4438-4479. 

Hill, George, examination of, 4941-4985. 

Referred to, 5003, 6033. 

IlaiTis, Morgan. 

Referred to, 5143. 

Hanberry,-. 

Referred to, 5147. 

Hawley, James. 

Referred to, 5228, 5229, 5238, 5297, 5429. 

Hale, Peter, examination of, 5289-5286. 

Huffschmidt, Jacob. 

Referred to, 5543. 

Howell,-. 

Referred to, 5550. 

Hogan, David, examination of, 5648, 5688. 

Referred to, 5689, 5863, .5873, 5882, 5884, 5911, j 
5913, 5914, 5916, 6097, 6112, 6122, 6134, 6138, 

6144, 6152, 61.53, 6154, 615.5, 7056, 7059, 7063, i 

7096. I 

Recalled, 6167. I 

Hoffman Houie. 

Referred to, 5654 5667, 5683, 5687, 5692, 5693, 
5878, 5879, 5882, 6097, 6129, 6131, 6165, 6166. 


Hoff, Charles. 

Referred to, 5668. 

Hinchman,-. 

Referred to, 6094. 

Hughes, John, examination of, 6917, 6923. 

Referred to, 7040. 

Heath, ,Iohn, examination of, 7042,7043. 

Referred to, 7233. 

Hallem, George P., examination of, page 657. 

Hogan, Edward, examination of, 7394,7321, page 666. 
Harrington, Thomas. 

Referred to, 7348, pages 667, 668. 

Horsfelt, Adam, examination of, 7385, 7397, pages 
670, 671. 

Ilayner, Oliver, examination of, 7497, 7520. 

Handel, John. 

Referred to, 8604, 8606, 8608, 8612. 

Hawley, John, examination of, 8663^, 8671. 

Hawley, Patrick, examination of, 8671^,8673. 

Hoyt, Charles, examination of, 8698}, 8702. 

Hussey, Peter. 

Referred to, 9133,9136. 

Arrest of, 9133. 

Hackett, Edward, examination of, 8815}. 

Hurt, John, examination of, 88364, 8843. 

Hogan, Thomas. 

Referred to, 9065}. 

Hogan, Edward. 

Referred to, 9100 b. 

Hoyt, H. Y. D., examination of, 9109}, 9121. 

House, E. IL, examination of, 9129 c. 

Hussej', Peter, examination of, 9156,9157. 

I. 

i 

i Inspectors of registry and election examined: 

Charles C. Reed, 329, 27tii district, 9th ward. 
Theodore Block, 379, 21st district, 17th ward. 
Edward Mitchell, 412, 4th district, 15th ward. 
Albert Bogert, 422, 4th district, 19th ward. 
George G. Hewitt, 430, 19th district, 20tli ward. 
George P. Barrett, 441, 7th district, 12th ward. 
Henry Beeny, 466, 9th district, 6th ward. 

John H. Springer, 487, 6th district, 19th ward. 
William W. Young, .508, 4th district, 17th ward. 
William A. Jenner, 515, 5th district, 18th ward. 
Porter G. Sherman, 925 8th district, 17th ward. 
John Osborn, 938, 4th district, 19th ward. 
Dugold Steuart, 1105, 17th district, 20th ward. 
Sam’l J. Glassey, 1251, 10th district, 20th ward. 
Anson Willis, 1782, 16th district, 16th ward. 
Samuel S. Urmy, 1805, loth district, 21st ward. 
Timothy Lynch, 1859, 5th district, 6th ward. 
Samuel A. Roberts, 1965, 2d district, 17th ward. 
Stephen M. Crandell, inspector of election, but 
not of registry, 1930, (page 193,) 15th district, 
21st ward. 

Henry J. Chapman, 2050, 16th district, 16th 
ward. 

Richard G. Hunt, 2060, 19th district, 11th ward. 
Benj. Van Buren, 2076, 16th district, 16th ward. 
Andrew J. Bross, 2113, 12th district, 13th ward. 
AVm. Joraleman, 2141, 5th district, 16th ward. 
N. H. Springsteen, 2201,19tli district, 11th ward. 
John Donnelly. 

Solomon Seixas, 2327, 16th district, 6th ward. 
James J. Brophy, 2326, 5th district, 6th ward. 
John J. Mulligan, 2679, 12th district, 13th ward. 
Thomas Flynn, 2704, 19th district, 13th ward. 
James J. Nealis, 2799}, 6th district, 6th ward. 
John McMahon, 2805, 1st district, 11th ward. 
Abraham De Vousney, 2895, 9th district, 6th 
ward. 

Lorenzo Carey, 2913, 6th district, 6th ward. 
Martin B. Austin, 3024,12th district, 13th warcL 
Lewis C. Phillips, 3064, 6th district, 6th ward. 
Francis Donnelly, 3195, 3d district, 11th ward. 
Solomon E. Belmont, 3312, 12th district, 18th 
ward. 

Henry Donovan, 3742, 13th district, 21st ward. 
Dennis Shea, 3986, 4th district, 4th ward. 
Arthur McKenna, 4050, 5th district, 1st ward. 
Michael Costello, 4132. 3d district, 4th ward. 
Patrick Mack, 4163, 5th district, 4t.h ward. 
Thomas Potter, 4179, 3d district, 4th ward. 
John P. Thurston, 4330, 3d district, 4th ward. 
Bartholomew Cronin, 4.572, 4th district, 4th ward. 
Jules Malay, 4591, 4th district, 4th ward. 

John Gilmore, 4598, 7th district, 4th ward. 





884 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Inapoctor» of registry and election examined: 

Joseph Dnml)le, 5099, 2d district, 4th ward. 
George Merritt, 5550, 5th district. 16th ward. 
James Dennis, 6848, 7th district, 2l8t ward. 
John Mullaly, 6954, 7th district, 2lHt ward. 
Jacob W. Cooper, 6965, 7th district, 2l8t ward. 
John Kennell, 7004, 2d district, 3d ward. 
Charles H. Rodgers, 7018, 8th district, 21st ward. 
Dennis McLaughlin, 9189, 3d district, 4th ward. 
James Dillon, 9194, 11th district, 6th ward. 
Ingraham, Judge. 

Referred to, 1519. 

Illegal voting. 

Referred, to, 1857, 1864, 1888, 2113, 2273, 2770, 
2772, 3051, 3053, 3055, 3233, 4030, 4049, 4058, 
4067, 4135, 4187, 4193, 4216, 4238, 4269, 4271, 
4286, 4501, 4503, 4509, 4601, 4602, 4816, 4819, 
4926, 4943, 4945, 4948, 4990, 4993, 5027, 5031, 
.5227, 5288, 5425, 5658, 56.59, 5662, 57.58, 5763, 
5776, 5868, 6370, 6788, 6792, 6804, 6906, 6913, 
6917, 6920, 6937, 6939, 6941, 6942, 6945, 6947, 
6969, 6971, 6973, 7042, 7043, 8283, 8284, 8552. 
8554. 

Irving, James, examination of, 3844,3849. 

Irwin, D. B., examination of. 8803^, 8808. 

Jarvis, Deputy Marshal. 

Referred to, 2. 

Jenner, William A., examination of, 515, .542, 
Referred to, 8577. 

Jonussohn, G., Dr. 

Referred to, 658. 

Jew, Charles. 

Referred to, 996. 

Jourdain,-. 

Referred to, 1362, 1422, 14:18. 

Jones, Judge. 

Referred to, 17.38, 174.5, 3571, 4375. 

Jones,-. 

Referred to, 1857. 

Joralemon, William, examination of, 2141. 2167. 

Referred to, 1876, 2304. 

Jay, John, examination of, 1900, 1928. 

Referred to, 3605, 3608. 

James, Judge. 

Referred to, 1900, 1909, 1917, 1922, 1923, 35C8, 
3511, 3512, 3604, 3605, 3608, 3666, 3667, 9149. 
Jourdan, captain of police. 

Referred to, 2903, 3100, 3101, 5485, 6020, 6022. 
Jordan, Mathew. 

Referred to, 3317. 

Jones, Henry A. 

Referred to, 3394. 

Joachimson, Counsellor. 

Referred to, 3861 
Jackson club. 

Referred to, 3903. 

Jones, Ex Congressman. 

Referred to, 4132. 

Jonassohn, Louis, examination of, 4168, 4178. 

Recalled, 5474, ,5478. 

Jordan, Thomas. 

Referred to, 4365. 

Jones, Morgan, examination of, 4387, 4396. 

Johnson, George, examiuatiou of, 4926, 4940. 

Referred to, 5004. 

Jacker, Edmund. 

Referred to, 5543. 

Jones, John, examination of, 5867, 5914. 

Referred to, .5495, 5654, 5915, 6093, 6112, 6114, 
6134, 6138. 

Johnson,-. 

Referred to, 5955. 

Jarvis, Nathaniel, jr., examination of, 1947, 2021, 
pages 194, 201. 

Referred to, 2100. 

Recalled, 6310, 6312. 

List of persons naturalized presented by, 6310. 
Jansen, Andrew, examination of, 7434, 7439." 

Jersey City. 

Referred to, 4961, 4965, 4970, 4978, 5063, 5070, 
.5072, 5080, 5239, 5241, 5312, 5319, 5323, 5353, 
5366,5452, 545.3, .5460, 5465, 5549, 5505, 5517, 
5965, 6038, 6174, 6176, 6180, 6183, 6229, 6231, 
6321, 6414, 6482, 6492, 6506. 6821, 6822, 6826, 
' 6909, 6915, 6922, 6946, 6948, 7043, 7184, 7275. 
Johnson, Henry, examination of, 8256, 8376._ 
Johnson, Joseph, (colored,) examination of. 8860.]-. 


1 Jackson, James H., examination of, 8951 d. 

\ J ackney, Charles, 8967i, 8982. 

I Katfenberger, Gottlieb. 

Referred to, 509, 824, 926, 929, 1688, page 179, 
3855. 

Kennedy John A., examination of, 6013-6932. 

Referred to. 558. 5.59, 569, 2453, 2525, 2.533, 2535, 
289.5i, 2943, 3010, 3022, 3128, .3536, .3.544,3675 
3691, 3698, 3704 , 4411, 4438, 7111, 7112, 7113, 
7114, 7115, 7118, 7129, 7167, 7169, 9145, 9149, 
9150. 

Kruger, Henry, examination of, 607-616. 

Referred to, 603, 605, 606, 618, 619, 813. 
Kumberg,-. 

Referred to, 608, 610, 619. 2702. 

Kohler, Jacob. 

Referred to, 656. 

Kemmerer, -. 

Referred to, 658, 863. 

Kent, Edwin R,, examination of, 3925-3982. 

Referred to, 812, 3759, 3788, .3852. 

Kerwin, Michael, examination of, 1056-1077. 

Referred to. 827, 1726, 2028, 3406, 3419, 3595, 
.3616, 3622. 

Kelley. Thomas. 

Referred to, 1029, 1040, 1045, 106.5. 1067, 1074. 

! Kelley, Sherilf. 

1 Referred to, 3862, 3873. 

I Kewtch,-. 

I Referred to, 1.370. 

i Koch, Edward. 

I Referred to, 3755, 3759, 38.52. :585.5, :J9;ie. 

( King, John. 

! Referred to, 2116. 

j Kelley,-. 

j Referred to, 2712, 2715^. 

. Kohn, Eleazer. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Keenan, Patrick H., examination of, 304:1-3051). 

I Referred to, 3333, 3366, :i.386i. 3394, 3399. 

Kelley, Justice. 

Referred to, 3512, 7021. 

Knight, -. 

Referred to, 1627, 8394. 

Kane, Patrick. 

Referred to, 5100. 

Kerr,-. 

Referred to, 5398. 

Kerr,-, (member of congressional committee.) 

I Referred to, 5507, 5508, .5512. 

1 Kerrigan, -. 

j Referred to, 6111. 

Keating, John, examination of, 6313-6358. 

Referred to, 6271, 6272, 

Kagle, John, examination of, 6924-6936. 

Referred to, 7040. 

Kennell, John, examination of, 7004, 7017. 

Knowles, Calvin, examination of, 7561-7566. 

Kellej', Patrick, examination of, 8889-8890. 

Kirk, Samuel, examination of, 90141-9017. 

Kneer, Wendelin, examination of, 90831, 

Kane, Thomas, examination of, 9129c. 

Kely, James, examiuationjof, 9131-91.32. 

Loew, Charles E., examination of, 1495-1684. 

Referred to, 72, 73, 77, 305, 323, 340, 355, 35«, 
422, 447, 493, 509, 516, 604, 638, 784, 812, 926. 
942, 1079, 1253, 1339, 1374, 1445, 1506. 
Recalled. 1685-1701, pages 179-182. 

List of applicants and witnesses presented by, 
page 181, 

Referred to, 1966, 2100, 2105, 2110,2116,2174, 
2178, 2180, 2187,2192. 

Recfillpd 0710 07 ;m 

Referred To, 3218,11219, 3746, 3747, 3749, 3754, 
.3756, .37.58, 3759, 3791, 3852, 3855, 3925, 3932, 
3960, 3975, 3981, 5543, 6989, 6991, 6992. 
Parties signing name of, 6990. 

Referred to, 8:194, 8714, 8792. 

Recalled, 9347-9.386. 

Application to supreme court presented by, 9349. 
Opinion of supreme court presented by, 9350, 
Telegram identified by, 9378. 

Recalled, 9399-9401. 

Identification of signature by, 9401. 

Referred to, 9387. 9388, 9389, 9392. 

Livingston,-. j 

Referred to, 83. 






ANALYTICAL INDEX 


885 


Levi, Colonel. 

Referred to, C56, 674. 

Lynch, Dennis. 

Referred to, 816. 

Lukas, William, 

Referred to, 824, 926, 927, 1688, page 179, 3855, 
Lehman, John. 

Referred to, 825, 1688, page 179. 

Leigner, Andrew B., examination of, 1025-1055. 
Referred to, 3429. 

Lutrell,-. 

Referred to, 3317. 

Lenchtner, Andrew B. 

Referred to, 3421. 

Langner, August. 

Referred to, 3788. 

Lenninger, August A. 

Referred to, 3855. 

Lawrence, John M., examination of, 4024-4053. 

Lee, John, examination of, 4080-4086. 

Referred to, 4087, 4089, 4093, 4101. 

Lawler, William, examination of, 4099-4100. 

Referred to, 4101. * 

Leverson, Montague Richard, examination of, 1324, 
1465. 

Referred to, 1605, 3774, 3944, 7014, 7048, 7049, 
7050, 7051. 

Recalled, 7239, 7244. 

Referred to, page 656. 

Lush or Lusk. 

Referred to, 1335, 1465. 

Ludlow street jail. 

Referred to, 1813, 6848. 

Lynch. Timothy. 

Referred to, 2141, 2304, 2406, 2408, 2409, 2410. 
Loyal League. 

Referred to, 1941. 

Lexington avenue, No. 179. 

Referred to, 1920, 1921, page 192. 

Lyons, Joseph. 

Referred to, 2061. 

Laurence, Abraham R. 

Referred to. 2178. 

Lee,-. 

Referred to, 

Levingston, Morris, examination of, 2695, 2703. 
Lounsberry, G. W. 

Referred to, 27531-, 2767. 

Lockman, Bernhard. 

Referred to, 4168, 4169, 

Loutrell, William J., examination of, 4415, 4429. 

Lists of repeaters; persons purporting to be natura- 
ized; tabular statements; parties registering 
from different houses, &c.. presented to the 
committee by different parties. 

Referred to, pages 451, 452, 454, 455, 456, 492, 
493, .5443, 5561, 5747, 5819, 5861, 6C64, 6248, 
6851, 7207, 7560, 7954, 7670. 

Lyle, Henry, examination of, 4622, 4778. 

Referred to, 4803, 4807, 4814, 4815, 4857, 4866, 
4871. 

Recalled, 4874, 4878. 

Referred to, 5106, 5117, 5128, 5129, 51.30, 5131, 
5210, 5218, 5219, 5475, 5522, 5524, .5529, 
Character of, page 628. 

Love, Arthur. 

Referred to, 4647, 4650. 

Laurence, Henry. 

Referred to, 4630, 4650. 

Le Barns, John W., examination of, 5858, 5860. 
Referred to, 4935. 

Recalled, 5918, 5945. 

Referred to, 7278. 

Lucas, James R., examination of, 5220, 5221, 

Love, Robert. 

Referred to, 5542. 

Lesser, Samuel. 

Referred to, 5543, 5544, 5547. 

Loftus, Peter, examination of, 6978, 6979. 

Referred to, 7246, 7250, 7266. 

Loew, Edward V. 

Referred to, 6995, 7000. 

Laird, iMichael, examination of, 7356, page 668, 7375, 
page 669. 

Referred to, 7335, page 667. 

Luckey, Joseph L., examination of, 7546, 7,55.3. 
Recalled, 7.560. 

Levi. Richard, examination of, 8951(7. 


I Lynn, James IL, examination of, 89.58. 

Ludlow, Theodore W., examination of, 9129, b. 


I 


Murray, Robert, examination of, 1, 66. 

Referred to, 6, 9, 75, 77, 81, 83, 87, 93, 95, 146, 
156, 196, 209, 212, 225, 322, 363, 447, 496. 

Recalled, 543, 606. 

Referred to, 608, 61.5, 618, 624, 813, 1154, 1155, 
1161, 1162. 1163, 1175, 1176, 1177, 1178, 1179, 
1180,1271, 1506, 1611, 1689, 2698, 2956, 

Recalled, 3290, 3293. 

Referred to, 4674 , 4800, 4963, 5314, 5485, .5490, 
5493, 5494, 5496, 5497, 5571, 5581, 5589. 

Recalled, 5510, 5521, 5595, 5598. 

Referred to 5601, 5604. 

Recalled, 5621, 5624. 

Referred to. 5626, 5628, 5638, 5639, 5641. 

Recalled, 5645, 5647. 

Referred to, 5651, 5654, 5656, 5666, .5667, 5682, 
5687, 5688. 

Recalled, 5689, 5693. 

Referred to, .5751, , 

Recalled, 5832, 5857. 

Referred to. 5860, 5867, 5670, 5871, 5873. .5879, 
5880, 5882, 5902, 5908, 5911, 5913. 

Recalled, 5915, 5917. 

Referred to, 6023, 6096, 6117, 6120, 6122, 6134, 
6157, 6162. 

Recalled, 6163, 6166. 

Referred to, 6423, 6 24, 642.5, 6443, 6437, 6510, 
6511, 6759, 68.30, o847, 7056, 7057, 7058, 7068, 
7069, 7122, 7128, 7130, 7275, 7293, 7295, 7297, 
7299, 7301, 7324, 7327, page 666, 8062. 

McKean, John B., examination of, 3745, 3844. 

Referred to, 72, 696, 812, 1347, 1446, 1506, 1506, 
1530, 1535, 1586, 1595, 1598, 1612, 1633, 1641, 
1653, page 153, 1687, 1702, 1716, 3852, 3855, 
.3928, 3932, 6989, 6990, 8151, 8153. 

Recalled, 8377, 8514. 

McDonald, Logan, examination of, 221, 258. 

Referred to, 855. 

Moore, Joe. 

Referred to, 305, 306, 311, 319, .327, 12.53, 2099. 

^Mallory, Charles. 

Referred to, 1065. 

McMurray, William J. 

Referred to, 1078-1080, 1236. 

Miller, Joseph A., examination of, 1113-1132, 

Money for election purposes. 

Referred to, 1191, 1227, 1230, 1231, 123?1, 2862. 

Maniarie, police commissioner. 

Referred to, 1236, 3515, 4436, 4437, 5755, 7078. 

Mills, John Stewart. 

Referred to, 1327. 

McCunn, (Judge,) John H., examination of, 3569-3672. 

Referred to, 1333, 1.335, 1340, 1354, 1362, 1366, 
1367, 1369, 1370, 1372, 1373, 1407, 1408, 1423, 
1425, 1429, 1432, 1438, 1444, 1462, 1606, 1737, 
1745, 1937, 1967, 3380, 3419, 3420, 4007, 1976, 
page i96, 2024, 2043, 4417, 4118, 4124, 4168, 
4172, 4173, 4175, 4375, 4380, 4398, 4399, 4481, 
4493, 4625, 4628, 4640, 4642, 4700, 4743, 4764, 
4777, 4814, 4877, 4885, 4887, 4889, 4894, 4901, 
5474, 5476, 8072, 8404, 8411. 

Recalled, 5210, 5219, 6950, 6953, 9292, 9302. 

Referred to, 7324, 7326, 7346, 9165. 

McCaffrey,-. 

Referred to, 1345. 

Weeks, Joseph, examination of, 3404-3489. 

Referred to, 1726, 1733, 1736, 1768, 1770, 2010, 
3585, 4000, 4920, 7032, 7033, 7034. 

Recalled, 8164-8222. 

Referred to, 8452, 8467. 

McArthur, John, jr., examination of, 303-328, 

Mitchell, Edward, examination of, 412-421. * 

Muller, August. 

Referred to, 493, 496, 823, 1107, 3855. 

McLean, -, 

Referred to, 581. 

McLaughlin, Patrick. 

Referred to, 3604. 

Mode and manner of obtaining naturalization papers 
for fictitious persons. 

Referred to, 856, 864-866, 1250,1317, 1330,1.335. 
1336, 1344. 1354, 1.358. 1362, 1366, 1367, 1369, 
1374, 141&-1421, 1419, 1454, 1702, 1937, 1966. 

McCartbey,-. 

Referred to, 1.367, 2454. 









886 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Mode and manner of naturalization. 

Referred to, 1541-1546, 1715, 17.53-1756, 1937, 
1966, page 195, 1976, page 196, 2123, 2133- 
2136, 2296, 2413, 3137, 3409, 3.574, 3 )78, 3934- 
3940, 4005, 4080, 4087, 4092, 4117, 4480, 4486, 
4493, 4887, 7209, 7211, 7143, 7449, 7497. 
Murphy, Patrick. 

Referred to, 1588, 3654. 

Mercer, John J. 

Referred to, 1686, 1689, 1894, 3789. 

McCann, Alexander. 

Referred to, 1686, 1689, 1894. 

McCarty, James. 

Referred to, 1688, 2116, 3783, 3855. 
stiller, August. 

Referred to, 1688, page 179. 

Malia, William. 

Referred to, 1726, 2028, 2031, 2039, 3406,3419, 
3855, 4014. 

Montgomery, James. 

Referred to, 1726, 2023, 2037, 3406, 3419. 

Monell, Judge. 

Referred to, 174-5, 3571. 

McPherson, George. 

Referred to, 3320. 

Miller, Anthony. 

Referred to, 3333. 

Mulligan,-. 

Referred to, 3335, 3342. 

McCaffrey, John. 

Referred to, 3656, 3663, 3669, 3803, 3862. 

Moore, Nicholas. 

Referred to, 1847. 

Moore, John. 

Referred to, 1847. 

Murray, William. 

Referred to, 1847. 

Metropolitan Hotel. 

Referred to, 1900, 1910, 1911, 2738, 2936, 3511, 
3604, 6234, 

McGovern, James. 

Referred to, 2931. 

McGovern, Thomas. 

Referred to, 2037. 

Mulligan, John J., examination of, 2679-2693. 
Referred to, 2113, 27141, 2717, 3033, 3034. 

Mansfield, -. 

Referred to, 2203. 

McAlpine, R. W., examination of, 2119-2140. 

McMan,-. 

Referred to, 2425. 

Moran, James, examination of, 2959-2999. 

Referred to, 2430. 

Malony, John. 

Referred to, 2439, 2913. 

Morrisey, Michael. 

Referred to, 2439. 

McDermont, James. 

Referred to, 2439. 

Mitchell, Peter. 

Referred to, 2453, 2456, 2457, 2.557, 2560, 2562, 
2588, 2593, 260S, 2615, 2619, 2630, 2631, 2659, 
4050. 

Mott street. Nos. 60 or 70, 66, 62, 68, and 70. 

Referred to, 24-53, 2456, 2458. 

Marston, Colonel Ward. 

Referred to, 2491. 

Macauley, Captain. 

Referred to, 2499. 

Manhattan Club. 

Referred to, 2742, 2743 2937. 

McMahon, John, examination of, 2805-2809. 

Mills, Captain, of the 8th precinct, examination of, 
3743-3744. 

Referred to, 2941,3542, 3.543. 

McKay, Gordon. 

Referred to, page 291. 

Mottel, Louis J., examination of, 313.5-3194. 

Moses, Albert. 

Referred to, 3170. 

Marvin, Lemuel 11. 

Referred to, 3183. 

McKnight, Peter. 

Referred to, 3197, 3262, 5492,6100, 6109, 6111. 
McKnight, David. 

Referred to, 3197, 3221, .3227, 3233, 3262, 3267, 
3275. 


Marston, Howard T., examination of, 3710-3742. 

Referred to. Exhibit A, B, C, &c., presented by, 
(pages 353, 354, 355, 356, 357, 358, 359, 360, 361, 
362, 363, 364, 36.5. 

Recalled, 6359-6364. 

Lists of witnesses presented by, 6369, 7594. 
Recalled, 7594. ' 

Recalled, 931.3-9329. 

Referred to, 9330, 9341, 9313, 9344. 

Mecken, Alexander. 

Referred to, 3789. 

McCaflfry, Patrick. 

Referred to, 3855, 3362, 4117, 5539, 8210, 8212. 
8409. 

McDunfl, J. 

Referred to, 3855. 

Morse,-. 

Referred to, 3859. 

Maloy, Julius. 

Referred to, 3999. 

Moran,-. 

Referred to, 4025, 4028, 4048, 4952. 

JMcKenna, Arthur, examination of, 4054-4080. 

List of non-residents, presented by, page 397. 
Monroe and Jackson streets, corner of. 

Referred to, 6370, 6371, 6379, 6382, 6396. 

Money for the support of witnesses till called to tejj 
tify. 

Referred to, 6533, 6632, 6657, 6688. 

Murray, Francis, examination of, 670.5-6781. 

McCabe, John, examination of, 6788-6845. 

Moore, Deputy Sheriflf. 
j Referred to, 6847. 

Mullaiy, Captain John, examination of, 6954-6965. 

I Referred to, 6349. 

I Morrow, George. 

Referred to, 4110. 

I Jloran, John. 

I Referred to, 4117, 8408. 

j Number by the name of, as per New York 

1 Director}'. Referred to, page 629-630. 

1 McLaughlin, - . 

Referred to, 4132, 4334, 4396, 8271, 8365. 

I Mack, Patrick, examination of, 4163-4167. 

I Mandamus, writ of. 

Referred to, 4163, 4166. 

Morris, George W. * 

Referred to, 4166. 

McCorboy, Joseph. 

Referred to, 4163. 

Miller, Peter. 

Referred to, 4166. 

Melville, James, examination of, 4 237-4263. 

Referred to, 4521-4522. 

McPherson,-. 

Referred to, 4425, 4427, 4429. 

Mulberry street, No. 300. 

Referred to, 4406, 4438. 

Mabee, George, examination of, 4523-4539. 

List of repeaters, presented by, pages 451-452. 
Recalled, 4568. 

Recalled, 5558-5562. 

Referred to, 5795. 

Recalled, 5946-5953. 

List of names presented by, 5953. 
j Maloy, Joseph, examination of, 4591-4597. 
i McGrath, Robert. 

Referred to, 4611. 

McCartiu, James. 

Referred to, 4986. 

Morrisey, John. 

Referred to, 4986. 

Millville, George, examination of, 5226-5279. 

Referred to, 6033. 

Morris,-. 

Referred to, 5290, 5291, 5295. 

Morris, James. 

Referred to, 5397, 5308, .5333, 5412. 

Murray, Charles. 

Referred to, 5313, 5316, 5320, 5331, 5514. 
Morrison, James. 

Referred to, 5301, 5412, 5415, 

Murray, .James. 

Referred to, 5414. 

Merritt, George, examination of, 55-50, 5557. 
."McGowan, John E., examination of, 5-569. 5594 
Referred to, 5596, 5598, 6091, 6095. 









ANALYTICAL INDEX. 


887 


Mueller, Anthony. 

Referred to, 5609, 5614. 

Money, paid and promised for repeating. 

Referred to, 5654. 5653, 5673, 5867, 5884, 6097, 
6098, 6103, 6112, 6723, 6740, 6791, 6908,6915 
6922, 6934, 69.37, 6939, 6940, 6941, 6945, 6946 
6947, 6948, 6970, 6973, 6978, 6980, 6981, 7097. 

Murphy,-. 

Referred to, 5754. 

McGlaze, Thomas A., examination of, 5861-5866. 

List of names identified by as residents of the 
Compton House. 

Referred to, 5861. 

Moore, Matchee. 

Referred to, 6330. 

Moore, Alderman. 

Referred to, 7406, page 665. 

Moore, Patrick. 

Referred to, 7405, page 665. 

McKee Hugh, examination of, 7322-7.331, page 666. 

Referred to, 7333, 7336, 7334, page 667. 
Mansfield, Judge. 

Referred to, 6848, 6850, 7021. 

Milks, John W., judge. 

Referred to, 6861. 

McCarthy, Charles, examination of, 6971,6972. 

Referred to, 5542, 7246, 7247, 7253, 7266. 
Mullen, John J., examination of, 7095-7168. 

Referred to, page 657, 7395, 7399, 7404, 7321, 
page 666. 

McClusky, John, examination of, 7749-8163. 

Referred to, 8377, 8379, 8392, 8395, 9200, 9201, 
9297, 9300. 

Recalled, 9178-9182. 

Recalled, 9202-9205. 

Papers presented by, 9202. 

Mullin, John J. 

Referred to, 8584. 

Marshall,-. 

Referred to, 8492, 8504, 8510, 8512, 8539, 8544, 
8546, 8547, 8548, 6550, 8551. 

Manner of counting naturalization papers, 8428-8443. 
Mahoney, Michael, examination of, 88151-8817. 

Miller, Nathan J., examination of, 88171-8836. 

Miller, Reuben C., examination of, 8857J. 

McCord, Walter L., examination of, 8866L 
McGuyen, John, examination of, 8892. 

McKee, John, examination of, 89C9k 
McNeal, William., examination of, 8912a. 

Moore, Thomas, examination of, 8951a. 

Monahan, Ned. 

Referred to, 90651. 

Monahan, Thomas. 

R(!ferred to, 9065L 

Milspaugh,-, 

Referred to, 9083^. 

Martin, Joseph, examination of, 9084-9085, 

Meagher, John, examination of, 9100^^. 

Money given and promised for votes. 

Referred to, 9129a, 9129c, 9129e, 9129/. 

Monany, Terrence, examinaiion of, 916.’, 

Murphy, Jerry, examination of, 9167-9168. 
McLaughlin, Dennis, examination of, 9189-9193. 
Marshall, 

Referred to, 9196-9197. 

Murphy, James. 

Referred to, 9165-9167. 

Murphy, (clerk in county clerk’s oflice.) 

Referred to, 9313, 9314. 

Naturalization certificates, sale of. 

Referred to, 2, 87, 93, 151, 156, 201, 603, 608, 
61.5, 619, 629, 630, 769, 777, 1032, 1066, 1080, 
1119, 1136, 1471, 1473, 1702, 2U99, 2297, 2695, 
4092, 4094, 4100, 406, 4650, 4658, 5543, 8643, 
8802, 8806, 915.3, 9171. 

Naturalization certificates, issue of, to fictitious persons. 
Referred to, 604, 615, 1250, 1317, 1702, 1806, 
1937, 1966, 2061, 2099, 2103, 2264, 2297, 2413, 
2449, 2695, 2753, 2805, 3986. 

Norton, Charles E. 

Iteference to, 626, 629, 630, 6.32, 634, 636, 6.38, 
640, 642, 644, 645, 648, 741, 744, 766, 768, 773, 
776, 780, 924, 1131. 

Naturalization certificates, obtained without appear¬ 
ance in court. 

Referred to, 752, 780, 788, 926, 927, 929, 1031, 
1058, 1084, 1136, 1252, 1253, 1362, 1469, 1702, 
1783, 1806. 1937, 1966, 2061, 2099, 2103, 2264, 
2297, 2413,' 2449, 2695, 2753, 2805, 3986, 4080, 


4082, 4087, 4099, 4163, 5542, 6848, 7354, page 
068,7360-7369, page 669, 7380, page 670,7.390, 
page 670, 7400, page 671. 

Noelsch, John. 

Referred to, 825, 1688, 3855. 

Naturalization certificates, court costs of. 

Referred to, 860, 1645, 3339. 

Naturalization certificates, fraudulent, names of par 
ties in possession of, 

Daniel O’Donohue, 942, 943. 

Andrew B. Leigner, 1031. 

Michael Kerwin, 1059. 

Daniel Sullivan, 1084,1094. 

Peter Pohl, 1133,1136. 

Maximilian Boeck, 1471, 1479. 

Charles Storm, 1966. 

Patrick Duffy, 2099. 

John Robertson, 210.3. 

Joseph Reinhart, 2664. 

Richard Day, 2414. 

John Malony, 2439. 

Michael Morrisey, 2439. 

John Farley, 2439, 

James McDearmont, 24.39. 

Henry Beaun, 2695. 

August Betzel, 2695. 

James Brown, 2695. 

Wm. Konig, 2695, 

Adam Birmer, 2805, 

Laurence Bauman, 2805. 

Eleazer Kohn, 2805. 

Isaac Firth, 2805, 

Herman Bauscher, 2805. 

Peter Schmidt, 2805, 

Philip Simmer, 2805. 

Abraham Kroner, 2805. 

Charles Ollendorf, 2805. 

Anthony Stultz, 280,5. 

Joseph Wirtheimer, 2805. 

John Rodgers, 4087. 

William Lauler, 4099. 

Hugh Ward, 4082. 

Barney Ward, 4C82. 

John Carberry, 4082. 

William King, 4082. 

David Welsh, 4082. 

Patrick Hurley, 4082. 

Naturalization certificates, fraudulently granted. 

Referred to, 943, 944, 963, 969, 995, 1013, 1059, 
1084, 1118, 1250, 1252, 1253, 1317, 1335, 1336, 

1344, 1358, 1362, 1367, 1369, 1370, 1469, 1473, 

1474, 1480, 178.3, 1806, 1825. 1937, 1966, 2099, 

2103, 2264, 2297, 2413, 2449, 2695, 2753, 2805, 

3986, 4080, 4082, 4092, 4096, 4099, 4628, 46.32, 

4704, 4794, 4795, 5543,6848, 7345. page.608,7360, 
7369, page 669, 7380, page 670. 

Norris.-. 

Referred to, 1115,1124. 

New York Tribune. 

Referred to. 1328, 2120, 4495, 6239.’ 

Nolan, Thomas E. 

Referred to, 1725. 

Naturalization, proportion of, heretofore as compared 
with 1868. 

Referred to, 1731,1732, 4129, 4130. 

Norton, Peter, 

Referred to, 2453, 2456, 2459, 246.3, 2468, 2520, 
2521, 2524, 2538, 2512, 2543, 2548, 2552, 2555, 
2556, 2562, 2590, 2591, 2592, 2610, 2612, 2619, 
2621,2625, 26.30, 2659. 

Norton, Michael, alderman. 

Referred to,2453,2459,2613,2622,2625,2630,3061. 
Norton, Dave. 

Refei'red to, 2453. 

North, Samuel. 

Referred to. 2738, 2936, 3538, 3539, 5564, 5565. 
Neelis, James J., examination of, 27791,2805.. 

Referred to, 292, 3065. 

Norton, Michael, senator. 

Referred to, 3904, 4024, page 393, 4041, 4045, 
4049, 4050. 

New Jersey, or Jersey City. 

Referred to. 1988, page 197, 4961, 496.5, 4970, 
4978, 5063, 5070, 5072, 5080, 5239, 5241, 5312, 
5319, 532.3, 5 53, 5366, 5452, 5453, 5460, 5465, 
5549, 5505, 5517, 5965, 6038, 6174, 6176, 6180, 
6183, 6229, 6231, 6321, 6414, 6482, 6492, 6506, 
6821, 6822, 6826, 6909, 6915, 6922, 6946, 6948, 
7043, 7184, 7275. 






888 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Kew York Priotiug Company. 

Referred to, 2100, 2168, 4138, 4495. 

Names presented by Patrolman John Dnnne, in tlie 
11th district, 6th ward. 

Referred to page 294. 

Naturalization certificates, applications for, rejected. 
Referred to, 4117, 4118. 4777. 

Nolan, Sylvester E., examination of, 4375, 4382. 

New York Times. 

Referred to, 4495. 

Nervins, inspector. 

Referred to, 4611. 

Nichols, James, examination of, 4988, 5026. 

Referred to, 6033, 6170, 6184. 

Norton, Daniel. 

Referred to, 5018. 

Noble, Daniel. 

Ht'ferred to, 5530, 5505, 5511, 7187. 

Norton, John, examination of, 6170, 6227. 

Referred to, page 656. 

Newmark, M. J, 

Referred to. page 656. 

Neany, Thomas, cxaminainm of, 7528,7544. 

lllank form of oath of witness presented by, 7529. 
Blank form of alien’s declaration presented by, 
7544. 

Naturalization done by clerks. 

Refe^-red to, 7435, 7484, 7496. 

Naturalization, applications for, applicants and wit¬ 
ness signatures in same wri ing. 

Referred to, 7605-7632, 7648, 7699, 7720, 7744. 
Naturalization certificates granted by clerks. 

Referred to, 9102, 9103. 

Nettleton, Charles, examination of, 9158-9159. 

Osborn, Commissioner. 

Referred to, 649, 1252, 1253. 

Osborn, John, examination of, 938-947. 

O’Donohne, Daniel. 

Referred to, 942, 943, 1688. page 179. 

O’Brien, James, examination of, 3862-3924. 

Referred to, 1215, 1311,1819,1924, 3983, 3984, 3985. 
Indictment of, copy, page 433. 

Sentence of, 3935. 

Referred to, 4539, 4550, 4546, 4547, 4554, 4.556, 
4557, 4559, 4561, 5193, 5335, 5336, 5376, 5380. 
Brothers of, 5383. 

Recalled, 5483-5509. 

Referred to, 5512, .5604, 5624, 5628, 56-32, 5644, 
.5904, 5907, 5993, 6091, 6189, 6471, 6630, 6649, 
6657, 6686, 7171, 7172, 9131. 

Oatl s, manner of administering. 

Referred to. 1335, 1336, 1337, 1347, 1348, 13.57, 
1359, 1545, 1546, 1551, 1554, 1655-1657, 1658- 
1660, 2121, 2125-2126, 2129, 363. 

O’Brien, Patrick. 

Referred to, 1686, 1689, 1894, 3789. 

O’Reilly, Dennis. 

Referred to, 1367. 

O’Brien, Laurence, 

Referred to, 1819, 1820. 

Ostrander, Alexander, examination of, 2271-2290. 
Ogilvie,-. 

Referred to, 2779J-, 2921, 3065, 3067, 3078. 
Ollendorf, Charles. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Orton,-. 

Referred to, 2938. 

O’Neil, Dennis. 

Referred to, 3047. 

O’Brien, Hugh. 

Referred to, 3333. 

O’llara, James. 

Referred to, 3844. 

O’Brien, Jeremiah. 

Referred to, page 389. 

Oliver street, Nos. 68 and 79. 

Referred to, page 389. 

O’Riley, Owen. 

Referred to, 4366, 4369. 

Odell,-. 

Referred to, 6111. 

Olney, George R., examination of, 7482-7495. 
O’Douovun, John, examination of, 87.591-8764. 

O’Brien, Patrick, examination of, 8982i-9005. 

O’Neal, I’al . 

Referred to, 9066. 

O’Brien, Patrick, examination of, 9088^. 

O’Brier?, Patrick, examination of, 9l0i'e. 


O’Brien, Dennis, examination of, 9159t. 

Owen, Nelson, examination of, 9129;’. 

Pohl, Peter, examination of, 1133-1136. 

Referred to, 630, 644, 804, 

Police, board of, how constituted. 

Referred to, 1235-1244. 

Perrine, John D., examination of, 2779, 

Referred to, 1253, 2266, 3296, 3297. 

Petitjean, Dr, 

Referred to, 1362, 

Park, Park street, and Park place. Nos. 1 and 
Referred to, 1783, 1889, 2281. 

Pearl street. Nos. 472, 474 and 476, 

Referred to, 1889, 2408, 8295, 8358. 

Parties furnished with name and residence for the pur¬ 
pose of repeating. 

Referred to 2273, 2277, 2453, 2454, 2619, 2623, 
4201, 42.38, 4289, 4517, 4926, 4942, 4992, 5032, 
5660, 5778, 5798, .5802, 6371, 6716, 6789, 6908, 
6914, 6820, 6939, 6943, 6969, 7043, 8040, 8538, 
8.543. 

Poll list or book. 

Referred to, 3052, 3053, pages 291, 308. 
Philliptown, Putnam county. 

Referred to, 2439, 2451, 

Prince street. 

Referred to, 2453. 

Philadelphia navy yard. 

Referred to, 2490, 2492, 2493. 

Portsmouth navy yard. 

Referred to, 2499, 2504, 2510. 

Phalon’s barber shop. 

Referred to, 2724. 

Paine, Joseph E., examination of, 3000, 3004. 

Recalled, 3004-3008. 

Phyfe, John, examination of, 3294-3311. 

Phillips, Lewis PI., examination of, 3064-3093. 

Referred to, 27791, 2921. 

Pickford &. Co. 

Referred to, 3341, 3362. 

Porter, John R, opinion of, 3537. 

Potter, Thomas, examination of, 4179, 4186. ♦ 

Purser, George H. 

Referred to, 4438, 4443. 

Pettit, Austin V., examination of, 5106, 5138, 

Referred to, 4636, 4639, 4647, 4734, 4758. 

Plumb, Edward M., examination of, 5154, 5105. 

Table presented by showing the number of per 
sons naturalized in New York county from 
the 6th to the 23d of October, inclusive 
Referred to, page 493; referred to, 3095, 
5951; recalled, 9387, 9392. 

Putnam, George. 

Referred to, 5143. 

Pullman, Christopher B., examination of, 5719, 5721. 

Referred to, 5149, 5717, 5718. 

Pierce, William. 

Referred to, 65.39, 6599, 6629, 6646, 6648, 6686, 
6688, 6703. 

IVrjury. 

Referred to, 6174, 6176, 6180, 6201, 6229, 6231, 
6236, 6271, 6313, 6350, 6351, 7246, 7247, 
Powers, l*atrick, examination of, 86731, 8684. 

Powers, Edmund, examination of, 8684^-, 8696. 
Partelio, Edward. 

Referred to. 9067. 

Peele, Richard, examination of, 90831-. 

Quinlan, Michael, examination of, 1936, 1946; page 
194. 

Quackenbush, D. P., examination of, 8726I;-873G. 
Quillan, Michael. 

Referred to, 9060. 

Queen, I’atrick. 

Referred to, 9070. 

Rejmold.s, Lemuel. 

Referred to, 1510, 1513. 

Roe, Rickard. 

Referred to, 1625. 

Rush, Joseph. 

Referred to, 1726, 2032, 3400, 3617. 

Roome, Samuel. 

Referred to, 1778. 

Roberts, Samuel A., examination of, 1965, 1983. 
Robertson, Chief Justice. 

Referred to, 1976, page 198, 3571, 4375, 5737. 
6364, 6865. 

Robertson, John, examination of, 2103, 2104. 

Rose. Referred to, 2936. 







ANALYTICAL INDEX 


889 


Ryan, James. 

Referred to, 3047, 

Rafferty, Patrick. 

Referred to, 8084, 3222, 1510, 1686, page 179, 
2118,3788,3855. 

Raynolds, Samuel, examination of, 197-220. 

Referred to, 80, 322, page 179, 2118, 3788, 3855. 

Reed, Charles E., examination of, 329-333. 

Repper, Frederick. 

Referred to, 509,2805. 

Rosenberg, Benjamin B, 

Clerks of, by whom paid, 862. 

Registration, frauds committed and attempted in— 

Referred to, 935, 1107, 1252, 1253, 1847, 2392, 
2420, 24.39, 2453, 2458, 2605, 3851, 4024, 4036, 
4043, 4055, 4108, 4110, 4135, 4383, 4599. 5227, 
5228, 5425, 5542, 5758, 5760, 5772, 5806. 5819, 
5824, 6092, 6094, 6370, 6710, 6789, 6908; 6914, 
6924, 6939, 6943, 6945, 6947, 6969, 6971, 6973, 
7042, 7096, 7099, 8494, 8496, 8572. 

Rosenberg, Benjamin B. 

Referred to, 2, 3, 4, .5, 7, 9, 11, 12, 14, 31, 32, 38, 
41, 64, 68, 69, 83, 89, 93, 95, 97, 106, 108, 112, 
113, 114, 124, 127, 132, 1.37, 138, 139, 14.3, 157, 

174, 175, 185, 189, 190, 195, 199, 206, 208, 214, 

215, 220, 222, 229, 230, 233, 238, 251, 258, 649, 

653, 654, 664, 670, 678, 682, 684, 686, 690, 691, 

692, 736, 803, 810, 831, 832, 835, 836, 844, 852, 

856, 861, 865. 871, 885, 887, 891-893, 894-896, 
898, 900, 904, 919, 948, 949, 953, 1152,1159,1206, 
1585, 1604, 1635, 1637, 1646, 1661, 1686, 1760, 
2263, 2399, 2695, 2696, 2698, 2746, 2747, 2775, 
2843, 2956, 3157, .3342, 3343, 3.358, 3551, 3601, 
3776, 3861, 4168, 4169, 4171, 4172, 4173, 4664. 

Rupert,-. 

Referred to, 927. 

Registries, sworn in. 

Referred to, 941,1785,1804, 1878,1940,1943,2054, 
2056. 2061,2065, 2164, 2209, 2210, 2220, 2309, 
2310, 2323. 2395, 2453, 2454, 2458, 2605, 2681, 
2799i, 3067, 3256, 3314, 4600. 

Repeaters and repeating. 

Referred to. 1809, 1988, 2273, 2275, 2276, 2453, 
2454, 2770, 2772, 2889, 2902, 2912, 3316, 3318, 
3325, 3328, 3391, 3392, 3675, 3851, 4024, 4030, 
4049, 4187, 4193, 4205, 4216, 42.38, 4269, 4271, 
4286, 4293, 4294, 4303, 4304, 4315, 4383, 4502, 
4505, 4509, pages 451, 452, 4816, 4819, 494.3, 
4945, 4948, 4990, 5012, 5027, 5031, 5227, 5288, 
5425, 5654, 5659, 5662, 5669, 5678, 5758, 5763, 
5867, 5892, 6097, 6.370, 6376, 6458, 6463, 6649, 
6707, 6711, 6788, 6792, 6804, 6906, 6913, 6917, 
6920, 6924, 6930, 6937, 6939, 6941, 6942, 6943, 
694.5, 6947, 6969, 6971, 6973, 6978, 6980, 6981, 
7042, 7043, 7096, 7099, 7275, 8494, 8554. 

Reinhart, Joseph, examination of, 2264-2270. 

Referred to, 1253, 2779, 3294, 3297, 3299. 3300, 
3305. 

Registries, from the houses of Wm. M. Tweed, Police 
Justice Shandley, and Coroner Keenan. 

Referred to, 3386i, 3387. 

Repeaters’ books, &c. 

Referred to, 3691-3698, 3703, 3708, 

Rodgers, John, ex.amination of, 4087-4091. 

Registries, from 169 Henry street. 

Referred to, 3051. 

Registries, from 162 Bayard street. 

Refei red to, 3055. 

Registries, from 116 Varick street. 

Referred to, 3098. 

Registries, from 197 Henry street. 

Referred to, 3098. 

Registries, from 167 Henry street. 

60 Mott street. 

62 Bayard street. 

70 Mott street. 

142 Sullivan street. 

679 Houston street. 

117 Spring street. 

84 Greene street. 

595 Broadway. 

Rayn, Thomas, examination of, 4397-4405. 

Recalled, 5524-5541. 

Raynolds, James. 

Referred to, 4650, 4753, 4755. 

Rynders, Isaac. 

Referred to, 4799. 

Reilly, Charles, examination of, 4816, 4856. 

Referred to, 6033. 

57 T 


Republican naturalization committee, clerks of. 

Referred to, 4912. 

Ryan, Peter. 

Referred to, 5100. 

Rodgers, Charles H., examination of, 7018-7031. » 

Referred to, 6850. 

Rowell, John M., examination of, 6896-6905. 

Rome, Jacob, examination of, 6943, 6944. 

Russell, Judge. 

Referred to, 7872, 7880, 8078, 8096, 9300, 9302. 
Reeves, David W. 

Referred to, 8604, 8608, 8616, 8621, 8631. 

Riordan, Michael, examination of,863U-8649. 

Roland, Patrick, examination of, 87834-8785. 

Repp, Charles, examination of, 90054-9014. 

Rayn, Joseph. 

Referred to, 9068. 

Robinson, Seth K., examination of, 9129a. 

Russell, Joseph E., examination of, 9174,9175. 

Simms, William T., examination of, 91-148. 

Referred to, 2. 69, 680, 849, 855, 864, 866, 885, 887, 
3789. 

Smith, James R. 

Referred to, 80. 84, 322, 825, 1475, 1509, 1511, 
page 179, 2118. 

Supreme court, certificates purporting to be of— 

Referred to, 76, 78-80, 84, 85, 86, 87, 92, 222, 259, 
262, 305, 322, 330, 340, 354, 358, 442, 493, 509, 
516, 604, 608, 622, 630, 638, 740, 1034,1079,1085, 
1252,1253,1506,1611,1686, 1688,1966. 

Shirley, Walter, examination of, 263-302. 

Referred to, 259, 262. 

Surridge, Thomas, examination of, 334-355. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 3855. 

Stewart, Dougal, examination of, 1105-11 . 

Referred to, 973, 980. 

SniflFen,-. 

Referred to, 1176. 

Staten island. 

Referred to, 1317. 

Sergeant-at-arms. 

Referred to, 1317. 

Schmidt, William, 

Referred to, 1345,1688, (page 179,) 3855. 

Spencer,-. 

Referred to, 1345. 

Spier, Gotleib. 

Referred to, 1370. 

Smith, Hugh. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 2117, 3855,3950. 
St, Thomas. 

Referred to, 2499. 

Sweeney, James M., examination of, 1717-1781, 

Referred to, 413, 425. 961, 1077, 1085,1607,1726, 
2100, 2182, 2183, 2187, 2192,3136.3404.34044, 
3407, 3408, 3422, 3437, 3480, 3488, 3585, 4117, 
4397, 4495, 5543, 6852. 

Parties signing name of, 7037. 

Referred to, 8416, 8425, 8444, 8447, 8466. 

Supei'ior court of the city of New York, certificates 
of naturalization purporting to be of. 
Referred to, 425,1726, 2028, 2033. 

Springer, John H., examination of, 487. 

Scannel, Florence, examination of, 5748-5818. 

Referred to, 516, 522, 535, 538, 5939, 6163,7073, 
7077, 7078, 

Recalled, 6004-6012. 

Recalled, 8472-8583. 

Seip, Charles H., examination of, 650-693. 

Referred to, 875. 

Recalled, 948-953, 

Sutherland, Judge. 

Referred to, 1519. 

Smith, John, 

Referred to, 1587-1588, 

Smith, James M. 

Referred to, 1686, 3788, 3855. 

Slechelseine, Adolph. 

Referred to, 1686,1689,1894, 3789. 

Schmidt, Thomas. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 3855. 

Schneider, Sebastian. 

Referred to. 1688, (page 179,) 3855, 

Schaffer, Jacob. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 3855. 

Sanger, August A. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 1079,1080 


! Referred to, 
j 3385. 

J 





890 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Stumpf. Ludwig. 

Keferrud to, 658. 

Sterne, Henry. 

Referred to. 824, 926, 927,1688, (page 179,) 3788, 

* 3855. 

Schlaffer, Jacob. 

Referred to, 825. 

Seigner, Andrew B. 

Referred to. 827, 2''34. 

Supreme court, when engaged in naturalization. 

Referred to, yi5 9*8, 920, 921, 1407, 1527,3796, 
3797,3852. 

Superior court, wlien engaged in naturalization. 

Referred to, 915, 921,1335, 1344, 3573,3599, 3600, 
4117. 

Superior court of the city of New York, seals of. 

Referred to, 17.36, 1768, 1770. 

Seixas, Solomon, examination of, 2327-2362. 

Slater, VVm. B. 

Referred to, 1812,1931, (page 193.) 

Sharkey, Michael. 

Referred to, 1830. 

Sundav 

Referred to, 1962,4390. 

Statute!.. 

Referred to, 1927,1966,1967. 

Storm. Ctiarles. 

Referred to, 1966, 1967. 

Springsteen, N. H., examination of, 2201-2230. 

Sullivan. 

Referred to, 2454, 2409. 

Sullivan street. Nos. 142, 143, and 54. 

Referred to, 2458, 2539,2612, page 291, 4024. 
Somers, David. 

Referi ed to, 24.5.3,2566, 2573, 2581,2604. 

Spring street, No. 117. 

Referred to, 2453. 

St. Nictio'as Hotel. 

Referred to, 2724. 

Sweeney, Peter B. 

Referi ed to, 2738, 2874,2878. 

Sherwin, J. 

Reierred to, 2753i. 

Schmidt, Peter. 

Referreri to, 2805. 

Sumner, Philip. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Shultz, Anthony. 

Referred to, 280.5. 

Sherman, Porter G., examination of, 925-937. 

Speck,-. 

Referred to, 1080. 

Sullivan, Daniel, examination of, 1082-1098. 

Referred to, 1099, 2028, 2.31, 3106, 3419, 3593, 
3.59.5, 3619. 

Sulliv.an, John. 

Referred to, 1109. 

Sullivan, Edward. 

Referred to, 1726. 

Sloan, Wm. D, examination of, 1984-1929, (pages 192, 
193.) 

Smith, Thomas, ex.amination of, 4001-4107. 

Referred to, 2294, 2295, 4083. 408.5. 4C90. 4C91, 
4092, 4091, 4098, 4099, 4100, 4106, 5732, 5734. 
Spencer, Charlev. 

R. ferretl to, 2937, 3893, 3894, 3899. 3900. 
Signatures, examination of, by an expert. 

Referred to, 3UU4-30.8. 

Stump, Martin. 

Referred to, 3214. 

Sellscock,-. 

Referred to, 3320. 

Shandley, (Justice,) Edward J,, examination of, 4108- 
4116. 

Referred to, 33861, 3395, 3402, 4363, 4374. 
Supreme court, seals of. 

Referred to, 1651-1653,3750,3752,3832-3836. 
Smith, Henr^'. 

Referred to, 3783. 

Seymour, 1'homas. 

Referred to, 3844. 

Scudder, Daniel. 

Referred to, 3852, 385.5. 

Shea. Dennis, exanduatiou of, 3986, 3999. 

Seymour and Blair. 

Referred to, 4037. 

Sheehan, William. 

Referred to, 4058. 


Smith,Malcolm, examination of, 5722-.5747. 

Referred to, 4080, 4081,4082, 4101, 4105, 6869, 
6885, ()886. 

List of persons naturalized, presented by, 5747. 
Spies, John. 

Referred to, 4109. 

Spies, Samuel. 

Referred to, 4109- 

Sweetzer, Henry E., examination of, 4232-4237. 

Referred to, tables Nos 1,2, 3, <fec., presented 
by, pages 422, 423, 424, aud 425. 

Recalled, 7092-7094. 

Smith,-. 

Referred to, 4521, 5454, 5463. 

Strong, (Major,) CharlesS., examination of, 9231-9246, 
Referred to, 4536, 5822, 5823, .5949. 

Tables relating to 6th ward, presented by, 
9233-9246. 

Shea,-. 

Referred to, 4577, 4580, 4591, 4592. 

Sheehan,-. 

Referred to, 5099, 5100. 

Sanford, Edward, jr, examination of, 5412-5423. 
Recall.^d, 5479. 

Recalled, 6033. 

Stephens, John. 

Referred to, 5442, 5548, 5549, 

Stanley, Marcus G., examination of, 70,5.5-7091. 

Referred to, 5486, 5.572, 5.592. 5.595, 5.597, 5650, 
56.56, 568.5. 5750, 5753, 57.54, 57.55, 5758, 5764, 
5565, 5766, 5771, 1577.3, 58)2, 5867, 5870, 5913, 
6097, 6122, 6168, 6528, 6531. 

Surratt, John II. 

Referred to, 5564. 

Sullivait, Thomas, examination of, 5599-5629. 

Referred to, 5621. .5628, 5631. 

Scannell, Deputy .She iff. 

Reference to, 5938. • 

Strong, James, examination of, 6248-6270. 

List of names presented by, 6248. 

Shay, Johnny or Jimmy. 

Referr* d to. 6769. 6770. 

Smith, James, examination of, 6906, 6912. 

Referred to, 7040. 

Stewart, William R., referred to, 69.52. 

Suyder, Ch rles, examination of, 7376-7384, (page 
670 ) 

Skelly, Barnard, examination of, 7398-7433, (pages 
671-673.) 

.Smith, John D. B., examination of, 7524-7.527. 

Smith. George. 

Referred to, 8727, 8723. 

Smith, George, examination of, 8719i-8726. 

Southwell, Edward, examination ot, 88431-8852. 
Southwell. 'Villiain J . 8852J-8856. 

St. John, Mr. -, examination of, 8909^. 

Suttle, George W., examination of, 8909A-89'J9i. 
Shaw, W. T. 

Referred to, 9083^. 

Smith, Martin, examination of, 9086-9088. 

Stivers, M. D., e.xainiiiation of. 9121^-9124. 

Tammany Hall, and eomiu'ttee of, &c.. 

Referred to. 437, 202,219, 294, 20.3. 2.57.683,737, 
1310, 1337, 1783, 1962, 25.53,22.56. 2.i96, 2742, 
2811, 28 '8, 2810, 2861, 2864. 2876, 2881, 2937, 
29.52. 29.54, 3137, 3’43, 314.5, 3146, 3147, 3148, 
3149,3152, 31,56, 3493, 3.567, 4025, 40.52,33.30, 
3134, 3339, .3312. 3343, 3341,3351, 3352, 3.359, 
3371, 3378, 4173, 449.5,4652, 4664, 4785, 5134, 
5154, 58 8, 4638, 4659, 4741, 4918, 7384,7392, 
7393,9291. 

Tickets, (red,) democratic, for natnralizntion fees. 

Referred to. 242. 68.5. 802, 1337, 1374,1646,1647, 
1699, 1702, 1706. 3i90, 3357, 33.58, 3360, 3361, 
.3374, 3376, 3377, 3378, 3825, 3826, 3828, 3t29, 
3830. .•1 p43. 

Tickets, (white.) republican, for natnralizntion fees. 
Ref. ri-ctl to, 242, 1647, 3828, 3829, 3830, 3843, 
4918, 739.3. 

Tweed, William M.. examination of, 2810-2894. 

Referre d to. .^81, 239J, 2738, 2742, 3098, 3331, 
3507, 449.5, 6952. 

Taufnor, August. 

Beferred to, 656. 

Thomp on, -. 

Heferred l.*, 827. 

Third avenue. 

Referred to, 863. 




ANALYTICAL INDEX 


891 


Thirty-foiirth street and Ninth avenue. 

Ileterred to, 1252. 1253,2254,2425. 

Twenty-third streit and avenue. 

Referred to, 1800. 

The Senate. 

Referred to, 1830. 

Thirty-second stieet East, No. 120. 

Referred to, 1857. 

Thirty-second street and Second avenue, corner of. 
Referred to, 1906,3903,5388, 6848, 4192, 4196, 
4206, 4226, 4237, 4238,4269, 4283, 4510, 4527. 
4520, 4540, 4544, 4546, 4554, 4559, 4926, 4989, 
4992. 

Trenton, New.Ter.sey. 

Referred to, 1988, (page 197.) 

Thirty-fifth street and Ninth avenue, corner of. 

Reference to, 2C99. 

Thirty-seventh street West, No. 244. 

Referred to, 2281. 

Tryon Row, 

Referred to, 295.5. 

Threats, violence, intimidation, (fee. 

Referred to, 981-987, 1812. 3264. 3269. 3282, 3742, 
.3999, 40S7, 4132, 4164, 4612, 7102, 9190. 

Tilden, Satnuel J., e.xaniination of, 2733-27.52. 
Circular purporting to be of, 1210, 2734. 
Referred to, 1211, 1214, 2176, 2936. 

Tracy,-, 

Referred to, 1.345. 

Tabular statements, number of y)er.sons registering 
and voting from same house, <fec. 

Referred to, 2023,2129, 3049,3051, 3''.53, 305.5, 
3098, (page 308,) 3385, (pages 353-366.) 
Travis, W. H. 

Referred to, 2453, page 291, 3094. 

T’eller, Clarence N., examination of, 2753-2768. 

Threail,-. 

Referred to, 28951, 2899. 

Thompson, George. 

Referred 10,2961,2964. 2970,3406.3414,(page657.) 
Thurston, John, examination of, 4330-4352. 

Referred to, 4186. 

Taylor, .1 ames B, 

Referred to, 4495. 

Toulon. 

Referred to, 4514. 

Train, George Francis. 

Referred to, 4986, 4987, 5282, 5283, .5284, 5286. 
Tupper, F. F., examination of, 7274-7312. 

Taylor’s Hotel. 

Referred to, 5323, .5353, 5366, 5461. .5549, 5517, 
6035, 6012, 6322, 6504, 6909, 7275, 7787, 7304. 
Taylor, Theodore, 

Referred to, 8391, 

Thompson, James A., examination of, 8449-8471. 
Tyrsel, Fati ii k, examination of, 88521. 

Tracy, Richard, examination of, 8892^-8909. 

Titus, William, examination of, 8912c. 8913. 

Tichen, Fred* rick, examiuadon of, 9160, 9161. 

Taylor. Theodore, examination of, 9200, 9201, 

Union League Club, committee of, rooms, (fee. 

Referred to, 1260, 1317, 1381, 1900, 1904, 2178, 
2180, 2191, 2194, 2289, 2576, 4034, 4069, 4166, 
4671, 4676, 5141, 5142, 5151, 516.3, 5188, .5696, 
5700, ,57i:), 5716, .5822, 5826, .5829, 6067, 6070. 
6072, 6074, 6077, 6079, '6366, 6634, 6640, 6638. 
6645, 7172, 7178, 7244, 8269, 8306, 8312, 8313, 
8315, 8316, 8362. 

Committee of, 7202. 

Urmy, Samuel S , examination of, 1805-1858. 

Arrest of, 1813. 

Referred to, 1900, 1919, 1921, 1924, 192.5, 1926, 
1984, 1985, 1931, page 193, 1932, page 193,3608, 
3902. 

Utley, Robert, examination of, 48-57-487.3. 

Referred to, 4669, 6671, 4672, 4746, 4771, 4772, 
4813.4815. 

Ullraan, Captain. 

Referred to, 7168. 

Unswart’, Robert, examination of, 8951c, 

Votes, sworn in. 

Referred to, 932. 933,129.5,1807,1841,194-5,1967, 
]"31, (page 193,) 2067, 2141, 21.5.5, 220.5, 2688, 
2712.2753, 2759, :)028. 3076, 3217, 3318, (page 
389.) 4 63, 4344, 4575. 4.589. 

Voters, proportion of foreign birth. 

Referred to, 931, 940, 1784, 1786,1823,1832,1862, 
2097. 2149, 2219, 2316, 2351, 2691, 2871, 2908, 
2929, 3029, 3080. 


Varick street. No, 116. 

Referred to, 1362, 3055. 

Valentine,-. 

Referred to, 1627, 8394. 

Van Buren, B(-njarnin, examination of, 2076-2098. 

Referred to, 1789, 2051,2329, 2344, 2345. 

Votes, rejected. 

Referred to, 2320, 2372, 2392. 

Vera Cruz. 

Referred to, 2499. 

Vanderpoel. 

Referred to, 3536. 

Varley, (alias Reddy,) William. 

Referred to, 3675. 

Vandervoort, Henry, examination of, 3983 to 3985. 
Record of court relating to James O’Brien, pre¬ 
sented by, 3985. 

Votes, illegal. 

Referred to, 1857, 1864, 1888, 2113, 2273, 2770, 
2772, 3051,3 53. 30.55. 3233, 4030, 4019, 4058, 
4G67, 4135, 4187, 4193, 4216, 42.38, 4269, 4271, 
4286, 4-501, 450;i, 4-509, 4601, 46u2, 4816, 4819, 
4926, 4943, 4945, 4948, 4990, 4993, 5027, 5031, 
5227, 5288, .5425. 5658, 5659, 5662, 5758, 5763, 
5776, 5868, 6370. 6788, 6792, 6804, 6906, 6913, 
6917, 6920, 6937, 69.39, 694!, 6942, 6945, 6947, 
6969, 6971, 6973, 7042, 7043, 8283, 8284, 8552, 
85.54. 

Voorbees, Abraham, examination of, 6365-6367. 
Recalled, 6851. 

List of witnesses presented by, 6851. 

Recalled, 7741-7748. 

Recalled. 9186-9188. 

Volmer, Paul, examination of, 6937-6977. 

Verplank’s Point. 

Referred to, 7376, 7.378, 7381, (page 670.) 
Referred to, 7397. 7398, 7406, (page 671.) 

Van Eton, Solomon, examination of, 8909,/. 

Vail, Wilinot U., examination of, 8909,7. 

Vinall. George F,, examination of, 8909,4. 

Van Wyck,-. 

Referred to, 9129,/. 

Wilkes, George. 

Referred to, 1394, 56.52, 5752, 5754, 5755, 5758, 
5764, 5770, 5779, 5875, 6846. 

Winkens, .Fohn. 

Referred to, 1688, (page 179,) 3788, 3855. 
Wallace. John. 

Referred to, 1726, 2028. 

Willis, Anson, examination of, 1782-1804. 

Referred to. 2051, 2.54, 2056, 2078, 2:79, 2090, 
2329, 2337, 

Westlake, Owen E., examination of, 2022-2049, 

Referred to, 2 78, 2179, 2182, 21K1, (page 235,) 
3106, 344.5, 34.57, 8164, 8168, 8169, 8172, 8174, 
8177, 8416, 8417, 8442, 8443, 8456, 8457, 8469, 
8470. 

Waltman, Henry, examination of. 2231-2263. 

Referred to, 2061, 2062. 2072, 4021. 

Winters, or Winter. Frederick. 

Ref(-rred to, 2103. 

Washington street. No. 62. 

Referred to, 2118. 

Webster, E. 11. 

Referred to, 2, 92, 93. 

Whiting,-. 

Rnferred to, .586. 

Wolf, Mathias, examination of, 767-774. 

Referred to, 630, 807. 

Weitschel. C. 

Referred to, 656, 

Warneck, Charles, 

Referred to. 824. 926, 927,1688. (page 179,) 3855. 
White, Jolin H., examination of, 4779-4875 

Retenvd to. 4264, 1270, 1274, 127.5, 1282. 4671, 
4673, 4870. 5139, 5142, 515.’. 5161), 5162, 5164, 
516,5, 5186, 5188, 5192, 5199, 5203, 5204, 5208, 
556.3, .5694, 5696, 5698, 5699. 

Recalled, 522.5. 

Recalled. .57'2-.57I6. 

R-called, 7170-7206. 

Referred to, 8065. 

West Broadway. 

Beft rred to, 1.362. 

Ward, Henry, examination of, 2291-2302, 
Westchester comity. 

Referred to, 2292, 2753, 4C80. 

Ward, John. 

Referred to, 2408. 



892 


ANALYTICAL INDEX 


Wilson, Andrew, 

Referred to, 2429. 

Walters, Charles. 

Referred to, 2543, 2561, 3328, page 309. 

Welch, James. 

Referred to, 2453, (page 291.) 

Wallen, Henry D, 

Referred to, 2475, 2481. 

Washington, 

Referred to, 2494, 2495, 2498. 

Wirtheimer, Joseph. 

Referred to, 2805. 

Writing, examination of, by an expert. 

Referred to, 3004, 3008. 

Ward, Alexander. 

Referred to, 3333. 

Williams, George. 

Referred to, 3400, 

Walling, George Sv., examination of, 3673-3709. 

Referred to, 3844, 4532, 4536, 7114. 

Walton. 

Referred to, 3793. , 

Wenhold, Thomas. 

Referred to, 3844. 

Watson, James. 

Referred to, 3844. 

Wooster street, No. 132, 

Referred to, 4024. 

White Plains. 

Referred to, 4080, 4083, 4085, 4087, 4089, 4099, 
4101, 4102, 4103. 

Welsh, David, examination of, 4092-4094. 

Weaver, James. 

Referred to, 4110. 

Woodward, William W., examination of, 4383-4385, 
Referred to, 4135. 

Wilbur, Charles E., examination of, 2168-2177. 

Recalled, 4138-4162, 4495. 

Wall, Richard. 

Referred to, 4166. 

Wood, Colonel. 

Referred to, 4228, 4507, 4962, 5499, 5505, 5520, 
5521, 5570, 5963, 5965, 5966, 5969, 5975, 5977, 
5978, 6167, 6273, 6276, 6278, 6280, 6303, 6305, 
6306, 6313, 6315, 6317, 6323, 6327, 6331, 6355, 
6422, 6431, 6432, 6499, 6760, 6765, 6847, 7186, 
(page 6.57,) 7275, 7276, 7278, 7282, 7284, 7295, 
7296, 7300, 7303, 7305, 7307, 7308. 

Welch, Edward. 

lleferred to, 4296. 


Woods, -. 

Referred to, 4592. 

White,-. 

Referred to, 5016, 5099. » 

White, James. 

Referred to, 5019. 

Wood, William, examination of, 5027-5085. 

Ward, Samuel. 

Referred to, 5397. 

Wilson, William, examination of, 5424-5473. 
Referred to, 5479, 5480. 

Willis,-. 

Referred to 5550. 

WTlley, J. C. W. 

Referred to, 5947. 

Wood, -. 

Referred to, 2104, 6033. 

Ward, James, examination of, 6271-6309. 

Referred to, 6313, 6314. 

Ward, William, examination of, 7040, 7041. 

Referred to, 6284, 6291. 

Recalled, 7233-7238. 

Wood, John, examination of, 6368-6454. 

Referred to, 6686, 6688. * 

Witness, professional. 

Referred to, 731.3. 

Wood, Fernando. 

Referred to, 8060. 

Welch, Robert. 

Referred to, 8309. 

Witter, Edward. 

Referred to, 8390. 

Wood, James W., examination of, 8867-8870. 

Wilson, Nicholas, examination of, 9017J-9065. 

Young. W’^illiam W., examination of, 508-514. 

Referred to, 824, 926. 

Yonkers. 

Referred to, 856, 868-870, 1689. 

Young, Captain, (detective.) 

Referred to, 2550, 4132. 

York, Thomas H., examination of, 5102-5104. 

Statement showing the nu-mber of persons nat¬ 
uralized in Kings county from 1856 to 1868, 
presented by, (page 492.) 

Statement showing the number of persons nat¬ 
uralized during October, 1868, presented by, 
•(page 493.) 

Yard, -. 

Referred to, 6849. 


o 




ERRATA. 


Question 2, for “issuing ” read issue. 

Question 47, for “ check ” read clerk. 

Page 7, end of line 5 and beginning of 6, for “ repeaters registered” read repeaters who 
goes and registers upon it. 

Question 72, for “ clerks ” read clerk. 

Question 82, line 3, for “it is in ” read it is. 

Question 82, line 4, for “ we/e ” read are. 

Question 148, line 1, for “ any of the ” read any one of the. 

Question 9375, line 1, for “ were you ” read was you. 





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